Wilber's Barbecue — Restaurant in Goldsboro

Me and a group of family went here last Sunday! We came in a little before 2pm and they were out of bout everything! Not to mention that a girl who's section We went to almost lost it when she saw 10 African American people come to her section! Not even saying Hello, she left out and they sent an African American waitress to help. Thought that was kinda crazy! What they said they had left, all changed after we ordered! They came back saying half of All our orders probably couldn't be filled, so we had to order basically what they had! Desiring to try their food anyway, we received several plates that were literally Cold and most of the food thrown together apparently! I'm assuming they took those plates and warmed them up, but the food was Not good! Barbecue was extremely dry! Vegetables were like they came straight out of the can! So, with all the issues we were having, I requested to speak to the Manager. It took her 20 minutes to come out and when she did, it was a little 20 year old girl, who obviously has Zero People or Communication skills, or Any Restaurant Management skills! I expressed that we were not cool with the entire experience and I asked if she could at least take the drinks off for our inconvenience and the major issues! She said I'll see and left! Then sent someone else back to tell us she could give us a Slice of cake for our troubles!! Not for everyone either, but (1) slice for 10 unhappy customers! On top of the fact that I was Already kind of skeptical because I didn't see any other African Americans while we were there! Even outside of the food and the service not being up to par, Management is Critical to Any business! They can either make or break your business! You can't just throw your granddaughter in that position and expect Good Business! Anywhere else, we would have been treated with respect and dealt with as if we mattered, and especially with us spending well over $200 on this visit! Not offered a slice of cake for troubles beginning from the time we entered! And I don't care if people walk in 10 minutes before you close, if they spend $10 on a BBQ sandwich, it should taste the same as one bought when you first open! Also, keep in mind that African Americans is where a big bulk of your money will come from, if you don't treat them like you Don't want them there!!!! I brought family from out of town and they all were utterly disappointed! If you guys desire to stay in business you gotta do better. So, People, as of right now, I Don't think Wilbur's is ready for Real Business from All races or at all! I was and is still very disappointed...

We drove from the Wilmington area just to try this place out. Overall it was really good! The hushpuppies served with gravy was a first for me, but they were excellent, probably the best thing overall. The BBQ was really good, and I really liked their house sauce - you have to be a fan of eastern NC BBQ, which I am, but if you love that tangy vinegar taste you'll be happy here. I also got fried chicken, butter beans and collards. Loved the butterbeans and the collards were great (a little of the house sauce on them made them perfect). I didn't really care for the chicken, but it was more a style thing for me. It was still moist, I just prefer a different type of breading - overall still good. The server was fantastic - very friendly and knowledgeable and the girl running the food was working fast and made sure our sweet tea and hushpuppies were topped up with I really appreciated.

Now, here's the reason this is not a 5 star review, and I really hope that the owner reads this next part and takes it to heart. I don't know if he was the owner or a manager but there was a guy that was constantly checking on customers and badgering his staff the entire time we were there. Every time he harassed a customer asking if they had ordered or what they were waiting on, instead of pitching in to help them himself he would grab the waitress or someone else, usually pulling them off the work that they were already doing, to redirect them. He was apologizing to customers that had only just sat down for a minute or two about not having their orders taken, asking if people were waiting on their orders coming out, all the while never helping himself. We were also treated to him lecturing an employee about 'communication' - this was the same employee that I watched him nearly knock over while he was uselessly going back and forth between the kitchen and dining room - which I noted she deftly avoided dropping the hot plate she was carrying like a real pro. We felt so awkward and bad for his staff that he was haranguing and we weren't alone- I saw several pained smiles from other customers. Maybe this guy isn't from NC, or perhaps he was just having a bad day, but the constant nervous micromanaging was a real bummer to be around and really spoiled out visit. We'd get take out from here but we'd never dine in again. I really feel bad for the hardworking employees - they should get together and open their own place because they were doing a great job running the show. I could see how this place would be an absolute nightmare to work at and these folks clearly deserved to be...

This really hurts me to give this review, but I have to. When Wilber's closed a few years ago, I was so upset. I was compelled to go to McCall's during that time when I wanted BBQ until Wilber's opened back up. I thought they would be even better than they were before, but no. I mean, the food was hit and miss sometimes, their service was decent depending on who waited on you, and their prices were more reasonable than McCall's. But today I stopped there early because for what ever reasons, they close at 3 on Sundays, (imagine that). Anyway, I went through the "Q-Drive" and ordered a BBQ sandwich and a slice of coconut cake. The young lady said my total was $12. I asked how much was the sandwich, she said $7.50, so that would make the small thin slice of cake you get over $4. I told her wow, the last time I came there which was a couple of months ago, a sandwich was like a little over $5. I know everything has been going up lately but good grief! I really wouldn't mind paying more if the portion size matched the price. But it was just the regular sized sandwich and slice of cake, not even the Big Q sandwich used to cost that much! Needless to say I was very disappointed, the BBQ didn't have much flavor at all, which was nothing like the old Wilber's. I felt like I just handed them $12 for nothing. I could have gone to a few other places and got a whole plate with dessert and a drink for that price! And normally I would order hushpuppies, but the last couple of times I did, they definitely did not taste like the old Wilber's hushpuppies I remember and grew up on. I hope the owner doesn't get offended by this review, but when you charge customers higher prices for mediocre food, they have a right to complain. And you can say what you want, I grew up on Wilber's just as a lot of people in this area did. The food, and sometimes the service, is definitely not the same. I'm afraid I will not be giving you anymore of my hard earned money. There are too many other places that care about the quality of the food they serve and...