Smokey Joes BBQ was sold by the Cope family last year.The only downside is the new owners stopped cooking with wood..On our visit today I chose a Brown Coarse chop tray and Hush Puppies. My wife wanted veggies. Smokey Joes still had a decent lunch crowd at 1:30 but getting a table was still no problem. Our food came out in decent time since we both were hungry. My wife had pinto beans,sweet potato casserole and fried squash. Their servings are a healthy amount so I knew a togo box was in her future. My coarse chopped tray had a good amount of brown and that Lexington red slaw was spot on. I'm presuming the wood chips in their smoker still gives a good amount of smoke flavor.Service was spot on. Food was just fine.We have lunch here at least once a week. And breakfast occasionally. It's also very good.. Sometimes we go for some dessert since they offer some homemade dessert's. But we had no room. That's gonna be another visit. read more

Smokey Joe's BBQ - Veggie plate sweet potato casserole,pinto beans and fried squash - Barbeque Near Me - Lexington, North Carolina

See all

Great for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. All the southern fixing within a Lexington bbq joint! Service is friendly and welcoming. If you go enough, you'll see regular faces that come often. Full plates lacing with full bellies! read more

See all

My husband and I ate at this restaurant recently. The wait staff were very nice and efficient. The bbq was fork-tender and had the best flavor!! The hush puppies were delicious and had just the right texture!! The potato salad, fried squash and slaw were delicious!! The only thing I would change is I wish we lived closer to Lexington, so we could eat at this great restaurant more often!! read more

If you're looking for good ole bbq, you're in the right spot. Did you know Lexington is known for their bbq? There are so many different spots to try it but you're gonna wanna stop in to Smokey Joes and grab a bbq sandwich or a bbq plate. They are known for their vinegar based bbq. If bbq isn't your thing they have many other options and something for everyone read more

See all

Service was outstanding! The establishment is clean and cozy.. Food was good and inexpensive.. I was here to early for any of the Ribs or Chicken, so I chose the Pulled Pork Sand. read more

Smokey Joe's was a good Lunch spot for us! I didn't give 5 stars because we were shocked to learn there was no turkey or brisket. The service was top notch and the ribs fell off the bone. The chopped pork sandwich with slaw, and vinegar based bbq sauce was a dream! The homemade chips tasted fantastic dipped in their homemade ranch. It has a very "old times" feel inside, and we loved that. read more

Smokey Joe's BBQ - Baby backs - Barbeque Near Me - Lexington, North Carolina

See all

Great little county restaurant with delicious food. Lots of menu items to select from and daily specials as well. read more

See all

Not a place for younger crowd, was full of elderly folks and ambiance was blah. Grilled chicken sucked. Need more veggie options too.

The service was awesome and the food was also!! Plenty of food to eat and enough food for the next day. I was so full when we left. Love it !!! Sweet potatoes & ribs and chicken. This place knows how to do food!!! read more

Best Bacon cheeseburger in town! Go there all the time!!! My husband loves the footling I wish they opened on weekends! read more

This place serves great Lexington style Carolina barbecue at an affordable price! Some local friends who grew up here recommended this place as one of their favorite spots and it did not disappoint! Our party split both chopped and sliced barbecue (for the out of towners, Lexington style is pork shoulder). For sides, my barbecue slaw and potato salad were delicious, and the rest of the party thoroughly enjoyed their mac and cheese, fried okra, slaw and hush puppies as well. The waitresses gave us refills on sweet tea quite a few times, and we left feeling both full and satisfied. read more

Food and service was fantastic! We loved looking at all the pictures and history ! ........

I'm not gonna lie I wasn't expecting much but this place has really good food and really good prices. I can feed my family of 6 for 40-50.00 and the service is great. The staff are really nice and I got food really fast nice and fresh. read more

With all the excellent Lexington style BBQ available in the Lexington/Salisbury area, this fine old school BBQ joint somehow gets lost in the shuffle, but it definitely should not. Alice was in the mood for Lexington style BBQ Chicken, and we'd grown a little tired of the less than gracious attitude at Smiley's (who does barbecue a mean chicken), and decided to head for Smokey Joe's. There were plenty of cars in the rather large lot when we pulled in a little before 11 AM, and there was a small line at the drive thru. We grabbed one of the few open tables, very recently bused, and our drink orders were quickly taken. Our very efficient, very pleasant waitress said we could go with either breakfast or lunch, and since we came for the chicken, lunch was our option. Alice went with the 1/2 BBQ Chicken ($7.49 with 2 sides & bread), while I chose a Coarse Chopped Tray and a Hot Dog with M, C, & O. The BBQ Chicken was massive (just check the picture), and it was excellent - very tender and flavorful. The Lexington style of BBQ Chicken served here (and at Smiley's, Cooks, Back Country in Lexington, and Clark's in Kernersville) is cooked much as the pork is, and is basted with a vinegar based sauce - no thick, sweet, red sauce here. There is more BBQ sauce brought for dipping - and it should definitely be used. The coarse chopped BBQ was excellent, also very tender. The red BBQ slaw here is good, as well, a bit milder than most in the area. The chili dog here is pretty good, but is consistently lite on the chili. The Hush Puppies here are a real favorite - crusty exterior, tender inside, nice cornmeal taste with no sweetness, a hint of onion. read more

