As a fan of The Q-Shack and someone who ate there multiple times per week, I have to say it pains me to say the following:

Raleigh Joe's is absolutely wretched. Poor service. Unorganized. Overpriced (not even specials.) Terrible food. An all around dissappointing experience.

I went today for lunch and ordered two slices of pizza and my friend gets a barbecue sandwich to see if any of it has changed. My pizza was the worst I've had in a long time. I heart NY Pizza is better, that's how bad it is. My pizza was soggy and cold. How do you screw up pizza?

My friend's barbecue sandwich was sub-par, not good for Q-shack standards. He didn't even get hush puppies or slaw.

I'm not going to lie, I didn't speak with anyone who enjoyed what they did to the Q-shack. It is a sad day.

I'm willing to concede a couple of problems, it being the first day of operation. So, I might actually go back in 2 weeks to see if they've gotten their act together. But, judging from today, that's not likely.

3/20/2006 7:27:55 PM

http://brentroad.com/message_topic.aspx?topic=394276&page=2#8452643

3/20/2006 7:51:03 PM

In all honesty, the best thing of the old Q shack was the tater salad. The BBQ was Meh, but it was well worth the atmosphere and the manager. I hope that doesn't change.

3/20/2006 9:17:30 PM

Quote :

"Raleigh Joe's is absolutely wretched. Poor service. Unorganized. Overpriced (not even specials.) Terrible food. An all around dissappointing experience."

Um, what's different from the Q-Shack?

3/20/2006 9:26:47 PM

That's what I figured. I know they always seemed like they were just getting by with the menu and volume of customers they had. They've screwed up their assembly line with pizza and subs.

3/20/2006 9:27:17 PM

they have beer now. and if they did before i didnt now.

its now a bar. giggidy

3/20/2006 10:11:09 PM

Quote :

"and if they did before i didnt now."

now != know.

3/20/2006 10:20:08 PM

They had beer on tap when it originally opened, then bottled the rest of the time. Now the taps are back.

As far as the food, I'm not impressed either. I decided to try the buffalo tenders; won't be getting them again. Not terrible, but mediocre and definitely not worth $5.99. The bbq sandwiches now come pre-sauced, which I'm not a fan of, though I don't know if it's either of the two sauces that they used to have. They're still trying to get the service down pat, but the addition of things like pizza and calzones certainly haven't helped matters, as you have people waiting for their food to add to the crowding.

I'll also go back to give it another chance or two, but the change does not seem for the better at all.

3/20/2006 10:48:33 PM

I think having the new options is a good idea for them. I mean, they only really get business for the BBQ sandwiches before, which I enjoyed then and I enjoyed the one I had today. They just decided to add more things and they'll probably add to their business because of that. The service was a little rough today, but it was their first day, so I'll let it go. I see no reason that I'll stop going there from time to time unless things change.

3/21/2006 12:14:31 AM

LONG LIVE MELVIN'S!!!!!!!!!!!!!

3/21/2006 12:24:18 AM

never was a big fan of Q-Shack

I'd hit it up for hush puppies now and then

those were good

3/21/2006 12:28:21 AM

i didn't really like q-shack either i thought their product was sub par and over priced

3/21/2006 12:32:33 AM

The only thing Q-Shack had going for it is the $4.99 BBQ sandwich, side and drink special on mondays. It was a crapload of food for $5.

3/21/2006 12:45:27 AM

do they still have sausage? thats all i went for, and hushpuppies

3/21/2006 7:42:56 AM

first time i ever had fried pickles was there yesterday, good as fuck

i had that, jalepeno poppers, and a baked potatoe..the potatoes dont seen to be the same quality, but the other shit i got was good

3/21/2006 10:08:28 AM

J_Hova is Dan Quayle

3/21/2006 11:20:20 AM

ahaha oops

i never spell it like that wtf

3/21/2006 12:31:04 PM

My experience with Raleigh Joe's:

When I walked in, the place was dead. This seemed unusual because the Q Shack was always packed when I went there. I looked for my usual meal and saw that the barbecue sandwich was still there but the potato salad was not (a big mistake) so I got fries instead. My meal came to $7.00 which was more than the same meal at Q Shack. I didn't bother to try the tea to compare it because the lid had been left off of the tea dispenser. The barbecue already had sauce on it and it was the thicker tomato-based sauce. I always preferred the vinegar-based sauce. The sandwich hardly had any barbecue on it and I was still hungry after eating it.

RIP Q Shack

3/21/2006 2:22:34 PM

^ my experience was basically the same. Even the interior is bland and not well concieved.

I will definetly be driving to north hills for q shack

3/21/2006 2:37:34 PM

I was there today around noon and wasn't disappointed at all. It was packed with more and more people stuffing themselves in.

I asked the old manager/owner/guy if the side combo meal was still available since that was the one thing I always got. He said it wasn't, but he made it for me anyway and gave me the old price.

So I had the Mac + Cheese, Fried Okra and Hushpuppies. They still all tasted the same, so I'm good to go.

3/21/2006 2:48:12 PM

Quote :

"do they still have sausage? thats all i went for, and hushpuppies"

nope, thats what i went for today, but i ended up with a burger instead that wasnt anything special

3/23/2006 3:50:01 AM

yet another semi-ok place to eat in a street full of other places serving the exact same food. Its like hey, lets serve wings, pizza, subs, and burgers just like the food you can buy everywhere else. same quality, same prices. The only difference, is the seating and layout sucks worse than most of the other places. I give it till next fall, I dont see how it can make it through the summer.

