Smithfield’s Chicken’n Bar-B Q

Delicious food and friendly staff! Always consistently good, no matter the location. A bit pricey, but worth it!

Today was my first day going to Smithfield. I told the lady behind the counter that and we would need a few minutes to decide. Shortly after that the manager walked up and she told him also. He asked where we were from and wether or not we would like to sample the pulled pork.
Long story short we got the pulled pork platter with fries and a drink. Neither of us could finish our meal and it was DELICIOUS! We added Cole slaw and some of the chili sauce from the table. Fries were meh, but in their defense, I’m not a fry person .
We will be back again. Next time for chicken and hushpuppies!

Smithfield’s is the BEST-​tastin’ fried chicken ever created!!! Juicy (even the white meat), tender, crispy skin with just the right amount of batter, and THAT SAUCE!!! Their version of Carolina vinegar sauce puts it OUT OF REACH for any other fried chicken! Had cole slaw which was good, hush puppies which I’m not a fan of hush puppies anywhere so I’ll rate them as average, French fries which were good, and pulled pork sandwiches which were OK but I have a smoker so I think I make em better :) To my palate, it’s all about the chicken with sauce at Smithfield’s…and nobody does it better!
As of this writing, you cannot get Smithfield’s chicken anywhere but in North Carolina, so get in your car, cross the state borders and come on down and taste the BEST! Word up!

Pretty good NC BBQ. Pulled pork with slaw on top. The meat is a little spicy and that sets it apart from the run of the mill places.

Seriously, WHO writes reviews on chain restaurants? Why would you need to do that? I always felt it was unnecessary. Then one day I realized this was my go to place and a favorite so they deserve a review. First of all I am a bbq fanatic. The pork bbq at this place is fine. There is nothing wrong with it. The sauce could be better but it’s Eastern NC style and it’s something I can eat without much complaint. It’s not wood cooked — it’s gas cooked. Again, not perfect but very doable.
I DO NOT like their slaw — it varies with each visit. Sometimes it’s too relish-​y. Do you put pickles in your slaw? I do not and I don’t mind a little but sometimes it’s almost all relish. I DO NOT like their potato salad. It’s usually mushy and once again too much relish. So I end up getting the slaw and french fries. The fries are shoe string like mcdonalds and I try to avoid fries but with the sides being limited to 3 I have to do it. I wish they offered collards or green beans or baked beans even on rotation.
Don’t bother with the pecan pie. It’s sold by the slice in sealed plastic containers and it’s just a yucky mess of corn syrup.
Their hushpuppies are ok at best. Not much flavor but you get PLENTY.
The real star of Smithfield’s is the fried chicken. I have a scary addiction to fried chicken. It started in Korea where they dip the ENTIRE whole chicken into light batter and fry it up. It is amazing. KFC is gross to me. Bojangles used to be fine but lately their quality is low. I love Popeyes but the ones in NC are not as spicy as the ones in GA. Smithfield’s chicken seems to come from good chicken stock — no broken bones, the meat is not weird in texture and they got their frying down to perfection. The meat is juicy and tender and the horrible for you coating is not too thick, salty or greasy (relatively speaking here it IS fried chicken after all LOL). So I find myself ordering the chicken more than bbq.
The other star is the customer service. They are the only drive through other than Chick Fila that has it going on. Polite, accurate and fast.
It’s my hubby and my favorite comfort to go food. We have not been disappointed. We limit it to once a few months but we inevitably fall to the siren’s song of Smithfield after tough weeks at work.

For a «fast food» chain, Smithfield’s is definitely as good as it gets! Being born and raised in Goldsboro and now living in Fuquay, this is as close as I can get to some real eastern NC barbeque. Their sandwich combo (comes with a side and drink) is a great deal at $ 6.49. I love that I can order Brunswick Stew as a side– it is delicious! When dining in, the employees are constantly walking around refilling drinks and making sure everyone is satisfied. This place blows every other fast food place in the area out of the water! And, to be honest, I’d rather eat here than The Pit– it’s half the price and just as good (maybe better). And you don’t have to deal with parking and a ridiculously long wait!

