Where oh where have you been all my life RayNathans?! OMG guys this good is amazing. While it in Gastonia my friend and I decided to grab something to eat. He says he wants to grab some BBQ. I go to Yelp and discover this gem hidden a few miles away. We had over and it did not disappoint. First, the customer service was soooo pleasant. Everyone was yes ma'am, no ma'am. They were so helpful. Second, the place is pretty neat. It's pretty big inside and I love the family atmosphere. Third, the food speaks for itself. I decided to try a double meat plate with ribs and brisket. My sides were baked beans and brunswick stew. My friend got ribs with come slaw and baked beans. When the owner, Thomas, realized that this was our first visit he brought us two free desserts, banana pudding and peach cobbler. He also brought us corn on the cob to try. Everything was super good. If you've ever been to Rodney Scotts in Charleston you will love this place. It's extremely comparable. I will definitely be back to this place and it will be my go to BBQ spot from now on. I HIGHLY recommend you try this place. read more

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The food is good, the portions sized right. It's just...hmmmm. Ok. Nothing special. I'm going 4 stars because I like them and I really don't have anything bad to say, just nothing special to say either. Meh. I love BBQ, and am glad they are here in Belmont. I'm having a heard time trying to fill this review. It's the BBQ place with the sign you can't read. read more

So let me tell you why I picked this place. I was ill last week and all of a sudden I had a craving for brisket! I found this place when doing a frantic search last Wednesday. Unfortunately they were closed, I admit I almost cried! I had to suppress my craving until the next day. Yep they're only open Thu-Sat. Anyway I managed to wait till the next day and picked up the brisket plate with mac and cheese and coleslaw. OMG!!! It was DELICIOUS!!! The brisket was so flavorful, and smoky! The sides are good too but I think the mac and cheese could be improved upon ( cook them al dente and add some seasoning ). I liked it so much that I had the brisket sandwich with the ghost pepper cheese. It was so delicious!! Be specific when you order it otherwise you will get the boring brisket sandwich on a round bun/roll. I got some brisket on the side too! And then the next week I got half a pound of the brisket with coleslaw and the corn. The brisket was as delicious as usual but I didn't like the fact that they cut it so thick! I like thin slices so I will specify that next time I get it! read more

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Always good service! The owner has even asked us how our food was!! That food is delicious, great variety. One of our fav spots! read more

We had such a good time at Ray Nathan's. Our food was so good, came out quickly and had large portions. We took over a long table and everyone was trying all the different sides! Our family will definitely be coming again! *Brisket, fried okra, street corn, mac-n-cheese and peach cobbler were amazing! read more

We got a recommendation to visit RayNathan's for authentic BBQ from one of our best friends. We visited for lunch on Friday. Our food came VERY quickly and all servers asked us how everything was, not just our own. We both got the traditional red BBQ sauce and it was delicious. My fiancé loved it so much, he went back the next day with his friend that made the recommendation! This is definitely now our go-to BBQ spot. read more

Ray Nathan’s - Pulled pork and brisket combo plate with Mac and Cheese and corn - Barbeque Near Me - Gastonia, North Carolina

Best barbecue in SE Gaston County located in Cramerton. Awesome spot on South New Hope Road. Definitely worth a detour off 85. If you wanted a smoked bacon cheeseburger, it will be the best one you will ever have. read more

This was me and my wife's first time eating here and it was absolutely amazing!!! The customer service was top tier ! We were happily greeted at the door by a gentleman that also explained how ordering your food works which was extremely helpful since their system is different from normal dine in . The food was absolutely to die for , everything was fresh and hot and tasted amazing ! Perfectly seasoned ! Everyone was helpful and showed great TLC ! the servers were always asking if we needed anything and explained any questions we had . My pictures are half eaten bc I couldn't stop for a picture ! I asked my wife if we could order another go round to take home for leftovers but she said no haha !! definitely will be back and definitely my new favorite BBQ SPOT !!! read more

Ray Nathan’s - Pork + Brisket - Barbeque Near Me - Gastonia, North Carolina

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Always good food and good service. Great quick service style barbecue. They use all fresh ingredients and keep the food as healthy as possible. My go to place for barbecue and Brunswick stew! You must try the apple cake! read more

Just ate here and it was all very delicious, right down to the lemonade! Everything here tasted homemade and the staff is so nice. :)

The food is good not great! The waitress staff is a MAJOR problem, teenagers with adult supervision the tables needed sweep under, we had to flag the waitress down twice and they weren't busy, the group spend more time talking then working! read more

Ordered Ray Nathan's catering for a party of 40 people and received overwhelming compliments on how great all of the food was. The Mac and Cheese has officially earned the top spot on my "best mac and cheese I've ever had" list. Not only was the food delicious, but a great value for the quantity! We have been eating leftovers for days. Can't wait to go back for lunch or dinner and try more of the amazing food. read more

