North Carolina BBQ

How can you not love a place that has five little neon piggies running across its storefront? Given my love of bacon and, really, all things pork -- I managed to work "the other white meat" into no fewer than three dishes at Christmas -- it  should come as no surprise that one of my must-eat places when I went East for the holidays was a barbecue joint.

When I was a kid, my folks would pile Little Brother, Little Sister and me into the car at least once a month to drive two hours south to an itty-bitty North Carolina town called Roanoke Rapids. My mother had grown up there and her parents and extended family live there still. When in R-squared, we'd pack as many of our relatives as would fit around my grandmother's long dining room table for dinner. The food that fed our crowd -- long slabs of salty Virginia ham, casserole dishes full of macaroni and cheese with Saltines crunched up on top, two kinds of slaw, jello salads quivering in every color of the rainbow, soft yeast rolls folded into half-moons -- came rolling out from her kitchen and from my great aunt Margaret's kitchen next door.

Occasionally we gave my grandmother and Margaret a break from the stoves by heading out to local restaurants.  Taylor's Fish House or Rosemary Restaurant are both closed now, but I loved them dearly, from deep-fried clam strips and the bathrooms at the fish house -- "gulls" for me and Little Sister, "buoys" for Little Brother -- to the way Charlie Thanos, who owned Rosemary Restaurant, would make me blush by telling me that I had the biggest, bluest, most beautiful eyes he'd ever seen.

One of those dinners was inevitably at Ralph's Barbecue. While all the grown-ups chowed down on barbecue and Brunswick stew, I stayed in blander, safer pastures of deep-fried scallops. One time I veered from my standard, and it was a disaster. Ordering the "fried chicken sandwich" produced a deep-fried chicken breast, bone and all, with a thin slice of white bread underneath and another one flapping about on top like a flimsy hat. Little Sister and I looked at each other when it was served and, if memory serves, I burst into tears. Scallops it was from then on out.

But in recent years I've developed a taste for barbecue and wanted desperately to eat what my family considers the world's best. The holiday trip to R-squared was to be a day-trip, and we couldn't even consider passing up the local burger and hot dog mecca for lunch, so we settled for picking up some Ralph's on the way home.

The to-go space isn't much to holler about -- a couple of naugahyde-covered chairs and an ancient menu board with stick-on letters -- but the food sings out like a gospel choir on their way to meet the Baby Jesus. The barbecue is moist but not dripping in sauce, and can be ordered sliced or chopped (which is most folks' preference). It's been served since 1941, first by founder Ralph Woodruff, later by his offspring, and is meant to be eaten bite-for-bite with sweet cole slaw. The designation "sweet" means the slaw is made with finely diced cabbage, sugar, mustard, mayonnaise, apple cider vinegar and salt -- no grated carrot or other veg to sully it.

Then there's the Brunswick stew, a creation from Brunswick County, Virginia that dates back to 1828 (though Brunswick, Georgia would dispute that claim). Brunswick stew was traditionally made with squirrel meat, but the modern version is a thick slurry of shredded pork and chicken, butter beans, tomatoes and corn. The sweet corn tames the stew's tanginess and since the meat is shredded, it mingles with the other flavors rather than asserting itself in showy hunks.

The meal wouldn't be complete without hush puppies, deep-fried balls of cornmeal that are often served in place of bread. After we placed our order, which included a quarter of a fried chicken so Mr. Food Musings could taste the real deal, Little Sister chirped up, "...and two sweet teas, please." That's right, sweet tea. If you ever order tea in the South, be prepared to specify if you want yours sweetened -- and most do. It's brewed with sugar from the outset, which helps the sugar dissolve and melt into the tea without the need for additional stirring at serving time.

And so we drove home with the smells of barbecue coming from the back seat. Our coolers were packed with two quarts each of stew, slaw and barbecue, and the hush puppies were passed around the car while they were still hot. My parents take the back roads, preferring to go the "old way," and as we munched our hush puppies we watched the nearly barren winter countryside roll past, the trees nothing more than thin sticks silhouetted against a sky first gray with rain, later midnight blue. Eventually it turned pitch black, since most of the small towns we drove through are too poor to worry with broken and busted streetlights, but the stars were out in full force.

Dinner, when we finally ate it, was a feast. With greasy fingers, we fed ourselves morsels of moist chicken coated in a crunchy, flaky fried crust; while the stew reheated, we mounded up heaps of chopped barbecue with slaw on top. I'd traveled 5,114 air miles and another 4 hours in the car for a few bites of succulent pork and a spoonful of stew. All that for a perfect bite of yesteryear, and worth every bit of the journey.

