Game Day BBQ was originally opened by Bruce and Joshua Clark of Chesnee after the father-and-son team built a barbecue catering business and decided to open a restaurant in Duncan.
Before retiring, Bruce served as the athletic director and football coach at Boiling Springs High School. Joshua, his son, ran the day-to-day operations.
"We are proud to say that we do BBQ the old fashion way!" they wrote on their Facebook page.
Folks rarely think of football coaches as men you might also find in the kitchen.
“When I coached, I really dreamed that after I was done I would own a restaurant," Bruce said. "We started catering barbecue at the ground level. After that, things really got bigger, so we decided to start a restaurant."
As a result of their sports-oriented background, the atmosphere the Clarks created made perfect sense for their new BBQ joint.
"As an athletic-themed restaurant, Game Day flies flags from Clemson, South Carolina, and Byrnes High School. We are really excited about what we are doing."
Being centered in Duncan, "We want the community to feel good about it and feel like they are being treated with respect and get good food. I think they are really going to love it.”
That's exactly what the Clarks created, but there soon would be a difficult decision for Bruce's family to make.
In December 2021, Bruce passed away unexpectedly. The family initially hoped to keep Game Day going, but eventually decided to sell the restaurant.
Enter Ryan Muller.
Muller had worked for years with Sysco, the food distributor Game Day used, and brought roughly two decades of restaurant experience with him. After hearing that the restaurant was for sale, he decided to take it on.
His background included opening a restaurant in Vermont and working in restaurants in Connecticut and California. He kept the Game Day name and its small-town identity while expanding the menu and putting his own stamp on the food.
“We’re keeping it Game Day BBQ, but we’re putting our own spin on it with the same small town feel, just new, bold flavors,” Muller told The Post and Courier.
Game Day changed hands again in 2026, when Cristy Biles took over the Duncan restaurant.
The ownership has changed, but Game Day remains a barbecue restaurant at heart. The current restaurant describes itself as a scratch kitchen, with its meats smoked in-house.
The current menu reaches well beyond a basic pork plate. You’ll find pulled pork, sliced brisket, chopped chicken, St. Louis ribs, pork belly burnt ends, smoked half chickens, smoked meatloaf, sausage, and wings.
There are plenty of combination plates if you want to sample several meats, including platters built around brisket, ribs, pork, chicken, sausage, wings, and burnt ends.
The scratch-made side of the menu includes collard greens, baked beans, potato salad, sweet potato crunch, mac and cheese, green beans, hush puppies, coleslaw, and fried okra. Desserts include banana pudding, seasonal cobbler, cookies, and pecan pie.
Brisket and pork belly burnt ends are two of the things that separate Game Day from many of the older pork-and-hash barbecue restaurants around Spartanburg. If you want to sample broadly, one of the mixed-meat platters is probably the easiest place to start.
(And, of course, South Carolina’s barbecue scene is packed with legendary joints and hidden gems. See more BBQ restaurants in SC to discover where to go next in the state or near you in Greer, Greenville, or Spartanburg.)
Among the many Google Reviews, Local Guide Anthony Solesbee visited after Muller reopened Game Day BBQ and found it felt familiar but new all at the same time:
These guys are great. Feels like the old Gameday but a little different menu.
Don’t let that fool you, you won’t be disappointed, that’s some good BBQ, it’s not BBQ plate, hash plate like everywhere else. They have some awesome menu items.
I can’t speak on all the items as I’ve not had them yet but the brisket grilled cheese and the burnt ends that I had. That’s right “ Burnt Ends “you wont see that many places. Were awesome!
My friend described it as gourmet BBQ. I’ll second that notion.
Over on Yelp, local Scott A from nearby Simpsonville has tried a lot of the BBQ in the area, and he has Game Day BBQ at the top:
I would choose this place over SBH, Henry's, Buckley's, Sticky Fingers or Charley's.
A lot for the money. The BBQ sandwich was heaping over the bun and excellent flavor. The Sweet Potato Crunch was very good but slightly soupy.
Will definitely return soon. They were super friendly and appreciative to have me as a customer! I liked the clean neat atmosphere and football on the two nice large screen TVs today.
Menu prices and options change over time. For the most current selections and pricing, see the official Game Day BBQ menu.
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| Sunday | Closed |
Cards and Cash, Hash, Heavy Tomato Sauce, Mustard Sauce, True 'Cue Certified
Worth the Drive from SpartanburgGame Day BBQ is one of the places we think is worth the drive from Spartanburg. See why it made the guide.
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