Ralph's Barbecue

I saw the itty bitty I-95 highway sign for Ralph's Buffet. Always looking for a good local joint to grab a meal. You eat first and pay your $18 out the door. They offer a decent selection of typical buffet fare. Personally, the BBQ was nothing special. The burnt ends were tasty, but the chopped pork lacked much of any smoke flavor. Their pepper vinegar sauce was really tasty. Reminds me of the sauce from Shealy's BBQ in Leesville, SC. Now, the top star for the food has to be the Fried Chicken. It has a very light, crispy batter that compliments the bird. That's the most chicken that I've eaten at one sitting in quite some time. Good sweet tea. Very attentive wait staff. Lots of parking and easy access back to the Interstate.

Excellent buffet dining. Service was amazing. Food was delicious, hot, and a great value. The fried chicken and fried fish were awesome. Building is a little bit worn, but don’t let that stop you from getting a great fresh cooked home style meal.

Please was nice and clean. Service was great. Food was delicious. If you’re traveling 95 like I was definitely a refreshing spot to stop and relax for a little while you enjoy good southern cooking.

Oh my goodness! Hidden gem for Barbecue chopped and not, all you can eat style! With fried chicken and a ton of southern sides. And the Banana Pudding was on point! Easy stop right off 95!

I was looking for a BBQ place and found this. I walked in and realized it was a buffet!!! I was so excited! They had 2 kinds of BBQ and both were delicious. Then there was re fish, and spaghetti, and Mac and cheese, and so much more!!! Everything tasted amazing!

Doesn't look like much from the outside and was thrown off with a bbq place with fish decor outside. But, we still gave it a go, and are we sure glad we did. We were promptly seated and served our drinks. After looking over the menu, we couldn't decide on any one thing and went with the buffet option. With all the food options you can't beat the price. We over ate as we had to try everything. This will be added to the list of places to eat when traveling.

8-3-25 Did dinner on the date above as takeout. The building is divided into takeout on the left and dining on the right. I can't speak for the right side at all. The takeout on the date above was insanely busy with patrons everywhere, waiting galore, you name it. I waited for maybe 25 minutes for my food and this was typical per what I witnessed. It has that many customers at a constant rate. I did a combo plate with dark meat fried chicken and chopped BBQ ($15.25 without drink). This comes with a few puppies and three sides. I did collards, mac and cheese, and green beans. Breakdown: The BBQ is definitely Eastern with a slight vinegar zing. Good version that is chopped finely. The fried chicken had a unique, crispy breading full of crunchy body. Fried perfectly and a good version. The puppies were soft and a decent version. Taste in BBQ and fried chicken are subjective but found both good for my liking. The sides is where Ralph's loses me a bit. The mac and cheese was completely flavorless, the green beans were the same (tasted like canned beans), and the collards were, you guessed it, flavorless. I can't get on board with any of these and I would like elsewhere in this regards. I found the amount of food on combo plate filling and a decent value for the money. The folks working the takeaway area were hustling and were clearly tired and wanted things to slow down per their demeanor. Not unfriendly, just spent.

Food was old fashion country food. The atmosphere was so welcoming, service was good, the stew looks really good but I think it was too sugary, the same for the potato salad and the greens. The crispy chicken is delicious and the barbecue was pretty good but think the mash potatoes were really good. We had a good family meal and my mom wanted to come here. Was a decent meal in a good environment and kind people.

Southern Food at its finest. Stopped in to grab something to eat while visiting family. The restaurant is in the cut off highway the locals told me about when I was getting gas. Glad I went the serving and portion is excellent for the price. The fish, cornbread,collard greens was cooked with love

The fried chicken is the best I've ever ate! It's very, very crispy! The meat is super moist! Seasoned perfectly! What more do you want? The servers are genuine. Real people from the south.