3/23/2006 7:25:12 AM

what???


when did q shack close???

3/23/2006 9:36:13 AM

Alright; here's my take.

I went to Q-shack twice a week previously, so I'd consider myself a veteran of sorts.

I went to Raleigh Joe's tuesday to contrast it; ordered the BBQ sandwich with hush puppies and mac/cheese (because they didn't have potato or macaroni salad.)

The BBQ actually was pretty good. The roll was good. The hush puppies were just about as good. I was clearly disappointed that htye didn't have the sides I wanted.

I am going today to try a burger or pizza or something; the pizza looked good, even though the above reviews say it wasn't.

The other problem is that they're still getting the hang of things so ringing things up takes FOREVER. They were nice, and they looked like New Yorkers, so I liked them. What I assumed to be the husband and wife pair were clearly busting their asses runnign around - points for them.

It was still a decent experience; hopefully they'll quicken things up a bit/get another credit card terminal.

The same complaint I had with Q-shack still exists however. SPACE - there's never enough of it.

Mike

3/23/2006 10:36:47 AM

The Pizza looks ok, until they don't put it back in the oven like a normal restaruant and you get soggy, cold, craptastic pizza.

3/23/2006 11:29:50 AM

It's the exact same restuarant, owner, and staff, isn't it? I thought they just changed the name and expanded the menu.

3/23/2006 1:52:58 PM

Q shack was good if you knew what to get... their fries were good and they had really good okra (in fact the best okra I have ever had that isn't homemade) . The BBQ was decent, but I loved the cole slaw. The ribs were awesome too! On the other hand, the mac and cheese was absolutely wretched.

3/23/2006 2:11:47 PM

The husband/wife were awesome today. Charged me $4 for my three sides because we couldn't remember the old price and they said I had to wait too long.

3/23/2006 3:18:39 PM

Quote :

"they looked like New Yorkers, so I liked them"

3/23/2006 3:29:19 PM

if this change fails, i hope they change back instead of shutting down. i love q shack.

btw, i had the q cobb salad like i usually do tuesday night...they gave me half as many hushpuppies and there was no avacado on the salad. the tea is still bangin' tho.

3/23/2006 4:01:41 PM

Sorry there, Smath. My yankee pride slips out every once in awhile...


Anyway, I went there again today; it actually got worse

I had the mesquite chicken bbq sandwich today and, ehh...it was alright. Onion rings were the same.

The guy next to me, also a regular, had to wait 25 minutes because they messed up his first calzone.

There's a serious communication issue between the "workers" and the owners.

And btw, it is NOT the same exact restaraunt at all. They only offer three things the Qshack had previously (meal-wise). As for the owner, etc. as mentioned previously - yes, that's what changed. The staff is mostly the same it seems.

3/23/2006 7:00:17 PM

I thought it was a little over priced but the bbq was good

3/23/2006 7:09:28 PM

Quote :

"There's a serious communication issue between the "workers" and the owners. "

yea theyre fucking beaners

3/23/2006 8:18:18 PM

i just went and i definatly would rather have qshack there instead

3/23/2006 8:28:16 PM

my girl and i ordered a pizza w/ bbq chicken. it took about 10 or 15 minutes to cook, so they gave us two free beers.

pizza was ok - chicken was good, crust was decent, but it had a sweet marinara sauce and cheap/nasty cheese. however, all things considered, it was a decent experience.

3/24/2006 12:01:15 AM

free beer makes an experience good

3/24/2006 12:02:52 AM

they burnt my crust

3/24/2006 12:12:00 AM

i was unimpressed with how much bbq they put on my sandwich. seems like they're serving smaller portions now?

3/26/2006 7:43:17 PM

So uh, Joe's was closed at noon today when I walked past it.

4/6/2006 3:53:14 PM

They got broken in to last saturday. Saw a moving truck either loading or unloading things last night. They could be leaving?

4/6/2006 4:05:34 PM

Quote :

"LONG LIVE MELVIN'S!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

man whatever. i gave melvins two chances last fall, and their food is like snoopy's on a BAD night right before closing.

4/6/2006 5:54:33 PM

the chicken philly i had there was not good because it had no taste, but the calzone i had was very delicious

4/6/2006 10:46:00 PM

So is Raleigh Joe's open or not today, I was thinking about seeing for myself what they did to the Q-shack.

4/7/2006 11:48:02 AM

the last 4 or 5 times i've tried to go there its been closed. sometimes there is a sign saying they will be closed "just for the afternoon", but i just cant see it staying in business if its never open.

4/7/2006 12:48:55 PM

the burger combo is really good. great restaurant size burger and fries for only 4.50

4/7/2006 2:10:19 PM

Quote :

"I'm willing to concede a couple of problems, it being the first day of operation. So, I might actually go back in 2 weeks to see if they've gotten their act together. But, judging from today, that's not likely. "

idiot

4/7/2006 2:37:05 PM

the calzone is huge, but only mediocre. pretty cheap and def fills you up though.

4/9/2006 11:37:44 PM

i walked by there today, and there was a sign on the door. "Closed until further notice. Sorry for any inconvenience. Employees can contact so-and-so, blah blah blah."

another one bites the dust.

4/10/2006 1:22:02 AM

I miss Q-Shack

4/10/2006 1:32:04 PM

Damn, that was fast. I can't remember a shop on Hillsborough closing that fast before.

[Edited on April 10, 2006 at 11:50 PM. Reason : whoops]

4/10/2006 11:49:40 PM