Wilbers Barbeque

Had the BBQ chicken plate which was okay. Can’t touch Texas BBQ, though. The hush puppies are absolutely amazing. You gotta go there for just those. I could have eaten the entire basket ! The banana pudding was delicious, too.

Old fashoned pit cooked whole hog barbque. Great hushpuppies ask for chicken gravy…

On our way home from the beach, we stopped at Wilbur’s for lunch. Service was pleasant and quick. Food was homemade and delicious. Pulled pig sandwiches, coleslaw, Mac n cheese, green beans, potato salad, barbecue chicken. Smokehouse in back of restaurant, farm stand out front. Eastern NC style barbecue. Well worth the slight detour.

I’ve been going to Wilber’s for years traveling from Raleigh to points east. While never a fancy place, the food was always good and the staff took pride in their simple fare. That’s all changed.
The food was passable although the chicken was dry. What really took me back was the lack of pride in the staff. I’ve never experienced that at Wilber’s before. The table was dirty and both the waitress and lady at the checkout counter were not very helpful nor concerned with the overcooked food.
I’ll be eating at Kings on my next trip.

Don’t accept debit cards for purchases under $ 50 and the take out meal tonight was awful. Slaw was bitter, BBQ was fatty and the fries were tasteless. The only thing that was adequate was the styrofoam container the meal came in.

Had lunch at Wilbers yesterday. Had never been there but a friend who grew up in Goldsboro recommended it. Tried the Barbecue Plate (Chopped barbecue, potato salad, had them hold the slaw). The meat was good, not great, but the potato salad was far too sweet to finish. The hush puppies were good, but nothing special. In all, I got about what I expected.

Men’s Journal said this is one of 25 best bbq restaurants in all of the U.S.A. Well I beg to disagree it is not better than The Pit in Raleigh and not worth driving past City Bbq Wilber’s is an experience it is like stepping back in time to the 1960’s even my server had her hair in a bun on top of her head. I had chopped bbq and a side of green beans, bbq was was good not great, green beans were bland, and hush puppies were disappointing you could taste that the oil was old and time to change. Overall glad I made the trip but no reason to return.

Don’t get me wrong, the pulled pork BBQ here is great. It has nice, smoky flavor, the vinegar sauce is on point, and even though the meat was on the dry side, I enjoyed the meat the most.
I ordered a BBQ pork plate, which included hush puppies, cole slaw, and potato salad. I also ordered a side of Brunswick stew.
The hush puppies were standard. They weren’t bad, but weren’t amazing, either. The cole slaw wasn’t anything special, and neither was the potato salad. I was a little disappointed that the potato salad didn’t have many chunks of potatoes — it was more of a sweetly-​flavored mashed potato side dish.
The Brunswick stew had good flavor, and also had actual vegetables in it, which I appreciated. However, there wasn’t any meat in the stew, which is what I like in a Brunswick stew.
I enjoyed their sweet tea, and I liked that the refilled my tea when it was low. The service overall was very friendly, helpful, and quick.
The place itself feels like a standard BBQ joint — slightly old, but still decently kept. We came on a Sunday for lunch, and didn’t have to wait for a table. It seemed like the happening place to be in Goldsboro, but I’m not sure I’d make a special trip out here for BBQ if I weren’t already in the area.

Stopped in today for a pound of take out, and thank goodness, we found Wilber’s just being Wilber’s. The chopped pork barbecue here never disappoints — moist, tender, smokey and with some nice heat.

Such good BBQ! Their pig is delicious. I could honestly just eats plates of it. Took my little bro for the 2^nd time and he loved it more than the first time. Andy was our waiter and he hooked it up with great service. Everything was great. The fried chicken livers were great too. Love this place.

I have to admit, I am not a huge Eastern NC BBQ fan. I am more of a Texas BBQ fan and love ribs and brisket so pulled pork is not my first choice when it comes to BBQ.
I was in Goldsboro for work and decided to try out Wilber’s based on the reviews and the fact that it is consistently listed as one of the top BBQ joints in NC. I was extremely surprised at how much I enjoyed my lunch. I ordered the Big Q sandwich combo, which came with fries and a small drink, and a hot dog.
What made the BBQ besides the meat being tender was the Wilber’s BBQ sauce. It was better than the standard Eastern NC vinegar based sauce. It was still vinegar based but it was surprisingly spicy, which was amazing. To top it off, the hush puppies were excellent, hot, FREE and kept coming out as soon as I could eat them!
I will definitely be back the next time I am in town!

