Name: The Q Shack
Date: 4/24/15
Address: 10822 Providence Road, Charlotte, NC 28277
Order: Two meat combo plate with pulled pork and brisket, slaw, hush puppies, and sweet tea (link to menu)
Price: $18
Monk: Seeing as how Speedy’s had subpar experiences at the The Q Shack in Raleigh (actually, “subpar” would be putting it lightly) as well as the sort-of-affiliated The Original Q Shack in Durham, I figured if the Barbecue Bros were going to review The Q Shack location in south Charlotte then I would be the one checking it out. So, being the team player that I am I did exactly that.
The Q Shack is a fast casual chain tucked into an upscale strip mall. You wait in line, order at the slicer, and then pay for your food and drink before seating yourself. And the smoker is presumably a gasser, due to the supposed county fire codes and whatnot. So I pretty much knew not to expect an old-timey joint
I checked Speedy’s review of the Raleigh location before ordering and based on it was set to order the beef sausage along with the pork, but when I stepped up to the counter I saw a surprisingly decent looking cut of brisket and audibled to that. It had a nice looking bark and appeared to be pretty moist. And the pork, despite being taken from a steam tray, looked decent too. Unless something went drastically wrong between the cashier and taking my seat, this looked to be more promising than Speedy’s experiences.
And I can report that what I did have was indeed pretty decent. The brisket’s bark was nice and peppery and there was a mixture of lean and fatty in each quarter-inch slice. Gotta say, not bad brisket for a gasser. The moist pork had decent bark mixed into its coarse chop. I added a little NC vinegar sauce just to check it out, and it added a nice tang. All in all, I’d have to rate both meats as above average.
Speedy: I’m flabbergasted by this. I just can’t imagine that this is true. We all know my feelings on NC brisket, much less The Q Shack. This could put a serious rift in our relationship, Monk.
Monk: Hey, good decent barbecue is decent barbecue. As for sides I had white slaw and double hushpuppies, and both were just fine. I don’t know if it will be enough to convince Speedy to try this location…
Speedy: It isn’t.
Monk: …but all in all my lunch was pretty good. With the above average meat and NC beers from NoDa and Highland among others available for $4, I could see The Q Shack definitely working in a pinch.
Ratings:
Atmosphere/Ambiance – 2 hogs
Pork – 3 hogs
Brisket – 3 hogs
Sides – 2.5 hogs
Overall – 3 hogs
This is one of my neighborhood BBQ joints, along with the original Rock Store and a Sonny’s up at the Arboretum. I’ve eaten at Q Shack many, many times, and it is, as Monk discovered, better than other Q Shack locations. I usually order the brisket, and at least 70% of the time it is as good as Monk experienced. The other 30% of the time it is mediocre to bad, but brisket is the hardest cut of meat to BBQ to perfection, and this is NC, not Texas, so occasionally it won’t be perfect.
I’m not too big a fan of the pork at Q Shack, except for the mustard pork, which is usually offered as a lunch special. That’s pretty good. The hush puppies are fresh and good, and properly shaped like dog turds (my theory is that the best hush puppies are shaped like dog turds, and the worst are shaped like balls).
This is one of the few BBQ joints where I actually like the fries, which are of the shoestring type and seasoned with cajun seasoning. I hate the typical BBQ joint crinkle-cuts.
Ribs are pretty good too, although I’m not much of a rib-eater.
I’ll generally pop in to buy a pound of brisket for takeout, and make sandwiches at home with it. They usually include a half-dozen hush puppies in the tray.
I do recall you recommending The Q Shack last year and it took awhile for me to finally get here, mostly because of Speedy’s 0 hog review of the Raleigh location.
Funny observation on hush puppies shaped like dog turds, although I’ve definitely had some great ones that were balls.
As always, thanks for the comment, Robert.