Review: Camel City BBQ

By Jessica Thomas Lewis

​This was our first visit to Camel City BBQ Factory, we will be back. 

The atmosphere at Camel City BBQ is welcoming for all ages.  There were lots of families and adult groups, there is a bar, lots of TVs, and a great game room.  This place is just plain fun for both kids and adults... and the food is great.  There are big windows in the dining area and because the restaurant sits on the second floor there are good views of downtown.

​We were there at 6:30 on a Friday night and our party of five was immediately seated.  The dining area is upstairs, and there is outside seating available. It was rather loud, but the place was full and it was bearable.  There were games to play, both video and game boards, available while you waited at your table.  

The food was very good and the service was good.  I had the pulled pork plate.  Cole slaw (red or white) and hush puppies are included and I selected sweet potato fries as my side.  The white cole slaw tasted just like my mom's, which is rare to find.  The pork was delicious.  The hush puppies and sweet potato fries were good but average.   Meals are served on a recyclable plate with plastic utensils.  We got forks and spoons but could have used a knife, especially for the child's chicken tender.

After dinner we went into the game room.  There is an arcade with Donkey Kong and other 80s games.  Pin ball, skee ball, pool tables, darts.  It was fun and we spent another half hour or so playing after dinner.  

It did feel like the place could a bit of touching up.  The space is nice but it is an old building and the ladies restroom in the arcade could use patching and repair.  The toilet was broken when I used it.  The restaurant has concrete floors and they were "sticky" in the dining area.  None of this detracted from the food or the atmosphere; all in all Camel City BBQ is a great place for a date, family dining, meeting friends, there's even space for private parties.  

A huge plus for me is it's location downtown.  One block over from the Arts District, Camel City is also diagonal from Artivity on the Green, one of our favorite places to go downtown. (Prime time to visit Artivity is sunset; stay until it's dark for the best experience.)  There is shopping on Sixth Street and beyond, easy to walk. 

Parking is easy.  They have their own parking lot and parking is free on the street in the evening.  Camel City BBQ is a good addition to Winston-Salem's downtown.

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