Monk: Congrats to Garren and Kelly Kirkman of Jon G’s Barbecue, who 4 years ago yesterday purchased the former Barbee’s Barbecue in Peachland and turned it into the Jon G’s Barbecue we know and love today. They took a few months to get the place ready for business before opening in June of 2020. Have you made it out for a Barbecue Saturday yet?
John Tanner makes some recent stops in NC at Red Bridges Barbecue in Shelby
…followed by Lexington Barbecue; quite the one-two punch
An Our State writer from out east discovers that Lexington Barbecue isn’t so different from her beloved eastern NC barbecue after all (I’ve been saying the same thing for years!)
If you happen to be in the market for a BQ Grill out of Elm City, they have a clear out sale going on right now:
Monk: I’m no local, but I’ve spent my fair share of time in Charleston over the years. As Charleston’s barbecue reputation has risen, I’ve always felt like Charlotte could learn some lessons from the Holy City. From homegrown restaurants to luring big names and regional chains, it could be argued that the overall quality of barbecue in Charleston has skyrocketed beyond Charlotte in the past 5 years.
In alphabetical order, here are the ten best barbecue restaurants in Charleston along with my tiers of the rest of them. Thoughts? What should I hit on my next time in town later this spring?
Tier 1
Lewis Barbecue John Lewis brought legitimate Texas barbecue to Charleston in 2016 and instantly became a must visit for any serious barbecue fans visiting the city. Between this restaurant, another on this list, and his annual Hatch Chile Fest in October, Lewis has certainly put his imprint on the city. 464 N Nassau St, Charleston, SC 29403lewisbarbecue.com/
Palmira Barbecue Palmira’s the new kid on the block in this top tier. Hector Garate started with popups before moving to a stall at the now shuttered Port of Call food hall. His long-awaited brick and mortar finally opened up earlier this month and is a must stop now. 2366 Ashley River Rd Building 1, Charleston, SC 29414palmirabbq.com/
Rancho Lewis John Lewis’ other restaurant is not a barbecue restaurant per se, but the mesquite smoked beef back ribs is one of the top barbecue bites in the city. 1503 King St, Charleston, SC 29403rancholewischs.com/
Rodney Scott’s Barbecue Every day is a good day when you get to try the whole hog and ribs from Rodney Scott at his flagship restaurant. 1011 King St, Charleston, SC 29403rodneyscottsbbq.com/
Tier 2
Martin’s Bar-B-Que Joint The Martin’s Bar-B-Que restaurant group has nine restaurants located in Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama, and South Carolina, and is one of the better (if not best) regional chains for barbecue in the southeast. Their Charleston location on James Island opened in 2019 and gave a great option for locals as well as folks on their way to Folly Beach. 1622 Highland Ave, Charleston, SC 29412 martinsbbqjoint.com/charleston
Melvin’s Barbecue Melvin’s should be applauded for seeing the light and moving back to wood from gas back in 2015, and my first visit just last year vindicated that decision for the 80 year old restaurant. 538 Folly Rd, Charleston, SC 29412melvinsbbq.com/
Sweatman’s Bar-b-que A few years back, Sweatman’s would have be firmly in the top level, but after switching to gas they are moved down a tier. 1427 Eutaw Rd, Holly Hill, SC 29059 sweatmansbbq.com/
Tier 3
Home Team BBQ Home Team has above average barbecue in their restaurants primarily located in South Carolina (with one in Aspen!) but based on my experience they are more of a sports bar that happens to serve barbecue. Not a bad option, but there are certainly better if your focus is barbecue versus drinks and catching the game. Multiple locations hometeambbq.com/
Swig & Swine Swig & Swine has a Thursday whole hog special across their 3 restaurants in the Charleston area, and I loved their hash and rice the last time I visited while finding the pulled pork to be average. multiple locations swigandswinebbq.com/
Tier 4
Poogan’s Smokehouse Poogan’s is a pricey barbecue option off East Bay Street aimed at prying money from Charleston visitors. I found the meat to be average but the sides amazing. 188 E Bay St, Charleston, SC 29401pooganssmokehouse.com/
What is your favorite Charleston barbecue restaurant? Is there any place that I missed?
Name: Swig & Swine Date: 4/15/23 Address: 1217 Savannah Hwy, Charleston, SC 29407 Order: Pulled pork barbecue sandwich with hash and rice (link to menu) Pricing: $$
Monk: Swig & Swine has been hit or miss for the Barbecue Bros in the past. Speedy visited this location almost exactly 9 years prior to my most recent visit and found it to be slightly above average (and presumably not just because Speedy’s phone at the time took mediocre photos).
I later checked out the Summerville location 3 years later and liked it quite a bit more. That location at the time had enough space to smoke whole hogs while also putting out some pretty credible brisket as well. Now, whole hog appears to be a Thursday only special (at least at this location) while the brisket continues to be on the regular menu.
