Hite’s Bar-B Que

Best BBQ in the world, hands-​down, PERIOD!!!
I have ate BBQ all over the USA and no one comes close to the pulled pork.
Whenever I visit SC I know I am close enough to Leesville to eat at Jackie Hite’s.
A good friend of mine that I stay with while in Leesville lives close enough to smell the aroma of the cooking pigs on the open pit… mouth watering.
I was raised in the SC low-​country and tomato-​based BBQ. Attending Newberry College I became acquainted with the mustard based, and have never gone back, and Jackie Hite’s is the best I’ve had.

BBQ is excellent all the way down to the mustard-​base that is used. Really, everything is good. Try the Mac-​and-​cheese.

I go drive by this restaurant very often. And it always seems like they’re closed. They’re not open on a regular basis. Kind of like when I was in the Middle East nothing was regular. I am not a native of B&L so I don’t know the ”way” here. Ate there once and it was pretty good.

I live in the area and this is our favorite spot. Any time we have visitors, this is where we take them. Anytime we take food to people, the Hite Family gets us just what we need. Just smeling the smoke will make your mouth water. Get there early on Friday for the Pig Pickin and always get collards when they have them. I love the fried chicken and the rest of my gang fight over the ribs. You won’t go away hungry and they always have a smile and a friendly word. Places like this and family run businesses are one of the great things about this wonderful small community.

Excellent Southern Food! Fried chicken is to die for, not to mention the coleslaw. Shame i didn’t take a picture :)

Great local spot. Has a choice of meat (which is a pig barb then chopped up with the pork rinds) gravies, dessert, coleslaw options and salad bar. Smaller than Shealy’s, but very friendly staff.

Great fried chicken. Collards and cole slaw are top shelf. Vinegar/​pepper sauce is killer.

Best bbq and southern restaurant around! We get take-​out from here and the portions are very generous-​almost enough for 2 people (depending on how hungry you are haha)
Very yummy!

Lunchtime on a Friday. Jackie Hite’s BBQ is a small, white, little building beside the railroad tracks. Inside it’s just as humble, with folding tables and family pictures all over the walls. What stood out to me was the warmth that comes from a small family-​owned business that knows its regular customers. The ladies who work here were so friendly and helpful. A nice teenage girl took my drink order. There was an older lady choking on something, and the lady at the register came over and asked her, «Are you okay, honey?» An elderly lady bussed the tables and joked readily with the customers. It was sweet.
I came for the BBQ, but, to be honest, what impressed me was the pork cracklins and the baked beans. The cracklins have this phenomenal crunchy texture, a pleasant oiliness, mixed with a satisfying saltiness. Wow. And the baked beans were about the best I’ve ever had. I didn’t expect that. And the pig was good. They offer what you’d expect here – a buffet with dark and white pulled pork, 3 kinds of sauces, pulled pork with mustard sauce, pork hash and rice, biscuits and fried chicken parts, various salad fixings, and some dessert puddings, iced tea, lemonade, and water. (God, why don’t these places ever offer beer? The BBQ is just begging for a tall cold one to wash it down with.) No ribs. At least not when I was there.
I like this place, I like the friendliness of the employees, I like the food. Forgive me, but I think that what Sweatman’s offers is a little tastier, but this is good. About $ 9 for the lunch buffet. Looks like they have a card swipe reader if you have a credit card. Enjoy,

We arrived at Jackie Hite’s around 3:00 on a Saturday afternoon which must be in between the lunch and dinner crowds. A nice young teenage lady greeted us and asked about our drink preference and set us up at a table while we got our plates and started on the buffet.
We both grabbed a nice steamed roll and a piece of the fried chicken and then headed down the steam line for the sides (& BBQ) There was quite a nice selection of vegetables along with rice and mashed potatoes. Between us we had these:
Rice (I had mine w/​hash and my friend tried their gravy)
Green Beans
Cooked Cabbage
Cole Slaw
Mashed Potatoes (2^nd trip to buffet)
Black Eyed Peas
Mixed yellow and white Corn
BBQ & Fried Chicken
Pork BBQ
Sweet & Dill Pickles, Pickled Beets
We both agreed that the pork BBQ and Fried Chicken were perfect. The BBQ has their sauce mixed in with pork and has a nice smoked taste to it. I don’t normally try the hash but it looked slightly different than the ground varieties that are served around here and it was very tasty. The vegetables tasted so fresh that we were amazed (the best cooked cabbage besides my Mom’s). We were split on the BBQ Chicken: mine was perfect, his was falling off the bone but not dry.
The quality of the cold items at a Carolina BBQ buffet is integral to the experience and Hite’s clearly passed that test. Their cole slaw was perfection and we both went back for extra dill pickle slices that were so crunchy and fresh tasting (I had the pickled beets which were also top notch… also fresh and crisp with a mild earthy taste. We both made a second trip to the buffet but I could only manage a piece of BBQ Chicken and more pickles The only disappointment was the limited dessert selection. There was no banana pudding but I was so full from the buffet that it didn’t matter. Sweet Tea was great and plentiful.
Overall we were super satisfied and thankful that we chose Hite’s over Shealey’s. The service was friendly and the food was top notch. We’ll be back…

Come check out Hite’s BBQ! It’s great southern food!

This is what we call here, 100-​mile barbeque. That is barbeque you would drive 100 miles or more to eat. There are very few of this caliber of barbeque in any state. Jackie Hite’s is one of them.
Funny thing is that a couple blocks away is a much more well-​known barbeque place, Shealy’s, which I can only give two-​stars. Everything about Hite’s is five-​star.
Food is served on a serve yourself buffet line. On Friday’s they have a full pig picking at lunch. Get there early for best pick at ribs and skins, but it is always good. They cook with 100% wood, no gas to make it easier. I believe they have been open since the 1960s.
Barbeque is excellent with no sauce (a sign of great barbeque). It is cooked with a very light mustard based sauce, but if you don’t like mustard based sauce, you can hardly tell, it is so subtle. They also have mustard and vinegar/​ketchup sauces on the side if you want. The meat is so moist and flavorful, I don’t usually use the sauce.
Some highlights of this small buffet, everything is top quality, unlike Shaely’s, where there are tons of choices, none done well:
–Pulled pork
–Pork ribs
–Hash (excellent hash, put it over rice)
–White rice
–Greens
–Green beans–
–Baked beans
–Slaw
–Mac and cheese
–Banana pudding
The highlight of a meal here is the pork and hash, of course. Sides are also very good. Dessert is lacking, but who cares? The drink almost everyone has is sweet or unsweet tea. I am not sure what else they might offer.
Go out of your way to try this place!