Acceptable - Short Sugar's 2, Reidsville

Address - 234 S Scales St, Reidsville NC Map
Style - Lunch Counter

There are two locations for Short Sugar's in Reidsville. Both are on South Scales Street. The larger restaurant is Short Sugar's Drive-in which is a sit-down restaurant. The other is Short Sugar's 2, a lunch counter in a downtown storefront. They certainly seem related, but I do not know their history. They are not related to the (IMO) better Short Sugar's in Danville VA, a half an hour's drive north.

The menu at the lunch counter is extremely limited. Basically, you can get a sandwich or a platter with the choice of minced, chopped and sliced. Sides are slaw and hushpuppies. I had a sliced sandwich and hushpuppies for a quick and cheap lunch. The meat had a good flavor, seemed to be smoked. The slaw on the sandwich was run of the mill. The hushpuppies were overcooked.

This is a place for a quick lunch; there is free parking on the street in front of the place. For more substantial meal, head down to the Drive-in or even up to Dansville.

Update: Short Sugar's 2 has closed. The main restaurant remains open.

The Barbecue Joint Move Hits Snag

According to WRAL, the Barbecue Joint's move to the new location hit a snag, due to a couple of investors backing out. The new location, which was a book store with a small coffee bar, needs major renovations to make it a restaurant. When the investors pulled out, there was not enough money for the renovations. The owners came up with a novel way to raise cash. They will sell an investor a gift card for $1000 cash which is worth $2000 in meals. For the full story, see the link.

We wish the restaurant luck. I'd consider purchasing a card myself, but I need to spread my barbecue money around to more restaurants as a reviewer.

The Barbecue Jew Got Reviewed in the Independant

The Barbecue Jew blog got reviewed in the Independent, the Triangle's independant weekly newspaper. The Independent has some funky political slant to their main articles, but the restaurant reviews and news are generally well done.

A Cobb Salad at the Q-Shack

A buddy of mine and I had lunch at the new Q-Shack in Carrboro. He had a brisket sandwich. I had been curious about the Cobb Salad which had been recommended, so I ordered one. The salad was huge. It was made up of Romaine lettuce, cubed avocado, hard-boiled eggs and tomatoes covered with a layer of chopped smoked turkey and beef brisket. Overall, the salad tasted fantastic. The first bites of chopped brisket were a little fatty, giving a greased feel to the tongue. But that was only that little bit, as the rest was very good. My buddy, who is a Texas barbecue fan, thought the brisket was a little fatty and not the best brisket he has had in the Triangle, but not the worst either. I will return to give the Q-Shack a proper review. I do recommend the Cobb Salad.

Update: This Q-Shack has now closed.

Barbecue Pit to Open New Location in Durham

According to the Durham Herald-Sun article, the Backyard Barbecue Pit on NC 55 is opening a new location in the old Pizza Palace building at 3218 Guess Road. The building has seen a turnover in tenants in the last ten years, including a steakhouse and the latest tenant, the Pizza Palace, owned by the Rodenhizer family. The Pizza Palace was a Duke University and Durham favorite on Ninth Street since 1963, but it closed in 2008, four years after its move to Guess Road. The building sits back from the street and has a funky look.

The Backyard Barbecue Pit on NC 55 likewise gone through a history of changes. It has had at least three names as a barbecue restaurant. It was originally Lewis's and then AW's. Visits to each version found little changed except the name. The barbecue is a little acidic for this reviewer's taste, but Kent reviews it favorably. I will definitely check out the new location for another taste.