BBQ Events: The Big Apple BBQ Block Party

I'm a bad blogger. I'm an even worse "media" reporter. I was graciously given a "media" pass from the organizers of The Big Apple BBQ Block Party. I had plans to use it to get up into the faces of the pitmasters, take pictures of the food, sample it all and report back to you. Well, it sorta didn't happen.

I started out alright, but frankly I don't know if I'm cut out for the "media" position. I felt that I was intruding on the pitmasters on the day when they should be shining to the NYC masses and educating them all on the fine points of barbecue. And because of that, I didn't get up into the faces of the pitmasters, take pictures of the food, sample it all and report back to you.

But I did do some. Let me start off with a picture of one of the loveliest and most gracious people, I met that day. Just above this paragraph is Leslie aka "The Barbecue Princess,"from the Ubon's BBQ Company. Leslie made sure that I and my companion, Nancee of the Purple Turtle Catering Company were welcome and well fed at Ubon's trailer. Leslie even invited us back for an after event party that night.

Damn - that Ubon's was some good eating. The pulled pork sandwich was succulant and the meat very tender and flavorful. Now, I usually don't say this, but their "dipping" sauce made the sandwich. There were a lot of well done pulled pork sandwiches at the Block Party, but the sauce made the Ubon's sandwich shine in a very crowded galaxy. This is a very unique and infamous sauce. Buy some! I know I did.

Ubon's at the 2010 Big Apple BBQ Block Party New York City from Anthony Quintano on Vimeo.

Day Is Done At The Big Apple Block Party

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Moonlight Bar-B-Q Inn At The Big Apple Block Party

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Smoked Pork Hot Link At The Big Apple BBQ Block Party

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Jim n' Nick's Bar-B-Q At The Big Apple BBQ Block Party

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Crowds Are Lighter This Year At The Big Apple Block Party

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Beer Garden At The Big Apple Block Party

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Live from the BABBQBP

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BBQ Events: The 8th Annual Big Apple Barbecue Block Party

This weekend - The 8th Annual Big Apple Barbecue Block Party. Madison Square Park June 12-13, 2010, from 11:00 AM – 6:00 PM.

Look at this lineup of Pitmasters....

Ken Bosley
Moonlite Bar-B-Q Inn, Owensboro, KY

• Ken Callaghan
Blue Smoke, New York, NY

• Pete Daversa
Hill Country, New York, NY

• Joe Duncan
Baker’s Ribs, Dallas, TX

• Big Lou Elrose (Past Grillin' On The Bay winner!)
Wildwood Barbeque, New York, NY

• Jimmy Hagood
BlackJack BBQ, Charleston, SC

• Tommy Houston
Checkered Pig, Martinsville, VA

• Chris Lilly
Big Bob Gibson Bar-B-Q, Decatur, AL

• Patrick Martin
Martin’s Bar-B-Que Joint, Nashville, TN

• Mike Mills
17th Street Bar & Grill / Memphis Championship Barbecue / Murphysboro, Illinois / Las Vegas, NV

• Ed Mitchell
The Pit, Raleigh, NC

• Myron Mixon (You've seen Myron making an ass out of himself on TLC's Pitmasters Series)
Jack’s Old South, Unadilla, GA

• Garry Roark
Ubon’s Barbecue of Yazoo, Yazoo City, MS

• Drew Robinson
Jim ‘N Nick’s Bar-B-Q

• Michael Rodriguez (Listed on Grub Street, but not on the official BABBP website)
The Salt Lick BBQ, Driftwood, TX

• Skip Steele
Pappy’s Smokehouse, St. Louis, MO

• John Stage
Dinosaur Bar-B-Que, New York, NY

• John Wheeler
Rack & Soul, New York, NY

I hope I didn't leave anyone out! Be there or be square!

The Big Apple BBQ Block Party

My daughter and I attended the block party on Sunday. We met up with Nancee and Greg from Purple Turtle Caterering (easily one of the best caterers in Connecticut, if you're looking) and braved the outrageous crowds to get some pretty mediocre food. There's just no way that these BBQ champions can serve 10,000 plates a day and it still be good.

Here's my daughter with the legendary Mike Mills from the 17th Street Bar and Grill, who's ribs were the best BBQ we had all day.

Meet the Iowa Pork Princesses who got their hands on the Pickled Pig...