Ralph's barbecue has been a staple in my in-laws family for decades. Each and every time that we travel back from North Carolina, we make it a point to stop at this hidden gem. The local community definitely knows about this spot, but to those who don't -- get there, and you will not be disappointed. En route back home to DC. My wife and I stopped in to grab none other than the famous chopped barbecue sandwich. This delicious sandwich is full of flavor, full of meat, topped with coleslaw and a tangy vinegar sauce that will leave your taste buds drooling. To wash a down we got a half-and-half and trust me when I tell you the southern tea melted the ice immediately lol. All in all, I'll keep returning to Ralph's for their signature, chopped barbecue sandwich.

10 years ago this place served me an awesome meal and then did me a solid favor. Guaranteeing that they would have a customer for life. I always stop whenever I'm passing through the region and hungry, and sometimes when I'm not. and here we are again. https://youtu.be/TJIGkANfzZ8

I was in town visiting my grandma and she suggested this place. Bless her heart. I'm sure she enjoys this place, but I was not impressed at all. I'm not a big fan of buffets, but I'll do just about anything for my grandma lol First of all, I felt like I stepped into a Time Machine when I got to the door. Decor looks like it hasn't been updated in over 40 years but hey if that's the look they are going for, they nailed it. Service was great. Everyone we encountered was super friendly. Our waiter was very sweet so that's why they get 2 stars from me rather than one Food selection was okay for the price. There were a couple different options for pork bbq. The sweeter bbq chicken was about the only food I liked. The fried chicken was very crusty and I couldn't get past the crust. The Mac & cheese and the green beans were very bland. It gave me hospital food vibes for sure. The rolls were good and that's about as much as I could take. I sipped my sweet tea and waited for everyone else to eat their food. There were some desserts there too. Banana pudding and some sort of cake that someone smashed, looked like it was mixed with whipped cream and cherries. I passed on both. The next time my grandma suggest this place when I'm town, I'll more than likely try to persuade her into going somewhere else lol

The reviews on here that claim this restaurant is really great, are not correct. It's a buffet and the barbecue is not actually barbecue. The only good thing on the buffet are the greens and even those might've beenfrom a can. It is a lot of food so if that's what you like then this is good but if you want quality Carolina barbecue, this is not it. Also, after we ate, by the checkout counter, we noticed that the cleanliness rating is a 93. That's just frightening.

We stopped here because we were in the area on some business. I love barbeque and I had never heard of Ralph's Barbeque. The parking lot was slam full, so I though we could grab some lunch. The no.1 red flag about this place it doesn't smell like they served smoked meat that you would normally get in a barbeque joint. Turns out all of their meat is oven roasted, or brazed. No smoke flavor, and they just have the vinegar sauce on the table. They have all the BBQ sides brunswick stew, banana pudding etc... Just not any actual BBQ. I was so disappointed. We still ate, and it was good just not reflective on what the sign promises to be inside. So I feel like I got baited in and then switched when I entered. Food was actually excellent, 3 stars for the bait and switch. Nothin here but oven roasted meat and some sides. Hush puppies were also pretty bland, nothin special. Apparently the locals love this place, and why not, it is good food. Just not barbeque.

I was passing through North Carolina and wanted to try some of their famous BBQ. Checking YELP for places nearby this location popped up. There were decent reviews and I was looking forward to a delicious sandwich. The sandwich was on a pretty small bun. A step up from a slider. That was forgivable. North Carolina is known for their BBQ sauce. If there was any on the sandwich it must have been invisible. Without the BBQ sauce the meat was slightly dry. I was hoping for a home run ... I got a foul ball. Live and learn ....Chopped BBQ

I placed an order a 11:30 when I picked up my order the chicken was dry and was uneatable.

