Best Barbecue Pork Ribs in Manhattan

Photograph: Jessica Leibowitz at Serious Eats

OK. I'll wait.

Done yet?

C'mon. Really?

OK, children settle down now. Stop the laughing. Yes - the title of this post is the "Best Barbecue Pork Ribs in Manhattan," as in New York City. Yes, we do have multiple true barbecue restaurants in Manhattan and even more in Brooklyn. And today, we'll talk about the "best" pork barbecue ribs in Manhattan. Are they the best in the nation? No one said that, so you Southerners. Relax. We're not taking the crown just yet.

James Boo, Seriouseats.com NY's budding barbecue expert invited me, my buddy Ned Berke of Sheepsheadbites.com, Edible Queens blogger and 'cue enthusiast Joe DiStefano (known in certain circles as "Joey Deckle"), barbecue ambassador Amy Mills to join the staff and judge Manhattan's best pork barbecue ribs and the results are surprising.

Here's what happened, as James tells on Serious Eats...

This tasting focused on smoked pork ribs available for dine-in or take-out in Manhattan. Choices were based on our informal poll on SENY and the Barbecue Bureau's top choices. We purchased half-racks of spare ribs to-go from each restaurant, with the exception of Rack and Soul, which only serves baby back ribs:

• Blue Smoke: Kansas City Spareribs
• Daisy May's BBQ: Kansas City Sweet and Sticky Pork Ribs
• Daisy May's BBQ: Memphis Dry Rub Pork Ribs
• Dinosaur Barbeque Harlem: St. Louis Bar-B-Que Spare Ribs
• Hill Country New York: Pork spare ribs
• Rack and Soul: BBQ: Baby Back Ribs
• RUB: St. Louis-Style Long End"

I'll pick it up from here. We were led into the Serious Eats office and spread out before us was a large conference table with 7 plates of ribs lined up on one side. The only identifiable marking was a purple post-it tag with the numbers of 1 to 7 written on them. We stood around a while discussing how the judging was to take place and finally dove in.

When we sat down I thought I recognized a couple of the ribs, but as I was eating them I honestly lost my preconceived notions. I knew RUB was there. So was Daisy May, Blue Smoke and Hill Country. I saw them on the plates lined up for tasting, but by the time a rib got to my plate I had no idea which restaurant produced it. Joey Deckle was distributing the ribs to the plate and we were all sharing ribs. Trying to figure out where 1/2 a rib came from was a useless pursuit. So my dear readers, this was true blind judging. 

I'm not going to re-write James's post about the whole experience. You should read it over on Serious Eats, but here's the winners from the panel's perspective.

1. Rack and Soul's BBQ Baby Back Ribs (7.8/10)
2. Daisy May's BBQ's Kansas City Sweet and Sticky Pork Ribs (7.3/10)
3. Daisy May's BBQ's Memphis Dry Rub Pork Ribs(6.8/10)
4. Hill Country New York's Pork Spare Ribs (6.3/10)
5. Dinosaur Barbeque Harlem's St. Louis Bar-B-Que Spare Ribs (6.1/10)
6. Blue Smoke's Kansas City Spare Ribs (5.5/10)
7. RUB's St. Louis-Style Long End (4.5/10)

Frankly, I'm a bit surprised by these results. We all discussed our winners and losers and I didn't leave thinking this was how it would play out. James still had to tally our written votes, with the exception of Rack and Soul being the hands down winner, every other position was still in flux.

My feelings -- To me, the top two were Daisy May's. My winner was the dry rub ribs, followed by Daisy's sweet and sticky ribs. This really surprised me as my last visits to Daisy May's proved so disappointing that I wrote a post pleading with Adam Perry Lang to abandon his London restaurants and take care of Daisy. Maybe he listened, but whomever is handling the cookers at Daisy May's now is doing a great job. I need to get back there and update my comments. 