First eating at this place. Very organize. I highly recommend this to anyone. Great food, great service, great people. It's a busy place wait wasn't too long. I will definitely come back for more!! read more

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We really enjoyed getting them for takeout for a day after Thanksgiving feast. Everyone loved what they got. Sides were all delicious as well. Coleslaw, fried okra and fries were great. Greens were missing bacon but the grits were the showstopper. Grits so good they made You want to cry into a bowl of them. My parents just moved to Charlotte so I think they may become regulars now! read more

Great food, nice staff! Love the brisket and macaroni and cheese. The service is good and the restaurant has a lot of menu options - good banana pudding too read more

I couldn't wait to write this review. Currently in the parking lot after just finishing my meal. I'm visiting with my family from New York and never experienced hospitality like this before. The entire staff is extremely friendly and welcoming. The owners are personable and visit your table to check in on you. I would visit this place again simply off of the friendly environment. But that's not the only thing this restaurant has going for it. Now let's talk about the food. The brisket is one of the best briskets I've ever had. It is smokey and flavorful. The mac and cheese is cheesy just like a real mac and cheese should be. The yams are sweet and tender. If that wasn't enough, they have four different types of sauces for you to try. Some of the sauces are sweet, others are smokey, all of them are good. They even offer to give you sauces for your togo box. Ray Nathan's, we'll be back for sure! Thank you for the wonderful experience. read more

Probably our favorite BBQ place in the area. Highly recommend! Seriously, every item on the menu is amazing. read more

Wonderful food and service. Best BBQ in the state of NC. Clean, reasonable prices, love love love.

Great food and service every time at Ray Nathan's. This locally owned restaurant is only open Thursday- Saturday and recently started opening on Sundays too. They offer dine in as well as takeout but highly suggest dining in. They offer all of your NC favorites including bbq, peach cobbler, Cheerwine and Sundrop. The food is smoked and lightly seasoned, and served with multiple sauce options including Ray Nathan's vinegar based sauce and a sweet tomato based sauce for those who don't like vinegar. Most plates are enough food for two! read more

First time eating here. All the meats were smokey and tender and the sides were so good (hubby got yams and banana pudding). Portion sizes were good and prices were on point. We have found our new goto bbq joint! read more

Ray Nathan’s - The awesome brisket! - Barbeque Near Me - Gastonia, North Carolina

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What amazing food! There was a little wait, but that's to be expected on a Saturday night. I had a full rack of ribs with mac & cheese, and my daughter ordered a chicken sandwich with mac & cheese. My order came with a biscuit/roll type of thing that was amazing! My ribs had the perfect amount of sweet glaze, and the chicken was so tender and juicy. This place is great! read more

Ray Nathan’s - Full rack of ribs with the (sweet) glaze, mac & cheese, fries - Barbeque Near Me - Gastonia, North Carolina

Probably the best BBQ I've ever eaten, period. PLEASE don't let the 'weekend only' hours deter you-- they use the first days of the week to smoke all the meats and it shows in literally every bite. Even the sides are absolutely a delicious, everything tastes like it's a labor of love (I ended up both stealing bites and giving bites of food with friends too)! Myself and some family friends have different food allergies/preferences and these guys didn't make a single fuss. The restaurant itself looks of a retro diner, super fun and the service was great. read more

Wife and I visited yesterday. Service was excellent and order served promply. Ordered a rack of ribs only and was surprised by the amount of meat. Next time, and there will be, I will only order a half a rack. Best damn ribs I've had in a long time! Highly recommend. read more

Stopped for a late lunch on our recent trip to Charlotte. I had the brisket sandwich and jalapeño cheese grits. Both are very good. Ray Nathan's house sauce was amazing. The mustard BBQ sauce was also good. They had cheerwine in the fountain. read more

Ray Nathan’s - Barbeque Near Me - Gastonia, North Carolina

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This place has some great bbq. It was excellently priced. My wife and I both got pulled pork sandwiches and it was some of the best pulled pork I've had. They had several options for sauce and all were pretty good. The only reason I didn't give a 5 star is because a couple of the sauces weren't that great to me. My favorite bbq sauce is vinegar based, and I didn't care for theirs. But that's just me being picky. Very good food for a very good price. Will definitely be back read more

Was so excited to finally eat here but highly disappointed. Ordered a fairly large order for several people for takeout. Everyone's fries were raw and my wife got the barbecue wedge salad which was the wedge of lettuce, a few tiny piece of tomato and several specs of corn. Wont be back and will stick to ole Carolina. Wish I had not wasted money here !!! read more

Ray Nathan’s - Barbeque Near Me - Gastonia, North Carolina

Great owners great staff and the bbq is pretty good love the glazed ribs the smoker burger really great place family friendly

Stephen's Brisket Sandwich is amazing and we love the Brunswick Stew. My daughters like the pulled pork sandwiches because that's what they always order. I've gone to a lot of BBQ places and have noticed most don't sell Brunswick stew and it's a shame because it goes hand in hand with BBQ. read more

Loved the atmosphere people/service were kind and food was on point, if traveling through the area it's a must stop

Absolutely love them. The customer service is excellent,and everyone is so polite. The food is delicious.

