This place is the real deal. A great BBQ joint with bottomless baskets of hushpuppies and glasses of iced tea. I ordered the pulled pork and brunswick stew combo. DH ordered the special - barbequed 1/2 chicken with three sides. Both of my dishes were delicious. The pulled pork was smokey, spicy and tangy, just like eastern NC barbeque should be. DH was very happy that his chicken was actually barbequed (not just grilled with bbq sauce slapped on). Out of his sides, he proclaimed the turnip greens were some of the best he had ever had. In all, this place serves up a great barbeque and with excellent service. Be sure to bring cash as this place does not take plastic. read more

I tried this restaurant for the first time last week and loved everything we got. I had the grilled catfish and it was delicious! My sister & her husband ordered the chopped BBQ pork and sliced brisket and they loved it. The sides of mac n cheese, yams, coleslaw were so good as well! Large portions, and really excellent food. Laura and Ray are so friendly and welcoming . Looking forward to returning and trying some new items! read more

I love their family style, all you can eat. I love the Brunswick stew!! I wasn't too impressed when i ordered off the menu... So if you go here, order family style!! read more

After all these years, this is still the place to eat authentic and amazing Southern food in the Triangle. They have much more than bbq - they have a huge selection of Southern favorites, and it's worth trying to eat as many of them as possible. Prices are still good, and portions will keep you stuffed. Be aware that they only take cash! Although they do have an ATM on premise. The people who work here are Southern sweethearts, but they also work hard. Be sure to treat them well with your hard-earned money! Also don't skip dessert! You won't regret it. Well maybe your full belly will hate you for a few hours, but the taste... read more

Classic eastern North Carolina bbq served family style. Come hungry and plan to be there for a while. $12.95 all you can eat. You can't beat that with a stick. read more

This is a hole in the wall, old neighborhood type of place. The service is good. The chopped bbq is good. The steak is good. The fish is good. Wide variety on the menu. read more

We've been back several times now, and I feel compelled to point out that this place is simply a five star BBQ joint! We have not been disappointed by ANYTHING we've tried here so far! Their fried pork chop is amazing. Really tender and lightly breaded, with perfect seasoning. I can't praise their chopped BBQ enough...paired with their coleslaw it is just simply fantastic. Their desserts are to die for. Their banana pudding and peach cobbler are just about the best I've ever had in my life! read more

Oops! I guess anybody can have an off day; but, my most recent visit was disappointing. The good points: quick seating, same familiar "Home" appeal, great tea, cole slaw and hush puppies. The sad points: the Brunswick stew was not good at all ... seemed to have been at bottom of pot and was just a thick mush; the fried chicken was hot, so I think fresh cooked, but two of three pieces had an off flavor. Service: slow enough to make me start thinking what to order the next day for lunch. I will return, as this has been my go-to place for bbq and fish and country cooking since 1965; however, if this had been my first visit, it would have been my last. read more

Old school charm and a serious wall of stars right when you walk in the door. We went there for the barbeque, but the seafood actually was the best part. Fried oysters and scallops are delicious. Service was quick and portions are huge! Worth the drive from Raleigh just for the vegetables, but everything else is just as perfect. read more

The lines are very long.... You can't place your order online or over the phone.. Due to the amount of business they received, should be a better way to get your customers in and out faster... also they only except cash omg... get with new way of life it's call debit/credit read more

A BBQ institution that has been around for as long as I can remember. With a wide variety of food on the menu. And it's all good. But Tommy has the BBQ mastered to perfection. I love the wall of fame and it speaks for the quality and dedication they put in the food read more

Bullock's Bar-B-Que - Barbeque Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

The worst service in Durham. I've been going here since the mid 70s and it was never "good" but it it worse now. A sad excuse for a business. read more

So there's this guy who I will not name (for reasons that will become apparent) who is a real NC BBQ aficionado. He maintained a website and rated BBQ places. A handful - Clyde Cooper's, Dillard's, The "Lexington Six Pack", Wilbur's (in Goldsboro), and Bullock's, among others - got 4 "pigs", his equivalent to stars. He got a tip that Bullock's stopped making their BBQ, and were buying it from Smithfield's. So he amended his review accordingly. Bullock's attorneys sent him a cease and desist letter. He posted the letter on his website. They sent another letter, asking him to take that letter down... So he decided to remove the entry altogether, as his BBQ website hobby was just not worth a lawsuit. Now I'm not saying whether any of that is true, but I will say: I tried the BBQ before and after, and the story adds up. read more

