Review of Charlie's Bar-B-Que 8590 Pelham Road at Highway 14 Greenville, SC 29615 (864) 297-7876 Mon - Thur 8AM to 8PM Friday & Saturday 8AM to 9PM Closed Sunday By H. Kent Craig ©2008

Nestled in the South Carolina foothills of The Blue Ridge Mountains, Charlie's Bar-B-Que in Greenville (just off of I-85, next to Greer and Spartanburg, respectively) harkens back to a place in time that time itself is frequently forgetting, a place in the time stream when hogs weren't just cooked with redhot glowing wood coals but when "mountain folk" would make their way down narrow dirt roads to come "into town" to buy what they couldn't make themselves, staples such as sugar, coffee, overalls, kerosene for their lamps, etc., and while there have a small indulgence of going to a sit-down restaurant where the slow-cooked over live coals pork was made they way they would do it themselves at the old homeplace during "hog-killin' times", served hot and chopped right in front of them and piled high enough on plate or bunbread to satisfy the most growling of stomachs. Indeed, every time the wife and I drive the four plus hours from Cary NC to nearby Greer SC to see my current favorite mother-in-law and stop by Charlie's for some of the truly best and most-authentic Carolina bar-b-que fare, the atmosphere of the place, albeit shoved in a corner of a modern strip shopping center, from the huge interior wood-fired pit cooker right behind the serving counter to the rustic chairs and tables covered in traditional red-checkered plastic table cloths to the assortment of working mens' trucks and older and peeling-painted cars surrounding it in the parking lot (along with the usual assortment of newer BMW's from their nearby factory and Lexus' and Infinity's too, of course) that shout that this is working man's place, a mountain man's place who's come down the hill for some mighty fine grub before heading back up to the high country, you expect to see human specimens of long-forgotten Scots-Irish mixed with Cherokee and long-hidden Germanic turned inside out into native tribsepeople sitting across the aisle from you, their beards ungrommed and cans of Skoal shoved in front pockets of bib overalls with dirty workboots tracking in the soil of honest hard work and solemn expressions confirming so and guess what, that's exactly what you'll find at Charlie's, along with the usual gaggle of business people in five hundred dollar suits, families with small children out for an affordable dinner, young couples on dates and a flock of retired military types, the wallpaper in this place being US Air Force memorabilia for some odd reason which gives it, along with the interesting low country and highlander native folks present, a damned interesting vibe to say the least. "Unique" atmosphere is one thing but that's not why you take the time to exit off the Interstate to find Charlie's, it's their authentic presentation of what is, be' gosh and be' happy, traditional Eastern-North Carolina whole hog barbeque cooked the "real way" and chopped to order right there in front of you behind the counter where you place your order and piled high enough either on bun or plate to satiate the hungriest of wood-cooked odor-driven by the smell that hits you from moment you drive into the parking lot appetites. If you don't order your 'cue "loose" as in piled loose on the plate, they'll serve the same amount (an honest pound or better) piled high on a plate-sized bun and if you do order it "loose" then they'll cut the bun in half and put in your plate anyway along with some wavy potato chips and if you ask them to hold the slaw or their delicious baked beans (or even if you do) they'll also give you a handful of french fries anyway. Though served as plain as possible, they do have a mustard-based SC-style sauce on the table along with a thick brown sugar-based "western NC/SC mountain-style" sauce and good ol' Texas Pete for us wanting flavor but not too much heat as well. Want hushpuppies, mac-and-cheese or boiled potatoes or other traditional barbecue joint side items? Forget it, they don't offer anything but fries and chips and slaw and beans but guess what, their 'cue is so delicious and they give you so much of it that it doesn't need anything else to fill that craving for comfort food that drove you to drive all the way to them from wherever in the first place . . . they will be worth it!

---

    {Back To BBQ Page}    

Home

|

Writing

|

Personal

|

Humor

|

Blog

|

Project Mgmt.

|

N.C. Bar-B-Q

|

Outdoors

|

MP3's

|

Contact