Melvin's BBQ: Taste So Sweet Make You Wanna Swap Your Sugar Mama If you're craving barbecue--and you've got a nagging sweet tooth--I encourage you to stop by Melvin's BBQ in Mount Pleasant. Nestled just off Highway 17, a mile before the Ravenel, beneath a gloriously ancient oak tree, this barbecue joint boasts a history dating back to 1939--and for good reason. The name has changed and the menu has evolved since then, but the Golden Secret Sauce has remained the same. This delicious mustard-based sauce is sweet and tangy and goes best with their chopped barbecue pork, which you can order by the pound or as one of two sandwiches: the Big Joe or the Little Joe--named after the sauce's inventor and Melvin's father, Joseph Bessinger. The pork, being finely chopped, makes for a sandwich that is a touch mushy and messy but spares you the stringiness and toughness of many of its pulled counterparts. On the other hand, the burnt ends sandwich--while quite flavorful--is extremely tough, to the point where the bread just seems superfluous. The jerky-like ends were as difficult to bite through and chew as I'm sure they were for my stomach to digest. The barbecue spare ribs, however, are positively delightful. Smoked in a spicy dry rub, the meat slips off the bone with a gentle tug. A third rack comes with two sides and a piece of corn bread, muffin-like in its moistness and sweetness. This meal is plenty and gets my highest recommendation. I prefer as my sides the baked beans and coleslaw. The baked beans are sweet, saucy and satisfying. That said, they could benefit from more meat chunks, which would thicken them up and add spiciness. The coleslaw is candy-sweet, fresh and delicious, but similarly could benefit from some celery seed for added bitterness. If chopped pork and ribs don't suit your palate, the burgers supposedly are quite popular as well. I will say that if you decide to go that route, I'd pass on the French fries as they were overcooked and mediocre when I tried them. The menu also offers barbecue chicken and turkey, if poultry is your pleasure. Personally, if I'm craving barbecue, it's beef or pork that I'm jones-ing for. Next time, I think I'll try the brisket--excluding the burnt ends, that is. To drink, I suggest a bottled IBC root beer. This has to be one of the heavyweights of root beers, and it's best served ice-cold but undiluted by ice, and untainted by the fountain. For dessert, if you can handle any more sweetness, the milkshake is more than satisfactory. I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that the service is exceptionally good for a barbecue joint. Reminds me of Chick-fil-A in that the staff is mostly composed of polite youngsters who are surprisingly thorough. Finally, I applaud Melvin's for remaining open for business--drive-thru and outdoor seating only--throughout the economic shutdown. While having to swallow the bitter pill of quarantine, the spoonful of sugar that is Melvin's BBQ... helped the medicine go down. read more

How you going to run out of Brisket? And then how you going to ring it up and then find out you're out of brisket. And then the solution is a cheaper substitute. And then I tell you to refund it and you just go back to ringing up another customer? read more

Amazing Mac n cheese but just noticed their was a large piece of plastic in my container read more

Melvin's BBQ - Mount Pleasant - Plastic in my food - Barbeque Near Me - Mount Pleasant, South Carolina

Food is okay however customer service is poor. If you want good BBQ go to Lewis downtown. Save your money & thank me later

We love Melvin's BBQ. We have been mostly to the Mount Pleasant location but we also have been to the Folly Road location as well. Food is always great. Never had a bad experience yet. Love the brisket sandwich sliced with fries and the giant onion ring. It is tasty and filling. read more

Great BBQ joint with huge portions. The gold sauce was perfect mixed with the pulled pork. I wasn't a fan of the huge onion ring but that's just my own personal preference. You just may love it. Greens and hush puppies were on point. Awesome spot in Charleston read more

They have a high rating for there wings. I waited in the drive thru line for 40 minutes, ordered 12 pcs wings got to the drive through window and was told there were no wings. They did absolutely nothing to accommodate my 40 minute investment of time. I will never come back here again. read more

Wow, I dont know what to say... In the sand which area, they offer a three rib sandwich, it is three ribs, on the bone, with 2 slices of bread on the side. It is not a sandwich at all. My friend and I ordered the six rib meal and the sandwich so we could try them both. WHY would I waste my money on a sandwich if all it was is 3 more ribs. Yes, I am ranting on this because we spent a lot of money for being our 1st time here. I, also told them it was our 1st time. Okay, so on to the food, the sides tasted bland, we had the mac and cheese and it was runny and bland. The coleslaw was very wet, which some people may like swimming coleslaw but I dont. The bar-b-que was okay, I did have to add a lot of sauce to get some real flavor to it. I would not put this in the running with our other lowcountry bar-b-que places as we have some really great places. Sorry Melvins, you did not hit the mark for me and I spent enough money and not sure I want to spend more to give you a second chance. It may seem unfair but I dont feel your restaurant was far to me. read more

Melvin's BBQ - Mount Pleasant - This is a real rib sandwich that I made because the name on the menu lied - Barbeque Near Me - Mount Pleasant, South Carolina

Hard to get in and out of, and not easy to order. food okay. What good bbq is supposed to be. no fat.

