Parker's Barbecue — Restaurant in Wilson

I stopped by Parker's as a pitstop on my way up to Washington DC for a trip. Doing some basic research, prioritizing proximity to the I-95, Parker's seemed to be the best use of my time. So we pulled over and walked in and got seated promptly. This place is a no fuss no muss, high table turnover rate kind of place obviously full of travelers and locals alike.

The menu that day was very limited. I believe the options were only pulled pork, fried chicken, and then all the sides. The only other option we had was if we wanted one plate, or an unlimited amount of everything. I have regrets only getting the one plate, but what can you do.

The pork was true Carolina style, lots of good little fat mixed in, little flecks of good, crispy skin, and not really any sauce on it, letting that vinegary flavor be the star of the show. I liked it a lot, it was juicy and tender and a really good pulled pork.

The fried chicken was also juicy and flavorful. The crust on the breading of that chicken was just perfect. It was like a shell, strong but delicate, all the way around the piece of chicken, and you could tell it was actually seasoned well. Another banging meat.

The fried sides were all pretty standard. One thing that stood out, though, were what I believe were called corn sticks, which were long, fried sticks of cornbread. I'm sure they're normally delicious, but these were fried to death, I almost cracked a tooth biting into them. But, you could dip them and soak them like a biscotti in that amazing

Brunswick stew. If you read up on the lore of Brunswick stew, it's one of those dishes that everyone thinks that they made first. But whoever made it first, these Carolina people certainly made it better than the hogwash I find in Florida. Deep deep flavor, perfectly stewed veggies, and just the right amount of pork strewn throughout. I could eat a gallon of this. Actually, I think you could buy this by the gallon. Hmm..

Overall, this was a lovely little find. Definitely don't have anywhere like this near me. Wish I did. It's certainly more than just a pitstop on the ride of the road. I thought it...

Had a random trip to the area and looked for a good bbq joint to eat at (hey I love good BBQ and I know Eastern NC BBQ is some of the best). Saw the reviews for this place and it did not disappoint. Very simple yet very well executed Eastern NC BBQ. Went in and saw the menu, and thought this is making it easy on me, I like all sorts of sides that typically come with bbq but their very simple menu made me not have to choose (the only thing I regret is not getting a bowl of Brunswick Stew on the side to try, in addition to the string beans). The bbq itself didn’t need anything, the meat and smokey flavor together were perfect alone, but add the Eastern NC bbq sauce and it made it that much better. The string beans (I grew up on country string (green, snaps, etc) beans and I will call someone out when they don’t stand up, and believe me these do. Fries are fries (maybe I should have went with the boiled peanuts, haven’t had them in forever). The slaw, that is truly what stood out to be different, but not in a bad way. I grew up on vinegar based slaw, but have never had a mustard based slaw. The bite that the mustard added truly makes it next level. The corn sticks and hush puppies (they don’t say you get hush puppies but they were there along with the sticks), well they were run of the mill but good nonetheless.

To top it off my 10 year old son, who is on the Autism spectrum, and is usually very picky, said this is some of the best food he has ever ate. Due to the medications he is on, he usually doesn’t have a big appetite, yet he truly stuffed himself here, to the point of him saying his stomach hurt, not because of anything other than truly stuffing himself. He said he wants this to be his birthday meal in February and we will make it happen (2 hour one way...

We stopped for lunch to sample the food we had heard so much about. The parking lot looked crowded, but there were plenty of tables available on a Friday at 12 noon. My husband ordered the BBQ plate, and I ordered the Flounder dinner. The waiter was attentive and very accommodating to our requests. The hush puppies and corn sticks and Cole slaw came as an accompaniment to both meals. We found the hush puppies to be very tasty and the texture was perfect. The corn sticks lived up to their label, “sticks.” They were so hard that we could not detect their association with cornbread. The slaw was better than most bbq venues offer, but the percentage of mustard in the recipe is excessive. The pulled pork was just fair compared to many other restaurants we have visited. The flounder was excellently fried with cornmeal and seasoning dusted in just the best layer of flavor. The French fries and the Brunswick stew disappointed, however. The French fries were not cooked thoroughly, so their texture and flavor were wanting. The Brunswick stew tasted like tomato soup with a few bits of meat and vegetable stirred in. It was edible, but not the flavor I crave when I expect top- tier Brunswick stew. We ate until our hunger was assuaged, but we will not join the friends who consider this eatery worth a 100-mile trip for Bbq and...