So I have to say this is a strange place. Well it's just different than what I'm used to. Usually…read morein Butner it's hard to pass up TruSoul but I wanted to step outside my comfort zone. This place is a little confusing when entering for sure. I was extremely skeptical once I turned the corner and saw the food. But the promising factor is there were tons on senior citizens eating in and taking food out. I personally value old people taste buds. I'm a lover of flounder and I got the turn up greens and black eyed peas. The food was actually pretty good. The lady fixing the food was welcoming and I felt good about patronizing this establishment. It's honestly hard to explain this place you definitely won't waste your money but it just may not be for everyone as someone else previously pointed out. This is truly where the locals go for home cooking lol.

Great meat and sides home cooking restaurant! Operates as an employee handled buffet. I would…read morehighly recommend this restaurant.

It was our Saturday night in Burlington NC were that location 2629 Ramada Road Burlington,NC and it…read morewas a wait time. But the food was delicious and it was hot and good, it was very clean it's in the old K&W Building ,It was plenty of space to eat your food. We really enjoyed it me and my husband. I will go there again .# Bring your wallet.

If you like old grease, gigantic cheap chicken, canned food over seasoned with $1 spices, potato…read moresalad and coleslaw that taste like it has added ingredients to appear home and deserts that I'd be in shock if they were homemade or even doctored this your place! Unorganized in many ways. True Soul food is fresh and cooked with love. Great location and I do wish them well!

We came on a Monday during a very quiet time. Since it was our first time, we appreciated the very…read morefriendly staff. The Pulled Pork and Burnt Ends were fresh and uniquely flavorful. But the Collard Greens were exceptional with a nice spicy touch. The only flaw was the potato soufflé side which was too creamy and mushy for our tastes. We really appreciated that the cook asked our opinion of our choices. We would definitely recommend a stop here.

Was walking around Durham with my girlfriend and decided to get some food. It was really good!…read moreWould come here again.

Awesome brisket it's the best ever! The brisket is absolutely Devine and the bbq sauce is the…read moreperfect blend of tangy and sweet. Brought it home and we devoured this brisket. Better than the (you know the restaurants where is all dehydrated and cold) overhyped barbecue places in North Carolina there is NO comparison The Mac and cheese reminded me of my grandma. I will be searching them out on Facebook to get more of this fantastic bbq :)

Very good BBQ. I had the Heartstopper, and it was great. Huge portions of their brisket and pulled…read morepork on a bun. Delicious. I wish they had a restaurant. Highly recommend.

I'm a little biased because I live down the way from Byrd's and I am not ashamed to say that when…read morelooking for a house in the area I decided to buy our house because Byrd's was down the street after trying their BBQ. I love watching this business grow since we have been in the neighborhood. The owners James and Kim and the nicest people you will ever meet. All of the staff are consistently friendly, and I have never had a bad interaction - even when they are packed... which is most of the time. When I moved to North Carolina, I was excited to explore the BBQ scene. Unfortunately, several places I tried were disappointing. I'm not going to get into the Eastern NC versus Texas-style debate because I enjoy them both. Simply some of the barbecue I tried was just not very good. Then I found Byrd's. I don't know what James is doing back there in the kitchen, but the brisket is excellent. The ribs are my other favorite, and, as an added bonus, they serve breakfast! I had the brisket omelet, and it was amazing. They have great food, genuinely kind people, and a neighborhood business worth supporting. Go check them out, you won't regret it.

Excellent BBQ spot. If you're in the area or traveling along I-85, it's a quick and easy stop just…read moreoff the highway. The restaurant has a modern fast-casual vibe, both inside and out, and the staff was friendly and welcoming. The food is what really steals the show. We ordered a burger with fries, a pork sandwich with fries, pulled pork with green beans and potato salad, and brisket with coleslaw and every single item was delicious. The standout was definitely the brisket. It had an incredible peppery rub and perfectly smoked flavor that kept you going back for bite after bite. Easily some of the best brisket we've had.

This is the way that BBQ should hit!!…read more We stopped in the "Shack" while visiting Durham. Having been huge fans of North Carolina style BBQ, we were not disappointed.My wife and daughter enjoyed the Pork Plate. By for me, I went with the two meat combo with Pulled pork and brisket. The pulled pork was spot on. It was perfectly smoked and almost melted in my mouth. With a touch of spicy vinegar sauce, I was gone to Carolina in my mind for the rest of the day. The brisket might have been some of the best I've ever had. It had a nice fat layer and was also "melt in your mouth" and juicy. The brisket didn't need any sauce at all. It was that good. The hushpuppies were the star at the table. My family considers themselves to be connoisseurs of hush puppies, and these were ranked in the top five. A respectable ranking from such a discriminating hushpuppy panel. The sides we sampled included collard greens, mac and cheese and BBQ beans. The collards and Mac and cheese were out of this world. I should have ordered a double serving of the collards. However, the beans were a huge disappointment. They were more like a bowl of sub-par chili than BBQ beans. If we return, they will not be selected. A great BBQ spot when you are in Durham. Highly recommend you stop by, if only to taste the brisket!