To round out my week long business trip to SC/NC, what better way to end it by getting another free meal??? Free comes at a cost though. Just off the top of my head, I can think of two BBQ places that are far better than Bullock's. Sure Bullock's has tradition, been around for ages, etc., but really, if the grub isn't "on", all that is meaningless. I got a full rack, side salad, side mac-n-cheese and side and a side of candied yams. The rack: must have been cooked in the oven, no smoke flavor on the meat, no smoke ring. Sauce was good, but, I paid for good ribs not good sauce. quasi-Fail. Salad, mac and yams: salad was a salad, so, who cares. Mac was yellow (American cheese??), somewhat flavorful but nothing over the top. The yams were mixed with cinnamon and brown sugar - they were perfectly mushy and quite good. All in all, I'd rather go to Q Shack or even Dickey's, this place is many rungs down from them. Sup with the cash or check only too??? Y'all running from the IRS??? Ya feel me? read more

I really loved this place...the food, the atmosphere, the people. Everything was great! I went with someone who was quite familiar with the place, so we knew to get there early...like we GOT there at 11:30 and sat right down to a piping hot freshly made hush puppies. Did I mention they have honey butter spread on the tables?? It's like heaven in deep fried form! Their portions are pretty good...definitely show up hungry. I ordered the Chopped Bar-B-Que Special that comes with your choice of three vegetables. I really enjoy how barbecue joints count stuff like macaroni and cheese and french fries as vegetables. Needless to say I chose, macaroni and cheese, candied yams (holy crow delicious!), and deviled eggs...I've never been somewhere that served deviled eggs that wasn't a family picnic, so that was a nice surprise. Oh, and the sweet tea...not rot-your-teeth-out sweet, but just right and they keep the refills coming! Even though I was uncomfortably full since I ate ALL of my meal, I ordered peach cobbler for dessert. It wasn't a huge portion, which was good since I was already about to explode, but it was oh-so-good I couldn't help but come close to finishing it. The atmosphere isn't fancy and the bathrooms could use some remodeling (the place is definitely clean though!), but I think that's part of the charm of Bullocks. It's a family place, like eating at your grandparents' house or something. A lot of the staff were older and have worked at Bullocks since the beginning, which you never see in the restaurant business. There's usually so much turnover you never see the same server twice. To see an older staff made me think that they're treated really well, like a family, and they enjoy what they do...which makes the diner's experience that much better if you know they aren't going to spit in your food and you'll get consistency with the meals! read more

This place doesn't even deserved to be called a barbecue joint. This is not real barbecue. I ordered the pulled pork and brisket. The pulled pork came sauce-less, which is fine, but when I tasted it not only was there no smoke flavor, but there was no pork flavor. How does a place described as "the best place for barbecue around" (from a number of local) not even wood smoke their barbecue? The pork had more of a vinegar taste than anything. While I understand that is the NC style, this tasted like pork made in a slow cooker with no real seasoning. I found ZERO pieces of bark in my pulled pork. Sigh..... Now for the brisket... I admit I am not a brisket connoisseur, but I can't say I liked this too much either. Brisket was a little tough, didn't have a smoke flavor either, and came absolutely SMOTHERED in sauce. I love dousing my barbecue in sauce as much as the next guy, trust me (I like to joke I'd rather drink my food than chew it). This was way way way too much sauce for me. I felt like they were trying to cover the flavorless tough brisket's flavors with a mediocre sweet red sauce. No thank you. Luckily the brisket had enough left over sauce that I was able to give my pork a liberal helping too to make it eatable. And now the ribs. The ribs were probably the best part, which isn't really saying much. They weren't quite fall-off-the-bone, but they were close. A little overcooked. But again, drowned in barbecue sauce. I'm not going to cover any of the fixins because if you really want barbecue the fixins don't much matter. This is not barbecue. This is a sorry excuse for slow cooked crock-pot barbecue, of which even that I've had better. read more

I was introduced to Bullocks in 1998 when my late wife was undergoing treatment at Duke University Medical Center. 21 years later, it's still superb. If I could give 6 stars, I would. read more

Good. LORD. Amazing heart attack specials await. A treasure trove of mac & cheese, pork and other glorious flavors are here for your enjoyment. The hush puppies are OUT OF THIS WORLD - FIVE STARS FOR THEM. read more

My favorite place to eat. Best bbq! Come here all the time. A must for before and after Duke games! My niece loves the Brunswick stew!

