The Barbecue Center
“A 1955 uptown institution famed for pit 'cue and a colossal banana split.”
Get a chopped pork tray with red slaw and hush puppies, then split the enormous banana split or homemade banana pudding. Barbecue chicken is offered Wednesday through Saturday; closed Sunday.
Know Before You Go
- Price
- Mid-range ($$)
- Don't miss
- Chopped Pork Tray, Red Slaw, and Hush Puppies
What to Order
Why It Stands Out
Open since 1955 and run by the Conrad family, it still cooks pork shoulders over wood coals and helped launch the Lexington Barbecue Festival. Three generations of the family work the counter and pits today.
Quick Facts
- Address
- 900 N Main St, Lexington, NC 27292
- Phone
- (336) 248-4633
- Website
- barbecuecenter.net
- Price Range
- $$
The Barbecue Center — Frequently Asked Questions
What should I order at The Barbecue Center?
Regulars point to Chopped Pork Tray, Red Slaw, Hush Puppies, and Banana Split.
Is The Barbecue Center expensive?
The Barbecue Center is mid-range ($$).
What kind of barbecue does The Barbecue Center serve?
The Barbecue Center serves Lexington-Style barbecue — Lexington (or 'Piedmont') barbecue is built on pork shoulder rather than whole hog, cooked low and slow over hardwood coals until it can be chopped or sliced. It is dressed with a thin, tangy tomato-and-vinegar sauce known locally as 'dip,' and the same dip flavors the region's signature 'red slaw' (also called barbecue slaw), which uses no mayonnaise. The style traces to tent cooks like Sid Weaver and Jess Swicegood on the Lexington courthouse square in the early 1900s and was codified by pitmaster Warner Stamey. Davidson County calls itself the 'Barbecue Capital of the World.'