Restaurant in Charleston, United States
James Beard whole hog. No reservation needed.
Rodney Scott's BBQ on King Street is Charleston's most credentialed walk-in restaurant: a James Beard Award-winning pitmaster, a Michelin Bib Gourmand (2025), and a kitchen open until 9 PM every day. No reservations required. Whole hog barbecue at an accessible price point, with credentials that hold up against venues charging three times as much.
If you are in Charleston and serious about whole hog barbecue, Rodney Scott's BBQ on King Street is the right answer. This is the place for a post-sightseeing lunch, a casual group dinner on a weeknight, or a late-night feed before the bars close — the kitchen runs until 9 PM every day of the week, which makes it one of the few credentialed spots in the city where you can eat well after 8 PM without switching to a bar menu. For anyone who has been once and wants to know what to do differently: sit down, order more than you think you need, and stay later than you planned.
The King Street location is a working barbecue operation, not a polished dining room. The physical space reflects that: expect counter service, communal seating, and the kind of layout designed for throughput rather than atmosphere. It is not an intimate dinner-date venue. The room is open, functional, and built around the smell of smoke rather than table settings. For solo diners or groups of two to six, this format works well. Walk in, order at the counter, find a seat. The operation moves quickly during peak hours, which means the room turns over fast , useful to know if you arrive right at 9 PM close, but not a reason to rush during the earlier evening window.
Rodney Scott holds a James Beard Award for Leading Chef: Southeast , one of the most credible independent validations in American dining. The restaurant also holds a Michelin Bib Gourmand (2025), which in practical terms means Michelin's inspectors consider it exceptional value relative to price. Opinionated About Dining ranked it #320 among North American Cheap Eats in 2024 and #444 in 2025, with a Recommended listing in 2023 , a consistent performance across multiple years of an index that is notoriously hard to game. Rodney Scott's whole hog method was also the subject of a Chef's Table: BBQ episode, which introduced the operation to a global audience but did not change what the kitchen does. These are not honorary credentials; they reflect a specific technique , whole hog barbecue built on generations of South Carolina pit tradition , that has been independently verified by multiple serious evaluators. Pearl recommends it (2025). Google reviews sit at 4.4 across 7,322 ratings, which for a barbecue counter in a competitive food city is a meaningful signal of consistency.
Charleston's dinner scene skews early, and most of the city's marquee restaurants stop seating well before 9 PM or require reservations weeks in advance. Rodney Scott's runs 11 AM to 9 PM seven days a week with no reservation required. That is a real operational advantage for anyone who has been walking the city all day and wants a serious meal without planning ahead. It also makes this a strong option after earlier drinks , if you are at a bar on King Street and realise at 8 PM that you need actual food, this is within walking distance and still open. Compared to the late-night alternatives in that corridor, you will not find many options with a Michelin Bib Gourmand and a James Beard-winning pitmaster running the pit. For a comparison, Lewis Barbecue operates on a similar walk-in model but in North Charleston, making Rodney Scott's the more accessible option if you are already on King Street.
| Detail | Rodney Scott's BBQ | Lewis Barbecue | Husk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Booking Required | No | No | Yes |
| Price Tier | $ (Bib Gourmand) | $ | $$$ |
| Hours | 11 AM – 9 PM daily | Check current hours | Dinner only |
| Cuisine | Whole hog BBQ | Texas-style BBQ | Southern |
| Awards | James Beard, Michelin Bib | , | , |
| Walk-in Friendly | Yes | Yes | Limited |
Also see: our full Charleston restaurants guide, hotels in Charleston, bars in Charleston, wineries near Charleston, and experiences in Charleston.
For reference, James Beard-level recognition for a barbecue operation is rare. The restaurants that attract comparable credentialing in the US typically operate at price points three to four times higher , places like Le Bernardin in New York City, Alinea in Chicago, or The French Laundry in Napa. In the barbecue category specifically, CorkScrew BBQ in Spring and InterStellar BBQ in Austin offer useful regional comparisons, though the whole hog method Rodney Scott uses is distinct from the Texas brisket tradition those operations favour. The point: the credentials here are genuine and the price-to-quality ratio is difficult to match at this level of recognition anywhere in the country.