Hey, man! So, check it out, we were cruising through town on our way back from New England, and I had this massive craving for some killer BBQ, ya know? Like, my taste buds were begging for it! So, we stumbled upon this joint online and thought, "Hey, let's give it a shot, man!" Now, apparently, this BBQ joint has been around since 1941, which is, like, ancient in BBQ years. I mean, I'm not sure if the building itself goes that far back, but it definitely had that vintage vibe, you dig? But here's the crazy part, man, it was clean! Like, spotless! I've been to some of these old BBQ places before, and they're usually falling apart, but not this joint. Ralph's knows how to keep things tidy. The service was solid too, bro. The waiter was all about keeping our cups filled and bringing us the check if we went for the buffet. They've got a regular menu too, with a ton of options to choose from. And listen to this, they even have a takeout menu! So, you can grab some smokin' goodness on the go, man. Now, when it came to the food, I went all out and hit up that buffet. Man, it was a food fiesta! The BBQ, bro, that's where it's at. The chopped pork was this killer eastern North Carolina style. It was like a flavor explosion in my mouth, man. And the pulled pork? Damn, it was tasty too! I tried some other stuff too, like the fried shrimp and fish. Good stuff, you know? But the fried chicken... well, it had a bit too much breading for my liking. My old lady loved it though. She was all about loving those mashed potatoes and gravy. She said they were homemade and out of this world, man! And don't even get me started on the Mac and cheese. It was the bomb, and it definitely tasted homemade. Now, here's the buzzkill, bro. The place is called Ralph's BBQ, right? But they only had one kind of BBQ on the buffet - pork. Like, come on, man, I expected more variety. They had BBQ chicken on the menu, but it was nowhere to be seen on that buffet spread. I get it, we're in North Carolina, and pork is the king here, but other places still hook you up with ribs, turkey, smoked sausage, brisket, you name it! All in all, we had a groovy experience, man. But here's the plan, if I ever find myself back in that area, I'm just gonna grab a few pounds of that killer chopped pork to go. Can't go wrong with that, dude!

Worst bbq ever. We got the pulled pork, chicken and collard greens. Never ever will go back here. Pork was dry as a bone Chicken was undercooked and no sauce. Collard greens nothing in it to compliment. Awful

We kind of stumbled on Ralph's Barbecue on the way back to Virginia and thought it was ok. For about 15 bucks, you can have the buffet deal which has a decent variety of barbecue, fried chicken, fried fish, and other Southern favorites. I was a tad disappointed that there were not more fresh veggie options. But hey, it's a barbecue joint, not a vegan restaurant. While I was not blown away by their barbecue, the food from the buffet was decent. I will say that the hushpuppies, which come with the buffet offer, were AMAZING! While the atmosphere is nothing to write home (or on Yelp) about, it was very homey. If I'm in the area, I more than likely would give Ralph's another try rather than experimenting with another place that may or may not have decent barbecue.

Say you're heading north on I95 in North Carolina and you get that nagging feeling you forgot something on your hastily planned 2 night trip..... Idiot!...you forgot the BBQ...Carolina whole hog BBQ but you're making good time and still have the loop to deal with so maybe some place not to far off the highway for a quick fix? That's where Ralph's Barbecue comes in....This place is huge with a whole seperate waiting and ordering wing for takeout alone and they are busy! The concept is good also because you can opt from the a la carte menu or just go for the AYCE hot buffet situated in a dining room directly out of 1969. We went for the buffet and the offerings was quite extensive with everything from salads to 3 types of whole hog.I'm no rookie so directely to the hog it is....... First plate was finely chopped already dressed with Ralph's signiture slightly sweet vinegar based sauce,fatty pale pulled belly and the darker back and rib meat mixed with cracklings and a basic cabbage slaw. The hog was fatty,silky with a surprisingly tame smoky back ground that was just right as the really smoky stuff tend to overtake and dominate the final taste of Q. There is no Sweet baby Rays or anything resembling it either on the table or buffet because this ain't Texas and the house sauce is perfect for this type of BBQ. Second plate was topped of with the crispiest fried chicken and catfish I've had in a long while along with a basic mac and cheese but I had to have another helping of that addictive slaw. The chicken was indeed crisp but held little seasoning but salt. The catfish was fresh,flaky,seasoned perfectly and along with the hog was worth the price of admission itself. Dessert was the obligatory bananna cream pie and another piece of catfish...no. not in the same plate silly. Service was excellent,atmosphere was friendly and homey and the value was great at $15.00 for lunch.Ralph's is not going to win any prizes for their BBQ but I like it because it's good ,honest, well prepared southern cooking presided over by a team of proud and friendly folks and I would definately stop here again even if they served me just the cat fish and slaw.

