Acceptable - Smokey's BBQ Shack - Morrisville

Address - 10800 Chapel Hill Rd, Morrisville, NC Map
Style - Counter-service sit-down restaurant Web-site

The building was originally a barbecue restaurant, but for many years it was the Deli Box, a lunchtime spot for RTP denizens. As the Deli Box, they only served unsweetened tea. If you asked for sweet tea, they would tell you to go down to Davis Barbecue, a couple of miles down the road in Morrisville proper. The Deli Box served good sandwiches, which you could eat out on the picnic tables by the pond out back. Later, it became Rub's Smokehouse, a barbecue joint with promise. A tiff between the partner's caused Rub's to close in 2007. It was reopened by a few of the partners as Smokey's BBQ Shack. I could see no difference between Rub's and Smokey's. The restaurant and menu have not changed.

I had the pork barbecue sandwich basket. With the sandwich came hush puppies and one side, which I chose to be potato salad. The pork had flavor. It was nicely browned with a few dry bits. This is worth coming back for. The sides were average. The potato salad had a little personality, but nothing special. The serving of hush puppies was skimpy and nothing special.

The quirkiest thing about the building are the bathrooms. There is no sink in the bathroom, just a hand sanitizer. Instead, there is a sink in the hall outside, which adjoins the main dining area. I do not remember this from when it was the Deli Box, but we always ate out back.