I was excited to see the new barbecue restaurant opening near my home- Jim ‘N Nick’s. It seems like the built it in no time once they broke ground. I visited it for the first time last week, with mixed reviews.

The atmosphere was extremely nice and it seemed much nicer from a design perspective than most barbecue restaurants. After looking the menu over, I noticed that they are actually a chain. Most of their 23 locations are in the Southeast - this is their first in North Carolina. It is located near the corner of South Tryon and Highway 160 - on an outparcel next to Harris Teeter.

The waitress did a very good job. Our drinks did not get empty and she seemed to be around when we needed her. It appeared they had ample waitstaff. Hopefully, this is not just due to the fact that they are new.

First, let me mention their tea. It was very light in color and very weak. Their menu made a big deal of the fact that it was their “Signature Slow Brewed Tea.” I sure hope this was a bad batch because it could be improved upon. It was drinkable though - unlike some places.

They bring you a basket of what the waitress called “Cheddar Biscuits.” These did not resemble anything I have ever known to be a biscuit. They were more like corn muffins with cheese. Regardless of what they called them, they were hot and fantastic. I could have eaten an entire meal just on the “Cheddar Biscuits.”

I was a bit disappointed when I saw the Barbecue being delivered to tables smothered in sauce. The thing that comes to mind is what are they hiding with the sauce. Good barbecue does not require sauce - altough it is sometimes a nice compliment. To use a quote I hear a lot on the Food Channel - “Sauce hides things.” I immediately told the waitress that I wanted my sauce on the side so that I could truly judge the quality of the barbecue.

The barbecue was good but still not the great barbecue that I have grown to enjoy over the years. I tried the sauce. The regular sauce was nothing to write home about. They had a Habenero Hot and Spicy Sauce on the table which was great. I may have to get me some of this to use at home. It was hot - and it was Spicy - although not as hot as habenero usually is. This was a good thing since they have the sauce sitting on the tables.

The baked beans were good, but kind of different than what I expected. They had some sort of pepper in them that made them spicier than normal.

The slaw was pathetic. It was basically cabbage salad. It was not grated at all. There were large chunks of cabbage sitting in a pool of white liquid in the bowl. I suggest they spend 30 second longer on each batch of slaw to grate it and blend it well.

On another note, there was no border between smoking and non-smoking. Given the numerous studies related to higher revenues in non-smoking restaurants, I am not sure why a new restaurant would even have a smoking section. When selecting your table, be sure to request to sit far away from smoking if you do not wish to be bothered by the stinch.

They have lots of items besides BBQ pork - including an assortment of sandwiches, burgers, salads, brisket, chicken, turkey, pork hot links, ribs, steaks and much more. The one thing I did notice on most all items is that their prices were about $2 to $5 higher on each item than your typical barbecue restaurant. For instance, a pulled pork Bar-B-Q plate was $13.50, and hand pulled pork Bar-B-Q sandwich was $8.50…..and so on.

As far as what I had, I rate them as follows (scake if 1-10):
(1) BBQ 6 of 10 (better than average - not great)
(2) “Cheddar Biscuits” - 9
(3) Baked Beans - 7
(4) Slaw - 0 (they didn’t even hit the scale on this one)
(5) Onion Rings 8 - my wife had these, they were exceptional
(6) Tea - 4
(7) Atmosphere - 8
(8) Service - 8

Just a short 10 minute drive past Lake Wylie, in the town of Clover, sits Courtney’s BBQ. When I hear the word “BBQ” around here, I always think of pork barbecue. Courtney’s has great pork BBQ, but it does not stop there. They have a host of other items on the menu as well, including award winning ribs and some of the best barbecue chicken you will find at any restaurant. They even have excellent fried seafood. For a long while, I was in the habit of ordering the all I could eat fried perch which are lightly breaded and fried to perfection. The fried shrimp are also great. Unlike many other restaurants who serve shrimp flavor breading, Courtney’s lightly breads their shrimp and fries them just right providing some of the best fried shrimp in the area.

Back to my review of this visit. As usual, the service was very good- although, I always seem to drink my tea faster than the glass gets full. This isn’t as bad as many restaurants though because all of the staff seem to help out in making sure all of the glasses are full -not just the tables in their section.

This time, I ordered a half-BBQ chicken and pork BBQ combo. As usual, my eyes were bigger than my stomach as I could not finish it. I think my mind was thinking 1/4 BBQ chicken instead of a half. The chicken was amazing. It was tender and juicy throughout and provided a great smoked flavor that could be supplemented with several of Courtney’s signature sauces. The BBQ was some of the best I have had in the area - moist throughout with a perfect blend of spices to flavor the meat.

The only bad part of my visit was that when I was placing my leftover chicken breast and wing in the to go container, I dropped it on the floor. I was so bummed out.

If anyone is in the area or if they are just tired of the same old chain barbeque joints in Charlotte, they should drive out and give Courtney’s a try. Just be sure to check their website for hours. They are only open full days on Thursday through Saturday, and a half day on Sundays (until 2:30).

Since Cafe 49 opened several months ago just acrossed the street from my office in Lake Wylie, I have become a regular. The food is almost always excellent and today was no exception. If you are looking a family restaurant with a home-cooking type theme - I would highly recommend it.

I ordered a grilled pork chop and had 3 vegetables - okra and tomatoes, green beans, and fried okra with sweet tea. The pork chop was extra tender and juicy and was grilled to perfection. All of the vegetables were great today. The fried okra almost always comes out hot and crispy. The green beans are some of the best I have ever had at a restaurant and the okra and tomatoes were bursting with flavor. The sweet tea is some of the best around as well.

In the short time they have been open, I have probably eaten there 20-25 times. I usually go for lunch as it is so close to the office, but have also been to breakfast and dinner as well.

The wait staff is always friendly and doesn’t seem to have turned over very much since their initial crew which gives is a consistent “hometown” kind of feel. You will most likely be reading many review on Cafe 49, as you can see that I go there a lot.

I visited Fuel Pizza in Rivergate (Highway 160 and S. Tryon St.) for lunch yesterday for a meeting. My expereience was typical with what I have grown to be accustomed to from Fuel Pizza. The service was great and the food was ready really fast. The downside is that when you order by the slice (as is the norm at Fuel Pizza), the slices are not always hot and fresh. They reheat the slice quickly (not sure how) and then deliver it to your table. The overall quality of the ingredients and the selection of toppings is excellent but in my opinion it loses something in the process that it goes through to get to me (the end customer). I can not really comment on getting a whole pizza cooked fresh because I have never done it - although I would imagine that it would be much better.

I will continue to go to Fuel for the simple matter of its excellent location and fast service coupled with its lower than average price (as compared with other restaurants in the immediate area). Also, the food is better than some of the fast food options around. Another good thing is that since it is by the slice, I can get mine loaded up with toppings and my wife and child can get their plain cheese version.

For those that do know know much about Fuel Pizza, it is a chain that originated in Charlotte and has expanded to nine locations (per their website).

Let me know of your experiences at Fuel Pizza by leaving a comment! I would be especially interested in hearing comments from someone who has ordered a whole pizza there.