Food was great and service was exceptional. Very friendly atmosphere from the second we walked in until we left. It was our first visit and we expected «fast food with a Southern twist». It certainly was fast and had the Southern twist but the service went above and beyond. The manager went through the whole menu with us and was very accommodating.
We have no idea why this area uses hot dogs with red dye so if there is a dye allergy in your party plan to have something other than hot dogs. We had to request an exchange of the hot dogs for chicken tenders and it was immediately remedied.
Portion wise each member was satisfied from BBQ platter, BBQ Value Pack, to kids meals. Excellent BBQ flavor, cole slaw had a tangy sweetness, fries were yummy and the tea (half n half) was refreshing. They come around to refill your drinks and clean off your table if you are hanging out chatting.

Got to love this place for what it is — Great ‘fast food” barbecue and amazing customer service. Now, don’t get me wrong and think this is bad barbecue, it’s not. The problem is that they have to make so blasted much of it, it’s gas cooked, which I guess most people won’t even think about.
Great portions (BBQ dinner platter please!), tasty tea (order split if it’s too sugary for you and use those little lemon packets). I really enjoy the slaw, hush puppies, and brunswick stew as my sides, but don’t know of a bad one. Potato salad is good, they have the skinny fries which they do not skip on the serving, and the banana pudding and pecan pie finish off any meal perfectly. I rarely order the chicken, however I’ve catered at least 4 parties and this is where I turn to first. Nobody complains and they all go home stuffed!
Looking for a nice bbq or chicken platter for lunch/​dinner or tailgate? Smithfield’s is the place to go — even if it’s just to get hit smack in the face with some great southern hospitality!

We have always relied on Smithfields for decent BBQ — not great but acceptable. The chicken has always been good. Recently it seems that the food quality is going down hill. The BBQ is below average and the potato salad is almost pureed.

delicious food, great service! Everyone was so nice, I couldn’t believe it.

I have to echo the last review. The customrer service was OUTSTANDING!!! I had to place a large order of BBQ pork, cole slaw and buns for a homeless shelter. Once the manager, Cameron, heard it was for a charity he donated a couple of gallons of iced tea, coupons and a lot more food than we ordered.
The food was outstanding!!! We will definetly put this place on the dinner rotation!!!

Customer service here is insane! From the moment you want in the doors, you see the smiling faces of employees (all of them were seriously smiling behind the counter!). Super friendly service, they bring your food to your table, and even refill your drinks. You get service as if you are dining in a restaurant, but you’re in a fast food joint. Love it!
Chicken, BBQ, sandwiches… what to order. Since this was my first BBQ experience in NC, I had to get the BBQ. Decided on the regular BBQ platter which came with pulled porked, cole slaw, potato salad, and hushpuppies (you could choose any two sides, but I just went with the traditional ones that came with the platter). The pulled pork was super tender. Enjoyed the vingear base so much that I added some more from the bottle on the table. The cole slaw and potato salad were standard. Nothing to rave about. The huspuppies were different from what I’m used to. Not only were they shaped differently, but they tasted way better! This was definitely the first time I ate all my hush puppies. I washed this all down with a unsweetened iced tea. Don’t forget to mention unsweetened because you’ll get sweet tea instead! If I wasn’t stuffed, I would have got some banana pudding. Saw a lady eating it and it looked yummy.
Great quick place to go for some good old BBQ.

BBQ and fried chicken! What a good combination of Southern comfort food! It sure is popular with the locals and travelers.
Be sure to read the menu carefully. If your order doesn’t say «sandwich», then you’re just getting shredded BBQ on your plate.
Fries and hushpuppies were great. Brunswick stew was ok. I’ve had better elsewhere. Sweet tea was awesome!
Friendly and attentive staff.