2 NC BBQ restaurants rank among South’s best new spots, Southern Living says
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Summer is almost over, but good barbecue is forever. And Southern Living says two Western North Carolina joints are serving some of the best plates in the entire South.
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Ben’s Backdraft Barbecue in Waynesville and The Honey Hog in Morganton both earned spots on the magazine’s 2026 best new barbecue restaurants list, placing 9th and 12th, respectively.
The top 16 list, ranked by longtime Southern Living contributing editor Robert Moss, is released every two years and highlights noteworthy joints that have opened since the last edition in 2024.
“Yes, barbecue strongholds like Texas and South Carolina are well represented, but this year’s list sees worthy new joints setting down roots in places like South Florida and the mountains of North Carolina that haven’t traditionally been barbecue hot spots,” he wrote.
Moss ate his way across the South, enjoying meals at new spots and featured joints from years past. His rankings were qualitative and “based upon the enjoyment of the meal” at the restaurants he visited, rather than relying on scores or empirical grading.
Here’s what he said about his two North Carolina picks:
Location: 3028 Jonathan Creek Rd, Waynesville, NC 28785
Cuisine: All-wood smoked BBQ, Texas-style with Carolina influence
Moss’s review: “The core barbecue offering is straight down the middle: brisket, ribs, chopped pork, and chopped chicken along with hearty sides like creamy mac and cheese, loaded potato salad, and tangy white slaw. The perfect capper is (owner Ben Hooper’s) signature dessert, MoonPie banana pudding. It’s a mashup that’s every bit as delicious as it sounds, with a layer of the crushed marshmallow sandwiches topped with sweet gooey banana pudding and finished with whipped cream.”
Location: 300 Carbon City Rd, Morganton, NC 28655
Cuisine: A blend of Texas-style and Eastern NC whole hog barbecue
Moss’s review: “The Texas-inflected offerings are admirable — thick-sliced brisket with a generous fat cap, jalapeño-cheddar links, and rich chavos beans — but it’s the Carolina items that really shine. That includes locally-sourced whole hog, chopped fine and served without sauce so you can choose your favorite. (I recommend the tart, peppery Eastern North Carolina vinegar sauce.)”
Owner and first-generation farmer Tyler “Bones” Jones said he takes pride in his restaurant’s farm-to-table approach. Much of the menu is locally sourced, from the hogs to the chickens and even the fried cheese curds.
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“Knowing where your food comes from is really important, and making sure (the) sourcing is quality,” Jones told CharlotteFive. “Ultimately, we just want to give back to our own community and this is our way of doing it.”
Western North Carolina isn’t the only part of the Tar Heel State worth visiting — for good barbecue, breathtaking mountain views or otherwise.
Travel + Leisure recently ranked the Outer Banks among the nation’s best island getaways, The Charlotte Observer reported. The scenic barrier islands, located just off the North Carolina coast, was the only state locale to be recognized on the coveted list.
Southern Living has recognized Sunset Beach for its white sand and crystal clear waters, as well as Boone as the one place in North Carolina everyone should visit.
The magazine also highlighted Calabash, a quaint fishing village known as the “seafood capital of the world.”
These barbecue spots have earned bragging rights as the top 5 joints in the region, per Southern Living:
Portions of this story previously appeared in The Charlotte Observer.
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