City BBQ runs a longer side list than most barbecue chains — sixteen options, three of them sold as sharing baskets — and the pricing has a quirk worth understanding before you order anything. Bought individually, sides run $2.39 to $3.59. Bought as part of the "with Two Sides" bundle, which adds a flat $3.58 to any sandwich or plate, they cost $1.79 each. Half price, for taking the version of the order you probably wanted anyway.
City BBQ prices at a glance
The prices referenced on this page, collected up front. They vary by location and change without notice.
| Side | Price | Portion |
|---|---|---|
| Basket of Fried Pickles | $9.59 | Sharing basket |
| Basket of Fresh-Cut Fries | $6.59 | Sharing basket |
| Basket of Hush Puppies | $6.59 | Sharing basket |
| 3 Side Plate | $6.17 | Any three sides |
| Fresh-Cut Fries | $3.59 | Individual |
| 3-Cheese Baked Mac | $3.59 | Individual |
| Collard Greens with Pork | $3.35 | Individual |
| Baked Beans with Brisket | $2.99 | Individual |
| Mac & Cheese | $2.99 | Individual |
| Potato Salad | $2.99 | Individual |
| Corn Pudding | $2.75 | Individual |
| Creamy Slaw | $2.75 | Individual |
| Vinegar Slaw | $2.75 | Individual |
| Green Beans with Bacon | $2.75 | Individual |
| Hush Puppies (8 Pups) | $2.75 | Eight pieces |
| Cornbread | $2.39 | Individual |
Every side, priced
The ranking
- 3-Cheese Baked Mac ($3.59). Baked with an actual crust rather than scooped from a hotel pan. It is sixty cents more than the standard Mac & Cheese ($2.99) and it is the easiest sixty cents you will spend here. Order this one.
- Vinegar Slaw ($2.75). The single most useful side on the menu, because it is the only thing that cuts the fat of the pulled pork. It is also what sits on the bun in LoLo\u{0027}s Pulled Pork with Slaw ($8.99), which tells you the kitchen agrees.
- Baked Beans with Brisket ($2.99). There is genuine brisket in these, not flavoring. The best-value side by weight.
- Collard Greens with Pork ($3.35). The most expensive individual side and the most traditionally Southern thing City BBQ makes. Properly potlikker-heavy.
- Hush Puppies ($2.75 for eight). Best hot, which means best eaten in the restaurant. The $6.59 basket is for a table.
- Fresh-Cut Fries ($3.59). Cut in-house, which is why they are good in the dining room and disappointing twenty minutes later.
- Corn Pudding ($2.75). Sweet enough that it belongs next to the Peach Cobbler ($5.99) rather than next to brisket. Order it knowing that.
- Green Beans with Bacon ($2.75). The lightest thing on the list at roughly 90 calories — see the City BBQ calorie breakdown.
- Potato Salad ($2.99), Creamy Slaw ($2.75), Cornbread ($2.39). Competent, unremarkable, and the three you should skip if you only get two.
The three sides that contain meat
This trips people up constantly. Baked Beans with Brisket, Collard Greens with Pork and Green Beans with Bacon all contain meat, and the first two say so in the name while the third does not always register. That leaves the vegetarian list at mac and cheese, 3-cheese baked mac, potato salad, creamy slaw, vinegar slaw, corn pudding, cornbread, fries, hush puppies and fried pickles — enough to build a plate, but not the plate most people assume they are building.
The 3 Side Plate and the baskets
The 3 Side Plate at $6.17 is the quiet star of this section: three sides for less than the $8.97 they would cost separately, and one of the few genuine vegetarian meals on any American barbecue menu. Built from 3-cheese baked mac, corn pudding and vinegar slaw it is a real lunch for six dollars.
The three baskets — Fried Pickles at $9.59, Fries and Hush Puppies at $6.59 each — are sized for a table rather than a person. The fried pickles are the only appetizer City BBQ really has, and at $9.59 they are priced like one. Split across four people they work; ordered alone they do not.
What to put with what
- Pulled pork — vinegar slaw and baked beans. Acid plus sweet.
- Beef Brisket ($10.78) — 3-cheese baked mac and green beans. Do not add a second rich item.
- Ribs — hush puppies and vinegar slaw. On Rib Bone Tuesday at $1.80 a bone this is the cheapest good plate in the building; the rest of the deal calendar is in the City BBQ specials guide.
- Nashville Hot Chicken ($9.59) — creamy slaw, for once. Dairy is the point.