Steve Grady

In 1986, Steve Grady and his wife opened Grady’s BBQ in Dudley, NC as newlyweds creating classic recipes for locals that Grady learned as a child through the traditional way. Grady learned to cook whole hogs from his father and grandfather. Grady says he always knew how to cook a pig; by the time he was “big enough to walk,” he was helping his grandfather, the neighborhood pitmaster for hire. They would cook a couple of pigs in honor of fall and winter holidays and celebrations in barbecue pits dug directly into the ground every year. Mrs. Grady also learned the traditions when she was just 9 or 10 years young, learning from her mother, grandmother, and mother-in-law tried and true family recipes that carried over into their restaurant. 

The Gradys call what they do the “old-fashioned way.” Tea is brewed on the stovetop. All items on the generous vegetable spread are peeled, chopped, and cooked daily. The whole hog is still slow-smoked over oak and hickory coals. 

Grady’s has been at the pinnacle of Eastern North Carolina BBQ for 38 years, upholding the slow cook methods over coals through an era when many places in this historically important BBQ region embraced electrical ovens for convenience. Today, Grady’s Barbecue stands as the only Black-owned whole hog barbecue smokehouse in North Carolina and is known as a legendary spot built on the premise of cooking barbecue the old-fashioned way with wood over open pits. 

At 89 years old, Steve Grady is a true representative of eastern North Carolina BBQ even down to the BBQ sauce. Recently, he was inducted into the North Carolina BBQ Hall of Fame for his influence and impact on the Carolina Barbecue History by keeping the standing tradition alive. 

Some have said, “Grady’s BBQ is one of the best eastern-style ’cues one will ever taste – pure ’cue heaven on earth.”