Cute little atmosphere. Never heard of a bbq place with no homemade Mac n cheese though...

First time here and last time. The girl taking our order was too busy trying to listen to the gossip in the kitchen rather than taking our order. We seemed to be more of a nuisance than a customer. We told her it was our first time there and she offered no assistance. We weren't sure how to even order. Once we ordered she brought the food out to the table spilling our fries out as if she was in a hurry to get back. We were the only ones dinning in at the time. As she walked away she pointed out to where we could get our forks and ketchup. Definitely needs some customer service training! read more

Every restaurant in Summerville seems to be closed on Sundays....except Joe's and that led to the discovery of one of my new favorite bbq places. This is the real deal right here. So here's my big 5 for BBQ: Sauce, Ribs, Pulled Pork, Brunswick Stew and Sweet Tea, ranked on a 1-10 scale for Joe Bessinger's: Sauce: 9.5 - I love mustard based sauces and this is one of the best. Could use just a touch more heat to get that other half a point. Ribs: 6 - Not the star here, but not awful. I wouldn't order them specifically, but the ones that come on the Big Joe Plate are definitely worth eating. Pulled Pork: 10 - Seriously some of the best I've ever had. You just can't do it better than that. Amazing. Brunswick Stew (Not really a staple in these parts, so I'm substituting this with their hash, which is actually very similar minus the rice): 9 - Really, really good stuff. But I don't need the rice, just put it in a bowl and it's Brunswick stew. Don't pass this up if you come here! Sweet Tea: 6 - It was good, however you had to go to the counter to ask for refills of the relatively small cup. Giving how packed this place was at lunchtime, that made for lots of empty sweet tea :( Other items of note: Onion rings!!! These things are great. Super breaded to the point where it's more like a hush puppy in the shape of an onion ring. Delicious. Get it. Can't wait to go back. read more

I'm going to get a list of the best BBQ places i've been to in the lowcountry, but this is my favorite. The primary reason is .... THE SAUCE. The famous bessinger mustard based sauce makes my mouth water. I always get the Little Joe plate, which is pulled pork, hash w/ rice w/ 2 pickle chips and a slice of raw onion, roll, huge onion ring, and slaw. Prices are reasonable. The banana pudding is pretty good. The employees are always friendly and it is enjoyable to eat at. Only drawback is that there is no buffet, but the menu keeps you from pigging out. Good sized portions. I haven't been to Sweatman's or Kelly's BBQ in years, so this is the best I have recently had. read more

My favorite BBQ in South Carolina. Just moved to Maryland, so Joe...this girl will miss you. Until we meet again.

A BBQ place that doesn't have homemade mac & Cheese??? We tried it twice out on College Park road..On our second visit we remembered why we said at our first visit we wouldn't go back...Food was mediocre at best... Never again...If you want some good BBQ try "Hometeam" http://hometeambbq.com/ read more

I thought I would try this place out since I've never eaten mustard based BBQ sauce. The restaurant has a clean and simple decor... not overpowering with lots of wood. The service was outstanding. I tried the Big Joe sampler plate; ribs, pulled pork, cole slaw, onion ring, roll, rice and gravy. The pulled pork was moist and tender. The smoky flavored rib meat fell off the bones. The coleslaw and onion ring were outstanding. Surprisingly, the rice and gravy were good despite looking like a child's regurgitated lunch. All in all, good BBQ IF you like mustard based BBQ sauce, however tonite I learned I'm a much bigger fan of vinegar based BBQ sauce. Worthy of a 4 if you like the MB BBQ sauce, but I give this place a solid 3.5. read more

Absolutely delicious, reasonably priced and super clean as a bonus. It's nothing fancy, just great comfort food. Maybe it's because I'm visiting from Iowa, but I don't remember ever having a better BBQ lunch! read more

