Carolina Brothers Pit Barbeque — Restaurant in Ashburn

As a born and raised proud North Carolinian, I drove over an hour yesterday just to try this place as it had been on my bucket list for a long time. It did not disappoint.

This is a small-town BBQ joint with some personality. It made me feel like I was back home near Wilson, NC. The decor was nice and it had that "old timey" feel to it.

Everything I had was delicious, and the BBQ tasted very similar to what I know and love. They even put coleslaw on the sandwich to make it even better.

There is a small parking lot for probably about 10-15 cars.

The pricing, while higher than Carolina, still wasn't bad. $26 for my wife and I to both get platters, cornbread, drinks, and banana pudding...which the banana pudding was authentic and amazing...by the way. Bought a postcard for 95¢ to put on my fridge.

They put two sauces on the table. A sweeter, homemade BBQ sauce and the vinegar base that some love. There's also a roll of paper towels on each table because you can't eat BBQ/ribs without getting messy. I need to go back and try the ribs. You can buy the sauces they make as well.

This place caters and has a friendly staff. They have a fountain drink machine as well as some fridges with various assortments of juice and etc.

My two recommendations to the two fellow North Carolinian owners: -Where's the sweet tea at? I was a bit disappointed to see no sweet tea. -Have you ever considered adding hushpuppies to your menu? That's what was missing to make me feel like I was back at Bill Ellis or Marty's BBQ in Wilson. Cornsticks are an option too, but I like those less than hushpuppies.

Regardless, a top BBQ joint for the NOVA region. Was worth the drive and I...

I swung by this cute place on my lunch break on a weekday. At noon, it was empty inside and staff were setting up for the day. I called ahead to put in my order in case there was a rush but they reassured me it would be ok and they'd make my lunch hot and fresh for me.

It's located right off the W&OD trail in an area of Ashburn that has a very small town feel to it. It's very charming inside, with wooden furniture and cabinets full of BBQ sauce. I didn't explore much since I was in a rush. The person who served me was super nice and welcomed me with a smile. He promptly pulled my order together. As I was waiting, another staff member was putting cookies out and I wish I had time to take a look at dessert offerings.

I ordered the beef BBQ sandwich with coleslaw and mac&cheese for $10.60. The price is very fair for what you get - it could easily be split into two meals (unless you have a big appetite). The mac&cheese was delicious and coleslaw was ok - it's lightly dressed, which I prefer. Beef BBQ was fall apart and doused in jus. It tasted good but not the best I've had. The best way to eat your meal is to take half your meat and throw it on the bread, pour some sauce over it, then throw on some coleslaw. Then, take the other half of the meat and throw it on your mac&cheese (w/BBQ sauce if you like) and have it for...

The best BBQ in the area! The difference between Carolina Brothers and other barbecue restaurants is the attention to detail and the ability to provide tasty, consistent food in large volumes. I have eaten at other barbecue restaurants, but the food is generally dry and relies on extra sauce.

The barbecue is an eastern North Carolina vinegar based barbecue and pork is their specialty. They also do their own version of the Texas brisket on Wednesday and Saturdays, which is much leaner and juicer (and better in my opinion) than traditional Texas brisket. The meat is all hand pulled or chopped (brisket) and is generally much leaner than most other restaurants, so you can feel better about eating that delicious pork sandwich! Most days you stop by, you will smell the smoker going, getting ready to make the next round of barbecue. Visit on Saturdays (limited quantities) to grab some in-house made banana pudding your grandma would be jealous of.

I have eaten here countless times so stop by, have some delicious barbecue you can feel good about, and support a local restaurant!

As an additional note, Carolina Brothers maintains a very clean kitchen and has a great relationship with the Health Department since it is a “very easy inspection”...