Adams Roadside BBQ

BBQ and Brisket were great. This is a true hole in the wall for take out or outside eating only but friendly and great food!

Pulled chicken plate, greens and string beans all delicious. Fast friendly service. Affordable with huge portion sizes. Either take it to go, eat in your car, or dine outside. Fresh fries pig skin counter top if you like!

Very good BBQ –more of a Texas style (which I prefer). So if you’re expecting thin NC vinegar sauce and tasteless meat then go to Wilber’s with two meat choices. This place has brisket, pork, chicken, turkey, sausage. Really good and really fast. Cash only and they’re open Wednesday thru Saturday

Not overly impressed having eaten at many NC BBQ joints over the years. Nothing really stood out imo. Not bad, just nothing special that would make me want to come back. I would rate B’s, Wilburs, Stephensons, Skylight, Allen&Son well above Adams for BBQ. Have not tried Grady’s or Jack Cobb yet.

Thanks to a friendly debate with fellow Unilocaler Fred B. on the best Eastern NC BBQ, I decided to mimic his showdown and rate the cue myself. The showdown consists of testing and rating in order the best Eastern style BBQ via the «BBQ Alley» which is basically a stretch of Highway 70 that makes stops in Goldsboro, La Grange, and then New Bern. You could argue that this may be the best stretch in the state for BBQ. It has merit anyway.
Like Fred B. I bought a pound each of chopped BBQ at Adams in Goldsboro ($ 8.99), Wilber’s in Goldsboro ($ 9.35), McCalls in Goldsboro ($ 10.66), Ken’s Grill in La Grange ($ 7.50), and finally Moore’s in New Bern ($ 8). I will use this preface for each review. I did a review on each place like we typically do for Unilocal.Then to really make this a showdown, my parents and I tasted these BLINDLY by a number and ranked them. To really sell it, we each tested it twice blindly just to make sure we got the same ranking for our favorites. We did. So each place will have a normal review, and then our blind taste test ranking. We are super excited to do this.
Review:
I have already reviewed Adam’s but I will again for the reasons mentioned above.
As Fred B. mentioned, this BBQ is different from those in the area. The largest contrast of this one as compared to the others is the sweet sauce. Yes it isn’t as sweet as Lexington style, but it is sweet. It doesn’t have as much vinegar taste but it does have it. We couldn’t taste any pepper as it was mostly sweetness and vinegar. Again, you can taste the pork and it isn’t overdone with any one thing. The pork is probably the moistest of the samples. It is a great break from everything else in the area. I do like Moore’s over Adam’s now that I have tried both. Still good BBQ and a reorder. I still think what throws me over the edge is the brisket. Still like the cue over Wilber’s.
Blind Test Smackdown:
Remember, we tasted all these blindfolded and ranked them after we tried them all. It is amazing what you pick when you can’t use the sense of sight. We agreed that all were excellent and this is a matter of taste preference and nothing more, as Fred B. mentioned. We would all eat the BBQ at each place without question again. It is a matter of what you like and when. This is how our blind test went in order of preference:
Me: Moores, McCalls, Kens, Adams, Wilber’s
Mom: McCalls, Wilber’s, Kens, Adams, Moores
Dad: Adams, Wilber’s, Ken’s McCall’s, Moores

After our fellow Unilocaler and friend Rick N.‘s very positive review of this small place on the edge of BBQ «alley», we knew we had to visit, and soon — so we picked Wed. We had laid out a barbecue day trip that would go from Greensboro, down US Highway 70 through Goldsboro, La Grange, Kinston, and into New Bern, and then back the same route.
On that trip we visited Ken’s Grill, Moore’s Old Thyme BBQ, McCalls, Wilbers, and our final stop at Adams. We picked up at least a pound of barbecue ($ 9.25 at Adams) at each stop, and at Adams we added a pound of Beef Brisket ($ 12.78), and ½ BBQ Chicken ($ 6 or so), a pint of Slaw ($ 3.49), and a pint of Brunswick stew ($ 4.25).
As noted there is no inside seating, in fact this place is about as bare bones as almost any true BBQ joint I can think of except maybe Cobb’s in Farmville. There is a small counter area inside where you order and pay. The day we were there it was well into the 90’s and there was no air conditioning — staff must be very loyal.
The pork here is sweeter than most Eastern NC BBQ, not near Lexington style, but noticeably sweeter. It has some decent heat, the meat is tender & moist, and the chop is nice, and there is some hint of smokiness. But the sweetness pushes this barbecue down the line for me, away from my top 10, maybe around the 15 — 20 mark.
The Beef Brisket has excellent flavor, has some great outside char, but is not as tender as some. The BBQ Chicken is good, but not great — it is basically smoked chicken with a sweet tomato based sauce. Like the Brisket, it lacked tenderness, and BBQ Chicken should be falling off the bone tender.
The Slaw is very sweet, and in combination with the pork is a little overpowering. The Brunswick stew was pretty good, with some spice to it, but I don’t care for green beans in this stew. Everything we tried at Adams was very good, but I think there is better around, much of it close around.
The do not offer hushpuppies here, but rather have cornsticks, and if not ordered separately, they only come with plates or bulk — ½ doz costs $ 1.25. Also there is no BBQ sauce, house or otherwise, with purchases here — cost 50 cents for a cup — WOW!
We did a taste test of all 5 chopped pork barbecues before we left the vicinity of Adams, utilizing the purchases of the day. Our ranking order then, while still fresh and warm, was: Ken’s (head & shoulders ahead), Moore’s, Wilbers, Adams, and then McCalls (though we really like the heat in McCalls). We repeated the tasting at home last night with the top 4, and the results were unchanged.
These are ALL very good, and these «results» simply reflect our personal tastes. Others will see it differently, that’s what taste is all about. The 19^th century English critic, poet, and writer James Henry Leigh Hunt said: «If you are ever at a loss to support a flagging conversation, introduce the subject of eating.» In North Carolina, simply ask who serves up the best pork barbecue — then take a seat, and take notes.

The food is excellent, especially the mac and cheese. Outdoor seating only. They do not take any cards.

Best brisket around! decent prices. Wish they would move back into Goldsboro! It’s to much of a drive out to 70! COME BACK TO GOLDSBORO!

The Brisket in my opinion is some of the best around this area. However I always order it with the sauce on the side. I prefer to put as much as I like on it and I also have a big selection at home I like to try. The BBQ itself while very good is on the sweet side which is not my preference. Everything I have tried there has been very good and I think you’ll like it. The staff is very friendly. It is mostly take out but there are some picnic tables in the area. If you are not from around here and find it difficult to get in their parking lot look to see if they are open. They are not open days a week.

Looks more like a catering factory than a restaurant. Outdoor picnic tables, but parking lot roped off preventing us from visiting.

The family stopped for lunch on the way to the coast. Wonderful eastern nc BBQ… good slaw, good baked beans, wonderful Mac n cheese for the kids. Even our dog liked the picnic seating. All for less money than we spend for dinner at chik-​fil-​a. Nice people. Only negative is that I prefer hushpuppies to corn sticks. We will be back.

.gosh. it is soooo awesome. i loved everything there. the brisket, the pork bbq. the potato salas, the cole slaw. and it is sooo cheap!!!

Top notch BBQ! Stop by and get some, say hi to Scott!