The whole hog is the reason to be here. Rodney Scott's reputation, his James Beard Award, and his Chef's Table profile are all built on the whole hog method, so ordering anything else as your main is missing the point. Get the whole hog, add sides, and if you are with a group, order more than you think you need , the food moves fast and the counter stays busy through the evening.
Rodney Scott's operates as a counter-service barbecue restaurant rather than a bar-and-dining format, so there is no traditional bar to sit at. Seating is communal and open. If bar-seat dining is important to you, 167 Raw on King Street offers a counter experience with a more intimate setup for solo diners.
Barbecue restaurants built around whole hog and smoked meats are not well-suited for vegetarian or vegan diners , sides are available but the operation is centred on meat. No specific dietary accommodation information is listed for Rodney Scott's. If you have serious dietary restrictions, contact the restaurant directly before visiting. For a more flexible menu in Charleston, Lowland and Vern's offer broader options.
No reservation needed. Walk in, order at the counter, and expect a casual, high-volume environment rather than a sit-down service experience. The Michelin Bib Gourmand designation signals that prices are accessible , this is not a splurge meal. The whole hog barbecue is the only thing worth ordering as your main. The kitchen is open until 9 PM daily, so it works as a late dinner after a full day in Charleston. If this is your first time in the barbecue category in South Carolina, know that the whole hog method here is distinct from Texas brisket-focused spots like InterStellar BBQ in Austin , it is a different tradition and worth understanding on its own terms.
Yes, and it is one of the better solo options in Charleston at the accessible price tier. Counter service means you are not occupying a table for two, there is no awkwardness about booking for one, and the communal seating format makes solo eating feel natural rather than conspicuous. If you want a more upscale solo experience in Charleston, the bar counter at 167 Raw is worth considering for a different format. For solo diners who want a serious meal without planning ahead, Rodney Scott's is the most credentialed walk-in option on King Street.
| Venue | Cuisine | Price | Booking Difficulty |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rodney Scott's BBQ | Barbecue | Hard | |
| 167 Raw | Oyster Bar | Unknown | |
| Edmunds Oast | New American | Unknown | |
| FIG | New American | Unknown | |
| Husk | Southern | Unknown | |
| Leon’s Oyster Shop | Seafood | Unknown |
Comparing your options in Charleston for this tier.
Whole hog barbecue is the reason Rodney Scott won a James Beard Award for Best Chef: Southeast, so that is where to start. The operation is built on a generations-old South Carolina whole hog tradition, which means the smoked pork is the core product rather than a menu afterthought. Sides and sauce round out the plate, but if the whole hog is unavailable or sold out, you have missed the point of the visit.
Rodney Scott's runs counter service, not a traditional bar-and-table setup, so there is no bar seating in the conventional sense. The space is a working barbecue operation with communal seating rather than a polished dining room. Walk in, order at the counter, and find a seat — no reservation, no waiter.
A whole hog barbecue restaurant is not a natural fit for guests avoiding pork or meat. Sides are available, but the kitchen's identity and Rodney Scott's James Beard credentials are tied entirely to smoked pork. If your group has strict vegetarian or pork-free requirements, FIG or Leon's Oyster Shop on the Charleston dining circuit offer more flexible menus.
Counter service, communal seating, and a casual format — this is not a white-tablecloth visit. The restaurant holds a 2025 Michelin Bib Gourmand and is open daily 11 AM to 9 PM at 1011 King St, which makes it one of the few serious, credentialed kitchens in Charleston accessible for a late walk-in dinner. No reservation is required, but arrive before the smoked meat sells out.
Counter service and communal seating make solo dining straightforward here — you order, you sit, there is no awkward table-for-one dynamic. At a price point consistent with a Michelin Bib Gourmand and Opinionated About Dining Cheap Eats ranking (#444 in North America for 2025), it is also one of the lower-friction solo meals in Charleston. No need to plan ahead or hold a reservation.
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