Parker's Barbecue Restaurant — Restaurant in Greenville

2.5 stars I was quite underwhelmed with Parker's, though there were some positives.

Pros:

-Good size portions, reasonable prices

-Nice southern hospitality with the cashier and the lady who brought the food to the counter. They were friendly and helpful.

-My husband liked the hush puppies and my kids enjoyed the mac & cheese.

-The wait wasn't too long, even at dinner time on the weekend.

Now for the not so stellar aspects.

Cons:

-The BBQ pork was dry and bland, yet somehow too spicy, and looked like chopped tuna/wet cat food (and I am not the only reviewer to point this out). This is likely due to overcooking the meat or holding it too hot for too long, which breaks down the connective tissue so much that the meat loses definition and texture. Then it was over-shredded. Bottom line: the protein fibers should have at least some structure of meatier pieces and bite to it. Meat should slightly bounce back when you press on it, not mush through. And don't over-shred.

-Our to-go order didn't include any BBQ sauce, nor did the employees ask if we wanted any or point out where in the restaurant to get some. We didn't realize this until we got to the hotel. Luckily the hotel was right by a grocery store and I picked up bottles of some different brands. (I did not take the sauces into account for this review.) The meat properties hardly improved with the addition of any of the sauces.

-The green beans were mushy and obviously right out of a can. They didn't have any flavor. I think if Parker's added garlic, butter, and a bit of black pepper, it would be a definite improvement.

-The restaurant exterior & interior were very no-frills and lacked charm and warmth, and felt more like a cheerless school cafeteria. It would be nice to see more character, not just a few black & white photos on cream colored walls with white grid drop ceilings, beige floor tile, and florescent lights. I would suggest adding wood burned accents/signs, warm colored paint, outlines of pigs that mirror the logo, galvanized metal accents/decorations, American flags, and/or paintings or murals by local artists. These would brighten things up and make the environment more inviting, all doable on a modest budget.

No, I didn't go to the restaurant manager and demand a new free meal of something else or complain about the lack of seasoning. Why? Because we got our food to go, then opened it & ate at our hotel that we had just checked into and my family was hungry and tired from traveling. I wasn't about to drive 15 minutes back to the restaurant during Saturday rush hour traffic to make a fuss in front of a line of customers because I wasn't a fan of the preparation and lack of flavor, especially to a place I won't be around again.

As anyone can see for reviews on this site and others, the restaurant owner/review responder is hostile with anyone who dares to rate a visit below four stars. Now I didn't rate 2-1/2 stars because I'm out to defame anyone or spew vitriol. I recount my honest experience. I have over two dozen Google reviews of different places, which have ranged from 1 star to 5 stars. I call it like I see it and try to do so in a constructive manner, making sure to point out any merits.

To me, a restaurant gets under 3 stars if the thing they are supposed to be famous for (not to mention other dishes and the environment) is sub-par.

This review has been updated to further explain the circumstances of my trip and ideas for...

My husband and I have been going to Parkers for many years. However, lately the food and the service have been subpar. Over the last 5 weeks I have been to the various restaurants here in Greenville 3 different times and it has not been a pleasant experience. I have received cold food, very small portions of bbq (a child's plate had more bbq in it then the small regular plate), and sides that were soggy or just not done (fried okra was mushy and potatoes were either overcooked and falling apart or else underdone and hard to bite). As I read the reviews the owner's response is always the same. Did you ask for a manager, did you complain about the food, did you give us a chance to fix the meal? Well Parker family I actually did call and complain to the managers at the restaurants once I got home and checked my food. I was pretty much blown off by the one at the Arlington location and told that I could call the main office and file my complaint if I want because they did all they could do and that was that. She could have cared less one way or the other. I called the number she gave me to the "main office" and got a man who identified himself as the man in charge (Gary, I believe) and said that he would forward my information to Mr. Parker and have him give me a call the next morning. I left my name and number, that was over 2 weeks ago. I still have not heard from anyone and I think that speaks volumes for the concerns for your customers opinions and the so called negative effects they have on your family's business (per your words). You state we should not leave negative comments without merit and explain the situation. Well I did explain as well as do everything you ask if we did with our complaints and still got no response. Your response to the negative reviews are always nasty and scathing so I'm interested to see the response to mine since I followed your protocol for complaints and still got NO response at all. This should be interesting.

UPDATE It took one hour for a response to the negative review. I sent my information via email as requested and SURPRISE, still no response (6 hours later!). I will not be spending my time or money at Parkers anymore. Just proves they really don’t care. Point made and I’ve wasted enough time with them. I gave them a chance to make it right and they didn’t so...

This location is a few minutes away from where we live, so my partner and I came here for dinner. I read that the fried chicken was good, so I planned on getting the fried chicken dinner. My partner got the BBQ dinner. We were asked if we wanted a small or a large, and we both went with large. For my dinner, I got the dark meat chicken with three sides: green beans, macaroni and cheese, and french fries. It also came with a choice of hush puppies or corn sticks, and I got the hush puppies. My partner got the brunswick stew, macaroni and cheese, fried okra, and the corn sticks. We got a large sweet tea and a cup of water for our drinks. We placed our order, and the cashier assisted us in navigating the menu and choices. We sat down and waited for about 10 minutes before our order was called. Our meals were about $14 each, and that was an amazing price for the amount of food we got. It could easily be two meals, possibly three. The fried chicken was delicious. Very juicy and flavorful. The mac and cheese was creamy and had a good flavor profile. The green beans tasted very nice and were very green. The french fries were good, too! I tried my partner's fried okra and it was great. Sometimes, fried okra can be slimy, but it was not slimy at all. The hushpuppies and corn sticks felt and tasted like they were freshly fried. The sweet tea was absolutely delicious and one of the best sweet teas I've had in the state of North Carolina. I am a sweet tea fan and I like it very sweet, so this one was great. We got a tea refill before we left, and the person who helped us was very nice! Every person we interacted with was kind and helpful. I like that they have drive-through, to-go, and dine-in options for eating. We really enjoyed this experience and will...