Sooey’s BBQ & Rib Shack

The bbq sandwich was almost inedible… it was disgusting. The mac n cheese was ok, but overall I was completely grossed out by the food. Not impressed and surprised they have several locations at OBX.

A few of my friends from college come down to Corolla every year for a week. This was our first time stopping here. We got takeout but the server who checked us out (Jessie) was extremely helpful and friendly. We’ll definitely be back!
Brisket, Mac n Cheese, and Collards were fantastic.

Not bad. Not excellent. Better if the food was hot. Better if I had silverware and not plastic ware. I mean, really.
The hushpuppies were excellent and PIPING HOT as were the Fried Macaroni and Cheese.
The ribs and pulled porky were good. Again, better if it was hot. And, being on vacation – let it go. However, we ordered the Hushpuppies appetizer which was listed as «a dozen». I asked the Server if one can order ½ dozen and we were told, yes. When they arrived, it was a basket of a dozen. So, before we touched it, I walked over to ask our Server about it and point out we talked about ½ dozen and had a dozen brought to the table. She said go ahead and take it and she would take care of it. Upon bringing the bill they charged us $ 4.99 for the dozen. So, once again, I spoke with the Server who took the bill back. Another young lady came to the table and apologized to say they only offer a dozen. I pointed out the above details and her response was «Ahhh, well – she is still new». I said, «well, I’ll still need you to make an adjustment». She replied «I’ll see what special pricing we can do». The Server returned with the bill to say they took OFF the $ 4.99/dozen price and «just charged me for a side» which is $ 2.99. Technically, they should only have charged me $ 2.50! Again, I’m on vacation and not arguing over .49. It is the principle, however, and called «nickel and diming the customer to death». Enough that if I lived here, I would NOT return out of principal.

I’m not sure I get the harshness of the other reviews. This was an A-​OK meal with nary a complaint at our table of 4. The pulled pork BBQ platter comes with 2 sides, each of which was perfectly fine. The hamburger steak special was also really well received. The kids meals were devoured as well. I thought the hush puppies were quite good too. Nothing about the meal was «over-​the-​top zomg so good,» but this is a pretty darn good destination for a family looking for BBQ. The service stood out as excellent, too.

Everything was amazing from the service to the food! I got the half rack of ribs and they were cooked to perfection!

This is literally the worst BBQ I’ve ever had in my entire life. I’m writing this as I’m sitting at the table not eating because the food is barely edible. I got the pulled pork sandwich which was on an old bun from food lion across the street and the pulled pork resembled flavorless mush. In an attempt to make it moist it looks as if they dunked it on water. That brings me to another point, they didn’t have tap water to serve, your choice is bottled water. This is by far one of the worst establishments I’ve ever been in. This gives Carolina BBQ a terrible name.

This place is another example of Do What You Know and Do It Right. I shared a half slab of ribs and the pulled pork sammie. AMAZINGLY TENDER! The BBQ sauce on the ribs was great. I only wish the pork had the same sauce. When I think of a southern pulled pork sammie, my mouth craves the juxtaposition of hot, smoky BBQ sauced, tender pork, topped with a cool, crunchy slaw. This sammie only had the pork on a bun, nothing else; just a side of fries.
The ambiance seemed very suspicious but sometimes those places make some great food.

Chanced upon this restaurant since the Mexican place down the way had a 30-​minute wait, so we went looking elsewhere. Took a chance on Sooey’s. Divine intervention, I’d say. My husband ordered the half-​rack of ribs and I got the pulled pork sandwich. I was a little skeptical of the ONE sauce on the table (as some bbq joints have 5 or 6 to choose from) but soon figured out that one is all that is needed… it was perfect, not too sweet, nor vinegar-​y, or smokey. The ribs were the meatiest I’ve seen literally in years (so many are way too fatty). My sandwich was delicious (put a little bbq sauce & coleslaw on it, if you go). yummm. The coleslaw, hushpuppies, & mac n cheese rounded out a great meal. btw, the two male servers (should have remembered their names) were very friendly and helpful. We even left with a t-​shirt. Sooey!

We paid over $ 180.00 for the Big Bad Wolf to go, and they forgot the ribs, so my wife went back to pick them up. She got back and we realized they also forgot the brisket. I called back to complain and asked them to deliver what they forgot, and the manager was not happy with my upset tone of voice and said she was too busy to deliver. I was not about to go back to correct their second mistake. She seemed overwhelmed so I let it go and agreed to deal with it the next day.
The fried chicken and pulled pork was good. The ribs were fatty and not all that great. I wish we left them there.
I don’t recommend spending the money for their average food and poor customer service. They should save their money on advertising and invest in better food and customer service.

4 stars and I do hope the owners of this company read these reviews. We started our vacation in getting take out pulled pork for 20 people — I just knew anyplace called Sooey’s had to have some awesome BBQ — and I was right. Soooo good… we got only the pulled pork meat and sauce to go with and bought our own buns. I was delighted to see that we had enough for lunch the 2^nd day and then it was gone. So delicious! Our last day we decided to eat in the restaurant and that is the reason for 4 stars instead of 5. 3 of us had the pulled pork sandwich and the buns were a soggy mess. We just ate the meat and coleslaw with forks. 1 of us had the brisket platter and was very happy. Service was just ok. I know they are in a vacation beach town and perhaps aren’t too concerned with repeat customers but would have liked to end our vacation on a high note :-(

We ordered the pulled pork and fried chicken. Everything was amazing no sauce was needed to add to the pulled pork, but I added some of the BBQ sauce from the jar and omg I fell in love our server Ray was spectacular checked on us made sure everything was perfect I wish I could come back again!!!

