As Seen on TV – Hail to the BBQ King

Guy Fieri went to the BBQ King on Wilkinson Blvd in Charlotte, and so did I.  And if you haven’t been, you need to go.  Right now.  Seriously.  Drop everything – the dishes, the laundry, the baby – and go.  Go for the BBQ chicken like we did.  You won’t be disappointed.  The only regret we had was that this was our first trip and we have lived in Charlotte for five years.  Those are five years lost of BBQ goodness.

Sure, they have other things on the menu besides chicken like fried fish, BBQ pork, hamburgers, etc, and I am sure they are all good.  Everything is made from scratch.  Diners highlighted the BBQ pork along with the chicken.  I’ll have to try it on future visits though (Don’t worry, I’ll report back).  My wife and I both order the ¼ BBQ chicken plate – me with dark meat and her with white meat.

I have to admit that I was hesitant from watching the episode on Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives.  Fried chicken tossed in BBQ sauce?  I could only imagine a soggy, gummy mess like BBQ chicken wings.  The chicken was a mess to eat but nothing was soggy or gummy.  The outside was remarkably crisp after being tossed in the BBQ sauce.  I think the vinegar base helps to prevent the gumminess, and the fact that the sauce is made in house.  Don’t be alarmed if you’re not a big fan of Eastern Carolina BBQ though.  The sauce is vinegar based but has more of a tomato based flavor.  The meat itself was moist, succulent, and flavorful.  So many times with fried chicken the outside is where the flavor is with the skin but the meat itself can lacking.  Not the case here.  Even the chicken breast my wife ordered was moist.

The chicken was accompanied by french fries, cole slaw, and a biscuit.  The fries were just fries.  Nothing special.  The cole slaw was good.  I ate it and don’t like cole slow.  That may not sound like a compliment, but it is.  The biscuit came lathered in butter.  This definitely wasn’t a meal for those watching their figures, but we all need a little cheat once in awhile.

I do have a complaint – and this is going to sound petty – but I don’t like the concept of a drive-in.  It’s just too hard to eat.  I had to balance the tray between the steering wheel and the beer / food belly I have been working on lately.  My wife didn’t have the luxury of either the steering wheel or a well developed belly and instead found herself hunched over the tray rested nicely on her lap.  There’s an easy fix though.  BBQ King to go.  It’s right next to the airport and I land quite often right around dinner time.  Something tells me BBQ King is going to contribute to the growth spurts of my belly.

For more on the BBQ King, watch Guy Fieri’s clip.