Since then, pitmaster Anthony DiBernardo has since become sole owner of Swig & Swine, buying out his initial partners Queen Street Hospitality Group in 2019 while also co-founding the fantastic Holy Smokes barbecue festival, which I went to last year and hope to be back at again in the near future
Back to the West Ashley location, which I understand to be the first of the now three-strong chain. Coming off the Rancho Lewis experience the prior night, I wasn’t exactly in a particularly hungry state even after a short hike at the Morris Island lighthouse at Folly Beach. I opted for a simple pulled pork sandwich (yes, yes I know but that’s how its listed on the menu) with a side of hash and rice.
Comparing this with Melvin’s BBQ a few days prior, I like the pork sandwich less and the hash and rice more. The pork was large portion but a bit on the bland side even with some nice chunks of barked chopped in. Unfortunately it seemed as if it absolutely had to have one of the sauces from the table poured on. The vinegar sauce certainly helped the cause.
The hash and rice was thicker than what I had at the James Island Melvin’s with more flavor. This is actually the opposite of what John Tanner experienced on his visit so take from that what you will. For me, it was my favorite part of the meal
Had I read Speedy’s review before hand, I would have gotten some smoked wings and opted for the sausage sandwich special for that day. Whoops, shame on me.
Swig & Swine seems to do a brisk catering and bulk pick-up business on the weekend as from our view on the patio we saw several cars back in, open their tailgates, and pick up large aluminum pans of barbecue and sides. I like to imagine that they were going to a fun outdoor party. On that day, they would have enjoyed a beautiful spring low country day and some above-average-but-not-quite-transcendent barbecue.
Monk: Jake Wood of Lawrence Barbecue is launching what he hopes will be a new annual event, called Frankie Lemmon’s Gettin’ Piggy With It in support of the Frankie Lemmon School. By way of background, “Frankie Lemmon School is a NAEYC accredited, 5-star child development center that welcomes children ages 2-6 with and without disabilities.”
For the event, he’s partnering with Trophy Brewing in Raleigh and utilizing their new event venue Maywood Hall & Garden. And he’s bringing with him some heavy hitters in the world of barbecue, not only in North and South Carolina but also one from California. The full list of pitmasters and chefs:
Dampf Good BBQ – Cary, NC
Jon G’s Barbecue – Peachland, NC
King BBQ – Charleston, SC
Lawrence Barbecue – Durham, NC
Lewis Barbecue – Charleston, SC
Locals Seafood – Raleigh, NC
Longleaf Swine – Raleigh, NC
N. Sea Oyster Co. – Hampstead, NC
Shepard Barbecue – Emerald Isle, NC
Southern Smoke Barbecue – Garland, NC
Wye Hill – Raleigh, NC
ZEF BBQ – Los Angeles, CA
Tickets are on sale as of of today for the May 21 event. Tickets and event information available here
Native News
AVL Today profiles two Asheville-area joints on the Historic NC Barbecue Trail: Switzerland Cafe in Little Switzerland and Hubba Hubba Smokehouse in Flat Rock
The Bone Suckin’ Sauce Peak City Pig Fest, a KCBS event, took place this past weekend in Apex
NoDa Brewing and Jon G’s Barbecue have teamed up for a fun event at their OG Taproom on April 27th…but tickets have already sold out
We only have a few tickets left…
We've teamed up with @JonGsBBQ to bring you Beer & BBQ, an exclusive event at our OG Taproom 🙌
Gear Patrols dives into the best charcoal grills on the market
In the same way many driving enthusiasts prefer manuals to automatics, there is carnal satisfaction in direct control, higher failure rates and sky-high potential. https://t.co/pFCxckZVLA
John Tanner checks out Rodney Scott’s Barbecue to compare it to the original; his findings may surprise you
Speaking of Rodney Scott, he’s teamed up with The Spice House to create a line of spice blends available to purchase now
We are so excited to share 4 NEW spice blends in collaboration with legendary @PitmasterRS! Each balanced blend adds a touch of barbecue brilliance to anything you cook.
Subtle smokiness & a sweet-savory flavor make this coffee cocoa rub a favorite all-purpose seasoning. Rub it on a whole pork shoulder, sprinkle it over a ribeye for a cowboy steak, or add a spoonful to beans & chili.
Goldee’s Barbecue will soon be selling their own smokers, made in partnership with M&M BBQ Company
The caption says it all
Here is an AI generated photo of a "Classic Central Texas-style barbecue brisket". It is clearly taking its cues from John Cornyn. pic.twitter.com/ZMUo8sQ8An
Congrats to Daniel Vaughn on 10 years as barbecue editor for Texas Monthly
I took this photo ten years ago on my first day at @TexasMonthly. Hard to believe that writing about barbecue has been my full time job for a decade. pic.twitter.com/40tLyllmbl
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