See all

Proud to give Smokey Joes BBQ 5 bright shiny stars! After dining here twice, I'm happy to finally have a favorite bbq restaurant in Lexington now. Right down the street from downtown, Smokey Joe's has plenty of parking, daily specials, can accommodate larger groups, kids menu, counter service and take out options. On both occasions my dining party consisted of 6 or more and they accommodated us beautifully. Fabulous, friendly service, very helpful with the menu, consistently on top of drink refills, and trust me, they know their barbecue if you have any questions. Baby Back Ribs are offered as a special twice a week (always on Saturday), get them before they run out! Their plates (your choice of bbq, chicken etc) are served with two sides and a choice of hush puppies or rolls (ask for honey butter it's delicious!)! There's plenty of food though they also offer 2 and 3 meat combination plates for a larger appetite or if you want to sample more than one meat. My groups favorites consist of; baby back ribs, bbq chicken, chopped bbq, mac n cheese, baked beans, mashed potatoes & gravy, potato salad, hush puppies with honey butter and my kids love their grilled cheese with fries. Waitresses are the sweetest and very nice to chat with; we feel like family here so it's definitely our favorite now. I will happily continue to dine at Smokey Joes whenever we're in downtown Lexington, very much looking forward to it. Thank you! read more

See all

Hands down best BBQ spot, especially out of all of them in Lexington. Food has never disappointed. read more

Smokey Joe's BBQ - BBQ Plate, BBQ Slaw - Barbeque Near Me - Lexington, North Carolina

Goes without saying but since it's a review, I will say it: bbq was tasty! But it's Lexington so you expect it to be good. The place is kind of...worn in, like a favorite recliner. The best part about this place is the service. My guess is that most of those ladies had been there for a really long time; it was like being waited on by a favorite aunt. Certainly my pleasure to have stopped in this place today. read more

Smokey Joe's BBQ - Barbeque Near Me - Lexington, North Carolina

In a town full of BBQ spots, this may just be one of my favorites! It is an older building with a drive thru window, the food is very good, and the employees are friendly. I have had the BBQ as well as the hotdogs, and even a bite of breakfast from Smokey Joe's. I think they have one of the better hotdogs in the area, and the BBQ flavor is also tough to beat read more

See all

This place came recommended by some, and not by others. Q is a touchy subject around here and the competition is stiff. That said here is my experience. Nice private lot parking. The restaurant was clean. Service was absolutely great from start to finish. Fast friendly table service. My drink never went dry and I got things I needed. I got the combo plate of dark chicken and BBQ pork. Sides were fried okra and green beans. Complimentary hush puppies were part of the meal and came with a free refill! The food was very good. Q was a nice mix of chop and a little crust. Nice smoky flavor. Not dry at all. Sauce was not overly vinegar but again a nice mix with a peppery taste. The chicken was so tender it fell off the bone. Nice balanced smoky flavor left me wanting more. Okra was fried up right and not greasy. Green beans were fine also. The whole experience reminded me of down home country cooking. I left full and happy. What more can you ask. The prices were great and I doubt you will find better food for a better price anywhere. read more

Smokey Joe's BBQ - BBQ and chicken combo plate. - Barbeque Near Me - Lexington, North Carolina

As visitors to North Carolina we were interested in finding some authentic Carolina BBQ. Yum, this is it. Tried the chopped plate featuring chopped BBQ pork, two sides, and hush puppies. All were authentic and very good. The green beans were fresh, coleslaw came in two types--regular and bbq--and various sides to your taste. Service was fast and friendly and you can tell right away this is a local favorite. Next time I'd visit on a Wednesday or a Saturday when they have baby back ribs, but otherwise I'd recommend this place as a change from all the chain restaurants out there and if I'm this way again, I'm going back! read more

Smokey Joe's BBQ - A part of the local flavor. Service was great and the staff friendly. - Barbeque Near Me - Lexington, North Carolina

We dined at Smokey Joe's last night. We ordered our food and drinks. Received our items in a timely manner. Our waitress never returned. Another waitress was walking around refilling beverages but neglected to refill ours after looking at our empty cups twice. However said waitress was really quick to add 2 ranch dressings to the bill. read more