Brisket was very good. Chicken was a little under cooked. Slaw and jalapeño grits were super. The mustard based bbq sauce was my favorite, although the brisket and chicken did not even need sauce since the flavor was so good. The place was clean and looked good and the service was very good. Just a short wait for food. Price was fair. We will return. read more

Some of the best BBQ in the Charlotte area! Better take out place than actual place to sit and eat. But the food is the star of the show and it's worth it! read more

Sun Drop Sauce is the best BBQ sauce in western Carolina. The bun/muffin thing with every dish is outstanding. Can't go wrong. Totally awesome inside design too. Friendly, attentive servers. read more

Pulled pork was good but cold. Same with the brisket. The sides were mediocre (collards, stew, baked beans). Potato salad was not good. The spicy chipotle barbecue sauce was very good, much better than the other 4 sauces. Overall okay. read more

Amazing Smokey taste in their meats, you can smell the smoking outside and down the street. All of the sides are homemade and delicious. Certainly the best ribs around - you can get them glazed or dry. If you are craving BBQ or smoked meats this place is a can't miss! read more

One word... DELICIOUS! I had the Stephen's Brisket Sandwich with the Brisket chopped and it was amazing. I will definitely be back!

Food was okay for the price but I am not thrilled. Big chicken wings, fries could be more crispy. The peach cobbler is disappointing.

Food is delicious, place is great. The staff is friendly. If you have to wait they have benches and corn hole to pass the time.

This was my first time at RN and will not be my last! Absolutely delicious pork BBQ! I got street corn and Mac n cheese as a side, both were delicious. My fiancé got the ribs, which he said were incredible, Mac n cheese, & fries. We got more than we could eat so definitely worth the price. Great selection of sauces as well (particularly love the Sundrop BBQ sauce). We each got the peach cont, which came with vanilla ice cream and was okay. They were giving out free slices of the Granny Smith apple cake, which was so moist and delicious. I highly recommend this place. Ambiance was nice, very clean restaurant. Staff was very attentive and friendly. We will be back! read more

Ray Nathan’s - Ribs, fries, Mac n cheese, peach cobbler - Barbeque Near Me - Gastonia, North Carolina

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RayNathan's has been taunting me for MONTHS as construction began to drag due to weather and complications and I drove by the "Coming Soon," sign day after day after day.... They finally were able to celebrate their opening day on Thursday, January 10th and on day 3, 5 minutes after opening, there was FINALLY a parking spot available! It has been ABSOLUTELY PACKED...and for good reason. RayNathan's has been a labor of love by its two owners; an idea conceived years ago finally come to fruition. You can read more about the journey and the owners here: https://www.gastongazette.com/news/20181230/new-barbecue-joint-aims-to-smoke-its-way-to-your-heart But, I'll get into the good stuff. When you walk in, you order at the counter, take your ticket to a table, and a waiter/waitress will greet you and get your drink(s) for you. Then, they'll deliver your food to your table when it's ready. In our experience, each and every person was exceedingly friendly. The owners were both greeting folks at the door and every person, from the cashier to the food prep guys, was smiling and seemed genuinely interested in being sure everyone enjoyed their experience. I ordered a pulled pork plate with fries and mac & cheese. My husband ordered a combo plate with pulled pork and brisket with fries and okra. RayNathan's prides itself on having everything be homemade and they didn't disappoint! The meats were flavorful and smoked to perfection, the homemade sauces (tomato-based, vinegar-based, and mustard-based) were all tangy & delicious complements to the meat, and the sides were hot, fresh, and delightful! Each meal is also served with a Red Lobster-esque biscuit that was super yummy, too. Next time, I've got my eye on their BBQ Street Corn & Banana Pudding! Our meal was $40, including tip. There are certainly cheaper BBQ options in town, but the service, quality + portion sizes make this, in my opinion, a very fair price. Both my husband and I ate until we were stuffed and both brought home full takeout boxes. All around us, folks were all talking about how good their food was and literally calling friends & family (with their forks still in hand) to come try it! Hopefully, RayNathan's will become a staple in the area for years to come because IT. IS. DELICIOUS. read more

Ray Nathan’s - Pork Plate with fries + mac and cheese. - Barbeque Near Me - Gastonia, North Carolina

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