Margaret, the catering director, made planning our family gathering so easy! Top notch service and food!

We were fortunate to find this restaurant near our hotel in Mt. Pleasant, SC. Hubs and I had long drive from PA and we were very hungry. I checked YELP and found Melvin's BBQ practically across the street. It was very busy. This is a place where you walk in, study the menu above the counter and stand in line to give your order. There were about 10 people ahead of us, but the queue moved quickly. After placing our order, we were given a number, drink cups for self-serving and found a booth to sit. It wasn't very long until a young man brought our food to our table. (We learned later that there is a drive through, also. It is likely that we would have chosen this option and taken the food back to our hotel.) There is a variety of sauces for the ribs. Husband favored the hickory sauce, but also liked a mustard based one. I ordered a hamburger with the works. Both of us were happy with our food. We ordered sides of fries and onion rings. The onion rings were very tasty and big. I really liked the pickle bar and the sweet tea. Husband said the ribs were some of the best he has tasted. Apparently Melvin's BBQ has been around since 1939. They must be doing something right. read more

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Absolute garbage for pulled pork. The last two times I've gone here I ordered the pulled pork plate and about 1/3 to 1/2 of it came out as yellow covered pulled fat. It's one thing to have fat along with the meat, it's another thing to pull chunks of fat out by themselves. I thought the first time I came it was a fluke, but it happened again a month later. $20.67 for a pile of fat, or shredded meat scraps collected from other orders I wouldn't feed to my own dog. No thanks. I'll go to Bessemgers instead. read more

Hash was realllllu good. I added pepper vinegar sauce to it to give it a slight kick. All the sides were fresh and seasoned perfectly. I'll definitely be back soon x read more

Melvin's BBQ - Mount Pleasant - Top: hash and rice plate with 3 sides of collards, mac and cheese, and butter beans - Barbeque Near Me - Mount Pleasant, South Carolina

Staff is very helpful! I was sitting outside and the food runner came out with my food but I didn't know you had to grab sauce/utensils prior to coming outside. He held unto the food and showed me where to grab the stuff. Super friendly! My brisket and cornbread weren't hot... disappointed about that. Food was good though. read more

Melvin's is a solid bbq restaurant- it's not the best nor is it the worst. The menu is on the wall and you order at the counter. We got the Family Feast. This is what we would order again- they were delicious: chicken wings, brisket, Mac and cheese, and banana pudding. Maybe also the potato salad. The rest were good too but we wouldn't order them again. read more

BEST SERVICE EVER! THE KINDEST EMPLOYEES EVER! Such a homey ambiance. The best food in mount pleasant and the best burger in Charleston.

Good service good food. Enjoyed eating outside. 3 generations of family serving good food. Second generation helped fight for our freedom p read more

BBQ was good. We both had ribs, jummy. I had mac and cheese and my husband selected from their limited gluten-free sides. read more

Melvin's BBQ - Mount Pleasant - Barbeque Near Me - Mount Pleasant, South Carolina

Busy as heck. Slow kitchen, even considering the crowd. I assume the food is good, and someday I hope to taste it. Some confusion about our order and the kids trying to deliver it. Just a takeout order, but a challenge apparently. Maybe they need to train the runner? read more

Omg! My partner and I chose to give this place a try after leaving Trader Joe's. We split a burnt ends meal, which comes with two sides and cornbread. We got Mac n cheese and green beans. So delicious! The burnt ends were super tender and not super fatty. The cornbread was moist and the Mac n cheese and green beans were well seasoned. We got lemonade to drink (which doesn't come with the meal and paying the additional cost for a drink was our only complaint) and the banana pudding. Yum! Looking forward to trying their pulled pork sandwich. We went through the drive through which had a pretty long line making it a bit of a wait. Worth it though! read more