On New Year's Eve I was rolling through Lexington and looking to try a different bbq spot. I was planning on going to another bbq spot, but I ended up getting kinda lost and just decided to drive around Lexington and stop at the first bbq joint I came across. If you know Lexington you know that it isn't that hard to do there. Enter Smokey Joe's. First off, though I didn't use it, Smokey Joe's definitely gets bonus points for having a drivethrough. That's pretty cool. Anyway, SJ's is a pretty plain inside - it feels like an old family restaurant. But who cares? I'm there for the barbeque. I go with a coarse-chopped brown plate and sweet tea. You know how I do. Chopped pork, red slaw, fries, and hushpuppies. You gotta go coarse-chopped. Anyway, the pork was decent - the flavor was pretty good but it was a little dry. Honestly, it would be very good in most cities, but in Lexington I'd say it's only decent. I prefer the pork at both Lexington #1/Honeymonk's and Bar-B-Q Center. The fries were standard bag crinkle-cuts and the red coleslaw was ok (not a huge fan on the red slaw tho). The puppies were good - nice size, well-cooked and pretty good flavor. Good sweet tea. So the food was pretty good, but it couldn't beat out the stiff competition around town. Still, I might head back here to give it another shot - especially since the service was really good. 3 read more

See all

In search of good Lexington style BBQ, we stopped by Smokey Joe's on a Saturday afternoon. The restaurant was clean & bright. We dined on pork BBQ sandwiches, ribs, BBQ chicken & a chopped pork BBQ pork plate. The ribs were tender & flavorful, but I prefer fall off the bone ribs. Ribs are only served twice a week (Sat. & Sun.). The chicken was fall off the bone tender with a smokey flavor. The BBQ was wet & had a hint of smoke. It was tender & almost a little too juicy. I wonder if some of the rendered pork fat was poured over the Q after it was cooked to add moisture. It was good, but had a little more fat/gristle than I like. The house sauce was excellent: a vinegary ketchup/tomato thin sauce with spices. The service was good. I asked the waitress if she ate a lot of Q. She said she didn't eat BBQ. As I was paying, I asked the cashier if she liked BBQ. She said she didn't like anything on the menu other than the chopped salad. Nice & honest, but strange that neither seemed to like the food in the place where they were working was serving. We liked the food & recommend giving this place a try. I do think a couple of their neighboring competitors prepare a better BBQ, but this place is worth a try. read more

This is a good BBQ joint. For starters, they cook with wood. Table service is out of sight, fast and friendly. The dining is bright and cheerful with the right amount of bric-a-brac on the walls. An older, local clientele it seemed from my observation. The orders were varied. BBQ was but one item on the menu. The locals certainly have their preferred dishes. I had eaten here 25 years ago and came back for 'que. On this latest trip, I didn't have the best cut of meat. I ordered a coarse cut. It was dry and seemed to have been sitting out for a little too long. It may have been too lean, as though the hogs needed more fattening up. The house dip and sauce was excellent and moistened the meat without overwhelming it. Despite the wood pit, there was not a satisfying smokey aftertaste with the BBQ. The red slaw saved the meal. It was outstanding. As a youth, we made our own red slaw and ate it at home frequently. It is a trick to keep the sweetness, tangy red pepper and black pepper in the right balance. Smokey Joe's has this down to an art. Fantastic red slaw! When I go back, I will avoid the coarse chopped 'que and stick with chopped. read more

Smokey Joe's is the best of the best to be had in Lexington, NC... which is, as we all know, the best BBQ in America! Love the taste, the service, the slaw, and the portion size! I threw my mom a 60th birthday party in Bessember City, NC and I drove all the way to Lexington, NC on the morning of the party so she'd have her favorite BBQ... it was the hit of the party! Everyone loved the food and kept asking me what catering company I'd used. I was thrilled to tell them that I'd driven to Lexington because it was the best... and to my mom- it's the only choice for BBQ! read more

Stopped here for Lunch on Wednesday and had a burger with sides. Very good. But the real treat was that it was Rib Day, so I made sure I came back and picked up a full rack with sides to take home for Dinner with the Mrs. They were Perfect. read more

very good food, very good service and friendly staff, but, THEIR HOME DELIVERY SERVICE SUX! read more

So we stumbled upon this place on the way back to Charlotte. We were starving and just happened to be coming up on the BBQ capital so we decided to head on into town to see what we could find. We were actually looking for Lexington Barbecue, but thanks to an apparently incorrect address on Yelp, we ended up here instead! So you've got your classic diner setup here, and it feels like you're walking into the 1970's when you enter. It has that "country-down-home-y'all come back now" feeling. Our waitress was friendly and helpful and offered up suggestions to suit our interests. The food came out hot and plentiful! We both got chopped pork. Not good enough to make you want to slap your grandma but it was pretty good. And cheap! If you want some good BBQ and don't want to hit up the more popular Lexington Barbecue, it's worth checking out. read more

Didn't look like much when you drive past it but it's a great family friendly place to have dinner when you don't feel like slaving over a hot stove all day . The food is great! They have your regular hot dogs and your foot longs with everything on it and fries which is so good! The waitresses are friendly and nice. The aphis fear there is family friendly. Highly recommend eating there for someone who has never tried it and is new to Lexington. read more

What a fun bar. Had no idea about this little place. Will for sure come back. Bartender mike was super nice!!!