My least favorite in the bunch was Blue Smoke's Kansas City Style Spare Ribs. They were completely untrimmed, fatty and tasteless. To me, it appeared that the chef  had completely given up. There were no discernible spices, nor bark or smoke on these ribs. Huge chunks of fat dominated them and easily over powered the meat. I wouldn't have been surprised to be given these ribs from some newlywed's first attempt at cooking ribs in oven.

Hill Country's ribs didn't fare much better. While these ribs were cooked well, the salt, pepper, paprika seasoning just doesn't cut it for pork. "Hammy" was the most frequently heard comment here. Stick with the beef boys. 

As for the others, well it was a mixed bag as under cooking seemed to be the most common mistake.

I can't wait to do it again!

Who Do You Trust? - AOL/City Search Names New York City's Best Barbecue

This came into my email today....

City's Best Winners - Barbecue - Restaurants and Nightlife ...
Spanky's BBQ, 6th. Pig'n Out Barbeque, 7th. Bone Lick Park, 8th. Pies-N-Thighs, 9th. Sawa BBQ, 10th. 617 9th Ave,New York ... m.aol.com/citysbest/.../citysbestResults.do?...

OK - I'm always interested in what others think about the New York BBQ scene, but looking over this little email notification, something was clearly amiss. Spanky's came in at number 6? Spanky's has been closed since early 2009 as I reported back on January 28, 2009! Sawa is also closed - and I don't think they ever were a barbecue joint. Bar BQ is also long gone as is Pig'n Out.

WTF is going on here? I've always heard that the "leaders" in the review world could be bought. Is this evidence? Why would AOL/City Search list FOUR closed restaurants as part of the top ten and leave out NYC's current leaders like RUB, Wildwood, Hill Country, The Waterfront Ale House etc? I call shenanigans!

In case you're interested, here's AOL/City Search's top 10 BBQ joints of New York City - for what it's worth. And that ain't much.

1. Dinosaur Bar-B-Que
2. Virgil's Barbecue
3. Blue Smoke
4. Bar BQ
5. Daisy May's BBQ
6. Spanky's BBQ
7. Pig'n Out Barbeque
8. Bone Lick Park
9. Pies-N-Thighs
10. Sawa BBQ

PS - That rib picture that leads this post is from the incredible RUB! You need to check them out whenever you're in Manhattan.

First Look: Hill Country Chicken

So, what's the story behind Hill Country Chicken? Well, I got my first taste at about 8:30 pm on Friday night. What you're looking at are four pieces of fried chicken; a breast and thigh cooked Hill Country Classic style (skin on, breaded and seasoned with Hill Country Chicken Shake)and a leg and a thigh Mamma El Style (skinless, cracker crumb crust and seasoned with a special family recipe,) Picnic Stix (celery and carrot sticks,) Fire-n-Ice Pickles and Pimento Cheese. I also purchased a Mint Tea for me and a Creme Brulee for the wife at home.

So how's the food? I received four perfectly cooked, and I mean PERFECTLY cooked pieces of some of the most tender and juicy fried chicken I've ever had. Flavor wise, however, it was a mixed bag. The Hill Country Classic Chicken tasted as if it were rolled in Shake and Bake and then coated with another thick layer of salt. The Mamma El style - here they have something. A little sweet, a little salty, it's a perfectly balanced very tasty soft cracker coating. Beautiful. The Fire-n-Ice Pickles were sweet and spicy and a good complement to the chicken. The Pimento Cheese was a sweet, creamy orange cheese with just enough punch from the pimentos to make it interesting. Do yourself a favor and let it sit awhile before you eat it as the flavors improve as the cheese warms.

The mint tea was self-served warm with a barely noticeable hint of mint and the Creme Brulee, bruleed to order, was creamy smooth and delicious with a solid sugar crust.