Ray Lampe, aka Dr. BBQ, was giving a demo of this tropical pork chop sandwich. Pretty good stuff, actually this was the best meat of the day even if it wasn't barbecue, and it's always great to see the good Dr.
The crowds were outrageous, but that's par for the course. I don't think the crowds reached the 150,000 projected, but it was very tight.

Even the squirrels were into BBQ yesterday. I didn't know that they ate meat.

Be sure to check out Smoke In Da' Eye for some outstanding videos and interviews with the pit masters from Friday night. Great stuff Clint!

Sneak Peak - The Big Apple BBQ Block Party

I went over tonight and wondered around the Big Apple BBQ Block Party and shot the shit with some of the pitmasters. First up, and rightly so, is the legendary Mike Mills.

Here's me and Mike and then Clint from Smoke in da Eye joins in...

Chris Lilly from Big Bob Gibson's...

Bob Devine from Brother Jimmy's...

And last, but by no means least, Ed Mitchel from The Pit...

See you all at the Big Apple BBQ Block Party!

The Big Apple BBQ Block Party

It's that time of year again. This weekend is the Big Apple Barbecue Block Party! If you've never been, go. They expect 150,000 attendees this year, so be prepared for the crowds. I'm gonna check out the out of towners. Don't waste your time waiting for the local cooks. You can always visit their joints later.

The Big Apple Block Party, Saturday and Sunday, June 23 and 14. 11:00 AM to 7:00 PM each day. Madison Square Park, New York, New York.

Take a look at the list of who's who in barbecue that will be there...

Ken Callaghan

Blue Smoke
New York, NY
Kansas City Ribs & Pickled Okra

Pete Daversa

Hill Country
New York, NY
Beef Brisket & Cool as a Cucumber Salad

Joe Duncan

Baker’s Ribs
Dallas, TX
St. Louis-Style Ribs & Jalapeno Coleslaw

Jimmy Hagood

BlackJack BBQ
Charleston, SC
Pulled Pork Shoulder & Coleslaw

Chris Lilly

Big Bob Gibson Bar-B-Q
Decatur, AL
Pulled Pork Shoulder & Crisp Spicy Southern Mustard Coleslaw

Patrick Martin

Martin’s Bar-B-Que Joint
Nashville, TN
Western Tennessee-Style Whole Hog with Sweet Pickles

Mike Mills

17th Street Bar & Grill
Murphysboro, IL
Memphis Championship Barbecue
Las Vegas, NV
Baby Back Ribs & Beans

Ed Mitchell

The Pit
Raleigh, NC
Whole Hog & Coleslaw

Garry Roark

Ubon’s “Champion’s Choice”
Yazoo, MS
Pulled Pork Shoulder & Coleslaw

Drew Robinson

Jim ‘N Nick’s Bar-B-Q
Birmingham, AL
Homemade Smoked Sausage with Pimento Cheese & Saltines

Michael Rodriguez

The Salt Lick BBQ
Driftwood, TX
Beef Brisket, Sausage & Coleslaw

John Stage

Dinosaur Bar-B-Que
New York, NY
Pulled Pork Shoulder & Beans

Skip Steele

Pappy’s Smokehouse
St. Louis, MO
St. Louis-Style Ribs & Beans

John Wheeler

Rack & Soul
New York, NY
Baby Back Ribs & Beans

Ed Wilson

Wilson’s Barbeque
Fairfield, CT
Texas Style Brisket & Coleslaw

Not Loving The Big Apple BBQ Block Party or Robert Sietsema Either

The Annual Big Apple Barbeque Block Party line up has been announced and the pit masters selected and The Village Voice gets all snarky. Don't you just love it?

Robert Sietsema takes the time to rate the barbecue as presented by the various pitmasters and frankly, he doesn't have much love in his heart. According to Mr. Sietsema, the Que at the BABBP is second rate at best. Only NY's own Hill Country gets any respect which isn't too surprising as Mr. Sietsema claims."Texas barbecue is my benchmark."

It's an interesting look at the BABBP, but I feel Mr. Sietsema misses the point entirely. There's more to barbecue than "Texas." Ribs, pork shoulder, whole hog, sausage, and the lofty beef brisket, all represent barbecue and all deserve a place at any barbecue party. Kudos for Danny Meyer and Blue Smoke, who organize the event, for recognizing that. They bring in some of the legends of the barbecue world and give them the chance to strut in NYC.

