Our service was excellent. Very friendly waitress. Heavy in the "no frills" category as far as the decor and the buffet. I was concerned about cleanliness, but it was packed with folks just getting out from church at 3 pm...so knew the food was fresh. I proceeded. I stuck with basics. I gave it a 4 because the fried chicken and biscuit was excellent, now mind you this is an Ohio girl speaking. ...but living in Georgia/SC long enough to know a bit about mac and cheese, yams, green beans, and desserts, I wasn't impressed. Mac and cheese was just Velveeta and noodle with nothing more to it. Yams floating around in canned sauce, very runny. Green beans from can and not doctored up at all(no bacon or ham). I tried the banana pudding, but had no bananas but could tell the pudding was vanilla which is the right choice. Some of the food was fresh and other items looked questionable. I was happy with my chicken and biscuit. It was a local spot and I appreciated the adventure element to eating there. read more

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While driving through Rocky Mount, North Carolina, I was in the mood for some barbecue. We chose the carryout option, though they also have a full sit-down restaurant. Parking was plentiful, with dedicated carryout parking, regular restaurant parking, and accessible spaces. The restaurant has that classic, small-town Southern Sunday dinner vibe. The carryout area is exactly what you'd expect,small and designed strictly for takeout. The cashier is friendly, and the service is pretty fast. You can order at the counter, and the menu offers plenty of mix-and-match combinations. The fried okra was crispy and delicious. The pulled pork had a nice tangy barbecue flavor. The seafood platter was surprisingly good. I would skip the candied yams next time. Everything else was decent but nothing that really stood out. One thing to note: I was hoping for ribs after seeing them advertised, but they weren't available through the carryout menu. Carryout focuses more on pulled pork and pulled turkey, while some menu items are reserved for the dine-in restaurant. If you're passing through Rocky Mount and want a quick Southern comfort food stop, I'd definitely recommend the carryout. It's convenient, the portions are good, and the barbecue hits the spot. As for dining in, I don't think I'd make a special trip .It feels more like a great roadside takeout stop than a destination restaurant. read more

Gardner's Barbecue 301 Flagship Store - Menu - Barbeque Near Me - Rocky Mount, North Carolina

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Buffet food was old. Not good at all money wasted for a bus load of people. At least make sure the food is fresh. read more

The food and service has gone down hill really bad. Not much of a selection. It's obvious by how empty the parking lot and the restaurant were. read more

Would not recommend the Sunset Ave. store. Unfortunately, the employees are running this location into the ground. I have not been here in years and the recent experience was horrible. Rude employees with little training on how to address the customer. Store is run-down, dark, doesn't look clean. Sad to see this once great place decline. read more

Bad quality food. Can greens and coleslaw. NOT homemade hush puppies. I don't get it. Great service. read more

Gardner's Barbecue 301 Flagship Store - Pork Barbecue Plate. Can greens & Coleslaw with mustard in it. Dry bar b q and frozen hush puppies. The best thing was the sweeeeeeet tea. - Barbeque Near Me - Rocky Mount, North Carolina

Good southern BBQ. 11 minutes off the main highway. Fresh okra. Worth it!! You will see a lot of working folk stopping pass here, but that the sign that the food is good read more

Gardner's Barbecue 301 Flagship Store - Fried okra and BBQ pork sandwich - Barbeque Near Me - Rocky Mount, North Carolina

Hmm yes they felt like cooking today other than the fries not being crispy how I like...the Turkey BBQ sandwich was amazing.. it was well put together and not just thrown together looking sloppy.. I enjoyed my little dinner and I'll most definitely be back soon the customer service team 9/10 read more

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Very good and not too far from 95. I had a craving for fried chicken and it was satisfying. Waitress gave me an extra side for free. I'll be back. There's a buffet & table service. read more

Food is great. I love Eastern BBQ. I gave it a 4 rating because the bathrooms were dirty and smelled.

Good food and friendly people Our party of 35 had a surprise birthday party for one of our cousins read more

i've been coming to this barbecue joint for years now. Years ago this restaurant was the place to be. The food was good. The buffet was good. The service was good. Except for the barbecue not being made over hot coals I had no complaints here. But then they started having real smoked, pulled pork on the buffet alongside the oven cooked, pulled pork. I was a happy camper. fast for a few years and for some reason things have changed. The service is still good, but the food quality has gone down considerably. The buffet just doesn't look the same or doesn't taste the same. I can't put my finger on it, but the food quality has gone down tremendously. recently stopped here on the way to Maryland. We got 2 quarts of pulled pork to go. We got home and opened the container. It was mostly grease and fat. I heated up a small portion just for the sake of trying it and I couldn't eat it. It was so greasy, I just threw the whole thing away. I spent a small fortune on that barbecue, but I couldn't eat it. I hope they get their act together. I did get their fried chicken and it was very good along with the cabbage. read more

The food was excellent. The serves was great. The cashier was talking to a group and I heard she was from Wurzburg, Germany. I was born there also. read more

