Herb’s Pit BBQ – Murphy, NC

June 9, 2014July 31, 2014 / Barbecue Bros / 11 Comments

Name: Herb’s Pit B-B-Q
Date: 5/29/14
Address: 15735 U.S. 64, Murphy, NC 28906
Order: Chopped Bar-B-Q plate with fries and hush puppies (link to menu)
Price: $9.99

Speedy: Monk and I have been talking for a while about trying to hit up every spot on the Historic NC Barbecue Trail. It’s a lofty goal, but one made even more difficult by the presence of Herb’s Pit BBQ, which sits just outside of Murphy, NC, which is literally as far west as you can go in the state. So when a six hour drive to Nashville popped up on my schedule, I couldn’t resist the urge to make it an eight hour drive in order to check out Herb’s. So first things first – if you want to go to Herb’s, you will be driving two hours out of the way. It is in the middle of nowhere.

Monk: What a soldier for the cause. Mad props to you, Speedy. I thought this would be the last place we would get to on the trail. And that it would be in like 2018.

Speedy: Anything for our readers, Monk. I knew this barbecue was going to have to blow me away for me to ever eat it again. Spoiler alert: it didn’t.

When you walk in to Herb’s, it’s set up sort of like a Cracker Barrel, with a small country store in the room with the register. When I got there, the restaurant was basically empty, so I went and sat myself. The dining room is large and would seat plenty, and the tables are fairly nice. Herb’s also has a salad bar, which is a first for me at a ‘cue joint. I didn’t bother to peek at the salad bar, and if you want to know how it is, you’re reading the wrong site.

Monk: …or are Mrs. Monk.

Speedy: Monk – you and I both know she doesn’t read the site.

Monk: True… *sigh*

Speedy: Anyhoo, opening the menu, I saw quite a few other food options – steaks, burgers – as well as a variety of barbecue goodness. Surprisingly, Herb’s cooks brisket, ribs, and chicken in addition to the standard pork. Normally, I would’ve ordered everything, but I was by myself and was not super hungry (a poor excuse, I know),

Monk: Hey, that’s called pulling a Monk!

Speedy: …so I stuck with the staple – the chopped BBQ plate. I asked the waitress whether the slaw is mayo based, and it is, so I didn’t bother to order it. Let’s just assume I tried it and found it to be terrible. Instead, I went with fries and hush puppies, which is fairly standard for me.

I was surprised by the amount of time it took for the meal to arrive. I actually took this as a good sign, thinking it means the ‘cue was reheated over fire as opposed to sitting in a warmer all afternoon (I was eating around 2:30, so missed the lunch rush).

Monk: Or as opposed to being reheated in a microwave.

Speedy: I was served a generous portion and was excited to dig in. The pork was actually quite good. It had great smoke flavor, was very tender, and included plenty of bark. It was not dry at all (read: no heat lamp) and probably didn’t need any extra dip. However, in an effort to try the dip provided on the table, I did add a generous portion about halfway through my meal. This was a mistake. The dip was just too sweet. It definitely could have used more vinegar and something to give it some heat (I’d prefer red pepper, but just throwing some Texas Pete in there would’ve done wonders). I don’t want to say it ruined the pork, but it was not an improvement. Overall, though, I was impressed with the pork on the plate.

Monk: The pork sounds good (sans dip of course) and based on your description, I can see why Herb’s was included on the Historic NC BBQ Trail (even if it is in BFE NC). You get that smoke by cooking over wood.

Speedy: The hush puppies were another story – they were not good. Maybe it was due to over-frying, but I just didn’t think the flavor was there. The fries were pretty good – thick cut steak fries – but overall, the sides were not impressive.

The pork was very good, and if you do happen to be passing through Murphy, Herb’s is worth a stop. I’m curious whether their other meats are as good as the pork – I suspect they are, as Herb’s seems to cook things the right way. However, the inconvenience of the location likely means this will be my one and only visit to Herb’s.

(For another review of Herb’s, check out Marie, Let’s Eat!)

Ratings:
Atmosphere/Ambiance – 3 hogs
Pork – 4 hogs
Sides – 2 hogs
Overall – 3.5 Hogs

A & G Bar-B-Que & Chicken – Carolina Beach, NC

June 2, 2014July 31, 2014 / Barbecue Bros / Leave a comment

Name: A & G Bar-B-Que & Chicken
Date: 5/21/14
Address: 800 S Lake Park Blvd, Carolina Beach, NC 28428
Order: Pork BBQ chopped plate with cole slaw, yam sticks, hush puppies, and sweet tea (link to menu)
Price: $10

I don’t really have high hopes when it comes to barbecue at the beach. Even still, as soon as I passed A & G Bar-B-Que & Chicken in Carolina Beach, I knew that I would be checking it out at some point during our week-long stay at nearby Kure Beach, and after a few days it was time to finally do just that to escape the monotony of honey baked ham sandwiches at the house.

