Cookout Greensboro NC: Menu Prices, Hours & Locations

Cookout Greensboro NC: Menu Prices, Hours & Locations

If you’re looking up Cookout Greensboro, you’re standing in the city where the whole story started. Back in 1989, Morris Reaves opened the first Cook Out right here in Greensboro, North Carolina. What began as one local burger joint has grown into more than 350 restaurants across ten states, but the formula never changed: a mountain of food for very little money, served late.

This guide covers the practical stuff: Cook Out menu prices in Greensboro, the late-night hours, where to find a location, and what to order. It also tells the hometown story, because every Cookout Greensboro location carries a little of that 1989 history with it, whether the crew behind the counter knows it or not.

Quick note before we start: cookoutmenu.today is an unofficial fan guide. We’re not Cook Out, and this site isn’t affiliated with the company. Prices and hours below come from current menu research and can shift a little from store to store. When in doubt, the menu board at your local Cook Out wins.

What’s in This Guide

Greensboro, 1989: Where Cook Out Was Born

Most fast food chains start in a boardroom. Cook Out started in Greensboro. In 1989, Morris Reaves opened the first Cook Out here, betting that people wanted real, filling food at prices that didn’t feel like a punishment. Nearly four decades later, that bet has paid off in a way few local joints ever manage.

Ask a longtime Cookout Greensboro regular about the early days and you’ll get a story about a simpler menu, smaller crowds, and prices that were somehow even lower than today. The details vary from person to person, but the core memory is the same: this was Greensboro’s place before it belonged to ten states.

Here’s what most people don’t know: Cook Out is still a family operation. The company is headquartered in Thomasville, North Carolina, a short drive from Greensboro, and the CEO is Jeremy Reaves, the founder’s son. In an industry dominated by giant corporations and private equity, a family-run chain of 350+ restaurants is genuinely unusual. It’s part of why the menu still feels like it was designed by someone who actually eats the food.

That hometown connection runs through everything. The barbecue has real North Carolina roots. The Cheerwine on the drink menu is the iconic NC cherry soft drink. The hushpuppies aren’t a gimmick; they’re a given. When you eat at a Cook Out in Greensboro, you’re eating at the source.

Warm casual restaurant interior with wooden tables and booth seating

Cookout Greensboro Locations: Where to Find One

Several Cookout Greensboro locations are spread across the city, from the areas near the universities to the suburban corridors. Greensboro is the hometown, so the coverage is good. Wherever you are in town, you’re not far from a tray.

As with all our guides, we don’t publish street addresses that go stale. The live map below shows Cook Out locations across Greensboro, and it’s the fastest way to find the Cookout Greensboro nearest you right now.

Cook Out is a drive-thru-first operation, so plan your visit as a drive-thru run. Most locations are built around the lane, and on Friday and Saturday nights the line can wrap around the building. It moves faster than it looks, and the food is worth the wait.

Cookout Greensboro Hours: How Late They Stay Open

Cookout Greensboro hours follow the chain’s standard pattern: most locations stay open until 2 a.m. Sunday through Thursday, and until 3 or 4 a.m. on Friday and Saturday. Greensboro has a real late-night crowd, students, second-shift workers, and everyone coming home from a night out, and those weekend hours exist for them.

A few honest caveats. Hours vary by location, so your specific spot might close a little earlier or later. Holiday hours can differ. If you’re heading out past 2 a.m. on a weeknight, a quick check before you drive is smart. But the general rule holds across Greensboro: before 2 a.m. on a weeknight, you’re fine.

Double cheeseburger with fries served on a wooden table

Here’s the honest Cookout Greensboro menu breakdown. This is the hometown menu, the one everything else was copied from, and the prices are still the reason people keep coming back. All prices current as of late 2026 and can vary slightly by location.

  • The Cookout Tray – about $7.69: one full-size entree, two sides, and a large drink. Born in Greensboro, famous everywhere.
  • The Jr. Tray – about $6.49: smaller entree portions for lighter appetites, same tray format.
  • Big Double Burger – $2.99 to $3.99 (330 Cal): two patties for the price of a regular burger.
  • Regular 1/4 lb Burger – $2.99 to $3.99 (330 Cal): the classic single, char-grilled.
  • Chicken Sandwich – about $4.49 (around 450 Cal): grilled or crispy, with six styles from Original to Cajun.
  • Hot Dogs – plain about $1.99 (260 Cal), chili about $2.49 (330 Cal), chili cheese about $2.99 (400 Cal).
  • Pulled Pork BBQ – about $3.99 (370 Cal): genuine North Carolina roots, served on a toasted bun.
  • Regular Milkshakes – $2.99 to $3.99: more than 40 Cook Out Creamery flavors to choose from.
  • Fancy Milkshakes – $4.49 to $4.99: the cheesecake and candy-bar heavy hitters.
  • French Fries – about $1.99 (350 Cal).
  • Onion Rings – about $1.99 (130 Cal).
  • Hushpuppies – about $1.99 (300 Cal): the Southern staple. In Greensboro, these are sacred.
  • Homemade Coleslaw – about $1.49 (100 Cal): lighter, and it doubles as a burger topping.

Drinks run about $1.99 across the board: a huge fresh-brewed sweet tea (390 Cal) and a Cheerwine (380 Cal), the iconic North Carolina cherry soft drink. In Greensboro, ordering a Cheerwine at Cook Out is practically a civic duty.

The Cookout Tray: A Greensboro Institution

Greensboro invented the Cookout Tray, in a sense. The deal is the same one that conquered ten states: one full-size entree, two sides, and a large drink for about $7.69. But here it carries extra weight. Locals have had nearly forty years to perfect their tray orders, and they take them seriously.