Must have experience in Durham. Let's see: 1. Best slaw of all time (if you like the sweet slaw long john's and KFC have, it's similar). 2. Moist, etc succulent pulled pork 3. Unending amounts of food (try family style). 4. Just sweet enough sweet tea. Close enough to 15-501. Go here, soon. read more

It is a family style old school restaurant, the service can be good or bad depending on the servant's mood of the day. I always order fried chicken livers with onions and gravy by the side because I don't usually find chicken livers in other BBQ places. We've had some really good fried livers here when it was well cooked, very soft and creamy. But there were a few times that they came in a little over cooked and dry. Bottom line, it is a cozy place with good NC style BBQ that makes it a good choice for family and friend gathering when they visit NC. read more

Bullock's Bar-B-Que - Fried chicken liver! I always ask for some gravy and onions by the side - Barbeque Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

The service here is great and the food was okay but here is where the three stars comes in. If you are looking for a traditional bbq spot that smokes their meat using wood this is NOT it. The ribs were okay but you can tell that they were baked instead of smoked and it was drowning with bbq sauce. The bottom line is that for me, if it's not wood smoked it's not BBQ but they do have good food there. Their hush puppies were the best I've ever tasted. read more

I found out the other day that my brother in law is in town from up North, and I KNEW I had to take him somewhere with real awesome barbeque. Yes, back home barbeque means you're grilling out on the deck, and since moving here several years ago, I've adjusted well to the understanding that I've been mislead my entire life. Not being a super big meat eater myself, I tapped my friends (and of course, Yelp) to find out the best place to take him to treat him to real downhome cooking here. After much deliberation, a friend came through with an all caps declaration that Bullocks is where it's at, but there's not much that's non-meatly. His take on the barbeque and chicken was that it was pretty damn good, and I really enjoyed the fried okra and mac n cheese. The hushpuppies were great, and there was honey whipped buttery spread at the table to go with them. With as broad a menu as they have here, you can find something for everyone...I even noticed Veggie Burgers listed! The prices are ridiculous (read: inexpensive. The wait staff is super friendly and attentive, and you'll spend a lot of time looking at the pictures of famous people on the walls. It's a really neat place, and I look forward to heading back there! read more

If you want to experience a good North Carolina barbecue joint with smokey vinegar based barbecue with excellent sides - go to Allen & Sons. If you want to stuff yourself "family style" with a massive amount of unlimited barbecue & sides then come to Bullock's. This was the place where I went in college with my friends; five or six guys throwing down on unlimited barbecue, fried chicken, fries, green beans, brunswick stew, cole slaw, & hushpuppies. Now I feel bad for taking advantage of the low low price of $10 for so long and come back occasionally just so they can make some of their money back. All joking aside, this isn't the place to get great barbecue. I had some friends visiting from Boston and they wanted NC barbecue, so we went to Bullock's Friday night and Allen & Sons for lunch on Saturday - Allen & Sons won hands down. The barbecue at Bullock's isn't wood smoked, its electric cooked. Also the flavor is overpoweringly vinegary - that's basically all the flavor you get. If you're in the mood to pig-out for a low price - definitely stop by Bullock's. If you want to true NC experience with some tasty, wood-smoked barbecue, drive to Chapel Hil and hit Allen & Sons. read more

Oh, how the mighty have fallen!! Five years ago, if you had told me I'd rate Bullock's at any less than 5/5, I'd have slapped the taste right out of your mouth. Sadly, though, they really slid downward in quality. Is Bullocks still a Durham landmark and institution? Yes. If invited by family or friends, will I still go? Yes, of course I will. Unfortunately, though, the food has undergone a severe blandening, losing almost all of its flavor, and comes out room temperature as often as not, anymore. I have so many great memories of this place, ranging from a snap decision to go for dinner all the way up to an end of season banquet for my high school wrestling team, but, memories aren't enough to keep me coming back. Please, Bullock's, bring the flavor back to your food and serve it hot, I want to come back. read more

I'll admit it took a long time for me to come around to the concept of Carolina's vinegar based BBQ. Actually, it took trying Bullocks chopped BBQ, which to me tastes not like a BBQ sauced pork, but rather just like really moist, flavorful, a little tangy chopped pork. It is THE place to go for Carolina BBQ (not to mention the oldest restaurant in Durham!). Delicious! They have a HUGE and varied menu, so if BBQ pork isn't your thing, I can just about guarantee there's something on their menu you'll enjoy - and it's the best place we've found in NC for one of our favorite seafood treats - fried clams. Go figure. A few things to keep in mind - they are closed Sundays AND Mondays, they close at 8pm, and they don't take credit cards (but they have an ATM machine in the lobby). So... go early, bring some cash and prepare to CHOW DOWN. read more

