Stephenson's Bar-B-Q - Willow Spring, NC

Stephenson's BBQ in Willow Spring, NC, marked the end of today's BBQ tour. The restaurant, which is also part of the NC BBQ Trail, was luckily open until 9pm, so we arrived at Stephenson's around 8pm after a drive of about 1.5 hours from Ayden. The restaurant, located in a very rural area, was quite busy with visitors. Steffi ordered poultry with corn and collard greens, a cabbage dish that is often served in NC after being steamed. A small bowl of poultry fat was served on the side. I opted for pork and poultry with fries and cole slaw. Initially, we received two cups filled to the top with ice. The drinks were served separately in cans. As if that wasn't enough ice, we also received a bucket of ice. So it seems there is plenty of ice available at Stephenson's... Steffi enjoyed the side dishes and the poultry, although unfortunately the skin, like mine, was not crispy. My fries were quite limp and therefore not as tasty. The cole slaw was finely chopped, but also enriched with parsley. The meat (pork shoulder) also tasted delicious and had a subtle vinegar flavor. To finish off, we each ordered a portion of banana pudding, which we ended up enjoying the next day. And let me tell you, it was really good! Steffi was glad that we still ordered it despite having full stomachs. By the way, it was quite noticeable in the pricing that we had already left the coast and were heading inland. The BBQ prices here were much more affordable.