This normally my/our spot when I attend events in that area. The food is normally great!!! This time, not so good. Some of the food was burned. Service was slow & when we relayed our concerns to the manager, the were still left unanswered. He said he could give us 10% off our meals. The only problem with that is that all 7 of us at the table, qualified for 10% off already!! The other problem is that neither of us ate because the food was so bad. Even though we didn't eat, we still were given a bill!! We all paid & left quietly. After that, I contacted the company by phone several time over the next few weeks & was promised several times that the owner/higher level management would reach out to address our concerns. It's been months now & this was our favorite spot, it that area. It pains me to write this review not it is, what it is. ‍ read more

Good home cooked food, chrispy fried chicken, fish, sweat tea & I luv the sweet potato jacks read more

Gardner's Barbecue 301 Flagship Store - Good Ole Southern food - Barbeque Near Me - Rocky Mount, North Carolina

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I have been a loyal customer for over thirty years, but for the past 6 months, the food has been awful!! What is going on at Garner's? Has the management or cooks changed? Because if so, change them back. My entire group of family and friends are complaining. We have decided that when in town, we will choose Colden Coral or K&W because the quality of food at Garnder's SUCK!! read more

Wow!!!!!! Simply Amazing!!!!!!!! Amazing barbecue, baked chicken, slaw and hush puppies. I visited this location as a child and while in Rocky Mount I had to visit. I ate buffet with three other family members and the price with drink is roughy 11 dollars a person. There is variety of food for anyone in the party from fried chicken, fish, barbecue chicken, salad, fruits, and different veggies and desserts. Everything was delicious and I am so happy that I came here. There is a server that come to the table to refill drinks and pick up any finished plates. There is plenty of open seating for everyone no matter the size of your party. When you're all done, the serve brings you your check and you can walk out front and close to the door to check out. I highly recommend Gardner's if you are Rocky Mount, North Carolina and need some yummy delicious food. read more

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Nothing nice to say but the employees were very friendly but the price for the dried food was horrible

I can't believe this place has went all the way down even in take out, The older lady that takes orders, can't remember anything that you say she is going to mess your order up. I have been four times in the last 12 months each time she has not given me the right order or leave out something! Please leave or get someone else to take orders! read more

Great buffet. We took a little road trip and found this gem! The service was great and the food even better! It was everything I expected and more. I'll be back! read more

Catered my family reunion over the weekend & the food was really good. Chopped pork barbecue was top notch! Chicken (fried & baked), boiled potatoes, string beans, fried fish, cole slaw & hush puppies were delish! And the sweet tea was amazing! I'd recommend Gardner's over & over again; we also make a stop for takeout before our journey back to Philly! read more

Need better management! Tried this establishment and was disappointed in their processes. I waited in a long car line for 30 minutes, and placed my order of a two-piece fish meal. The person said we do no serve fish in the drive through. Where is the sign large enough for a first-time patron to see this crazy rule. Now there were a line of cars in front of me and a line of cars ahead with no way to go around (even though after waiting 30 minutes I had absolutely no intention of getting out of line). So they cleared the patrons in front of me and came back to the intercom and asked what I wanted. I repeated my fish order and received the same response. I let them know after waiting over 30 minutes I will NOT be coming inside for the lack of planning on their part; so either you are going to serve me what I want or this line is going to wait until I do. The crazy manager, in which I previously asked for finally said give her what she requested, then proceeded to not apologize, but to give me a WARNING for it not to happen again. I said really, did you just repeat the stupid thing your manager just said. So I drummed down my order to just a fish sandwich (they didn't know I was planning to order a lot more) and proceeded to the window (60 minutes of wasted time) then I drove off. Why? I am the customer, you have no signs large enough stating this policy concerning fish orders and then you tried blaming me for not knowing!!! REALLY, like REALLY???!!! Will not patronize this place again unless somebody with common sense is running the place. read more

Rocky Mount was my home from ages 2 to 12, so Gardner's has been a part of my life for as far back as I can remember. Every time I'm in town there's going to be a stop for at least a sandwich and some hush puppies, if not the full buffet. Everything from a cookout to a repast, count on somebody either bringing, or sending over some Gardner's. It's one of the few places that has remained the same over all these years. It truly makes coming home a homecoming. read more

The long-standing Rocky Mount barbecue mini-chain has 3 locations in the city, but only this location offers a large buffet line loaded with country cooking items and fried seafood, in addition to Eastern NC barbecue. And frankly, the items other than the barbecue are the attraction here because the pork is very ordinary, especially by Eastern NC BBQ standards. The buffet is fairly extensive, including Chopped BBQ, Fried Chicken, Chicken & Pastry, Fried Fish, and great sides - the boiled potatoes are the best I've had in quite awhile. The Fried Chicken is good, not great - the Fried Fish is nice, and the Corn Fritters are loaded with kernels of sweet corn - very nice. Lunch buffet cost is $7.49, with your drink extra. Go here for a nice county cooking buffet, but there is much better pork barbecue around. read more

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Good BBQ pork and sides, including yams and cole slaw. BBQ sauce is pretty spicy. Should HHE tried the chicken too. Highly recommended.

