Lewis Barbecue
Texas-trained brisket mastery meets the Holy City
Lewis Barbecue is a barbecue restaurant in Charleston, South Carolina.
John Lewis brought his Texas-honed craft to Charleston in 2016 and reset the city's ceiling overnight. His custom-built pits — the largest in South Carolina — turn out brisket with a bark that stands up to anything in Austin, cooked in the Central Texas manner with the wood doing the work and the sauce kept on the side. The open-air beer garden, carved out of a converted NoMo warehouse space, has become one of Charleston's genuine gathering places.
The beef brisket is the headline: peppery bark, a silky rendered fat cap, and slices that hold together until you bite. It is arguably the best brisket in the state. The jalapeño cheddar sausage is made in-house and snaps with each bite, the smoked turkey stays improbably moist, and the whole-hog nods to the Carolina canon he cooks alongside the Texas one. Arrive before noon on weekends; the good cuts sell out, and the line has a reputation of its own.
- Style: Central Texas Style
- Price: $$
- Neighborhood: NoMo / North Morrison
- Serving since 2016
What to order
- Beef Brisket
- Jalapeño Cheddar Sausage
- Whole Hog
- Smoked Turkey
How it scores — 9.4/10 overall
Visiting
- Address: 464 N Nassau St, Charleston, SC 29403
- Phone: (843) 805-9500
- Website: https://lewisbarbecue.com
Hours: Mon–Thu 11am–9pm, Fri–Sat 11am–10pm, Sun 11am–9pm
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