Here is the best BBQ restaurant in SC for 2023, according to Southern Living
Barbecue restaurants in the South continue to grow and evolve, creating a whole new level for BBQ lovers to explore.
Amid a surge in popularity with craft barbecue, competitive television shows, local pitmasters and independent locations, Southern barbecue has permanently solidified itself as a fundamental cuisine in the South as individual and regional staples have begun to develop and grow.
To help food lovers keep up with the growing changes, Southern Living releases a survey-based list of the South’s best BBQ in each state every year.
“This year’s readers’ picks for the South’s best barbecue joints reflect the current state of Southern barbecue, offering a blend of continuity and change,” Southern Living wrote of this year’s winners.
As for South Carolina, readers of Southern Living who have taken part in the survey year after year are partial to one specific barbecue locale over them all.
The BBQ joint that was favored among all others in the Palmetto State this year not only won for 2023, but also won for South Carolina overall in 2022.
That’s right.
Rodney Scott’s Whole Hog BBQ has been awarded the honor of being the best barbecue in South Carolina.
Rodney Scott’s BBQ, located at 1011 King Street in Charleston, has been awarded the title by Southern Living magazine in their “South’s Best Barbecue Joint In Every State 2023” category.
In referencing the restaurant’s win, the magazine described restaurant owner Rodney Scott as “a Southern barbecue star” for his barbecuing skills and ability to transform a pit-cooked whole hog, which is “mopped with a tongue-tingling vinegar and red pepper sauce.”
“In the space of just six years, Rodney Scott has built a multi-state whole hog empire, with three locations in Alabama, one in Atlanta, and another on the way in Nashville,” Southern Living detailed.
“It all started in 2017 at the flagship on King Street in downtown Charleston, where Scott introduced city diners to the Pee Dee style of ‘burn barrel’ cooking he learned at his parents’ restaurant in the small South Carolina town of Hemingway,” the magazine continued.
For those interested in getting a taste of Rodney Scott’s Whole Hog BBQ, the restaurant is open daily from 11 a.m. until 9 p.m.
In likeness with numerous reviews left about the amazing food and welcome atmosphere of the BBQ Joint, on his website, Scott proclaims “There are no strangers at Rodney Scott’s Whole Hog BBQ. Everyone has a seat at our table. Our customers are family. Our crew is family. We are all family, spreading food, spreading love and having fun. The glass is always half full here.”
The winning BBQ joint has an extensive and mouthwatering menu accompanied by a variety of Southern sides that are sure to get your stomach rumbling.
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The recently earned accolade certainly meant a lot to Scott, especially as it was his South Carolina location that received the notoriety.
“It’s an honor to be named the best BBQ joint in South Carolina and I’m beyond ecstatic to have our team’s hard work and dedication recognized by Southern Living readers. I’ve been cooking up whole hogs since I was a kid in Hemingway, so to be recognized in this regard by my home state means a lot,” Scott remarked to The Island Packet.
“Rodney Scott’s Whole Hog BBQ was born out of a respect for the time and technique required to make great barbecue, and the Charleston location is a testament to that.”
“It’s special because it’s the original location - the very first restaurant we poured our heart and soul into to create a place where anyone from anywhere could enjoy great food and be treated like family. Our whole team embraces the attitude of ‘every day is a good day’ and you can feel that energy when you walk in the door. That’s something you don’t find in most places,” Scott continued.