The regular tray entrees: the Big Double Burger (330 Cal), the Regular 1/4 lb Burger (330 Cal), the Regular Chicken Breast (380 Cal), the Cajun Chicken Breast (380 Cal), the Spicy Chicken (450 Cal), the BBQ Char-Grilled Chicken (380 Cal), 3 Chicken Strips or a chicken sandwich (660 Cal), Barbecue Pulled Pork (370 Cal), 2 Hot Dogs (520 Cal), or 2 Quesadillas (440-520 Cal). Eight sides to choose two from: fries, onion rings, hushpuppies, coleslaw, homemade chili, chicken nuggets, white cheddar cheese bites, and a bacon wrap.

The shake upgrade is the move: swap the large drink for a Regular Milkshake for about $1.00 more, or a Fancy Milkshake for $1.00 to $1.60 more. A full meal and a shake for under nine bucks, in the city where it all started.

Our Cookout Tray guide has the full breakdown, and the Jr. Tray guide covers the $6.49 lighter version with its six smaller entrees: the Small Burger (240 Cal), 2 Chicken Strips (440 Cal), 2 Corn Dogs (440 Cal), the BLT (400 Cal), 1 Hot Dog (260 Cal), and 1 Quesadilla (220-260 Cal).

From One Shop to 350+ Restaurants

It’s worth pausing on how unusual the Cook Out story is. A single Greensboro shop opened in 1989, with no massive franchise machine behind it, and today there are more than 350 locations across North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Georgia, Tennessee, Maryland, Kentucky, Alabama, Mississippi, and West Virginia. Ten states, all from a family-run company headquartered in Thomasville, NC.

What changed along the way? The footprint, obviously. The menu got bigger: 40+ milkshake flavors, six burger styles, a full BBQ lineup. What didn’t change is more interesting. The tray deal survived. The prices stayed low. The company stayed in the family, with Jeremy Reaves running the operation his father started. Most chains this size are unrecognizable from their origins. Cook Out still tastes like Greensboro.

My take: that’s the real reason the brand has the loyalty it does. People can tell when a restaurant is run by people who care about the food versus people who care about a spreadsheet. Cook Out’s expansion never felt like a corporate rollout. It felt like a good local spot that just kept opening more doors.

Creamy soft serve ice cream swirled in a cup

Your First Cookout Greensboro Visit: What to Order

Eating at the source for the first time? Here’s how to do it right.

Get the tray. I know I keep saying it, but in Greensboro it feels wrong to order anything else. Big Double Burger, Cookout Style, that’s homemade chili, coleslaw, mustard, and diced onion for an extra $0.95 to $0.99, with hushpuppies and fries as your sides. Upgrade the drink to a Peanut Butter Banana shake for about a dollar more. That’s the canonical order.

Learn the styles. Beyond Cookout Style, there’s Cheddar Style (sharp cheddar, bacon, grilled onion, mayo, +$0.99), Out West Style (BBQ sauce, bacon, mayo, pickles, onion, +$0.75 to $0.99), Steak Style (A1 sauce, grilled onions, lettuce, tomato, mayo, +$0.59 to $0.69), House Style (quesadilla sauce, lettuce, tomato, onion, +$0.49 to $0.59), and Nacho Chili Style (nacho cheese, chili, +$0.99). Each one changes the burger completely.

Don’t skip the NC classics. Hushpuppies (about $1.99, 300 Cal) are mandatory. The pulled pork BBQ (about $3.99, 370 Cal) has genuine roots here. And the Cheerwine is non-negotiable.

Save room for the shake menu. More than 40 flavors, $2.99 to $3.99 for regular, $4.49 to $4.99 for fancy. The famous five: Peanut Butter Banana (864 Cal), Reese’s Cup (894 Cal), Oreo Mint (853 Cal), Strawberry Cheesecake (800-900 Cal), Banana Pudding (781 Cal). In July and August, the Fresh Watermelon shake (645 Cal) makes its brief annual appearance.

Cookout Greensboro FAQs

Was Cook Out really founded in Greensboro?

Yes. Morris Reaves founded Cook Out in Greensboro, North Carolina in 1989. The company is still family-run, with headquarters in nearby Thomasville, NC and CEO Jeremy Reaves, the founder’s son, leading the operation.

How many Cook Out locations are there now?

More than 350 locations across ten states: North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Georgia, Tennessee, Maryland, Kentucky, Alabama, Mississippi, and West Virginia. It all started with that one Greensboro shop.

How much is the Cookout Tray in Greensboro?

A Cookout Greensboro tray costs about $7.69: one full-size entree, two sides, and a large drink. The Jr. Tray is about $6.49. Upgrading to a regular milkshake adds about $1.00, or $1.00 to $1.60 for a fancy shake. Prices can vary slightly by location.

What time does Cook Out in Greensboro close?

Most locations stay open until 2 a.m. Sunday through Thursday and until 3 or 4 a.m. on Friday and Saturday. Hours vary by location, so check your specific spot before a very late run.

Where is Cook Out’s headquarters?

Cook Out is headquartered in Thomasville, North Carolina, a short drive from Greensboro where the chain was founded. It remains a family-run company.

Does Cook Out in Greensboro deliver?

Delivery is available through DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub at select locations. There’s no official Cook Out app for online ordering, so third-party delivery is the way to go if you can’t make the drive-thru.

That’s the full Cookout Greensboro rundown: the hometown story, the prices, the hours, and what to order. If you’re road-tripping across the state, our Cookout Durham guide covers the Bull City’s late-night scene, Raleigh has the capital covered, and Charlotte is the Queen City edition. Heading south? Try Columbia, SC. Or start from the homepage for the complete Cook Out menu.