Second time I've posted this review. Hopefully this won't be taken down. I went to Melvin's last night for dinner. I was craving one of their famous cheeseburgers. I ordered my cheeseburger. The girl had difficulty ringing it in the machine so I ordered a cheeseburger basket with lettuce tommato and the ice tea. I was expecting the world, famous Emeril Lagasse rated cheeseburger. It came to my table pretty quickly when I opened it it was a disappointment. It was a cheeseburger on toast with coleslaw. That's not what I ordered and when I asked the runner who brought it to me that this was wrong she said they can't fix it. The machine won't let them and my question was how difficult is it to order the correct cheeseburger lettuce tomato bun like I ordered the first time she argued with me that that's the way it comes and if you want it on a bun you have to order it that way I threw it away I ate onion ring and drink the tea I left and as I was leaving the runner deliverd it to another patron two cheeseburger plates and they were correct so hire someone who speaks English and can understand the machine , the cash register I don't understand why they can not turn around to the kitchen window and say please make a cheeseburger I'll never be back. I've been going there for 30 years. There's too many other options in this town to go to so good luck to you if I could write a negative star rating I would the worst experience ever. And the funny thing is I tipped them on my order before it came to the table never again will I tip on a fast food restaurant before I get my food ever ever. read more

Got the 3 Meat Plate with brisket, ribs and pulled pork. Sides were fries and sweet potato souffle. The total plus tax was $41. I shared this with a friend and it lasted 2 meals for both of us. Fries were good, and I think I would have liked the sweet potato if there wasn't a load of added sugar in it. Brisket was very dry and all the meats were room temperature when the platter was brought out. There were a few barbecue sauces but they tasted the same to me. I think one of them was premixed into the pulled pork. Cornbread was pretty good. Overall, the platter was either dry or very sweet. It's good for a try but would not come back again. read more

Melvin's BBQ - Mount Pleasant - 3 Meat Plate (brisket, ribs, pulled pork) with sides of fries and sweet potato souffle & cornbread - Barbeque Near Me - Mount Pleasant, South Carolina

I can honestly say after this was by far the Best Rib plate I have had in a very long time. Cooked to perfection! I have found my BBQ spot read more

It's a typical fast casual type place, but with a drive thru! You order and pay at the counter and then get a number and sit and wait. Now granted, I am not aware of how busy the drive thru was on this particular day and time, but I do know that the amount of people inside was not enough to have us waiting over 20 minutes for our food. It seemed like everyone else had waited about the same amount of time when I was there. The meats are decent, but pricey. I was pleased at the options on their "condiment bar" which included a small variety of pickled items and a few different BBQ sauces to choose from; we were also pleased with the politeness of the young men working here. What we got: the three meats plate (smoked turkey which was super good and probably the best thing we got, chopped chicken and brisket..not worth the up charge.) with collards and mac and cheese, both which were decent. They have TVs which at this time were playing gymnastics on one and softball on the other. Interesting, yet entertaining to watch during the long wait. read more

Great food, portion size was plenty for the price and nice place. Customer service was friendly!

Amazing bbq!!! Super tasty!! Love the brisket, pulled pork, bbq hash/rice, donut size onion ring, and the original yellow Carolina sauce. The sweet potato soufflé was okay- good. If you are in Mount Pleasant South Carolina this is a must do! Yum! read more

Melvins is a great BBQ when you need it fast. I recommend the Big Joe and the secret sauce. The basket of fries and onion rings are good as well. Overall if you want a fast dinner or lunch this is a good spot. read more

I'd love to comment on the food, but we preordered 4 hours in advance. 45 minutes sitting here we still don't have our food. It did give us an opportunity to watch order after order come back because it was wrong. Cmon people. It's bbq. What a sht show. Oh by the way, your pit temp is too high. You're welcome. read more

The food is very good, especially the onion rings. They need to work on their drive through. I went at 11:29 today and it took 28 minutes to get a burger and onion ring. Cmon guys. read more

AMAZING! The staff were fast and extremely friendly. The food was some of the best bbq I have ever had. Our group ordered the 3 meat platter ( chicken, turkey and pulled pork), the brisket sandwich and 6 smoked wings. Everything was delicious. We devoured it. The French green beans were delicious and had so much flavor. The Mac and cheese was tender and cheesy. Would DEFINITELY a recommend to anyone and would try again. read more

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The bbq here is really good. Got the ribs and brisket. Both were tasty, but I think the brisket was the best. Nicely cooked, juicy and plenty of seasoning. We liked both the golden sauce and the brown sauce. We finished both plates with appetizers. Tasty place to get some bbq. read more