Instead of listening to the reviews, I decided to go for myself. The fried chicken is weird. No flavor and a strange batter. The pork chops were okay. The collards and string beans were decent the Mac and cheese was blah. I was surprised by how small the buffet was. I'd rather go to Golden Corral where I can get a variety of selections. They also need signs. I couldn't tell what some of the bbq items were pork or chicken. The people working there are very pleasant.

This is probably my favorite Eastern North Carolina BBQ place. Their chopped pork is really fearful, with nice mix of outside and inside meat. The peppery vinegar sauce has a nice bite, which is balanced by a really nice and creamy cole slaw. They also serve an outstanding Brunswick stew. If you opt for the buffet over carryout, they also have delicious and crispy fried fish and chicken I would recommend. Don't be turned off by the mass of chains at this exit, this is a true locals spot. Ralph's is a must stop when travelling south down I95.

5 stars for food. 4 stars for ambience (plain, open tables, old but comfortable). 5 stars for friendly servers. 5 stars for prices. PS. 0 stars for alcohol selection = none. I got the buffet because I like it all and wanted to try it all!! Buffet has specific times for lunch and dinner but all day buffet on Saturday and Sunday. I went on a Saturday. I posted current buffet prices - but didn't get a menu. But food prices are up everywhere. Still, a great deal!! And authentic BBQ. Right off I-95, instead of a sticky Cracker Barrel or lousy Arby's.

I actually wanted to give this establishment zero stars. Their was nothing good about this establishment. My family and I decided to try this because of all the talk about this barbecue joint. They give you the choice of ordering the menu or get the buffet. I decided to try the buffet so that I could tried a little bit of everything. The food was out right horrible and taste nothing but vinegar. The coleslaw didn't look like normal coleslaw like it was missing ingredients. The waitress that we had was rude when we left she didn't even bother make eye contact with us when we left. I don't know what the hype was about at this establishment. It doesn't feel like a good barbecue place because normally elsewhere you can smell the smoke. I don't recommend this place nothing was good about this place.

Love Ralph's !!! Every time I visit Roanoke Rapids, It's my first stop. The barbecue with coleslaw is my absolute favorite.

I love the buffet at this place. I love it so much, it was the last place I ate before COVID hit. Yes, I braved a buffet because this place is that good. All the Southern favorites are here, and the staff are the epitome of Southern charm. No trip to Roanoke Rapids is complete without a stop here.

A MUST for the Country Buffet crowd. Lots of vegetables, extra special mac and cheese, lightly crusted fried chicken and fresh rolls. The banana pudding was outstanding. Friendly service.

Hush puppies the worst ever, the service needs some serious overhaul, technology should not be an issue, but they apparently do not answer phones and when I was there the credit card machine was having problems. However, what really got me was that they were having problems getting orders right. And I unfortunately was one of them. They need better management and need to decide they want to be a good restaurant. Go somewhere else.

Due to all the good reviews we decided to give Ralph's a try. We drove over 30 minutes from Lake Gaston, after having called twice with no response trying to confirm they were open & inquire about the buffet price. We walked in to the eating area to which my boyfriend said reminded him of Haunted House by Disney. The tables & chairs were very sticky. The food wasn't "bad", but it definitely was not worth the drive or the hype from these other reviews. The only thing i genuinely liked was the banana pudding which by itself deserved 5 stars but everything else was basically a miss. Also, nothing was labeled so you kinda had to guess what some of the things being served were.

Food isn't as good as before,must be new owners.The chicken was dry,bland and crusty.The stew taste like it's from a can.The iced tea used to be perfect.....it tasted stale.The place is screaming for remodeling as it gives me 1970's vibes .....what's happened to this place?