Unfortunately, it was no surprise to me that the barbecue itself wasn’t all that great. The meat itself lacked smoke and was clearly cooked in a gas or electric smoker, possibly not even one where you can add wood chips to approximate smoke. Also, the texture of the coarsely pulled chunks was fairly mushy. And once I added the house made sauce, in each bite the meat was overpowered by the vinegar.

The hush puppies come with each barbecue plate and were simply ok but weren’t as sweet as I’d prefer. The cole slaw, on the other hand, had too much sugar and was far too sweet. For my second side, I decided to try “yam sticks” which are more or less like deep fried cheese sticks, but with mashed yams instead of mozzarella cheese. I have to admit, they were just kind of weird.

A & G Bar-B-Que & Chicken is located in a small roadside shack with both window and sit-down service, and in addition to barbecue they serve fried chicken and seafood. Next time I go, I’ll probably forgo the roast pork they call barbecue and go one of those routes instead.

-Monk

Ratings:
Atmosphere/Ambiance – 3 hogs
Pork – 2 hogs
Sides – 2 hogs
Overall – 2 Hogs

Duke’s Old South BBQ – Leland, NC

May 26, 2014July 31, 2014 / Barbecue Bros / Leave a comment

Name: Duke’s Old South BBQ
Date: 5/17/14
Address: 318 Village Rd NE, Leland, NC 28451
Order: Plate special with barbecue, baked beans, brunswick stew, hush puppies, pickles, and sweet tea (link to menu)
Price: $7.50

Just across the Cape Fear River from Wilmington lies the town of Leland. The coast~~al plain~~ of NC isn’t really known for having great barbecue, but Duke’s Old South BBQ is trying to do things the right way, cooking their ‘cue over hickory and charcoal.

Duke’s marks yet another first for me in my barbecue travels – the barbecue buffet. Normally, this would make me skeptical about the barbecue, assuming it had been sitting in a steam tray for hours and getting an iffy texture in the process. On this particular trip, the stream tray ended up claiming victim to half of my order.

The barbecue had a slight touch of smoke but the lacked chunks of bark I like to see. It was also a little on the dry side and needed some of the side sauce. Duke’s Old South offers three sauces – sweet, mild, and spicy – and I opted for spicy, an eastern NC-style vinegar-based sauce. Each table also has Texas Pete, so I used that as well. Overall, the barbecue wasn’t half bad once aided by these sauces.

The sides were another matter. I went for brunswick stew and baked beans and while I didn’t have many complaints with either, they didn’t knock my socks off. My wife got mac and cheese, and it was dry and crusty from sitting in the steam tray too long. The hush puppies had an odd taste to them, reminiscent more of a seafood hush puppy than a barbecue one. Each plate also comes with a choice of dill or sweet pickles, which seems a little weird for a NC barbecue place.

The dining area is basically a large rectangular room with cafeteria-style seating and fluorescent lights. To be honest, it could use some work in terms of atmosphere or ambiance, although the bluegrass/country music playing over the speakers helped a little.

Duke’s Old South BBQ does have some nice things going for it, mainly in terms of the barbecue itself. If it stepped up its game in terms of sides and atmosphere, it could be a hidden jewel. As it stands, its just a nice little joint with a few flaws just off NC-74 heading into Wilmington.

-Monk

Ratings:
Atmosphere/Ambiance – 2.5 hogs
Pork – 3.5 hogs
Sides – 2 hogs
Overall – 3 Hogs

Bar-B-Q King – Charlotte, NC

May 19, 2014August 1, 2014 / Barbecue Bros / Leave a comment

Name: Bar-B-Q King
Date: 5/16/14
Address: 2900 Wilkinson Blvd, Charlotte, NC 28208
Order: Bar-B-Q plate with cole slaw, hush puppies, and Sundrop (link to menu)
Price: $10.95

Bar-B-King is a drive-in on Wilkinson Blvd in West Charlotte and you’ve passed it if you have ever headed to or from the airport. Having myself lived in Charlotte for over 9 years, I must have passed it a hundred times. They’ve been there since 1959 serving barbecue (among other items such as burgers, hot dogs, and fried seafood). Admittedly, it’s been a few years (probably even more than that) since I’ve been to a drive-in, but I enjoyed the heck out of this experience.

The barbecue comes pre-sauced and isn’t all that smokey. The sauce slathered on top is slightly tangy, thick red sauce. I probably would have preferred it on the side, but I understand that the meat isn’t spiced or rubbed (h/t Marie, Let’s Eat!) so it might have been a little plain without it.

The hush puppies were huge and I dug them quite a bit, even though I couldn’t finish the generous portion they gave. The slaw is white and came with a pickle on top.

After my meal, I stepped out of my car and took a few photos (as I do), and the carhop noticed and invited me inside to take a few more photos. And the guys inside couldn’t have been nicer, allowing me to take a few photos and even a couple graciously posing for me.

Bar-B-Q King isn’t essential if you are looking for Charlotte’s best barbecue, but it’s a neat drive-in experience that is worth checking out before the drive-in itself possibly becomes extinct in the coming years.

-Monk

Ratings:
Atmosphere/Ambiance – 4.5 hogs
Pork – 2.5 hogs
Sides – 3 hogs
Overall – 3 Hogs