56 CHARLOTTEMAGAZINE.COM // JUNE 2019
IN THE EARLY ’60s, Bill Spoon and Dewey Jackson moved from
Wilmington to Charlotte to open Jackson and Spoon’s Barbecue,
using recipes from Jackson’s father-in-law, who owned Skinner-
Daniels Barbecue in Wilmington at the time. The partnership
between Spoon and Jackson didn’t last, but Spoon bought
Dewey’s share of the business and turned it into the barbecue
joint that’s occupied 5524 South Boulevard since 1963.
Today, Bill’s grandson, Steve, runs Bill Spoon’s Barbecue, but
little else has changed. They use the same recipes for their
whole-hog barbecue, mustard-based coleslaw, and banana pud-
ding. The same yellow-and-white checkered tablecloths cover
the tables, and the same customers come back week a er week,
year a er year. Steve is 36 years old, and he’s worked in the
kitchen since 2000. One of the cooks, Reggie Stuckey, has been
with him for all 19 years. One server, Cynthia Reed, has worked
there for 24. Each one has regulars’ names and orders commit-
ted to memory.
Becoming a pastry chef or an executive chef at a steakhouse,
for example, can require years of formal training, a culinary arts
degree, or both. But with barbecue, some of the best in the busi-
ness haven’t been to culinary school or had any formal training
beyond their grandmother’s kitchen or their uncle’s barbecue
pit. “Barbecue is associated with feelings that are usually tied
to a cookout, a loved one, or one food you grew up on. It’s one
food you never give up,” Steve says. “I get customers who are
dieting or cutting carbs, and they still come in and cheat with
barbecue.”
Bill Spoon’s barbecue is “whole hog, in true eastern style,”
Steve explains. “We use apple cider vinegar, salt, and crushed red
pepper. That’s it. No rubs or fake smoke.” He says it’s the most
labor-intensive way to make barbecue, because, “from start to
nish, we only yield 30 percent of the product. We only use the
Grade A part of the pig.” A er he separates the meat from the
bone and cartilage, it’s pit-smoked for 12 hours over hickory and
oak, and it gets seasoned only a er it’s chopped.
Barbecue plates and platters come two ways (large or small),
but you won’t nd brisket on the menu because, well ... They’re
not here to reinvent barbecue. In a world of culinary trends and
fusion restaurants, there’s something comforting about this
uncompromised approach, to sticking with what works.
The quintessential barbecue experience is the pork sandwich
with slaw on a steamed bun, Steve says. “When you see that
one coming out of the kitchen, you just know it’s good.” —T.B.
EST.^1963BILL SPOON’S
BARBECUE
5524 SOUTH BLVD., 7045258865, SPOONSBARBECUE.COM(Above) Bill Spoon’s grandson Steve runs the business today. (Top) Spoon’s
barbecue platter with mac and cheese, fried okra, Brunswick stew, banana
pudding, and sweet tea.Bill Spoon’s is
open only
for lunch on
Monday through
Saturday.