This review is just about their fried chicken, which is just okay. I'm kind of an expert on this too so trust me. I have no reason to believe their barbecue is anything less than spectacular, the place was packed so that says something. Fried chicken. They only serve white meat fried chicken so just breasts and wings. I don't know what they do with the dark meat, but they don't fry it. They might have specially bred chickens to just have a breast with two wings attached and no legs but I'm sure that would be news, so probably not that. Moving on. Its cash only. Frying only white meat means the best parts of chicken remain unfried. The chicken tastes pretty good the first night but after sitting in the fridge, is almost inedible. Among the best parts of fried chicken eating is the leftovers which are always more delicious when cold. This was not the case with Bullock's. It was too dry, lacked a full flavor, and was too white (it's okay to say in context). Nicely breaded and fully crisp but this does not make up for dryness. The sides were good. Okra and yams that could not be beat. Also the service was friendly. If you can find this place, go, just don't get the chicken. The Q is probably good and so long as you have cash its all yours. read more

Hmmph.. I see from the previous reviews that I'm plainly not the first from the Bay Area to eat at Bullock's... I see from the autographed celebrity photos on the wall that Roger Craig, former SF Giants manager, beat me here by a decade or so.. and all the Yelping about this place so far is from Californians!.. Anyway Susan-Carol, one of my Carolina born-and-bred RTP workmate/colleagues says that hush-puppies, those deep-fried cornmeal dumplings that they feed you for free here, got their name cuz on hunting trips these things got fried up and fed to the hounds to assuage their hunger and keep them quiet in the middle of the night, usually with the admonition, "Hush puppy.." I'm out here for a week and if I don't moderate my southern cuisine sampling.. my arteries are gonna close up.. As for the joint itself, what everyone else says! read more

I haven't been here in a few years, so perhaps my memory of how 'good' I thought the place was is off. The Good: awesome pictures that go back, My fav is the Tom Seleck one, followed by the Catfish Hunter and Yankee pics. It's a great people watching place as well with a diverse cross section of folks. The Bad: First the menu is way too big. It rivals an asian restaurants for length! No place can make that many things and make them well. I stuck with the mainstay - BBQ, but ordered the combo plate to get both. The brisket was covered in a way to sugary sauce, and the NC chopped BBQ was tepid and flavorless. Maybe they don't make it? I mean I 'thought' I remembered it being really good, at least I remember it being good years and years ago. I'm now sad that I refreshed my memory. I'll stick with Alan and Son or the PIG. read more

Food is good. Service is good. I was told that Bullock's used to be a very popular establishment until a few years ago when they had a salmonella outbreak, and the business has not been the same. So I went to check it out. At first glance, its very obvious why Bullock's is just not popular anymore. Going through the doors feels like your walking into a time machine set for 1982. The place needs some serious renovation. And so the clientele is also very old. Looking around while seated at your table, you'll think that you are at a senior care facility; and the staff members match the decor. If you are under the age of 50, see how many of the celebrity pictures you can identify, if you can identify more than a handful, you better have your living will up-to-date. Once you get past the decor, the old folks, and the teeth-grinding inconvenience of not accepting debit/credit cards, you get to the menu that has way too many items on it. Don't stray from the fried chicken and BBQ, other items on the menu are not at the same level. And don't forget to give the "vegetables menu" a chuckle. read more

Best BBQ in the world... tried it all. Can confirm, hands down best. In the words of my good friend Jacob, "WOW, that's some good BBQ". Friendly service will make you feel at home. read more

Wow, what a menu! My girlfriend told me this was a Durham staple for BBQ, but I didn't expect to see seafood (a whole page!), sandwiches, quesadillas, steaks, and Italian food on the menu. This is definitely a neighborhood favorite, and the average age walking through the door is probably 45-55. Inside, you will be greeted with walls lined with pictures of celebrities that have dined at Bullock's or ate their catered food. Soon, it will be your turn to be seated in the dining room with some of the best hush puppies you will ever eat. If you're hungry, you should do the "family style" dinner, which includes chopped BBQ, fried chicken, green beans, brunswick stew, french fries (not sure why?), and cole slaw. I would try to sub baked beans or mac & cheese in for the french fries if you can. The chopped BBQ was very good. I love Bullock's sauce--it has a great kick to it. Overall, Bullock's is a good place to go if you're craving comfort food. I think they should probably slim down their menu, but the restaurant has been around since 1965... so I guess they know what their clientele wants. The current location has been open since 1970 and they claim to be the longest continuous running restaurant in Durham. read more