I had a hankering for BBQ, so I checked around what was close by, and found Joe Bessinger's BBQ about five, ten minutes from where I lived. The name sounded familiar in a good sense, so I drove over to check it out. The building itself is very nice, with plenty of parking. When I dined, about an hour and a half before closing, half of the dining room was closed, which is okay. There were about three other people, so it wasn't an inconvenience of any sort. The menu is what you'd expect at a BBQ joint: pork, ribs, chicken, that sort of thing. I didn't notice any baked potatoes, but the joint was a smaller restaurant, so it wasn't out of place. I ordered the Big Joe, which came with pork BBQ and their own sauce, a rib, cole slaw, a roll, a single onion ring, and their "hash" and rice. I also ordered a side of potato salad to round out the meal. They served Pepsi products, which is a little disappointing. The meal itself was a good serving. The cole slaw had an raw onion ring on top as a sort of garnish. I'm a fan of onions, but this might be a little off-putting to some folks, since it did leave a little onion aftertaste on the cole slaw. The rib and BBQ were both good. The pork was chopped in a machine as far as I could tell; it didn't have that hand-pulled feel to it. The rib was delicious. The rice was your typical minute rice, but the hash that was served on top of it was puzzling. I expected a heartier sort of item, but instead got what I can best describe as a sort of thin burgoo. A little research tells me that around South Carolina and Georgia, when they say hash, they mean BBQ pork in sauce. This was my first brush with such a side item, so I wasn't exactly happy with what I got. I saved the onion ring for last, which was a good idea. It was much larger than other onion rings I've ever experienced, and I swiftly learned why. The batter used reminded me more of a funnel cake than anything else. It was sweet and doughy, pretty much masking the taste of the onion. It was more of a desert item than a side item. The biggest disappointment had to be the potato salad. The cole slaw seemed like the pre-packaged kind, which is fine because I enjoyed that sort of taste. The potato salad appeared homemade, but I have never seen such a poor potato salad. I had to add salt and pepper to the side dish, it was so bland. I would definitely not recommend it. Overall, Joe Bessinger's BBQ was an alright destination for BBQ. I'd recommend it for a quick bite to eat. Its nothing special, but when you serve BBQ, you don't need to put on airs just to be good. read more

Went thru the drive thru on 10/5/19 @ 7:45pm and ordered 2 hamburger baskets. The girl that took our order then went outside and proceeded to have a 15 minute conversation on her cell phone with someone that I overheard from my car window. By the time she returned and i got my order and returned home, my fries were cold and burger was warm ( I only live 3 minutes away). Over 22$ worth of overpriced crap. Never again. I'll drive the extra miles and go somewhere else. read more

I tried this place after hearing good things about it at work. Let's just say disappointed isn't strong enough. This place was not good. We got a family pack with 2 lbs of pulled pork, white rice, hash, cole slaw, some rolls, and green beans. The pulled pork was ok at best. The hash was disgusting, it looks like blended baby crap. Not my thing at all. Didn't really taste that great either. With the variety of bbq places in the area that are great, I will definitely not be coming back to this one that is far below average. The cole slaw and green beans were pretty good, but that's not why you go to a bbq restaurant. read more

I'm usually impressed with the food and the service. The girls are at the drive thru are usually very sweet and go out of their way to please the customer. That being said, my last experience there was probably my last. My husband ordered 4 meals through the drive thru and when he got home it wasn't what we wanted. All 4 meals were platters and he wanted the baskets. Not a big deal, I just drove back up there and asked to exchange it for the baskets. I was told no. What do you mean no? The manager came out and said it was a waste of good pork to change it to the baskets and she refused to change the order. I was honestly shocked. I've never been to a restaurant where the order was something you didn't want and you were told to deal with it. Very disappointing bc its a pretty expensive place for fast food but great food, nonetheless. I did contact the owner who immediately got back to me. I'm sure it won't happen again. I just won't take that chance. read more

I will start this off and say that the food I had was good (minus the big soggy onion ring on top of my order), but overpriced. I had to call twice to make a to-go order, the first call I was put on hold and left on hold. The staff was not very friendly. read more

Man, what happened? This used to be easily one of my favorite BBQ places. After eating at Melvin's last weekend, this place has fallen off a bit. So much, that I probably won't go back for a while. I got the rib plate, thinking they were basically going to be what I got a Melvin's, which is essentially the same place, but I was way wrong. They were rubbery and luke warm. Even the sides seemed more greasy than normal. It honestly pains me to rewrite them an unfavorable review, but I gotta be honest, especially when people read my reviews and take them into account when they are trying to decide where to go. Sorry Joe. read more

Love this place. I have tried various different item's over the year's and they have always impressed

Another bessingers BBQ restaurant that is as amazing as all others.... My only suggestion is that it would be nice if they had real lemons for the tea instead of the packets. read more

