We are proud to announce we are now offering free WiFi at out Morrisville location. We hope to have all our locations wired in the coming months. Don’t forget to join our Facebook fan page and follow us on Twitter!

Last month we told you about Jamie Franks, an Operations Specialist and Rescue Swimmer in the United States Navy. His unit is US Navy EOD (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) Mobile Unit Three, stationed out of San Diego. They are currently deployed to southern Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. Jamie became a fan on our Facebook page and wrote on our wall that he grew up in Selma, North Carolina and “eating at Smithfield’s Chicken ‘N BBQ is always a MANDATORY event when I’m at home on leave!”. We shipped Jamie and his unit some t-shirts and hushpuppy mix in appreciation for all they do. The unit had a Memorial Day Cookout and Jamie sent us the following note:

“We are 9 1/2 hours ahead of North Carolina. We just wrapped up our Memorial Day ceremony and cookout. I have to tell you – the hush puppies were a HUGE hit! I couldn’t make them fast enough! Every time a batch came out of the fryer they were instantly gone. Most of the guys were eating a hush puppy for the very first time, and kept coming back for more until the fryer eventually ran out of oil, and I had to close hush puppy production. .Thanks for providing us with a little taste of home while we’re way over here.”

We were so touched by Jamie’s excitement and appreciation that we have decided to “adopt” his unit. We will ask each store to send letters, cards, magazines, peanuts, coffee, sunflower seeds, etc to our operations center. Every month, Smithfield’s Chicken ‘N Bar-B-Q will send his unit a care package filled with these items from the stores. We deeply appreciate all what Jamie and his fellow soldiers are doing and we hope our effort can help brighten their day.

  When the original Smithfield’s Chicken ‘N Bar-B-Q opened in downtown Smithfield in 1964, it was just called Smithfield’s. The location was next to a pre-WWII movie theater—a tall brick box with tin ceilings, cloth awnings, and a sink in the dining room so the farmers could wash up before supper.

  Today our restaurants offer an urban take on a vintage look. The tall brick building with the flat roof and high ceilings is back. The cloth awning is over the counter now, and antique bronze metal awnings are used outside. The windows are expansive squares—reaching nearly to the ceiling—that let in loads of natural light. And ceiling fans twirl in the dining room, hanging from a tin-inspired ceiling. The stores are outfitted with the latest infrastructure common in environmentally “healthy” buildings, including designing with steel or concrete block instead of wood.

 The new design is currently located in Morrisville, Rocky Mount, Nashville, Fayetteville, and Wilmington. The the pre-existing stores are being remodeled as well, two per year, to incorporate the same healthy systems as the redesigns.  Let us know what you think by e-mailing us at comments@scnbnc.com.

A customer of our Leland location, Jeremy Dickinson, sent in this wonderful picture of his daughter Caroline.

Got a picture of someone enjoying  our food? Send it to comments@scnbnc.com and with your permission, we will post here and on our Facebook  fan page!