Brown's BBQ Buffet

Place: Brown's BBQ Buffet

Location: 809 N. Williamsburg County Hwy, Kingstree, SC 29556

Hours: Closed on Mondays, open 11am - 9pm Tuesday - Saturday, 11am - 3pm on Sundays

Type: All you can eat buffet

Price: Buffet with salad and drink - $14.54

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I was traveling from St. Stephens, SC to Florence, SC and I came across Browns BBQ in Kingstree. Since is was time for lunch I decided to give it a try. I have heard about Browns by multiple people and everything was positive so, why not? It was around 1:00pm when I arrived at Brown's and the first thing I noticed was that it wasn't very busy with only about 10 people already eating when I walked in.

Service:

I walked in and was directed to the cash register where I paid for a buffet and I chose to include the salad bar. I was handed two styrofoam plates, one small plate for salad and one large plate for the buffet. The ladies behind the counter were very friendly and let me know that I can get as many plates as I needed. The fountain drink machine is self-serve with Pepsi products, sweet tea, lemonade and water. I try to follow Rule # 32 of Zombieland, "Enjoy the little things." One of those little things is the styrofoam cups they have available on the beverage center for "to-go" drinks. I always ask for a "to-go" cup so not having to wait on a waitress to bring one is nice. Speaking of waitresses, there are none at this restaurant. If you want something you need to go get it yourself. The staff will however, clean your table after you leave.

The Food:

I was born in Florence, SC and I have been to BBQ buffets all of my life. When I was younger I would be more excited about the side items than I would be about the BBQ. Who doesn't like unlimited amounts of macaroni and cheese, rice and red gravy and hushpuppies? As I have gotten older I have started to appreciate good BBQ. Where I'm from BBQ is something you eat not something you do so when most people go to eat BBQ they are usually going to eat pulled pork. Not all BBQ is equal and that is the purpose of this review.

The only BBQ items on the buffet at Browns were pulled pork, ribs and BBQ chicken. They had a wide variety of side items that were all very good but sides are not what we are reviewing.

Pulled Pork (BBQ):

The BBQ at Browns was tender and had a very good flavor. Some restaurants soak their BBQ with sauce to keep it from drying out on a buffet, Browns does not. The BBQ tasted like it was only sauced with vinegar and pepper which is one of my favorite ways to eat pulled pork. Nothing ruins good BBQ like smothering the meat in Sweet Baby Rays and covering the taste of the meat. The meat was pulled and not chopped and it had little bit of gristle that wasn't removed. It was not what I would consider "dirty" BBQ. I was able to eat 99.5% of what I put on my plate except for few pieces that were hard to chew. The BBQ had a little heat but not overpowering. They did have a pan of BBQ on the buffet that was not sauced and I assume this was due to the heat in the BBQ. I was very happy with the pulled pork and enjoyed it very much.

Ribs:

The best way I can think to describe the ribs: Typical. I have never been impressed by buffet ribs. They are always over cooked, drowning is sauce and when you finally dig through the pile and find a bone that still has meat on it, the meat falls off as soon as it hits the plate. Brown's ribs are no different. If you are looking for bite through ribs that leave meat on the bone for another bite you will not get them from a buffet. These ribs were bland and had a very chewy texture.

BBQ Chicken:

The BBQ chicken at Brown's was impossible to eat. It had a good flavor in the first bite but it was so dry it was inedible. I had to decide if I was going to spit the chicken out on a napkin or drink water to help swallow it. It was possibly the driest BBQ chicken I have ever tried to eat. It would have been easier to swallow a spoonful of dry bread crumbs.

Final Thoughts:

Brown's BBQ is a good buffet restaurant. The place looks clean, the workers are pleasant and there is plenty of seating. All of the side items I tried were very good and tasted fresh. As a BBQ restaurant it is not the best I've ever had but I don't think that it was they are trying to do. If Quincy's serves BBQ on the hot bar then that doesn't make them a BBQ restaurant. The same can be said for Brown's, it is a buffet restaurant that happens to have pulled pork and ribs on the buffet.

I would eat at Brown's again if I happen to be in the area but I would stick with the BBQ (pulled pork) only.

Rating: 2.5 of 5 stars.