I ordered the 2 meat combo with brisket and pulled pork, with mac and cheese and beans on the side…read more It also came with toast, pickles, and fresh onions. The meat was very tender and juicy, and I liked that the BBQ sauces and beans were flavorful without being overly sweet. The place has a cozy feel, with both indoor and outdoor seating. It can get pretty busy around lunch, but overall it was a great meal.

Stopped here for lunch on our way to Charlotte. Plenty of street parking right out front…read more The front during the day looks like it's closed. We were welcomed as we entered and shown to a small table in the main seating area. Fairly large place with a large bar and a stage for all the live music they have. At this time we were the only customers. Our server brought us the menus and glasses of water. After a little extra time, son needed extra time. We ordered the 1/2 rack of baby back ribs with coleslaw and Mac-n-cheese. I ordered the brisket bowl. We had a short wait before everything came out. Everything looked great. The meat literally slid off the bones and the ribs were very tasty. I sampled everything. The slaw was good and even the Mac-n-cheese was good. My brisket bowl was delicious. Brisket over a bed of rice, black beans, blue cheese crumbles, tortilla chips, and a sauce. All the flavors played well together and satisfied my taste buds. It was just enough food. First time here and we both enjoyed the experience. We would definitely eat here again. Recommend giving this place a try.

A friend invited me to come and n a Tuesday night for the music and dancing and I ended up enjoying…read moreboth! The atmosphere was great and the crowd was a good mixture of folks. I will definitely be back and hope to enjoy the patio more next time.

Solid BBQ, good prices…read more Needed some Carolina BBQ for takeout and they had a nice family meal that was more than enough to feed four people. In fact, there were enough left overs for another round. Their service was quick, and the chopped pork was solid. The fried chicken was also good. The mac and cheese was nice and creamy, and the coleslaw was not too watery. I definitely recommend them for feeding a crowd at an economical cost.

I wanted to love this place but it just missed the mark for me. The food didn't have a lot of…read moreflavor--though their bbq sauce was good. The service was professional but nothing to write home about. It's a small place and didn't really seem to have an identity with decor, that's okay, as long as the food is great and I'm not sure if we went on an off day or what but the food was underwhelming. I hope to try it again at some point and have to update this with a better experience next time.

This is a decent four-star Southern bar near the Duke campus. We were driving through town, and we…read morestopped here before visiting the local botanical garden. There's plenty of paid street parking in the area. The interior is a bit dark inside, minimal ambient light from the outside, TVs around the bar. Lunch arrived quickly, I had the patty melt which was a bit over salted, but not too bad. Service from Makena was overall decent, nothing exceptionally bad or good. Pricing for lunch averaged just over $20 per person, including the "included gratuity." It's a fine Place to get standard bar food.

We were driving from Columbia, South Carolina to Richmond, Virginia today and decided to stop in…read moreDurham for some lunch around noon. This place is located in the downtown area of Durham on the second floor of a red brick building. There is plenty of patio, bar and dining room seating. It was a little hot for the patio so we sat at one of the tables in the dining room. The menu offers a handful of appetizers and salads, as well as about twenty lunch entrees. I went with the NC pulled pork sandwich. It also had coleslaw on the sandwich. Side options included fries, salad, Brussel sprouts, or onion rings. I went with the brussel sprouts and they were very tasty. My husband had the patty melt with French fries. The fries were a generous and tasty portion. His patty melt was very salty, though. Service was pretty quick.

Is JC's Kitchen even "Open" anymore???? Have driven by these last few months (3) and see the place…read moreclosed .

I've passed by this mysterious yellow building so many times this past year and finally decided to…read moredrop by. The inside I have to say is a little dim, but the excellent hospitality I was greeted with totally counteracted that. They have a wide range of items on their menu at VERY awesome prices. You can get a combination plate which includes your main entree and two sides for $6-$8. They have your usual chopped BBQ, fried chicken, fried turkey, cubed steak and for those of you more adventurous ones out there - pigs feet! You have to get there early though. I was there at 12:30 PM and they were already out of chopped BBQ. Bad for those of us who come later in the day, but a good sign that their food is great. I ordered the fried chicken combination (you can pick from white or dark meat) with a side of candied yams and collard greens. I washed it down with a delicious, but outrageously sweet cup of lemonade. I literally had to cut the lemonade with a full cup of water, but it was good nonetheless. Then, you have the opposite end of the spectrum with the food being pretty heavily seasoned. I personally don't see this as a bad thing because I've been to a string of restaurants lately where the food was just way too bland. So this is just a warning for those of you who don't like your food too salty. The fried chicken was decent, but the yams and collard greens were the best I've had in a really long time. They also offer different desserts daily. They're open for breakfast, lunch and dinner M-F, but they're only open for breakfast and lunch on Saturdays. If you haven't tried this place before, please do. Both food AND service is great, which believe it or not, is a very rare combination these days.