Reply #12: Speaking as a somewhat proud Carolinian, I still have to say... [View All]

stay off I-95 in the Carolinas if you can possibly avoid it. Mind you, it's nowhere near as congested as in the Northeast; it's just dull. If you can at all possibly add a day or two, and go up the coast on US 17 from Savannah through Charleston to Wilmington, I think everybody would find this much more interesting and, uh, culinarily rewarding. If you're dead-set on I-95, though, there's always this place: http://www.redbonealley.com/ (Fits in with your DU screenname, too.) And of course there's South of the Border. Its appeal has always been beyond me, but maybe the young one will like it.

Edit: Alternately, you could take the I-77/85 route, which would take you through here (Columbia, where I actually know the restaurants) and also by Lexington NC where they claim the barbecue is best. We also have a children's museum and a very fine zoo, by the by.