Hillsborough BBQ Company — Restaurant in Hillsborough

I’m here to tell Foodie Nation the cold hard truth so here it is. My no holds barred, no punches pulled review of Hillsborough BBQ. WARNING: contains graphic content. Parental discretion advised.

Saturday 9-6-25 approximately 4:30 and there are maybe two tables populated in the entire joint. The hostess was there but only physically.

That tantalizing aroma of wood fired cooking pits had us filled with anticipation. Specials board was billing brisket (plate or sandwich or nachos). We love brisket—there’s no topping a well executed brisket. The bark! The smoke ring. That rich, juicy, smoky flavor. It simply reigns supreme in the world of BBQ. The three of us were all in—one plate, one sandwich, one nachos please!

A basket of hush puppies hit our table simultaneously with our iced teas. They were good dipped in the softened butter that accompanied them. And it was all downhill from there.

Out came our meals and none of them were hot—just lukewarm and that is a turn off. With so few tables to cook for I was expecting some steaming hot plates of food but alas. It was at this point we all realized we had made a mistake coming here.

The brisket lacked that trademark bark indicative of an accomplished pit master. No smoke ring. Barely any flavor. It was limp and more resembled boiled corned beef instead of smoked brisket. I ordered the 1/4 pound size serving and only took three bites before dropping my fork in disgust.

It was at about this time I overhead a couple from the North East ask their server questions about the menu that revealed this was their first time at a BBQ restaurant. Suddenly I was embarrassed to be a Southerner. I wanted to stand up and wave my hands in the air to signal to them they should abort the mission but I didn’t want to cause a disturbance —the poorly executed brisket on our plates was already a crime scene.

The white slaw was decent (3 out of 5). The mac & cheese was also decent (also 3 out of 5). The collards were “not it” at all. They came in a small bowl of greasy broth that had an off putting flavor. My wife generally loves collards but these she rejected like a band geek at a frat party. They were just nasty.

In a sparsely populated restaurant market like Hillsborough I’ve come to realize that restaurants here do not need to be good to keep the doors open. They simply need to exist and patrons will come simply because the lack of choices dictates “it’s this or nothing”.

Our server was friendly and efficient so we chose not to share with her our opinions of the $70 worth of barely eaten food. After all, she had nothing to do with the preparation. We let our plates full of food going back to the kitchen speak for themselves.

There’s nothing worth frequenting this place for. Come and see for yourself if you must. We won’t...

I don't like writing negative reviews, but I always give honest reviews of businesses. This is my honest review of Hillsborough BBQ Company.

I ate here a couple of days ago. I was wanting to try their ribs, but they don't serve ribs until after 5pm. So, I went with the brisket. I found the brisket and their BBQ sauce pretty bland. I had also ordered the mac-n-cheese and green beans. The mac-n-cheese was just ok. The green beans were good, but just a tad under-cooked and a little too much salt/spices.

The one thing that really didn't sit well with me was a note on their menu that people using a credit card will be charged an additional 3.5%!! What???? This is YOUR cost of doing business. Can you even imagine a gas station, grocery store or hardware store pulling a stunt like this? And unfortunately, I forgot about this went I went to pay with my credit card (and I'm sure they count on this), so I ended up paying an extra 3.5% for my meal. NEVER AGAIN. FYI: Alpaca Peruvian Charcoal Chicken and JuJu also charge extra for using a cc.

I wouldn't come back anyway because I just wasn't impressed with the meal, but I will NEVER patronize a business trying to pass on their costs to their customers. We all need to make sure we don't normalize this behavior. If they were being honest with their customers, they would instruct their waitresses to remind the customer that paying by credit card will cost them 3.5% more than paying with cash. I guarantee you when a customer is told this, they'll be upset and asking questions.

The one really good thing about this place was my waitress Jordan. She was awesome. She was constantly asking me if I needed anything. So...

Walking into this barbecue joint, I was greeted by a laid-back, casual atmosphere that seemed promising. The service was genuinely great, and I ordered a half-pound of brisket with mac and cheese and collard greens, all of which came out looking well-presented at first glance. You’ll see from the picture I’m sharing that the brisket looked unappetizing right from the start. Gray and dry. Despite the menu claiming it was soaked overnight, it turned out dry and lacking in flavor, forcing me to rely on salt and the table barbecue sauce just to make it palatable.

The collard greens were decent—about a 8.5 out of 10—flavorful, though a bit too salty. Well, I guess I found where all the salt went. The mac and cheese, on the other hand, was a true highlight—creamy, delicious, and easily a 10 out of 10.

I want to emphasize that I didn’t mention any of these issues to the server; I believe that what’s on the plate is what you’re reviewing, and there’s no chance for a second try. Good food should be consistent from the start, and in this case, there really was no excuse.

In the end, I left feeling genuinely let down. I even had to consider grabbing something else to eat on the way home. If you’re looking for top-notch barbecue, you might want to spend your money elsewhere. A few days later I went to a local BBQ restaurant here in Winston-Salem. I am including photos from that dinner so you can see what good bbq SHOULD look like when it...