Outlaw's - The Neighborhood Grill

The front of Outlaw's Grill still looks the same from my childhood!

I’m from Scott’s Store. A small neighborhood in the outskirts that is often not categorized as Duplin or Wayne County. We have Mount Olive addresses which are in Wayne County, but are mostly associated with Duplin County. I went to Duplin County Schools, and most of the people I know are in Duplin County. BUT we are still in a town that is in Wayne County. It’s very interesting to say the least. We have a very small population and only 1 flashing light. So as you can imagine there is nothing to do and not many places to eat. 

Growing up we only had my family’s restaurant Branch’s BBQ, Johnny’s Seafood, a Friendly Mart gas station and Summerlin’s Crossroads store to get a hotdog or hamburger, and Outlaw’s Grill. That’s it, and 3 out of the 4 of them are all on the same road LOL! And don’t try to get something to eat late at night…just go home and cook because that’s your only option.

I recently jumped in my car and took a trip to Outlaw’s Grill. When I first moved back to Scott’s Store, I had honestly forgotten about it, but I was so happy one night when I passed by it. I was so excited to wake up to go get a burger. I remember growing up and loving their burgers! Since then I have visited a few times for both breakfast and lunch.

Outlaw’s opened in 1959, and was opened by Lonnie Outlaw. It was then passed down to his daughter Ernestine who took over in 2000. After that, her daughter Donna took over, and now her daughter Nicole Forbes runs it after taking over in 2017. It’s amazing to me that it was passed down for four generations! Nicole has two children Kimberlyn and Braidyn, when I asked Nicole if she thought her daughter would take over she laughed and said,

“My daughter said, ‘NO WAY,’ but I said the same thing too. When I went off to college I said I would never be back here. But now I love it. I get to see all of my community, and they are so good to me,” Nicole explained.

You can visit Outlaw’s for Breakfast or lunch, and lunch isn’t just hotdogs and hamburgers. They serve full southern meals like fried pork chops, fried chicken, and hamburger steak. You can pair them with several sides like: fries, onion rings, salad, string beans, mashed potatoes corn, black eye peas, butter beans, and several others. Some of their popular items are usually the specials of the day like the big burger on a seeded bun that they hand make themselves, hot dogs, and spaghetti and garlic bread seems to be the most popular items according to Nicole.

“Our spaghetti, believe it or not, on Tuesday’s is ridiculous. They want the old sauce because they say it’s like eating grandma’s spaghetti. It’s crazy on Tuesday’s how many people want spaghetti. Our hotdogs are a big seller, but everybody tells me, ‘Nicole, it’s good but it’s not your grandma’s,’” she said jokingly.

Although she loves keeping the family tradition alive, she does not have any plans on expanding at this time. She enjoys the small knit community that comes in because she feels that everyone is like family.

“We are trying to keep the doors open for the community. It has been tough the past few years with the rise in the cost of food, but we are trying to keep it going. I do not want the headache of another one that’s for sure, but it’s a place where people can come and talk and get together. We have so many different little families that come in, and love seeing everybody,” she explained.

I enjoy visiting Outlaw’s Grill. I almost always see someone I know and get to catch up with them whether we went to school together or played sports together. It’s nice seeing an old face. I love going into a store or restaurant and feeling like family. I give Outlaw’s an A!

This blog was also featured in the Duplin Times Newspaper edition of the "Duplin Eats" column.

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