Now how much does all this cost you ask? Well, frankly a lot more than I expected. A single chicken breast: $5.50, a thigh: $3,50, a leg: $2.25 and a wing (which I didn't get - they were out) is $1.75. The Picnic Stix are only $2.00 but is a complete rip off as I received one celery stalk cut into four pieces and 2 small sticks of carrot. The Pimento Cheese was an additional $1.00 with the purchase of the Stix and easily worth the cost. And finally, the Fire-n-Ice pickles were only 50 cents, but frankly I think they should have been included gratis with the meal.

The large mint tea was $2.50 and the "3 inch pie cup" Creme Brulee was $3.00.

What's the place look like? Think 50's retro dinner. Hill Country Chicken could be right at home on the set of The Andy Griffith Show. There are a couple of problems with the layout. The drinks are dispensed from a nook located off to the side. It's a small counter behind the condiment stand and really much to small to service the restaurant efficiently. The other issue I have is that the counters that line the windows are much too high for the chairs. Not a big deal, but eating at the counter was not very comfortable.

So will I be back? Probably. Hill Country Chicken has something great in Mamma El's bird and the sides I had were all very good, but the prices ($27 for 8 pieces of chicken with four biscuits, c'mon) will make me reconsider.

BBQ Events: Nike 1 Love All Borough Block Party

This Saturday, Nike is closing down the streets of lower Manhattan to host the Nike Sportswear @ 21 Mercer Street block takeover for "1 Love" all borough block party. This all ages event from 6pm-8pm is free, open to the public and features live performances, giveaways and food from Hill Country Barbeque.

That's right. FREE BBQ FROM HILL COUNTRY! Sounds like a great place to be. Mercer Street between Grand and Howard from 6pm to 8pm. Something tells me the food will be going fast.

Just do it.

March Madness - Part Deux

So, March Madness is continuing here at WhiteTrash BBQ, but strangely the barbecue is still more than a little lacking. As is the picture taking for that matter. The weather right now is outstanding so one obstacle is removed, but NYC's only barbeque contest, Grillin' On The Bay is taking over all my free time.

Here's the run down on the meals since we last left off...

March 4, Lean Brisket, Kreuz Jalapeno Sausage and Baked Beans at Hill Country.

Hill Country you may be asking? That's not a name that appears too often in the WhiteTrash BBQ Blog. Well, I had a meeting with Yelp! on Thursday night and it turns out that Yelp! is 2 blocks from Hill Country.

It's been a long time since I've been to Hill Country, and frankly, I've always been disappointed. Everything was always OK, but better meals for less money were within walking distance. However tonight, I was willing to give them another try. Boy was I surprised. The brisket was outstanding; moist, tender and very flavorful. I must say, if they continue in this fashion, Hill Country will have redeemed itself.

The sausage link was good, as all the Kreuz sausage is, but I think it's not the same recipe as what you get in Texas. I could be wrong, but I remember the meat in the sausage being a much courser grind and much more greasy when I was in Lockhart.

The baked beans with burnt ends tasted more like chili and was watery like a chili soup. And it burned the roof of my mouth! Pass on this one.

March 5, I spent the day in the depths of the NYC and Long Island mass transit systems, traveling deep into the Bronx in the morning and then returning to Penn Station and hopping on the Long Island Railroad for a trip way out on Long Island in the evening. Dinner that night was a Big Mac and Sweet Tea from McDonald's. I warned you that not every meal was going to be interesting or even good!

March 6, A couple of portions from a 6' ft Italian Hero, Macaroni Salad, Potato Salad and some Caesar Salad at my one of my closest and oldest friend's son's Eagle Court of Honor ceremony and celebration. Dinner was topped by some Bread Pudding from the Entenmann's Family Bakery in East Meadow, Long Island. No, there's no relation. But it was some outstanding bread pudding!
March 7, Oven Roasted Pork Tenderloin, Twice Baked Potatoes filled with Extra Sharp Cheddar Cheese and steamed Broccoli. The tenderloin was rubbed with Harley's Texas Style Bar-B-Que All Purpose Seasoning and planned for the grill, but the day filled up with too many repairs and renovations around the house.