$16 for buffet bar lunch, no senior discount except for Tuesdays (Golden Corral offers it every weekday). Very very limited selection, and poorly prepared. Everything cooked until it's dry and hard. Negligible flavor on anything I tried. The fried chicken consisted of a ton of batter (poorly prepared batter at that) hiding a bite or two of chicken deep inside. The BBQ pork took an effort even to cut. That may well have been the worst fried chicken I've ever had. I wouldn't feed this food to a dog! The desert bar was simply disgraceful, some mixed fruit that tasted like it was straight out of a can and two gooey and yet tasteless desserts. The following night I went to Parker's and found what BBQ is supposed to taste like. Yeah, it's all you can eat, but after sampling a little of most of the offerings, I quickly lost my appetite even though I hadn't had a bite to eat all day. In short, the prices are higher than Golden Corral, the food is even worse than GC, and the selection is infinitely inferior to GC. How do they stay open serving lousy food at high prices?

Cat fish good but rest was blah for the price. Need to be updated inside. Needs different food on bar same stuff every time.

A great place to get authentic Eastern NC style barbecue. The service was great and they made sure that the buffet was replenished and tidy. I highly recommend.

Personally, bbq is not my thing, but my Dad loves it and considers Ralph's the best bbq around. Every time we drive down to NC, we stop here. They also have the BEST hush puppies I've ever had. I don't care for hush puppies normally but the ones at Ralph's are amazing.

Happened across this spot because the "chain restaurants" were over an hour wait and I am glad we did!!! Outstanding fried chicken, bbq, and damn the sweet potato casserole is a must have!!! I highly recommend getting the buffett for 11 dollars you can't go wrong. I will definitely stop here again on my travels.

This is not what bbq taste like. This is Ralph s Barbecue the way he makes it ............................

My sister asked me to stop by this place on my way to Virginia. She asked me to get a quart of Chopped BBQ. The menu said $13.00 but the lady charged $28 bucks. When I disputed she told me that was the price. I think she knew I was an out of towner. It's sad but that's how my black people treat their own. I've never had a good experience with African American southerners. God help. I had another black owned business in NC cheat me out of $10. I gave her a $20 dollar bill she gave me no change back. That's why I deal with the other persuasion. I'm African American with a little native Indian in my blood but for some reason my African American folks don't like me. Go figure!

We've eaten here three times on our roadtrips north. Last night's visit will be our last! We arrived at 7:35, thinking they were open until at least 9:00 since it was a Friday night (we did not see hours posted). At 7:45, we asked if they closed at 8:00, since they were taking down the buffet (that costs $15.95 per person on Friday night). No, we close at 8:30. Well, after my first trip to the buffet for salad, I returned for the meal. The entrees were getting cold. Do you know how bad cold fried fish and shrimp are? Nothing on the bar was getting replenished. Listening to the clean up crew, we found out they turned off the steam tables at 7:45! (Health Department, are you watching??) On top of the buffet being closed, the entire restaurant was being torn down so they could leave. Floors being swept and tables being pulled out. We didn't get any service since she was more concerned in quitting time. Management couldn't have cared any less. He was more concerned we got all we wanted. No, we didn't want any more cold, fried seafood. I will end on a positive note, the restaurant will be clean for the next shift.

Just sort of stumbled across Ralph's while traveling and delighted that I did. There isn't anything really special about it, sort of big cafeteria like buffet, but the food is good and the prices right. The BBQ pork is most typical to that of North Carolina being and pulled in longer strands instead of being kind of mushed up in a style more typical to that of South Carolina. Considering that it's a buffet, it still has a table service for eating utensils, coffee refills & etc. which I found polite, friendly and really on the ball in keeping up with customer needs as well as helpful suggestions as to which of the buffet foods are best. Another food thing about Ralph's is that it has a huge parking lot, one that you don't have to get cramped into wherein others tend to bang or chip the paint of your car when opening the doors of their cars.

