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In North Carolina, barbecue has always been a beloved but humble delicacy.
Now one of the state’s barbecue temples has been named one of the country’s best “cheap” meals.
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The iconic Skylight Inn in Ayden is one of America’s best affordable plates of barbecue, according to budget travel site Cheapism. Ayden is about 90 minutes east of Raleigh.
Known as one of North Carolina’s finest whole hog barbecue joints, Skylight Inn is famous for the silver dome atop its cinderblock building and for the rhythmic sound of chopping of cleavers on crispy pork skin that diners hear inside. Founded in 1947, Skylight Inn has been operated by three generations of the Jones Family and is today steered by Sam Jones.
“Its menu stays intentionally simple, centering on chopped pork dressed with a vinegar-based sauce and served alongside classic cornbread, a formula that helps keep prices approachable while maintaining exceptional quality,” the Cheapism list says of Skylight Inn.
Skylight Inn specializes in a kind of barbecue that’s been largely unchanged for more than a century, cooking whole hogs directly over wood coals. But just because it’s ancient and affordable doesn’t mean it isn’t special. There’s a James Beard medal hanging on the dining room wall of Skylight, honoring the restaurant with an American Classics award for one of the country’s most distinguished and culturally important independent restaurants.
While Skylight has been doing its thing for three-quarters of a century, its whole hog style has helped ignite a national fervor for barbecue at the moment.
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“Barbecue was peasant food, and up until the last decade, it was always that way,” Sam Jones told The News & Observer in 2018. “Then all of a sudden it’s looked at as a craft. There’s this mystique around the pitmaster.”
The most popular item at Skylight is the tray of pork, slaw and cornbread, starting at $9.50.
“Barbecue enthusiasts regularly recommend making the drive to Ayden, saying the authentic flavors and generous portions deliver tremendous value,” Cheapism writes.
For those that can’t make the 90 minute drive to Ayden, Sam Jones BBQ in Raleigh serves the same “Jones Family Tray” for $13.
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