Pigtrip.net BBQ Reviews - Boston, New York, New England, Long Island and the Hudson Valley

Usually I wait until I gather a few new links before I update my Links page, but lately I've been really getting into Waiter Rant. It's the first blog I ever read and one of the best, offering a waiter's perspective of what goes on at a high end restaurant. The posts (I think of them as vignettes) have great dialogue, and even if a few of them are enhanced for entertainment value, there's always food for thought. Warning: Don't view this site if you only have a few minutes to spare, because you're going to want to stay a while.

(05/14/08)

New York BBQ: Adam Perry Lang Featured in This Month's Chile Pepper Magazine

It's time for the annual "BBQ Issue" of Chile Pepper magazine, and this time there's a definite Northeast BBQ slant. The Hot Off the Press section has book reviews for Paul Kirk's new tome 500 BBQ Dishes and Chris Schlesinger's Grill It! (his ninth book).

Photo by Arthur Cohen, courtesy of Chile Pepper magazine. Used with permission.

But the highlight is a feature on Daisy May's (NYC) pitmaster Adam Perry Lang by JJ Goode, who's co-authoring a book with Perry Lang that's due out in 2009. There are five recipes, including some (like Asian boneless grilled short ribs) that use flavors that depart from what you'd normally see in his restaurant. You'll have to buy the magazine for the recipes, but the baked beans recipe alone is well worth the cover price.

www.chilepepper.com

(05/13/08)

Joints Directory Madness

Here's the latest batch of Joints directory activity, spanning two states. This time, there's one new joint, one seasonal opening, one new website, one new menu for a not-quite-ready website, one schedule change and none into the dead pool.

Shaker Mountain Barbeque (New Lebanon NY) opened for the season last week, and it's a new joint for this site. Thanks to Kyle for the info. www.shakermountainbarbeque.com
Coast Cafe (Cambridge MA) now has a website: www.coastsoulcafe.com
BT's Smokehouse (Brimfield MA), as reported earlier this week, is vending out of the Brimfield Antiques show through Sunday May 18, then starts a Tuesday-through-Sunday hours at their usual Village Green Campground location starting May 20.
Fatty Beltbuckles (Rocky Point NY) is still working on their website, hoping to have it ready by June 1. In the meantime, you can view their menu via the Joints directory.

(05/12/08)

Massachusetts BBQ: BT's Smokehouse To Introduce Fatties at Brimfield Antiques Show This Week

A third barbecue joint is now offering fatties, as BT's Smokehouse (Brimfield MA) will start serving fatties today at their temporary digs in downtown Brimfield, to coincide with the week-long Brimfield Antiques extravaganza on Route 20. If you're into antiques or collectibles, this outdoor show is a must-visit, and has more dealers than most people can visit in a single day. It was a year ago at this same location that BT's started before moving to their permanent location at the Village Green Campgrounds a few miles east.

But back to the fatties. On Thursday night I sampled a preview and I was genuinely impressed. Served on a doughy buttermilk biscuit, this fatty had a perfectly crunchy exterior, a noticeable smoke ring with a smoky flavor to match, a tender interior and an interesting filling that included jalapeño peppers, pepper relish and raspberry preserves. Raspberry barbecue sauce reinforced the fruity, breakfasty vibe.

The creation and the creator.

Love at first slice.

BT's ends its week-long run at the antique show on Sunday, May 18. They return to the Village Green location on Tuesday May 20, where they'll start an expanded schedule, operating Tuesday through Sunday.

www.btsmokehouse.com

(05/11/08)

Contests: Transformer BBQ Wins Smoke and Steam Grilling Contest

Transformer BBQ took the Grand Championship honors yesterday at the first annual Smoke and Steam Grilling Competition put on by the Oyster Bay Railroad Museum in Oyster Bay NY. The win was dominant, with first place trophies in beef steak and pork, a fourth place finish in chicken and a second place finish in oysters.

