Gracious Pig Smokehouse — Restaurant in Surfside Beach

I can't say we've been BBQ deprived, in the first week of July alone we've smoked 2 butts, a whole chicken and a bologna chub. But really… can you ever have too much BBQ? I believe I can hear a resounding “NO!” coming from the highways and byways of the information superhighway, to which I tip my cap in hearty agreement.

I had walked past Gracious Pig Smokehouse last summer and was enticed by the aroma of burning hickory, and even though my stomach wanted to try it, my brain had to say “later.” So later came on a Friday afternoon in July, during a much needed rainy day.

Gracious Pig Smokehouse is only steps away from the new Surfside Pier. We found ample parking in a public pay lot right behind the restaurant. The lot uses the same parking payment app as Myrtle Beach but they don't break up the hour. Here, my options were paying for just 1 hour or 2 complete hours. Stepping foot outside the vehicle, I was warmly welcomed by that tantalizing scent of smoking wood. That aromatic pleasure just never gets old. Toucan Sam was definitely onto something when he spoke his famous lines.

The inside of Gracious Pig is small, just a few tables and several bar stools. They also have an outdoor area which they were serving a large party in, but we never peeked at it. The inside was empty other than staff when we arrived but by the time we left every table was full as were the bar stools. Our server, Donna, was great! She was full of Southern hospitality and charm.

Donna took our order of Wing Dings for the appetizer. I ordered the BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwich with a side of Fries, because by now… you know what I came for. The rest of my family ordered another BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwich with a side of BBQ Baked Beans and also a Chopped Brisket Loaded Fries appetizer as a meal.

The Wing Dings appetizer had four smoked full chicken wings. The skin was rubbed and crispy and the meat was hot. They tasted fantastic with just a hint of sweetness in the rub which we really enjoyed. No sauce needed for these wings.

The BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwich tray arrived with the side of Fries along with a small container of creamy coleslaw, topped with a pickle and seasoned pork rinds. I opted for the NC Red Vinegar sauce to go with the meal. The BBQ has smokiness, bark and good flavor. The BBQ was good by itself but the NC Red Vinegar sauce definitely kicked it up a notch to great! Pork Rinds were also great!

The BBQ Baked Beans were also very tasty and had plenty of brisket in them to get a piece in every bite. The Chopped Brisket Loaded Fries are a definite home run. Warm queso and brisket on the fries and we're nearing food coma.

Don't miss this hidden gem of a BBQ joint. It'll check all the boxes. Great food, great service and won't dry out your wallet!...

EAT INSIDE. This is the best advice you can get. Indoor seating is incredibly limited and during tourist season it’s crowded and noisy… but eating outside is a mistake. If you can’t eat inside, just get takeout and eat inside your car.

This is by a wide margin my fav BBQ on the grant strand. Service is always good, even when they are busy.

Where they fall down is the patio. The seating is ample, but it’s plagued almost year round with thousands of flies. I’ve seen less flies in between alley dumpsters in the French Quarter of NOLA than I have the average table here.

I’ve yet to finish more than 50% of any item on my plate before multiple flies have landed on the food. Today was the last straw… went to have my birthday lunch around 3pm (a bit late) and my other half insisted we sat outside. It’s fall now, the tourists are gone, so I regrettably agreed. Never got to even taste the bread pudding, 3 flies got to it moments after it was put on the table. I had two good bites of my Mac and cheese before it too had flies in it, and I never even got to touch my cornmeal. My beloved BBQ… maybe I ate half of it.

Honestly it’s such a frustrating experience I may just stop visiting. Few things suck more than having one or two bites of amazing BBQ just to have half a dozen flies land on the rest of it simultaneously on your birthday. Just maddening.

Sometimes they will have flies inside too, but it’s truly insane how many are on the patio. They’ve told me they’ve tried everything to stop them, but perhaps they just need to wall in the patio or something… because as it is, it just isn’t it. I haven’t had the same experience at other restaurants in the same area for what it’s worth, including the pizza joint across the street (which is good...

I am so annoyed with the service of this place. You look forward to enjoying a good meal and it gets shot down. When we were seated we order our drinks our appetizer and our meal at the same time. Drinks come and 20-25 minutes go by with nothing. Then the server comes back and says that they are out of the brisket… no worries let’s do pulled pork. 20 more minutes go by and still no appetizer a 6 top gets seated next to us and orders as well. I finally ask where the appetizer is almost 40 minutes in to sitting there and was told she is gonna have the kitchen put a rush on it. 10 minutes later here come the appetizer but so does the 6 tops appetizer as well.so I ask please send the food out asap. Yet again another 20 minutes go by and she tells us there is 4 tickets ahead of us. Which makes no sense since there were tables that came in after us with there food and appetizers!!!! I told her to cancel the food and bring the check I’m not waiting another hour for food. Mind you it’s not even busy!!! I’d hate to see how long you would have to wait on a busy summer night. Then once handed the check she says that she took off the food!! YA I WASNT PAYING FOR SOMETHING I DIDNT GET ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!!! I’m beyond mad that this happend. And I was so excited to go there and try them out. That WILL NOT EVER HAPPEN AGAIN! Disappointed is an...