Ralph's Barbecue, North Carolina, 1400 Julian Allsbrook Highway in Weldon (2 blocks East of I-95), 252.536.2102

Comments

[Tracy]

This post made my mouth water!My grandmother grew up in Lawrenceville and brunswick stew is served every Christmas Eve for "supper." The brunswick stew that we've always eaten is slightly sweet with a bit of vinegar. Is it the same at Ralphs? Glad your back. I missed reading your posts.

[Catherine]

Tracy -- thank you, it's great to go away, but always so, so nice to come home! This Brunswich stew does have what I'd describe as tanginess, which could be vinegar -- I'm not sure what Ralph's recipe is. But that flavor by no means overpowers the others. It's heavenly...I hated it as a kid but now I really miss it.

[Mom]

Ummm, ummm, I wouldn't mind having that plate you pictured right now!

[clare eats]

Wow
we don't have bbq like that over here and I am always wanting to read descriptions on it. That was the best on yet! I feel like I could fly over ther just to have a meal at Ralphs! Yum keep it coming girl .

[Catherine]

Clare, honey, ain't nothing like it...a bit vinegary, very tender, just juicy enough.

[HokieBrad]

I enjoyed your discussions on Ralphs . I grew up in Woodbridge , Va but my parents and extended family were all from Roanoke Rapids . We always brought a lot of their good to go to take back with us . It would be a great treat to thaw the food months later .

I am going back down that way next week and I am mainly going to eat at Ralphs. I know live four hours away in Roanoke , Va but the food is still worth the drive .

[Jennifer]

I just stumbled onto this...I was born and raised in Roanoke Rapids, and still live nearby (I'm 36 now). I have eaten more than my weight in Ralph's barbecue, to be sure. In fact, we still give Mama a break every once in a while and the family has Ralph's for Sunday dinner. Mmmm, mmmmm, mmmmm. Your description of the barbecue and slaw was right on. And by the way, I too remember the "buoys" and "gulls" bathrooms at Taylor's. Man, I miss that place.

[Carol Razor]

I agree, I miss the Carolina BBQ, Brunswick Stew, Ralph's (even though it's changed some) and Taylor's Fish House... I grew up in Gasburg/Brunswick County, went to School in Lawrenceville/where our school had many fund raisers with homemade stew and many many visits to eat in RR....

[Pauline]

My husband and I went to ECU back in the 60's and found this wonderful barbeque restaurant on our trip back home. Have been coming here ever since!!! No one in the north knows what true eastern style pork barbeque is and that's ok by us!!! This place is not just a restaurant to have dinner ~ it is an experience!! The waitresses are down home friendly, the cooks sure know how to cook "southern style" and the food is scrumptious. We always bring a cooler to take some Ralph's barbeque, cole slaw and brunswick stew home to our kids. We have been to a lot of barbeque joints but none, and I mean NONE, rival Ralph's!!! Thanks to all who work there and make it such a incredible dining experience. We love you!!!!!

[Catherine]

It's so wonderful to collect everyone's memories of Ralph's! Thank you for sharing yours, Brad, Jennifer, Carol & Pauline.

[Nancy Jacobs]

I have family that lives in Maryland,on each visit they stop at Ralph's to enjoy the Barbeque. They have taken some home with them to share with the neighbors, now the neighbors would like for them to make a purchase for them when they come to visit NC.Could you and would you please mail a menu to them? It would really be appreciated. Harriet Pittman
2949 Freeway
Baltimore, Md 21227

[Catherine]

Nancy, I live in California and I don't have a menu on me. I'll bet if you call Ralph's, they'd put one in the mail. Good luck!

[Mom]

If you google barbeque restaurants in Weldon, NC, you'll get the address & phone # for Ralph's. They don't have a website of their own, but there are several references to Ralph's. Yum--wouldn't mind a bowl of brunswick stew, some slaw, & a hushpuppy or 2 right about now!

[Amanda]

I love Ralph's. Their barbeque is amazing. I love the vinegar sauce and I love the texture of the meat. I even think they have the best coleslaw I have ever had!

[Bill]

I grew up in Roanoke Rapids and enjoyed Ralph's immensely. Great to read your delicious story.

[eleanor stanley]

the best bbq ever, plan our trips on stopping there either for lunch or dinner,
have stayed over to get it to go next day,even called and said we were few miles out rite before closing and they kept take out window open few mins longer,there great.
love it!

[Judy Volgmann]

Does anyone know if u can order online from Ralf's. I grew up in Carolina and can't afford to go back at this time. So if anyone knows please let me know how. Thank you. Judy at [email protected]