Tags
BBQ, Charleston, food, restaurants, reviews, South Carolina, taproom
I have never let my schooling interfere with my barbecue. – Mark Twain
My grandfather loved BBQ. And I think he ate at every BBQ place that he could. Because of his great love for this culinary delight, our family has become BBQ snobs. Regardless of the sauce, a good BBQ must first be based on quality meat. It must be well smoked, moist, tender, and not shredded into bug dust. My favorite part is the blackened edges of meat. I prefer pork by far. But a good brisket should not be ignored.
Because of our family origins in South Carolina, my favorite is mustard based BBQ sauce. We loved it so much that my great uncle Marvin created his own sauce based off Maurice’s BBQ Piggie Park. My grandfather went to elementary school and played baseball with the founder of the restaurant. Our little connection to greatness 😀
Bessinger’s Bar-B-Q in Charleston, SC
It is tradition that we go to Bessinger’s when we are in Charleston. There are several locations but we prefer the one on Savannah Hwy.
With numerous awards under their belt, Maurice’s makes the best pork BBQ with fantastic onion rings and phenomenal sweet tea (tea like only you can find in the South). There is always a ton of food. The Platter is shown below (About $15)… That includes BBQ chicken, pork, and brisket along with three sides.
I have no idea how you could leave without being completely satisfied. We love the simple, food focused presentation. They don’t do that super commercialized thing. See how they do kid’s meals… Gotta love the marker decorations! Proof that you go here for the food not the toy!
If you are every in Charleston, you HAVE to go to Bessinger’s! We rate it 5 out of 5. Pure Southern hospitality!
The Smoky Oak Taproom on James Island, SC
This place is the BOMB! It truly is all about the food! Everything we ordered was phenomenal.
Stuffed Jalapenos ~ crabmeat, wrapped in apple smoked bacon ~ $8.99
This was the BEST thing I ate in Charleston, hands down!
The Vegetable Plate with 4 choices ~ $7.99
The Grilled Smoked Sausage Sandwich with Mushrooms and Onions ~ $4.75
The Regular Potato ~ $4.29
Everything at the Smoky Oak Taproom was tasty, fresh, and well prepared. If we lived on James Island, this would be our regular hang out. The atmosphere was chill, the food excellent and fairly priced, the service was attentive. I can’t say enough about this place and STRONGLY encourage you to check it out, even if you have to drive a bit to get there. We rate it 5 out or 5.
AnnaShortcakes 
You are so right about the qualities of good BBQ! Sounds like a great place.
Anna, my first thought was how expensive the food in the first photo was (no I don’t get out much 😉 ). Then I thought about how much was there, and realized there is enough to feed a family of four on those two plates! Wow! ~ Lynda
It was expensive but the hubby (who had never been to SC before) wanted to try it all. There were plenty of leftovers 🙂
Yummy…this is also my favorite, but I know that is no surprise to you!! I know the BBQ is great. However, I cannot stress enough the onion rings…they have been my absolute favorite for as long as I can remember. Sweet and battered…The tea is the best ever…it is strong and sweet!! This is one place I have to eat EVERY time I go home!!!
Thanks for commenting Wynde! Maybe we can meet in Charleston and enjoy these onion rings together. Love you!
This is a food tour to end all food tours. It is actually making me a little hungry just reading about it.
Thanks! I was hoping for that response. 🙂
Just stopped at Maurice’s otw back from Hilton Head. Their hickory and spicy sauce was the best! You know me, had to order the big plate and ate maybe 1/4 th of it. Onion rings were awesome. The meat was smoked perfect with nice chrispy charred bits. The place looked like it was a hole in the wall dive. If you know anything, this is where you always find the good stuff; especially Bbq.
I love that place so much! Wish there was one closer. I’m glad you have been there for the gloriousness. Thanks for your comment too!
Smoky Oak is my FAVORITE bbq place!! We used to live down the street, and could walk there. And moved to about 15 minutes away, but still go there!
There is not one bad thing on the menu!!
If we lived on James Island, this would be our hang out. Love that place! Thanks for your comment, Kaylan!
Growing up in South Carolina, we never ate at any of Maurice Bessinger’s restaurants because of the racist comments he’s made in the media throughout the years. I don’t know if that message made it out of South Carolina, but I think it’s important to know when people go to pick a place to eat.
There are a lot of off-the-beaten-path BBQ places that I’d love to check out around the low state! I’ve heard pretty awesome things about this place: http://thescottsbbq.com/Home_Page.html.
Regardless, this post is making me hungry! Keep it up, Anna! 🙂