Unfortunately, Mr. Sietsema is partially right, much of the que at the block party is second rate, but it's not the fault of the pitmasters. Frankly, the BABBP has grown too large for its own good. Too many people attend. There is no possible way that the pitmasters can keep up with the crowds and produce the quality barbecue for which they are rightly famous. Trust me, I've been on both sides on the lines.

So would I stay home? Well, yes and no. If you've never been, go. It's much like Times Square on New Year's Eve; every New Yorker should do it once. It's an experience unto itself. But if you're looking for some really good barbecue that day, go to RUB. It's nearby and you can experience the Big Apple Barbecue Block Party, but eat like a king.

One last thing, in his snarky post, Mr. Sietsema takes a shot at the competition cooks. He states, "I remain unimpressed by barbecue competition champions, who win by slipping some blackberry jam into their marinade, or by relying on gloppy sauces." Damn - Bobby, when's the last time you came out to a competition barbecue? I used to trust your opinion on food, but this uneducated statement makes me wonder. Blackberry jam and relying on gloppy sauces went out with bell bottoms. "I'm a barbecue traditionalist, and prefer old-fashioned places using time-honored barbecue styles" as well, but get your head out of your ass and wake up and smell the smoke, there's more to barbecue than Texas style brisket.

BBQ Burnout

Yup, it happened. I experienced barbeque burnout after the Big Apple Barbecue Block Party. It's an interesting phenomenon experienced by many of pit masters, cooks and cooks helpers out on the barbecue circuit. After spending a weekend around barbecued meat, your body and mind simply craves something different.

Last night my body was craving Turkish food. Turkish? Isn't that primarily grilled meats? Well, yes it can be, but there's some fantastic vegetarian options at my favorite local Turkish restaurant Anatolian Gyro.



Anatolian Gyro is not much to look at; being your standard nondescript store front Brooklyn restaurant, but their food is excellent. The menu is not extensive, but what they do, they do very well. My game plan was to pick up some hummus and/or some Baba Ghanoush, but I decided to throw caution to the wind and order the mixed appetizer plate. For $11.50 I got a plate of all the cold appetizers that Anatolian Gyro offers.

Hummus (mashed chickpeas, lemon juice, tahini, spices), Eggplant Salad (Char grilled eggplant pureed with garlic, herbs, tomatoes and parsley), Piyaz (White beans, red peppers, parsley, onions, vinegar and oil), Baba Ghanoush (Grilled eggplant pureed with tahini, garlic, olive oil and lemon juice), Tabule (Mixture of cracked wheat, scallions, parsley, tomato and lemon juice), Mixed Eggplant (Fried small pieces of eggplant mixed with garlic and tomato sauce), Stuffed Grape Leaves (Grape leaves delicately filled with rice and herbs), Beet Salad (Carrots, beets, dill served with herbs), Pan Fried Eggplant (Fried eggplant served with yogurt sauce), and finally Russian Salad (Boiled potatoes, eggs, carrots, pickles, green peas mixed with mayonnaise).

I tell you, this was a great meal. The plate was overflowing and I was unable to finish it all. I had never tried the Piyaz, Russian Salad and Beet Salads before. They were eyeopeners. The Piyaz especially made me pause. Outstanding. I'll be ordering each of these from now on.

So when the heat is on this summer, or like me you experience your own version of barbecue burnout, check out your local Turkish restaraunt. Or better yet, come on out to the Bay and stop in at Anatolian Gyro. Tell them WhiteTrash sent you.

BBQ Events: The Big Apple BBQ Block Party

One word for this year's event: GO!

They've fixed the crowd problems. Oh sure the lines are long, but the wait is worth it. The Bubba pass, if it's still available, gets you behind the tables and into the rarefied world of the express line. There's more than enough food. The bands are great.

It's a unique experience, you'll never be able to taste so much world class barbecue in one place at one time. This year, it's worth the trip.

Be sure to check out Ubon's pulled pork, Hill Country's beef ribs and my new friend Chiles from the Proclamation Stew Crew and their outstanding Brunswick Stew.

Photo of WhiteTrash BBQ cutting beef ribs courtesy of my friend Matt over at The Hampton Smoker.