Heavy’s BBQ

I began hearing about Heavy’s on the first day I moved to Harrogate, TN. When I finally took the winding 20 minute backroad drive down into the hollow to find Heavy’s, it definitely fit the description I was expecting: a dilapidated wooden shack on the riverbank. Inside the walls are covered in dollar bills and license plates from states across the US. There is no shortage of food at Heavy’s — most meals come with two sides and pieces of Texas toast (just toast with butter and garlic powder). Help yourself to a pitcher of sweet tea or bottles of soda inside. I tried the fried okra, hushpuppies, and onion rings, all of which were okay, but the baked tater salad with its sour cream base with bacon and chives is mouth-​watering. Thursday nights are all-​you-​can-​eat ribs and fried catfish. This includes the sides too, so bring a big appetite. Heavy’s is only open seasonally, so make sure you check the calendar and online. I know I will be there as soon as they open this spring.

After hearing about this place for EVER — we finally decided to give it a try. It was very good! Nice to know there is such a good local BBQ place nearby!

Good bar-​b-​cue, good sides, and a great atmosphere. The service could be a bit faster, but the ambiance has «BBQ Joint» written all over it, so sit down and enjoy it for a while. If you are driving out to this place, and if you think you missed it, just keep going, because you have not. It is a long and twisty drive, but well worth it.

Great pork ribs, catfish, baked potato salad, fried okra.
Rustic joint next to a lazy river.
Old style pre-​mix soda fountain.
Furry spiders with green krazy eyes.
See them before end of season Oct 20.

Wow, just wow. Heavy’s is truly a hidden gem; they offer excellent barbeque and great comfort food as sides. It is an open air restaurant and hours are not typical so check ahead of time. We dinned only a few feet from a river bank and it was a peaceful and lovely covered porch setting. The drive to reach this restaurant was a small winding road and our garmin took us to the wrong location so mind the blue sign on the right side of the road (at a fork in the road). I would and will drive out of my way to reach this diamond in the rough.

If there was one thing I could eat for the rest of eternity it would be Heavy’s. Quite frankly I am certain that it is made by angels — the kind that chose to make BBQ instead of play a harp.
I have had many many different varieties of BBQ in my day and this is by far my favorite.
To say that it’s located in the middle of nowhere would be a gross understatement. The original Heavy’s BBQ and Canoe is located wayyyyyy back in the woods down a windy mountain road next to a creek. It is a skinny one-​lane road with 2 way traffic that luckily has no other cars on it because there isn’t room to let anyone by if someone should happen to be going the opposite direction as you. The drive is quite unnerving and I was constantly afraid that some crazy redneck murderer was going to jump out in front of my car and rape my before BBQing my guts. But, luckily that didn’t happen, and even with it as a possibility, the food made the risk worth it.
Heavy’s BBQ is something you can’t quite put into words. The pulled pork is absolutely divine and as was mentioned by the previous reviewer, a bit sweet, but that is how I like mine. Those who prefer Carolina BBQ or the stuff from deep down in Texas might not take to it as quickly but in my opinion, it trumps all of the other varieties, without question. The ribs are also very good but I stick with the pulled pork pretty much every time I go.
All of the sides and other offerings are just as delicious as the pork and it is well worth the trip. In fact, I constantly have to convince myself that it is unrealistic to make the drive from Cleveland over the weekend.
When I lived in the area, Heavy’s was a regular habit of mine. Luckily for those who don’t want to drive out to the sticks, there is another newer location in Harrogate right off the main highway which is just as good but lacks the ambiance of the forest and mountains.
Seriously, if you are within 8 hours drive of this place, do yourself a favor and make the drive one weekend.

Middle of nowhere. Very rustic. Pretty drive. Great BBQ except for the sauce which was a little sweet for me.