My house was built in 1924 and any attempt at repairs always take 5 or 6 times longer than you would expect. The simplest projects turn into day long productions. In one room, on one of the outlets, someone long ago had installed an extender turning the two port outlet into four. When I removed it, the outlet itself fell into pieces, requiring a trip to the local hardware store. Of course modern outlets don't easily adapt into 90 year old junction boxes with asbestos wrapped wiring, so it was quite the adventure.

So the tenderloin cooked in the oven whilst the wife whipped up the twice baked potatoes. Overall this was a very satisfying meal.

March 8, Johnsonville's Beer Brats, Velveeta Macaroni and Cheese, Canned Beets. Another meal designed for the grill and a quick weeknight dinner but alas the house stepped in again.

My kitchen table collapsed when I put a bottle of soda on it, so repairs were carried out tonight after spending two hours standing on line at the Cablevision office to replace the cable box that fried when the power was restored on Sunday. Why an outlet in the basement in the rear of the house is on the same circuit as an outlet in the front of the house on the first floor I'll never understand.

Again, this was a very enjoyable meal. The real surprise was how well the beets complimented the flavor of the brats and macaroni. Try it for yourself some time.

So the madness continues. There's no plans for tomorrow's meal as the wife has school, my vegetarian son is working, my daughter has an SAT class and I'm left to my own devices.

Feed Your Face At Hill Country

Hill Country BBQ is running a new special, The Feed Your Face Challenge. Here's how it works.

FEED YOUR FACE CHALLENGE!
$65 Value – Could Be Yours For Free!

RULES:
Any guest at any time may ask to participate in this challenge!
If you can polish off this feast in 60 minutes (No bathroom breaks!)
you don’t have to pay for your meal!
PLUS you’ ll receive Hill Country hat and tee-shirt and a photo of you on the Wall of Cue!

Losers pay for their meal and carry their shame home!

The Opponent:
½ lb. of Moist Brisket
½ lb. of Lean Brisket
½ lb. of Beef Shoulder
½ lb. of Prime Rib
1 Small Hot Side
1 Small Cold Side
32 oz. Soft Drink
1 Cupcake of Your Choice

What are you waiting for? Head up to the counter and order!
We Dare You!

While I'm not running out to try this, I am intrigued. The folks over at Grub Street have and they won. Read about it how they did it and tips for your attempt here.

I know I will try this. I do think I can beat this! 2lbs of meat? Not a problem.

Photograph courtesy of Jeremy Liebman for New York Magazine)

Happy New Year at Hill Country

Here's a tip.....

Today only.....

Hill Country Buys You Beer

Consider this a challenge: for every pound of meat you buy, this Flatiron barbecue joint will spot you a beer. After this ode to your machismo, we know you'll be ready and thankful for Hill Country's next offer, which is obviously champagne-

411:	Hill Country, 30 W. 26th St (near 6th Ave), 212-255-4544

Pig Eating

This just in from The Feedbag...

Hill Country Challenges YOU to a Rib-Eating Contest

You can check out all the details by clicking the above link, but in a nutshell, participation in the rib-eating contest is free and candidates vie for one of only eight spots. Contenders must submit an essay of no more than 250 words or a one-minute video via e-mail at ribs@hillcountryny.com clearly demonstrating their credentials and illustrating why they should be chosen.

Hmm, I might try to get in on this. It sounds interesting and fun but unfortunately, Hill Country isn't known for its ribs. Too bad this isn't a brisket eating contest!

A Texas Two Step: Wine and 'Cue

See, it's still summer in Hill Country too!

A TEXAS TWO STEP: WINE AND 'CUE
Tuesday, September 23, 2008, 7 PM

Hill Country
30 W. 26th St. (bet. B'way & 6th Ave.)