Unimpressive. Service was limited to seating, taking the order and bringing the check. Can’t say it was unfriendly because there was so little interaction. I felt more like they were doing me a favor by allowing me inside their establishment.
The sliced beef sandwich was tasteless although the bun was topped with an impressively large portion of fat. Since the plastic knife wouldn’t trim the fat I had to pull it off with my hands and brute force.
The side order of fries was only warm but nicely seasoned.
All in all a disappointing lunch experience.

Nice staff! OBX beer and pulled brisket was great! Try the cheese fries, too! Kids menu is good, great place for families.

Awesome food! Great service! Loved the fried chicken, fried mac and cheese, and French fries! My husband said the ribs were fall off the bone good and he loved the fried okra!
Our server Dusty was very friendly and helpful. Great atmosphere!

Something to eat when all the really good places are too busy. Nothing too great, nothing to bad. They did mess up our order but it happens. They benefit from being one of the few BBQ joints in a super busy beach town but if they had to compete with high caliber businesses they wouldn’t make it. Can’t recommend this one too highly, it’s just alright.
Update:
I originally gave this spot 3 stars but I’m lowering it to 2 after ordering the ribs. Never in my life have I turned down ribs. Even not so good ribs I’ve been willing to choke em down. The ribs at Sooey’s were totally inedible. $ 13 thrown in the trash.

With a few tweaks this place could be 4 star. Plastic utensils reek of cheapskateness. My ribs were served on a tray. A tray. Not a plate. Indeed.
So the food you ask. Ribs were terrific but served in such a manner as to make eating them individually absolutely impossible. Totally unnecessary. Metal utensils please. Our maybe precut the ribs before leaving the kitchen.
GF had a burger. Quite good actually. Mac and cheese unremarkable. Cole slaw way too salty. Fries okay. No beer on tap is a minus for me too.
Kind of a little guy place that you want to cheer for but one gets the sense the owner had an idea and executed it half baked. Okay in all. Could be great. But will likely remain mediocre.

Happy I finally get to write my review of this awesome Bar-​B-​Q place. It was so good I ate it coming into my vacation and finished my vacation eating here and here’s what it was like.
Tucked between tourists shops and a Dairy Queen this is not a place you think would stand out, but it does. I got the pulled pork (you have the option of small or large) and it was melt away madness. It kinda reminds me when I make pork in the croc pot. I got a side of fries and they aren’t just regular fries, they have this potato dusting on them that gives them that extra umph. I got the same platter on both trips but the second time I added in some fried okra and it was fresh, crispy and light. You have the option of two types of sauce, a watery vinegary one and a saucy kind, I prefer the heavier saucy kind. The other one is what the pork is marinated in any way, so you’ll get the taste for both. They also have ribs and pulled chicken and 50 other things I wish I had the time to eat, but maybe next year! The same guy worked the counter both times and on the second time I got the chance to talk to him about himself and the area. He told me when he was a kid non of this existed and the wild horses roamed even where the shop was but since then, it’s become the tourists, locals spot to shop and he’s since then became the local football coach and works there in the off season.
The cost isn’t expensive but it’s not cheap. The quality and quantity justify coming out of your pockets a little bit for some delicious Bar-​B-​Q. Stop at the Wave Runners and get your OBX tee or sticker and be sure to stop here and fill up before going into the beach or before the long ride home.
Safe travels!

Solid. I’d say between a 3 and a 4, but since I have to pick I’ll give it a 4.
We had pulled pork, pulled chicken and fried chicken and sides. Everything was great.
The hush puppies are fantastic. Some of the best I’ve had. No butter needed for me – I ate them plain.
We got a family pack of food, which was great. Get some extra buns here or at the grocery and you will have lunches for the rest of your stay.

North Carolina has better BBQ than what is being served here. For the price, this was disappointing. The only redeeming item was the sweet tea.
The brisket came out just above room temperature despite it being a sloppy over sauced pile that was not pulled but could not pass as sliced brisket. The flavor was bland, and it clearly never saw the inside of a smoker as it had no smoky taste.
The macaroni and cheese was a frozen product that tasted like it spent way too long being held hot after it was already reheated from the day before.
The hush puppies=frozen.
The corn bread was reheated in a microwave for too long and had hot spots that were inedible.
The potato salad was not homemade and was just okay. It was as good as factory food could be.

On a hot Outer Banks day, realizing we were famished for something other than salad or sandwiches, we saw Sooey’s and it seemed like it’d hit the spot. Unfortunately, not so much.
We visited during the lunch hour and while there were a few tables filled, it wasn’t so busy as to expect less than their best quality of food.
The staff was incredibly friendly, the service attentive, but the food here just didn’t measure up. The BBQ pulled pork sandwich was bland and old tasting, like the pork was of a lower quality and been frozen then kept in the fridge for days. I had to use a lot of BBQ sauce to help cover up that odd taste you get from pork that isn’t the freshest. My partner had the chicken salad, with grilled chicken. He had no serious complaints and described it as ‘just okay’. Nothing special, particularly big or tasty.
I hate to give a local BBQ joint a negative review, particularly since it must compete with so many tourist spots for lunch and dinner. Unfortunately, the food just didn’t measure up and even leaned toward the unpleasant side, and certainly not worth the $ 30-​plus we paid for a sandwich, a salad and two glasses of ice tea. (WHAA?!?)