This is way over due, I liked them till I got dismissed by Manger. I got takeout to eat at home ( Wife didn't feel like cooking ) so picked something up on way home from work. The next day was sick and had nothing after Joe's. I called to let them know that maybe they might need to watch how they thaw or what ever was done. I was not looking for a freebie or anything just a apology. As I have been a manger of a restaurant I know how long food poisoning takes. The manger at Joe's acted like I was a bother and for there act I have not been back over 2 1/2 years. I just hope no one else got sick. read more

It's hard for me to give any restaurant 5 stars, but Joe Bessinger's BBQ probably deserves one, at least for their category. I am a frequent customer, usually through the drive-thru, but sometimes go into the restaurant and get either a Little Joe or Big Joe BBQ plate. I took some Yankee friends there last March, and they were super-impressed. The food is outstanding and the atmosphere very Southern Casual. Joe died a couple years ago, and lived right next door to the restaurant. The food is as good as ever, and, according to employees, the recession has not dampened business, which is as good as ever. Joe and Maurice were brothers. Maurice was famous for "Piggy Park" in Columbia, if I'm not mistaken. I give this restaurant 5 BBQ Yums. read more

Great food, but now they're charging 3.50$ to substitute collards for the nasty coleslaw on anything.... really???

Went there for the first time and was not disappointed in the least. The staff was friendly and the food was great. Everything tasted amazing and was of great quality. Needless to say me and my family will be back in the near future for sure. read more

I had a very different experience than the other reviewers here. I thought Bessinger's was awful. I wouldn't go back there again. In fact, its some of the worst BBQ I've ever had. read more

The fried catfish is so delicious. My husband just brought some home for dinner omg it was so good.

Had to walk through a river to get to front door(it was raining). Once inside,there were several leaks in the roof! Ordered food, prices seemed pretty high.After a short wait, food arrived.Fry "basket" was an onion ring on top of a dozen fries(3.50), remainder of food was mediocre at best! If I was starving & broke down in their parking lot, I'd walk home & microwave a frozen burrito! read more

Now here is some overpriced crappy BBQ with no atmosphere. I would have to say the place is just weird. Why in the world can't you make awesome BBQ in the Carolina's? Certainly my only visit. Save your money folks! read more

The food was amazing and it came out very fast however; the woman in the back needs an attitude adjustment. We never ate here before and had a question regarding the menu and her response was very rude and belittling. read more

This was our first time eating here today and we were both VERY pleased. I had the "Big Joe" plate and it was fantastic! Generous portions of rice, Cole slaw, pulled pork, two fall off the bone tender ribs, a dinner role and a large onion ring, all for $10.50 as of this writing. The restaurant has a comfortable atmosphere and was spotless. Even the restrooms were immaculate. Also, we got our dinner in less than five minutes and the service was friendly. HIGHLY recommend. read more

I ordered a pound of BBQ and a pint of slaw to go. When I got home, I opened the bag to find two containers the same size and a small (maybe an ounce size) cup of sauce. Thinking they had made a mistake, I called them. I was told that's how they sell a pound. I was a little dumbfounded to say the least but let it go. I managed to fix my husband and two of my kids a sandwich. My youngest and I had some slaw! For over $10 a pound, one would think you could feed more than three people. What would I have received, I wonder, if I had ordered a pint of each? Maybe a pint of slaw and an ounce of BBQ? Wasn't even that good. Won't go back. read more

I love Joe's, it's the BEST BBQ in the area! The food is amazing and the service is great. I've gone there for years and never once had an issue. read more

I just had the worse experience there tonight. I know the door says closes at 6:55. I should have checked the time before I ordered, but the door was open. We ordered the food. They took our order and we went to sit down. We sat down and the girl from the counter comes over, and says it has to be to go. She doesn't apologize or say we are sorry. Just gives us two ketchups to go. They then bring our food out in to go containers in a bag. So after spending twenty-one dollars , we go and eat out in the car. I thought that was so rude and inconsiderate. Yes , I should have checked the time, but on the other hand, it would have been nice to have been told that its closing time and it would have to be to go. I would have decided to order or not to order, instead of ordering, paying and sitting down, then told it has to be to go. When I get out to the car. I open my container, big joe platter, and find that my hash is full of cole slaw juice. The hash wasn't that pleasant. If you are going to just push customers out the door at closing time. You should just close the lobby, and put a sign up that says drive-thru only. The people at that time should have at least apologized. read more