Dance on down to Texas while staying in town with a mouthwatering four-course Texas wine and barbecue tasting. Hill Country's own wine director and pit master will be on hand to talk about the Texan style of each carefully paired course and give tours of their famous 'cue pits. Stick around after dinner and ring in the fall with a complimentary cocktail and the first ever Hill Country Texas Two-Step Tuesday! Call 212-255-4544 and mention "Zagat Presents"
($65 for four courses with wine, Two-Stepping starts at 8:30).

BBQ Recipes: How to Smoke a Turkey

For those of you who heard my Food Talk premier on WOR yesterday, know that I shard the microphone with my friend Josh Ozersky, the editor of Grub Street. Mike Colameco, the host of Food Talk, mentioned that Josh, along with Robbie Richter of Hill Country BBQ, had just posted a quick clip on smoking turkeys. Here it is, copied right off the Grub Street site. Take it away boys....

Mr. Cutlets's Crash Course: Turkey

With Thanksgiving fast approaching, not a few readers have written in to ask for advice about turkeys. Though we would never consider abandoning the big bird, we've had it grilled, boiled, deep-fried, stuffed with a duck, and just about any other way you can name — usually with little improvement to show for it. But smoking seems to be the one technique that brings turkey to the next level, and so we turned to our old pal Robbie Richter, pitmaster at Hill Country BBQ. We grabbed a turkey, a big syringe, a few other supplies, and headed out to Rego Park to Robbie's mother's house to do the backyard turkey thing par excellence. The results are here to see; the list of ingredients is available after the jump.

For the Rub:
1/2 cup kosher salt
1/2 cup black pepper
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper

For the Mop:
6 oz. clear apple juice
6. oz lager beer
2 tablespoons infused schmaltz or duck fat

BBQ Films: A Texas Love Story

Sorry for the short notice, but tonight at the infamous Water Taxi Beach, they're showing a film about barbeque. At least I think it's about barbecue. It has Barbeque in the title right?

Saturday, Sept. 8th
8:30pm - Tasting Rachel Ray - 3 mins.
8:35pm - 4H at the Missouri State Fair - 4 mins.
8:40pm - An Afternoon With Daddy Bruce - 7 mins
8:50pm - Barbeque: A Texas Love Story - 46 mins
9:40pm - Dial S For Sausage - 15 mins
closing - XXX - An Unconventional Love Story - 1 min.

Anyway - take a chance and head over to the Water Taxi Beach. Even if the film's no good, I have no idea if it's good or bad, the food will be great with both RUB and Hill Country providing the chow.

Undiscerning New Yorkers?

Here's an interesting take on New York's BBQ scene by my friend Paul Lukas a the New York Sun. I haven't been to any of the barbeque restaurants he mentions except for Blue Smoke, so I can't comment on the article. Damn, I've got to get out there!

An Undiscerning Palate

By PAUL LUKAS
August 29, 2007

It's been a little more than five years now since Blue Smoke opened, giving New Yorkers their first taste in decades of authentic pit-smoked barbecue. Since then, a seemingly endless stream of barbecue outlets has followed, including at least a dozen in the past year, and four in the past six weeks. The city's appetite for smoked meat, it would appear, is endless.

But five years of unstinting demand have not yet produced a discerning palate among the city's barbecue enthusiasts Many venues in this new wave of "'cueries" have managed to do a booming business, even if the food is mediocre at best. This category includes the popular Blue Smoke itself, where the food is wildly inconsistent. And recent visits to the city's four newest smokehouses found all of them packed , -- granted, one of them has only two tables, but still -- despite widely varying levels of quality. It's as if putting the letters "B-B-Q" in your window is enough to draw throngs, even if you're serving pizza and sushi.

