Our few days in North Carolina are nearing an end. Our time here has hopefully conditioned us for the heat that awaits in Turks and Caicos. Call me crazy but I love waking up here and going outside to be hit by that big, hot wet blanket. I don’t care if my hair frizzes; my skin has never felt so good.

The Sheraton (Airport) is a great hotel, good location, nice decor, great pool area, awesome club lounge. The only bad thing about it is the food…completely boring, unimaginative, corporate shlop you can get at any chain hotel on the continent. But that was okay, we chose it for the location, not the food.

We came to NC for barbecue so here’s the rundown: It was a toss up our first night between McCoy’s Smokehouse and Mac’s Speed Shop. McCoy’s was leading by a hair until a lady on the plane recommended Mac’s followed by the front desk clerk at the Sheraton when we checked in.

Mac’s was just as I remembered it: loud, crowded, bustling. I was here a year ago and blogged about it then (read it here).The kids loved it, our waitress was quick-witted and patient as she advised us on the many food and beer options, educating us in the ways of barbecue. A new dish I tried this time was the black eyed peas called Hoppin’ John which we mixed with the collard greens. Delish.

The next day we headed to Durham/Chapel Hill and took in a Durham Bulls baseball game. I’m not even sure if the Bulls won against the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs…it didn’t really matter. We had sun, beer, hotdogs and perfect seats in a beautiful ball park. That’s livin’!

We stayed in Chapel Hill about 20 minutes away at a new hotel called Aloft. Very chic, and part of the Starwood group. We chose that hotel because it was near to Allen & Sons barbecue. What we didnt check was if Allen & Sons was open on Mondays. We got there and found out they weren’t. So for the next hour we used our iPhones to search for edible barbecue…all barbecue joints are not created equal and you can get “chain” style barbecue just as easily as authentic stuff. Of course being foreigners, its not easy to tell the good from the bad.

We ended up at The Q Shack in Durham. Not bad, not outstanding, but it served the purpose.

 

We were bound and determined to eat at the much ballyhooed Allen & Sons, so back we went Tuesday morning, arriving  around 11 a.m.

What I really liked about Allen & Sons is the authenticity of the place. Taxidermy for decorations, green plastic tablecloths, wooden chairs that looked like they were made by someone’s Grandpa and a waitress who’d been there longer than I’d been alive, all in a little run-down shack at the end of a twisty road across from the railway tracks. That’s gotta be worth something.

The kids rated Mac’s higher overall. But I’d have to say, Allen & Sons won hands down when it comes to desserts. Coconut and pecan pie, cherry, apple and peach cobbler…oh my; the trip was worth it.

With a “bye y’all” from our very efficient waitress, we stumbled out into the heat of the day with bellies full of pig and pie and ventured off into the countryside to do a little exploring and geo-caching on our way back to Charlotte. Ended up in a place in the woods complete with a haunted house and vultures living inside. Very eerie. We searched long and hard for that cache, but came up empty. Sweaty and empty.

A tourist attraction called Spookywoods popped up on our GPS past Greensboro so we scooted off the highway to check it out. Unfortunately it was closed. It looked totally tacky and could’ve been a lot of fun.

After stopping at Northlake Mall for a few essentials, we made our way to the Noda (“North of Davidson”) district of Charlotte.

Very cool little artsy area with quaint, nicely painted, colourful little houses, interesting boutiques, galleries and restaurants, our destination: Cabo Fish Taco Baja Seagrill that was featured on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives on the Food Network.

We thought the kids could use a break from barbecue, and this was definitely a good choice. We ordered three different fish tacos: the tavarua tuna, the barbecued mahi mahi and the lemon shrimp as well as a steak dish, carne asada.

All were outstanding. If you’re in Charlotte, make a point of going there.

So tonight we say goodbye to beautiful Charlotte, the Queen City, satiated with barbecue, beans and collard greens, and fish.

Thanks NC, we’d definitely come back…I think there’s a few ‘cue joints we missed.