(05/09/08)

New York BBQ: Hill Country To Offer Sunday Honky Tonk Brunch, Starting This Weekend

The folks at Hill Country (NYC) are out to prove that there's more to barbecue than their highly acclaimed moist brisket. With a Mother's Day debut, the Honky Tonk Sunday brunch will be a regular affair, with items like huevos rancheros, pork tamales, chicken fried steak, brisket hash and breakfast tacos with Kreuz sausage on offer. The regular meat line and market menu will also be available.

see the full brunch menu at www.hillcountryny.com

Contests: Smoke and Steam Grilling Contest in Oyster Bay Tomorrow

Starting at 7:00 AM tomorrow, the Oyster Bay Railroad Museum (Oyster Bay NY) kicks off the first annual Smoke and Steam Grilling Competition. Watch local teams as they grill beefsteak, pork chops, chicken and oysters. Dippin Dots, cheese, pulled pork and chicken and wieners of every kind will be sold on the street. Cadillac Moon will provide music from noon to 3:00PM.

contest website

(05/08/08)

New York BBQ: Georgia's Eastside BBQ Review

The site's 138th review is now posted for Georgia's Eastside BBQ, the Manhattan BBQ joint that's right around the corner from Katz's Delicatessen. See the review via the Reviews page or link to reviews using the red icons in the Joints directory.

(05/07/08)

Home BBQ: Guava and Pepper Fatties

Still in pursuit of the ultimate sausage fatty, I conducted further experimentation this weekend. Lovers of fatties generally fall into one of two camps: those who like them straight, with a homogenous cross section, and those who like them stuffed. I fall into the second group, which I think puts me in the minority.

Maybe the unstuffed version is more popular because it's so versatile. You can slice it thick and serve it with eggs. You can slice it thin and sneak it between a hamburger and its bun as a surprise topping. You can chop it and add it to a vegetable dish. Or you can slice it into wedges, like a dill pickle, and serve it with a dipping sauce. But I think a good part of the unstuffed fatty's popularity has to do with the fact that it's much easier to make. Grind or buy the meat. Season the meat. Roll the meat. Rub the meat. Done.

The stuffed fatty is more exciting, but also more of a challenge. Figuring out the right combination of ingredients is an art, while figuring out the right ratio of stuffing ingredients to meat is a science. Just like with a burrito, the temptation is to overstuff it. Unlike a burrito, you can't make adjustments as it falls apart during cooking. But when you slice into a perfectly constructed stuffed fatty and admire the filling as it oozes out temptingly, you know that all the aggravation was worth it.

When I made fatties with fig jam a while back, the chief obstacle was the wetness of the filling. It kept moving as I tried to seal the outside, making it very difficult to make a seamless fatty. So this time I used guava paste, which I picked up at a Latin American market. It has the same flavor as guava jam, but a consistency similar to a Kraft caramel. By remaining firm, it allowed me to seal the deal without the usual drama. To contrast the sweetness of the guava, I also added banana peppers and diced poblano peppers.

I also made a more typical cheddar and pepper stuffed fatty, which yielded the expected results. As for the guava fatty, I was generally happy with the outcome, although the guava paste didn't quite melt all the way as I'd hoped. But the flavors definitely worked and the construction was a breeze, so I'll keep plugging away. I still have many more ideas.

Guava paste and sausage meat.

Banana peppers and diced poblano.

The finished result.

A more traditional cheese and

pepper fatty.

(05/06/08)

Home BBQ: SPAM "Burnt Ends"

About a month ago I mentioned that I had a new preparation for SPAM, and on Sunday l cooked up what I'm now calling SPAM Burnt Ends. I had been looking for an interesting take on SPAM that I could serve at a luau my wife and I are planning for later in the summer (SPAM is huge in Hawaii, so it would make a novel appetizer). I had seen some recipes for barbecued bologna and could easily just adapt those to the SPAM, but I took things a few steps further.

The inspiration comes from the burnt ends of brisket at RUB (New York City): take an overly rich cut of meat, rub it, smoke it, sauce it, cube it, rub it again and smoke it again. On most days I'll take RUB's burnt ends over what you see here, but it would take about six times the investment in both meat and smoking time. With brisket burnt ends, the crispness is a byproduct of rendering out some of the fat. Here, it's a way to make a cheap hunk of processed meat a little more palatable.