So when a truly great barbecue outlet comes along, such as Hill Country (30 W. 26th St., between Broadway and Sixth Avenue, 212-255-4544), it can get lost in the shuffle. Let's be as clear as possible: This is what barbecue is supposed to be. Pitmaster Robbie Richter has produced by far the best marriage of smoke and meat to hit the city in the Blue Smoke era. In fact, his Texas-style barbecue is so good that it rivals the fare at the Lone Star State's most renowned smokehouses. If you've ever eaten down that way, you know how good the barbecue is; if you haven't, here's your chance to discover what you've been missing.

Texas barbecue isn't sauce-driven. The idea is that if you've got really good meat, plenty of smoke, and a good spice rub (in Mr. Richter's case, a fairly simple mix of salt, pepper, and cayenne), sauce just gets in the way. Most of Hill Country's offerings provide ample validation to this approach, from the spectacularly juicy brisket (available either lean or moist -- go for the latter) and the massive beef ribs to the succulent pork spareribs, the excellent boneless ribeye, and the crispy little Cornish game hens. All are infused with a smoky aura that lingers but never overpowers, along with a lip-smacking spice kick that supplies a slow, smoldering burn. It's the quintessence of classic barbecue.

The second-best entry in the latest crop of 'cueries is, surprisingly enough, Southern Hospitality (1460 Second Ave., between 76th and 77th streets, 212-249-1001), which is co-owned by that, um, renowned barbecue expert Justin Timberlake. Despite a horrible vibe (imagine a celebrity-spotting scene at TGI Friday's) and some sadly predictable moments of ineptitude ("No, you have to order both side dishes, because the computer won't let me exit the ordering screen unless I punch in two sides"), a decent percentage of the food actually acquits itself quite respectably. Memphis-style spare ribs are tender and fairly tasty, if not quite smoky enough, baby back ribs are sweet and juicy, and the macaroni and cheese, baked beans, and green beans are all perfectly adequate.

There are also some major missteps: Pulled pork is so dry as to be inedible, and the brisket is utterly bland, but with careful ordering it's possible to have a decent meal here. Still, why put up with an assaultive atmosphere just to have a merely decent meal?

The situation is reversed up at Oklahoma Smoke (231 W. 145th St., between Frederick Douglass and Adam Clayton Powell Jr. boulevards, 212-862-5335), a tiny two-table storefront that recently opened in Harlem. The vibe is warm, the staff treats you like family, and co-owner Paul Packard will happily tell you how he, his dry rub recipe, and his smoker all hail from the Sooner State. Unfortunately, all this love doesn't yet come through in the food. Pork ribs and beef ribs are both far too bland. Smoked shrimp are a tasty surprise (who cooks shrimp in landlocked Oklahoma?), but the dish is overcooked, and the smoky flavor can't rescue the rubbery texture.

Oklahoma Smoke does have one magnificent saving grace, however: world-class collard greens. Unlike so many other collards around town, which have been stewed into mush, Oklahoma Smoke's version has some heft, along with a pork-infused smokiness. It's like a warm, savory salad, and it ranks among the city's top side dishes.

Unfortunately, there's not even a standout side order to recommend at Georgia's Eastside BBQ (192 Orchard St., between E. Houston and Stanton streets, 212-253-6280). The small-ish room is pleasant enough, but the food barely qualifies as barbecue. Instead of smoking the meat, owner Alan Natkiel oven-steams it over a beer bath, finishes it on the grill, and drowns it in sauce. The resulting pulled pork is so stringy and dry, and the sauce is so ketchup-driven, that the dish comes off like day-old spaghetti. Pork ribs are moister but tasteless. The best thing on the menu is fried chicken, but there's no shortage of that in this town.

Despite the food's seemingly obvious shortcomings, Georgia's Eastside had a line out the door on a recent Saturday evening, underscoring the point that, for now, New Yorkers still like the idea of barbecue more than they appreciate the nuances of the form. One hopes that will change as more people find their way to Hill Country, the first smokehouse we can truly be proud to call our own.