Long-awaited North Hills barbecue restaurant nears opening, but needs workers
Barbecue is returning to Raleigh’s North Hills.
The long-awaited smoked meats showcase The BBQ Lab is nearing the opening of its new North Hills location. This sister restaurant to Benson’s roadside barbecue joint The Redneck BBQ Lab had tapped Oct. 26 as its grand opening night, but has postponed the porkapalooza due to hiring issues.
From award-winning competition pitmaster Jerry Stephenson, The BBQ Lab will bring North Carolina’s most famous food back to North HIlls. The fire went out in the North Raleigh development in 2019 when its Q Shack location closed, ending a 14-year run.
The BBQ Lab, located at 4321 Lassiter in North Hills, will occupy the old Q Shack space.
Stephenson opened the original Redneck BBQ Lab in a gas station off of Interstate 40, following years of successful competition barbecue with his own version of smoked perfection. With his restaurants, Stephenson is among a new generation of pitmasters pushing North Carolina barbecue beyond smoked pork, drawing crowds and lines for brisket and pastrami and burnt ends.
The BBQ Lab pushes that even further, differing from the Benson spot by adding beer to the menu, as well as a fryer, introducing french fries and hushpuppies to the menu. And in a very North Hills move, look for a barbecue brunch as well.
“The barbecue is kind of the same,” Stephenson said in an interview over the summer. “We have the same recipes and everything. The biggest difference is we have a bar here (in North Hills) and we’re going to have a fryer.”
Stephenson first launched the North Hills project in October 2020 amid an open-ended pandemic.
“It’ll be a milestone,” Stephenson said of the upcoming opening.
The BBQ Lab was developed as a possible barbecue franchise, with the North Hills location being the first.
This story was originally published October 13, 2022 at 5:43 PM.