This place is great comfort food. Downside, they only take cash. Boo. And they aren't open on Sundays. However, their bbq, hushpuppies, and slaw are amazing. :) This is a great place to take family. read more

I was born and raised in Durham, and Bullocks has always been the old standby. I'll be honest though: the bbq is just ok. There, I said it. I prefer to think of it as less of a bbq joint and more of a meat and three. BUT: the brunswick stew more than makes up for what the chopped pork lacks. It is by far the best in the area. Family style is the way to go. All you can eat. Fried Chicken and Brunswick stew, and sides galore. Come hungry. Bring cash. read more

Not being a NC native, I'm constantly asking folks where I need to go for BBQ. Several pointed me towards Bullocks, and that's where my sad story begins. The good: unlimited freshly fried hushpuppies! score! The bad: everything else. the fried chicken was dry. the ribs were dry. i just didn't get it? perhaps I should have gone straight for the pulled pork? also the menu is gigantic, and that's sort of a tell tale sign that bad things are to come.. I think that a lot of people have nostalgic attachments to the restaurant with memories of coming here as a child, and I totally understand that! I have many restaurants I will defend tooth n' nail because it brings warm fuzzies. unfortunately, i am only armed with my tastebuds with no such memories to guard against my bad experience here.. PS. cash only, folks! read more

Barbecue--- 5 Everything else-- 1.5 If you want hushpuppies and Carolina BBQ, come here and you'll be happily satisfied. I don't recommend ordering anything else on their unnecessarily long menu, because I don't know why you'd eat here unless you were getting BBQ. Checks and cash only--no credit cards. read more

Visited for dinner. We weren't really a young group, but we might have dropped the average age in the room by a few years just with our table. Not that that is necessarily a bad thing. You just need to know that your going to get old-fashioned, no-frills kind of food. We shared hush puppies for an appetizer. They were good, but maybe not as over-the-top good as other folks seem to think. I was much more impressed the sides that came with my BBQ platter. The coleslaw and baked beans were definitely above-average. The beans were especially notable with just the right amount of molasses & stick-to-your-ribs texture that I like. The BBQ itself, eastern-NC style chopped pork, was moist, but generally flavorless. I suspect it had been held or returned to temp using a water bath something that sadly happens all too frequently at this type of establishment. For desert, I got a snicker's bar pie and it was the highlight of my meal. Served warm, it was ooey-gooey and delicious. Others tried the blackberry and peach cobbler and were less impressed. Both were served cold and without ice cream which is really the opposite of how it should go. When the bill came, we all tried to pay with credit card and got a reprimand from our waitress. Be prepared-they only take cash. read more

Fulfilling various out-of-town guests' requests, we ended up at Bullock's three nights after we ate at Hog Heaven. I'm not complaining as it provided a perfect opportunity to enjoy more southern food and to compare/contrast my experiences. Overall, Hog Heaven wins for me. Bullock's BBQ is much more stewed than Hog Heaven's...which has the advantage of having that fantastic vinegar base completely infused throughout the meat, but also has the effect of having a mushier consistency (hint: take home your BBQ and zap it in the microwave to dry it out.) The fried chicken was pretty great, but while the drumstick was perfect, the thigh was tiny and had oddly dense meat. Various people around the table who also got thighs were similarly puzzled by the small size. read more

Great food. Good service. Value was awesome. Place was packed but didn't take long for our food. Will 100% be back. read more

Bullock's Bar-B-Que - Four peice chicken and three veggies only $9.95. - Barbeque Near Me - Durham, North Carolina

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Every time I sit down, I force myself to open the menu, thinking to myself: "Ok, you're not going to get the family style tonight." I still haven't gotten out of the habit. These guys are awesome for: Fried Chicken, and hush puppies (don't forget the sweet cream). Mediocre for the remainder of their fare. I know this place is popular, and they cater to a plethora of events. Pictures inside the wall show that celebrities love this place. But that's no reason to convince you otherwise. If you like to indulge yourself once in awhile to a mass array of southern fare, it's not a bad choice. Be ready to starve for the rest of the week, however. Oh yeah, no booze, and cash only. And get it before arriving at the place. Their atm machine serves a better function as a ridiculous paperweight (I've never seen it operational). read more