I have been to Gardners a few times but not recently. The reason? Because the quality of the food has gone down. It use to be really great but not quite as good now. The service is good and it has a peaceful atmosphere. read more

Never disappoints in terms of quality of food and service. I did look forward to having some fried fish, but they did not have any that day. I guess I'll have to come back again soon. read more

Gardner's food is simply comfort food!! Always hits the spot. Drive through is always full. Walk in is faster but crowded at times also. Pick your wait time! read more

Just tried to eat here on a stop to Myrtle Beach. We were ignored. Locals came in after us, cashier magically appeared & took her behind to the back! We left. We definitely not begging to spend a money! read more

Had the barbecue plate with potato salad. The natives eat their bbq without sauce. When I asked for sauce the waitress was taken aback. I also tasted the bbq turkey. The turkey was good. I used a lot of the vinegar and hot sauce and it made the meat tasty. The potato salad was just ok. They do have a buffet with a variety of options. This place is well known and I would probably come back if I'm traveling this way again. read more

First time eating here on 11/25/17. You can't beat the price. All you can eat buffet for lunch was only $8.50!! The fried fish was among my favorite. I was hoping for some outstanding bbq, but I was sorta disappointed. I've definitely had better. But I've also had worse. But the selection was great. Collards, fried chicken, mac & cheese, chicken livers, I could go on. All in all, I was happy and definitely plan on coming back if I'm in the area around meal time. Especially since they have truck parking. read more

Good food, not great, but solid. Pork bbq is good and consistent. Only got carryout so I can't really speak to the service.

Went to Gardner's in New Bern, N.C. went through the drive through and ordered 1 doz. livers and a doz gizzards ordered at 5:52 pm got my order at 6:36 pm they said they had just came up but that was a lie the livers were hot but the gizzards were cold took me another 10-15 mins to get hot gizzards. very un-professional. the manager was wearing what looked liked bedroom shoes. for what i got the price was alot higher than KFC's. Nextime I want gizzards and Livers i will drive across town to KFC and get them read more

Every time I come visit my family in NC I have to atop here to eat. The turkey barbecue is amazing. Sweet potato jacks are delicious. The fried chicken is tasty. And it's a must to get some sweet tea to flush it all down with. The buffet price is very reasonable. The take out side is busy so bring your patience if ordering out. read more

This Gardner's location should not be called "Flagship store"! Food at this Flagship location has really declined and quality steadly lower during the last two years. Barbeque is horrible & doesn't taste like southern BBQ at all; appears & tastes seasoned with water vs apple cider vinegar! The chicken is fried TOO hard and almost cuts your mouth when eaten. The service inside for buffet is good, but the food is not good and the options have declined to basically chicken and BBQ choices -- none are good. Run from the "TAKE OUT" area - the regular Cashier is rude, slow & has no customer service skills, and most days after a certain time of day they require customers to type their own order into a Kiosk and pay with a Card - no cash accepted. One of the managers, Tamika D., needs to go back to Management 101, as she demonstrated worse skills than the cashiers, and a bad example of service. read more

BBQ was ok mediocre ehhhh but the coleslaw was absolutely disgustin!!! prob won't be back...sorry just not my cup of tea!

I lived in Virginia for my first 35 years. One night after I moving to Rocky Mount, I wanted BBQ, so I came to Gardner's. The person taking my order was very confused when I asked what kind of sauce they had. I ended up just going with the regular BBQ-- one of the other customers assured me it was delicious. Whoa!! It was absolutely amazing. I'd never had this eastern NC BBQ and it is now my favorite. I moved back to VA, but I visit family in Raleigh a couple times a year and I always try to make a detour to RM to stop at Gardner's. Friendly staff, too! read more

The only reason to go here is the Potato Jacks and you have a flat tire and you can't leave Rocky Mount. read more

Gardner's Barbecue 301 Flagship Store - Barbeque Near Me - Rocky Mount, North Carolina

Welp! All good things must come to an end! Recently attempted to have dinner at this location! It was understandable the "reduced" menu due to COVID . . . But to reduce the QUALITY of the food! It was 4 people there to dine in when we (2) arrived. Placed order and was wandering what the extended wait could have been attributed to . . . Ugh! Watery collards, watery pastry, "boiled" bar b q (not smoked) with what appeared to be "fillers!" The waitress and cashier "attempted" to explain the "watery" substances, which were more turn offs! Needless to say, at checkout, he gave us the price and being me, I asked the cashier if he was going to ask "how was your dinner?" He did after I initiated the question . . . Yes, STAY HOME and cook! Our "to go" order of chicken salad was . . . Guess what? WATERY as well . . . S M H read more

Gardner's Barbecue 301 Flagship Store - WATERY running chicken salad!This was a part of the "to go" and we did not realize it was moving/watery until we attempted to take it out! - Barbeque Near Me - Rocky Mount, North Carolina

Very poor service in take out....ordered online with a 20 minute time to pick up.....one hour later.....still waiting for food