Lewis Barbecue Brings High-Touch Hospitality to Texas BBQ

“Charleston is very pretty. We’re not.”

Ben Garbee says it with pride. As the founding manager of Lewis Barbecue, Garbee has spent the last decade introducing Charleston, SC to Texas BBQ culture — more rough and ready than anything the Holy City had seen before.

“Charleston is very old, very historic. Our restaurant has more of a Texas cowboy vibe,” Garbee explains. “We’re in a rugged part of town. We’ve got this big open patio and hanging lights. When you walk in, you’re transported to this different place.”

Garbee’s job is to make that cultural immersion as seamless as possible. When guests step into Lewis Barbecue for the first time, they generally don’t know how to navigate an ordering process that doesn’t include hosts, servers, or even plates. That’s where the Lewis Barbecue staff comes in.

“The people who have never been to our restaurant before don't know what the hell they're doing!” Garbee laughs. “Unless you’ve been to Texas, you don’t even know how much meat to order. So it’s important for our managers to get to the guests before they order.”

Team members are encouraged to walk the guests through the menu, empowering them to make the most of their order. “Education is a really important role for our staff,” Garbee says.

In order to let his employees focus on interacting directly with guests, Garbee uses technology to automate certain tasks.

“I’m a big fan of letting technology do the heavy lifting,” Garbee says. “That lets us keep our people focused on the human side of things.”

Technology saves Garbee time scheduling the shifts of three hundred people across three locations, for example. It also keeps employees from having to take orders over the phone. “If COVID taught us anything, it’s that the more you can let people make their orders online, the better.” Garbee estimates that 15% of the group’s business is made up of takeout & delivery, compared with 3% pre-pandemic.

But it is in the unique, Tex-ified spaces the Lewis team has created that the group’s many fans are born.

“The first time you come to Lewis Barbecue, you’re gonna be a little confused,” says Garbee. “After you try the food, you’re like, ‘Wait, I want to bring my friends and family here when they come from out of town.’ And now you’re the one educating them.”

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