Tried a competitor across town today; but, alas, when it was time to buy in bulk to take home, we drove back to Smokey Joe's. I think we passed into a bright light as we entered the restaurant.....it's really that good. read more

My friend took me to lunch here after practice. We were able to sit down immediately, despite the lunch crowd. The waitress met us quickly and took our drinks. Their sweet tea was so good and they kept the refills coming. We both order a chicken tender plate with fries. They came out steaming hot. I also got a to-go order of a burger and fries (a daily special) for only $6! Our meal excluding my separate order was less than $20 and that's good in my book! I'd definitely go back anytime! read more

Today the b b q was mushy and absolutely tasteless. Their hush puppies are too soft. I like some crusty hush puppies myself. Not a fan of their fries either. My review today is a read more

Love this place awesome barbecue. If you want authentic this is it. I love their pulled pork

Great food!! Clean atmosphere and friendly staff!! I'm not just saying this because I'm the bosses daughter, i grew up in this business and i see how hard they work everyday to provide great food to all of their wonderful customers. Our family BBQ business has been around for many many years. read more

Tried the new location in Holly Ridge NC today for a carry out order. Baby Back Ribs, (dry to the bone), potato salad not to my taste, same for the cold slaw. Chopped pork chopped to finely for my taste and bbq beans to dry to eat. On the lighter side, the corn bread was OK and the Peach Cobbler was great. Still those two items aren't enough to get me to come back. read more

I visited Smokey Joe's last year and ordered chopped bbq (wasn't fresh tasting, tasted old). My husband had ribs that he wasn't able to eat. This being said. We spent a fair amount of money to not have to cook at home. read more

This is a very hometown restaurant and it's obvious it's where the locals eat. Everyone was extremely friendly, our waitress even offered some samples of the different slaws when we asked about difference. Interior is what you want a serious barbecue place to look like including life size painted pigs! I'd recommend you try this place. read more

Smokey Joe's BBQ - Barbeque Near Me - Lexington, North Carolina

I can't believe no one has mentioned the Chicken Pie!! You can only get it on Tuesday, though.. Coming from a different part of NC I had never heard of Chicken Pie ( not to be confused with chicken pot pie..) but this stuff is amazing! Don't forget the chicken gravy! The staff is super friendly and fast! Oh and tnd try the Oreo dessert! Yum! read more

I had a chance to go here earlier this month when the 1st round of the NCAA tournament was being held at the Greensboro Coliseum. Looking to make the most of my experience, my buddy and I decided to check out some local 'Q in the Lexington, NC area. Having had been to the Lexington's BBQ before, we decided to try the smaller, but still well known - Smokey Joe's BBQ. We got the idea planted in our heads that we wanted to try this place from the BBQ we had at the Lexington BBQ Festival and Smokey Joe's was listed as one of the contributing BBQ establishments. Having loved the BBQ at the Lexington BBQ festival, I came here on Friday March 16th for lunch and ordered a BBQ sandwich with red slaw. I was bit disappointed that no additional sauces were offered at the table. I asked for a side of BBQ sauce and was given a small container of boiling hot, runny, vinegar based sauce. I know, I know; someone is out there saying, "Well that's what a real BBQ sauce should be!" It just didn't do it for me. As for the actual taste of the BBQ sandwich, it was good not great, and definitely a disappointment compared to the sandwich I had at the Lexington BBQ festivals months prior. Since I ordered the BBQ sandwich combo or whatever they call it, it came with fries, and a drink. The fries were piping hot, but were nothing special, simply your typical crinkle fries. The iced tea was good and sweet, and the perfect pick-me-up as we prepared to get back on the road to the G-Boro Coliseum from Charlotte. For some, the small-town, and classic tradition of Smokey Joe's might be just what they are looking for. Unfortunately, I was hoping for a bit more from Smoky Joe's. I'd be lying if I said both my buddy and I weren't disappointed with our lunch that Friday. All I can say, is that it really didn't stand out for me in any way, shape, or form....or taste. When driving through Lexington in the future, I will probably try one of the many other BBQ places in the area. read more