It had been a while since I went to Melvins. Melvin is/was a Bessinger. Bessinger is a big name in BBQ in SC. Bessingers on Hwy 17 is the same family as is Piggy Park in Columbia, SC. All have slight differences, but all are good. I must say I've always been more inclined to eat burgers at Melvin's. The burger, fries, and onion rings are all amazing! BBQ is not bad by any means, I guess I just prefer Melvin's burger. read more

Pretty decent bbq. Not the best I have had but still tasty. The sauce is different but nice. The fries are just frozen steak fries. The mac and cheese is really yummy. read more

Good food, nothing fancy, clean, parking lots is small and had to pull into if you've never been there before.

HO.LE.SMOKES. Fantastic fantastic place all around. The service was awesome and helpful. The food (brisket burger w/ onion rings) was top notch. The atmosphere is awesome and trendy and looked like a BBQ place should. Just fantastic all around. read more

Melvin's BBQ - Mount Pleasant - Barbeque Near Me - Mount Pleasant, South Carolina

I had the Big Joe Combo pulled pork sandwich with a side of Mac & Cheese and an unsweet tea. They loaded the pork onto the bun and I love how it was already mixed with the mustard base sauce instead of drizzled on top... no muss, no fuss. The mac was cheesy in a stringy way and less of a creamy way but was also mouth watering. After reading other reviews I'm wishing I had one of the onion rings too. I would also suggest they start serving fried pickle spears as well, but that's is solely for selfish reasons. Great BBQ, great price, great people... I will be back! read more

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We were deep in the South and just had to get some BBQ. After checking out decent enough reviews we stopped in. I ordered the half rack with mac and cheese and fries. The young lady at the counter automatically assumed I wanted the "golden sauce" and didn't ask which I wanted. But I asked...and she said that's what they are known for, so I went with it. When I got to the table I tried both sauces - Golden and Red. I hated the Golden one and quickly asked her if I could change my order - which they did. Had I not done that I would of had a TOTALLY different review. Perhaps letting people sample both sauce options before placing an order - if they are new - would be a good idea? So ribs were good! The red sauce is what I am used to for BBQ was very tasty. The ribs aren't fall off the bone but they were meaty and good. The Mac & Cheese was good. Not really creamy which I liked. The fries were good too. The wife had a pulled pork sandwich which she raved about - so I took a bite. It was great! I washed it down with a sweet iced tea. Good eats. read more

My wife and I found this restaurant on yelp and decided to go after a day spent walking around the Magnolia Plantation. We had not previously tried mustard based barbecue sauce. The wife was skeptical, but is now a convert. Speaking of being a convert, this restaurant is a little heavy on the Jesus. A version of the 10 commandments is on the cups. That was amusing; what is not is the constant Christian rock. This is the kind of place where you want to eat and leave ASAP or the music might become overpowering. Despite the painful music, the employees manage to efficiently and politely take and prepare orders. I don't know how they do it. I would require hearing protection. We each ordered the Carolina wet ribs. They were delicious. The wife liked the Mac and cheese and cole slaw sides. I had baked beans and onion rings, which had too much batter and were hard to eat, which trespass can be forgiven because this is some outstanding pig. read more

We had a late lunch at Melvin's. I ordered the beef brisket sandwich (sliced of course) with the fried okra. My daughter & hubby had the pulled pork sandwich with Mac-n-cheese. I'm a Texan and I know good brisket. And let me tell you. That was Gooood brisket. The Carolina mustard sauce was good, but honestly the meat was best with no sauce at all. Definitely recommend! read more

Days before we move out of Charleston and we've found the best BBQ around. Go figure. I've had this place bookmarked forever and finally got around to trying it. All I can say is Damn. Ribs are on point. Some of the best I've had in a restaurant. Nice and smokey, good texture(not super fall of the bone, they've got some pull to them which is how I like it). Sauce isn't my absolute favorite, but it compliments the spices on the meat perfectly. Pulled pork, holy cow. My wife is the expert here and she said it was some of the best she's ever had. I agreed. Stuff is straight up good. Sides are mediocre but not bad. Who cares though? If the meat is this good, that's all that really matters. Sweet tea is decent. Wish we found this place sooner. Pretty awesome. read more

Melvin's BBQ - Mount Pleasant - Barbeque Near Me - Mount Pleasant, South Carolina

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