The Beefmastor Inn / Wilson, NC

Ribeye.

That's it. Simple. Cooked perfectly. Ribeye. And a baked potato. Salad bar too. Does not get any better than the steaks getting grilled in this tiny building on 301 in Wilson. These sliced at the table, proprietary cuts of beef you can't find anywhere else within many, many, many miles of this roadside heaven for steak lovers.

I've been to The Beefmastor Inn twice now. Twice. I grew up less than 15 minutes away or so and I never experienced this legendary restaurant until just a few years ago. This most recent dinner was with the same group of guys as the first visit. And as the first time, I loved every bite and every second of the "you have to do it" bucket list dining experience.

As most folks know, half the fun is tailgating in the parking lot. A couple of bourbons and a few great friends, and that's a night to remember before we even step foot inside the dining room that boasts a mere ten tables.

Once seated, we're set upon by knife-welding chef with a slab of beef asking each of us how big we want our steak. His knife tracks a cut starting at 8 ounces and keeps moving until we say "when."

While we wait for the star of the show to be cooked to perfection on the indoor grill, we attack the salad bar. And like wheeling back to a time of salad bars storied steak joints of long ago, we spin the "lazy Susan" of salad fixin's. Name it and it's on this salad bar. Fresh. Crisp. Healthy.

And before the last vestiges of ranch dressing can settle to the bottom of the wooden salad bowl, the ribeyes arrive. Cooked to just under medium rare, the steak stars. The beef is amazingly flavorful on its own, but just the right amount of seasoning is literally a chef's kiss.

I've maybe had a couple two or three steaks as good if not better than my ribeye at The Beefmastor Inn. Filet mignon at Marianne in Charleston. New York strip St. Elmo Steak House in Indianapolis. One unbelievably tender "cut it with a fork" Australian porterhouse at Grill Steak Seafood in Melbourne. But the best ribeye? Shoot. They're not called "The Beefmastor" for nothing...

Ribeye.

The Beefmastor Inn

2656 US-301 South

Wilson, NC 27893