[UPDATED] Shuai and Corrie Wang opened their Chinese barbecue concept King BBQ on Oct. 8 at 2029 Carver Ave. in North Charleston after more than a few delays. King BBQ’s website may boast the words “opening summer 2023,” but just a few days out from opening, Corrie Wang had to laugh at the bad luck of opening a restaurant in Charleston — even when it’s your second go at it.
“I was talking to my mom [about restaurant issues], and she said, ‘This what you said the first time,’” laughed Wang, recalling the trials and tribulations of opening the couple’s first restaurant, Jackrabbit Filly. “Except this time, it’s been triple the cost.”
Wang got real and raw about restaurant ownership in a 2020 essay for the City Paper, writing: “Our first month open, I cried every Wednesday as our work week ‘started’ again. What had we done?”
As excited as locals have been for King BBQ (look no further than their popular, sold-out pop-ups at Edmund’s Oast Brewing Co. and other spots around town), national audiences have been keen to get their feet in the restaurant, too. Last month, Bon Appetit declared King BBQ one of its “10 Most Anticipated Restaurant Openings of Fall 2023.”
“The national coverage has been a bright spot,” Wang said. She added that fun photoshoots for publications have broken up the monotony of tasks like wallpapering a restaurant — something she had to work on after a designer suddenly quit. Despite the unexpected delays, Wang said the entire King BBQ team is more than ready to share their food and drinks with the Charleston community.
Something for everyone
“We want this to be an affordable restaurant,” Wang said. In that vein, King BBQ’s “trashy but fancy” cocktail list features inventive drinks that don’t teeter above the $12 mark. Bar manager Amy Kallicragas is the scientist behind the fun drinks, including a “durrty martini” made with dirty pepper juice, nori olive brine and crushed ice.
The Wangs also want vegans and vegetarians to feel welcome at King BBQ. “We know from our Jackrabbit customers that there are a lot of people who are conscious of not eating a lot of meat,” Wang said. Last month Shuai posted a breakthrough on Instagram: “I did it … vegan Chinese bbq ‘pork.’”
The menu features plenty of meat — this is a barbecue spot, after all — in addition to hefty sandwiches and noodle dishes reminiscent of the Jackrabbit Filly offerings that customers have come to know and love.
Just as they’ve done with Jackrabbit (seriously, check out the restaurant’s Instagram to see a truly loyal fan-base), the Wangs want to run a restaurant for everyone. As Wang said, King BBQ should be a place “we can all afford — and one where you want to spend time.”
Stay tuned to King BBQ’s Instagram for the most up-to-date information on opening hours and details.
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