My review is based only on the Smoked-​Pork BBQ sandwich that I had. and it was a 5-​Star sandwich when compared to the many, and I do mean many, so-​called BBQ restaurants in Central and Eastern North Carolina. I see a lot of negative reviews here, and they may be valid, but again. I am reviewing the main item; the pork, and it is done right. I have smoked pork shoulders for years, and have pretty well mastered the process.
The trick (and it’s not really a trick), is to get a good balance of that wood-​smoked flavor, kissed with just enough vinegar sauce to keep it moist. Wilbur’s pork has just that balance.
The slaw is meant to be on the sweet side. it pairs very well with the smokiness of the meat, and contrasts slightly with the vinegar sauce. My sandwich was great!
Compare that with my visit to Cowboy’s BBQ in Clinton last month. their wood-​smoked pork was drowned in a way-​too-​strong vinegar that completely voided the flavor of the meat.

I feel a need to explain things to «Mike» after reading his review. The reason why the «BBQ Sauce» on the chicken wasn’t good «barbecue sauce» was because it is not barbecue sauce. That is called «Chicken Gravy.» That’s why it was on the chicken, and had the consistency of gravy.
No self respecting NC barbecue joint would put the barbecue sauce on your barbecue for you. NC Barbecue sauce is sitting on the table so you can add as much or as little as you like.
In the future, do as the locals do. get a side of the chicken gravy and dip your hush puppies in it while you wait for your delicious dinner.

This is a pretty good restaurant. You can get you some barbecue. You can get you some cold slaw. You can get you some puppies that taste like bread. They pretty good.
I got me some barbecue.

I grew up in southeastern NC and have always appreciated good BBQ. Having heard about Wilbur’s before, and seeing it had solid reviews I decided to give it a try while passing through Goldsboro.
I was more than pleased with my decision. I opted for the BBQ and fried chicken combo plate. Both meats were some of the best BBQ pork and fried chicken I’ve ever had. The cole slaw and hush puppies were great to and the nice lady taking care of lone dinners at the bar was very attentive and had the best attitude.
I went in expecting it to be good, but was completely overwhelmed with how good it actually was.

Known for their eastern NC bbq– we often hit up this place for lunch on our way to the beach. I love chicken livers– when they are done right–
And they do them right here.

I am about to give up on this area; I have yet to find a single place that is worth more than 3 stars. I love bbq and was looking forward to visiting Wilbers given the high marks.
Holy crap, what are people thinking?
Food: The menu options are limited to basically pulled pork (on some menu selections simply called pig) and chicken. I went with the combo to give both a try. The chicken was avg and the pulled pork was ok; but for a place that is supposed to specialize in pork: I expected better. That said, the entire meal is basically ruined because their «bbq» sauce is like no sauce I have ever tasted. Its not bbq sauce, its basically gravy. I kid you not! I had to track down the waitress and ask her if they made a mistake. She said «No», that’s their version of bbq sauce. I said great, I will pay you in Monopoly money, that’s my version of currency. I am kidding I did not say that, I was thinking it though.
Service: Had to chase her down to ask about bbq sauce, had to chase her down to get a refill on my tea, had to wait forever to get my check. She was not busy, just easily distracted by coworker conversations and customer chats.
Overall: The prices are more than fair, but I am sorry you can not call yourself a BBQ place without any decent sauce. I would even take some 70 cent a bottle Open Pit and enjoy my meal. Their concoction is hard to explain; its not NC or TX style, its basically watered down gravy with spices, its just nasty.

I gave this place 3 stars because I didn’t try the bbq due to it not being the kind that we eat back home. I did try their chicken gizzards, but they were too peppery.
The hush puppies were good, not the best, but it was my favorite part of the meal.

My travel companion and I have started to make a habit of chasing NC BBQ.
While Wilbers was palatable and even very tasty, I think I liked Skylight better.
Wilbers is not fancy: checkered table cloths and wood-​paneled walls. Looks like your grandma’s house circa 1978. But nonetheless, homey and cozy. Just what a BBQ joint *should* look like. I had the BBQ pork plate with a side of green beans. He had the combo: fried chicken and BBQ pork. We also shared the Brunswick stew, which was really good. I think of all the things we tried, the fried chicken was my favorite. He even took the skin off for me to eat, since that is my favorite part. Sweet.
Worth the drive? Yes. Best in the state? Not quite there. But solid.

Three friends and I visited North Carolina from New York. We wanted an authentic NC BBQ restaurant. Everyone recommended Wilber’s! We absolutely loved the family-​style dishes. We basically ordered one of every dish and ate until we were exhausted. My favorite dishes were the fried chicken and the mashed potatoes.
The atmosphere is so relaxed and fun. The servers were so sweet and welcoming! I will be sure to return if I ever find myself in NC again.