First time here. I ordered chopped sandwich, scallop dinner and hush puppies. I'm an older guy and not picky and or fussy about food. I know what's good and am reasonable. First the good. The chopped bbq sandwich was good and I would order it again. The vinegar sauce was tangy. The coleslaw was ok. For 6 bucks it was not a great deal because it's hamburger bun size. For 5 bucks it would be a lot fairer. The Hush puppies. They are hands down the worst I ever had. They were 98% flour and not seasoned. I again have never had worse. The scallop dinner was served with fries. Scallops were 4 out of 10 rating with 10 being fresh and not over cooked. The fries were nothing really special. The cole slaw was a 2 out of 10. Not even as good as the kind you get out of a Food lion or Giant food store. It was grinded to almost a whipped state. If you took cabbage and stuck it in a blender and added cole slaw dressing that was unremarkable at best then blended it for a while then that's what it was like. It was a weird kind of "airy" and lacked any real southern comfort food. Would I come back? No. Would I recommend it. Oh no. People here forgot what's good. Even the sweet tea was not good. I would avoid this place and go to eat at the Waffle House a block down the road. Ralph's is not good eats.

This place has amazing food. Country delicious food. We try to plan our trips so that we can stop and eat here.

Stopped based on recommendation of lady at North Carolina welcome center. In a sea of chain places off I95 exit 173 wanted to support local business. The staff was outstanding attentive and sweet. Buffet was ok, barbecue could have been warmer smothered and fried chicken were adequate sides forgettable. Did not have dessert, but the kindness of the staff made up for the food

I love the Carolina style BBQ. I don't have many complaints other than I wish we got refills when needed, and the cashier was kinda snippy. But she went back as we were checking out and corrected herself.

Foods ok but service is terrible. I called-in my order and still had to wait 40 mins for pick-up. They have everyone in one line (those who called ahead and those who want to order at restaurant) which makes the food cold for those that order ahead. They could easily fix the problem by watching how Chick-fil-A does it or by letting the guy, whose only task appears to be opening the door, sort out the customers to appropriate windows indoors. There is no excuse at this point in the COVID times Ralph's hasn't figured out how to expeditiously get customers waited on. NOT WOTH THE WAST OF YOUR TIME!

Great small town bbq place, stew is awesome along with great pulled pork bbq. Everything has that hometown flavor, all the traditional sides. They only accept cash they have a atm. Service is good small town service. Good conversation and friendly. A must go to when in RR/Weldon area.

The pork came out extremely fatty and it looked like it had been sitting in water for hours. I was extremely disappointed with the atmosphere, cleanliness, and more importantly, the food. We immediately left without eating. This place needs a major overhaul.

TLDR: bad service, bad food, bad experience. Save yourself the trip. Our experience here was pretty awful. We called in our food 30 minutes before arriving. The woman who took our order was sassy and impatient. Ok, we thought, as long as the food is good we don't care. Arrived at Ralph's, told the woman we were there to pick up our order and then proceeded to wait for another 30+ minutes while other people came and left with their food. What is the point of calling ahead?? We go back up to ask how much longer until our food would be ready and the woman asked what we were there to pick up...WHAT?! We told you 30 min ago!! Told her we had some orders for bbq chicken and fried chicken and she told us they were out of chicken. Again WHAT?! We had ordered over an hour ago and we're just hearing this?? Turns out they had it waiting behind the counter and just ignored us/forgot. Finally get our food. We had ordered a mix platter with fried chicken and bbq pork sandwich and instead got bbq chicken. WHY?? So we finally dig in and ...everything tasted like it was from a can - canned green beans, canned collards, canned Heinz baked beans, frozen Mac and cheese. I'm not sure why it took so long since they just heated up canned food. Save yourself, go anywhere else.

This is my go to BBQ place in NC. My 8 year old son loves the selection. Highly recommend!

This really did not meet expectations. The waitress was very nice but the food quality was poor. The buffet is ok if you are an "all you can eat" kind or person and you don't really care what you are eating. We didn't try the BBQ (it wasn't appetizing) and the free hush puppies had no flavor and were greasy. Unfortunately, this isn't the little roadside gem we had hoped for during a long drive.

