NC's "Cook Out" Restaurants

http://www.cookoutnc.com/

 

Anyone been to this small chain of North Carolina restaurants?

 
 

I have been many times. I consider it to be pretty good but not great. Definitely not a must stop destination. They have a huge selection of food from burgers to dogs to BBQ and a huge selection of shakes that are quite good. If you are driving through and don't have time to stop at one of North Carolina's many wonderful sit down restaurants then give them a go. By the way, in the Charlotte area at least, only a couple have inside seating. Most are drive thru and picnic tables only.

I hit one on the way north this week, they finally got one close to the SC border at exit 20. I used to have to wait until exit 97.
 
Best fast food burger on the road.

I like their burgers a lot, on par with Five Guys. My daughter loves their shakes. Good stuff! Highly recommended over Mickey D's or BK. 5 Guys fries are better but Cook Out has a lot more variety.

Wow. What fans! My current and future travels are placing me all around these places so I greatly appreciate the recommendations. Plus, with a shake list like this...

Banana

Banana Berry

Banana Nut

Banana Fudge

Banana Pineapple

Banana Pudding

Blueberry

Blueberry Cheesecake

Caramel

Caramel Cheesecake

Caramel Fudge

Cappuccino

Cheesecake Chocolate Chip

Chocolate (Hershey's)

Chocolate Cherry

Chocolate Nut

Cherry

Cherry Cobler

Chocolate Malt

Heath Toffee

Hi-C Punch

Mint Chocolate Chip

Mocha

M&M

Oreo

Oreo Mint

Orange Push Up

Peanut Butter

Peanut Butter Banana

Peanut Butter Fudge

Pineapple

Peach

Peach Cobbler

Reese Cups

Snickers

Strawberry

Strawberry Cheesecake

Vanilla

Walnut    
...what's not to like? Thanks.

<message edited by i95 on Fri, 09/24/10 3:31 PM>

Cookout's Fresh Banana shake is soooooooo good! Gee, it's been a while since I had one, I think there is a shake detour in my future.
I tried a foot long hotdog......once. And a hamburger there made me, um, unwell......once. I tried a chocolate shake one time and it was o.k., but the fresh banana shake is the best.

I'm fascinated by regional fast food chains like this (or Zesto or Martin's here in Atlanta, Milo's and Jack's in northern Alabama), but remain baffled that Cook Out does not have its own website - the one linked above is to a well-meaning fan site and it doesn't list all the locations.  There's one in Asheville that isn't listed there, for starters.
 
Haven't actually stopped in yet, as I don't know much about NC yet other than Asheville, and that city has more than enough amazing restaurants to keep my attention from wandering, but I'm keen to have a burger and a shake one of these days.

Here is the last cookout burger I got, all the way with chili and onions. I love these things on the road!
 

cookout is by far the best fast food burger and dogs....and at $3.99 for a combo with 2 sides and a huge sweet tea that might have caused my diabetes..cant hardly beat that...

i95, my sister in NC raved about this place, so we tried it awhile back while visiting.  I'd say it takes a definite backseat to Five Guys in quality and taste, but it's 10x better than any major fast-food chain.  Their huge menu is consistent, and everything we ordered (burger, hot dog, BBQ, shakes) was great.  She likes to take her kids there because of the variety, and it's a plus for families.  I'd go again, but only if the other RF places on my list were closed already!    Chris

We're getting one in Clemson soon, they're moving right along on construction, so it should be open soon. I'll definitely check it out and report back. Looking forward to working my way through that milkshake list.

Great comments and recommendations. I look forward to trying next month. Thanks, all!

 

 

 

I finally had a chance to visit one of the clearly beloved Cook Out

drive-through-only restaurants while in Burlington, North Carolina

last weekend (and for shakes only as we were just coming from

nearby Zack's) and, HOLY MOLY those shakes are great! We ordered

a carload full totaling five shakes for about twelve-bucks. Mrs. i95 and

I split the chocolate / banana and, honestly, it may have been one of

the best milkshakes I've ever had. Real blended banana and the flavor

equivalent of using a straw to suck-up the bottom of a banana split

 

Simply heaven.

 

 

I've eaten at the Cook Out in Mount Airy a few times, and while their barbecue is nothing to write home about, their burgers and fries are pretty good; definitely better than what you'd get from one of the national FF burger chains. I haven't tried their shakes yet, but after reading all of these very positive comments on here, I'll have to make that a must-do the next time that I'm down in NC.       

i95, we must have been in sync.  We stopped at the Asheville location on Sunday, and my wife had a chocolate banana shake as well.  She loved it.  I had a Cheerwine float - you can't really judge a place based on the same concoction that you can make at home, but I was pleased.  Daughter had an orange push-up shake which was also very good.  I'm doing a chapter on it for Marie Let's Eat which I will post next week.
 

 
I'm kind of hating this photo.  I should have done better, but that's what I had. 

Sweet!

 
I have been to two of their locations.  From what I have read, most of the locations are drive-thru only.  This can be a little hectic for a first visit.  If you go to a drive-thru location for a first visit, I would recommend that you park the car and walk up to the menu to check it out first, and let cars by, or you'll hold up every car in line.  The menu is long, and deciding can take a while your first time.   There are many burger options and combinations.   
 
Anyway, the two location I went to are at I-95 exit 97, and I-95 exit 121.   I liked the one at exit 121 better.  It has indoor seating.  It is located near Wilson, NC.  Take exit 121 and head east on Raleigh Rd (U.S. 264) toward Wilson for about 3 miles.  Cook Out will be on your right. 
 
I thought the burgers were very good, the hot dogs okay, and the Shakes were excellent.  My only dislike was the funny tasting pickles.  I love dills or kosher dills on burgers, and I think they used something that tasted between  a "bread and butter" and a dill... .. hard to describe.
 
Overall, Cook Out is worth a detour,  but I wouldn't make a special trip from far away.   
 
Glenn
 
 

i95

I finally had a chance to visit one of the clearly beloved Cook Out

drive-through-only restaurants while in Burlington, North Carolina

last weekend (and for shakes only as we were just coming from

nearby Zack's) and...

i95, you went to Zack's?  What did you think?  We were around Burlington last week but didn't have a chance to stop in for a couple of Combos...  Chris

ayersian

i95, you went to Zack's?  What did you think?  

Loved it and posted about it here.  

There used to be a Cook-Out on High Point Road in Greensboro, not too too far from my apartment. The burgers were good for certain, the fries were nothing special, but the shakes ruled.
 
Since ice-cream stands are not a popular thing in the South (compared to Northeast), Cook-Out was our drive-thru ice-cream fix. If memory serves me correct,  my wife would usually get the Peanut Butter Cup shake or Peanut Butter Chocolate shake, and I'd get Chocolate or Snickers. Freaking awesome. 
(Never got BBQ there)
No question, the shake is the reason to stop.

That particular Cook Out is still there. My daughter and wife both rave aboout the Peanut Butter shakes. I prefer my calories to be injested on the savory side.