A northeastern NC classic and a legendary stop. The Brunswick Stew is just as good as it was in the 1970s & all the years prior. Even though the buffet line is currently unavailable, their menu service is up & running just fine. Vinegar-based barbecue is an acquired taste for some, but home base for many. So, don't be dissuaded by people who might not understand the specialty. Plus, they offer pulled pork & red sauce if you prefer, as well as numerous other protein & side options including some excellent seafood. Start with some of the best hush puppies you'll find anywhere, then enjoy some real-deal northeastern NC minced barbecue pork at its original finest.

Ralph's is huge and there aren't a lot of choices in the area. It's a BBQ buffet and it is OK. It's not great, but probably better than the options in the area. On the buffet is pulled and chopped pork. Chopped was better than the pulled. The pork was probably braised or cooked in a stainless. No smoke was involved at all, so it's pig, but it's not really BBQ. Slaw was great. Cabbage was good. Fried chicken was overly breaded and not too great. Big supply of desserts that looked promising. Folks were friendly and it was an easy in and out. This place is fine, but it's nothing special. It's a place to go and eat too much decent food. Keep hunting. I'm sure there's some smoke about somewhere in this neck of the woods.

This was my first time coming here and I was pretty disappointed. I was with a group of 12 and almost all of us were not very impressed by the selection, taste, or quality of the food. Definitely not worth the $12 charge per person. In addition, there weren't any signs to indicate what each dish was - Something I think every buffet should have! Although my stomach and taste buds left dissatisfied (after trying most of the food I ended up resorting to rice and salad to get full), I will say that the hush puppies were pretty tasty. The fried chicken (although a bit dry), Brunswick stew, baked beans, pulled pork, and dessert were okay but nothing to write home about. If you're looking for a decent BBQ buffet, I would try Carolina BBQ and Chicken (although I can only account for one located in the South Whitakers, NC area).

5 stars for what it is - a small town NC style BBQ joint. Not fancy and little atmosphere. It's a big room and feels like a cafeteria, family oriented with a large buffet. Most people order from the buffet so you can have a bit of everything. The veggies are canned but that is to be expected on a all you can eat buffet that serves 100s of people a day. The minced BBQ is better that the pulled. This is vinegar based but they do offer some with sweet red BBQ sauce. Cole slaw is outstanding. The fried chicken is battered and fried - it is not rolled in flour so it can be over battered sometimes. Brunswick stew is flavorful but a bit thin (I'm a Brunswick stew snob and expect the spoon to stand upright in the bowl). Chicken livers in gravy - yum. Chicken and pastry is loaded with chicken and good. Lots of other options. The hushpuppies are average and I have to add pepper to give a bit of zip. Desserts on the buffet are limited. Banana puddling is good but not great. The chocolate cake is bland. There is a selection of desserts that are good but extra and after eating at the buffet, I seldom order dessert. Wait staff is wonderful but the counter people can be a bit surly (maybe because they are so busy). I prefer NC style but you are prefer your BBQ smothered in that sugary sweet red sauce, you may be disappointed. This is a place to eat lots of homestyle food, reasonable price, and down home attitude. Nothing fancy.

Stopped here on way south. I really enjoyed this fourth generation bbq restaurant. The vinegar based chopped pork was great. Every side we tried was better than the other. The chicken had great flavorful breading probably a little thick for some. Ribs were tender and sauce was sweet which the mention on the menu. Coleslaw was from a 70 year old recipe. Collards were perfect

If you like NC barbecue then Ralph's is the place to stop. Always busy but the service is fast and the food is good.

Stopped in while traveling for a bbq sandwich with coleslaw. The sandwich was terrible...WAY too much vinegar. I was literally coughing because of the amount of vinegar that was on the bbq. The quality of the bbq has really gone down over the years.

Ralph's barbecue is the home to the best home cooked food. In my experience, the staff was friendly and patient. The food was absolutely delicious having both vinegar and barbecue pulled pork. I would highly recommend this establishment to anyone.