I took three cans of SPAM and started by scoring the outsides, partly for appearance and partly to help grip the flavor additions I'd apply later. I then lightly coated two of the three with sesame oil and the third with mustard—again, partly for flavor, partly to help the rub stick. I rubbed the first two with Willie B's Bourbon rub (spiked with about 20% cayenne). The third was treated to a lethal dose of Doctor Gonzo's new barbecue dry rub.

I smoked the SPAM over Hawaiian kiawe, a breed of wood similar to both guava and mesquite. After about an hour and a half, I glazed the first two with a homemade Huli Huli basting sauce. Huli Huli chicken is a popular item in Hawaii, named because the chicken is turned ("huli") frequently, with the basting sauce applied at each turn. There are many Huli Huli sauce recipes available on the web, but mine uses pineapple juice, pineapple jelly, lime juice, ketchup, soy sauce, hot sauce, ginger and brown sugar.

After another twenty minutes, I cut the SPAM into slices and chunks, then added more mop and more rub, purposely varying the amounts among the various pieces. The final twenty minutes was enough to crisp up the surface and allow the second wave of rub to blend with the meat.

The smaller chunks were perfect for nibbling; the larger slices made their way into mini sandwiches made with a sliced baguette and Hawaiian style hot sauce.

Scored, rubbed and into the smoker.

A little glaze.

Not much of a smoke ring but

very tender and velvety.

More rub for more flavor

and a different texture.

Smoked SPAM, passionfruit hot sauce and baguette slices

make a Hawaiian style mini sandwich.

(05/05/08)

Massachusetts BBQ: BT's Smokehouse Wins New England Chili Cookoff People's Choice

The second annual New England Chili Cookoff is history, and the People's Choice winner was BT's Smokehouse (Brimfield MA). Unlike at barbecue contests, where the restaurant competitors typically submit entries that bear little resemblance to what's actually served to their customers, BT's went with their everyday chili and picked up the win. I'll have more news about BT's Smokehouse later in the week.

www.btsmokehouse.com

Boston BBQ: Blue Ribbon Flirts With Fatties

This weekend I tried a sandwich special at Blue Ribbon Bar-B-Que (W. Newton MA) called Dixie Loaf, a not-so-distant cousin to the beloved fatty I've been longing to see on restaurant menus. This rendition, made with a combination of ground SPAM and fresh pork, was served on a club sandwich with lettuce, tomato, onion and optional Angry Hornet hot sauce.

www.blueribbonbbq.com

(05/02/08)

Brooklyn BBQ: Brooklyn Pigfest, May 31

Brooklyn Brewery has announced the date for the 8th annual Brooklyn Pigfest. This benefit for the Brooklyn Bridge Park Conservancy will be held on Saturday, May 31 at the Tobacco Warehouse under the Brooklyn Bridge, from 1:00PM to 6:00PM, rain or shine. Admission is $95 ($85 in advance) and includes beer and three meal tickets.

www.brooklynbrewery.com/events

Reminder: New England Chili Cookoff, May 3

Don't forget, the second annual New England Chili Cookoff is being held tomorrow at the Pleasant View in Somers CT. It's sanctioned by the International Chili Society, and like barbecue contests, there'll be some serious competition and some serious prize money ($2700) at stake.

For $6 admission ($5 if you bring two canned goods to benefit the Enfield Food Shelf), you get to sample chili and vote for a winner. There will also be a chile pepper eating contest, a hot wings eating contest, raffles, vendors, live entertainment and a chance to meet Miss Connecticut.

www.chilict.com

A Busy Week

This week has been a busy one for me both at work and due to some personal obligations. So although this week's posts have been limited, fear not: this site isn't about to go dormant any time soon. Look for the usual high energy, high calorie content next week.

April 2008 archive

March 2008 archive

February 2008 archive

January 2008 archive

December 2007 archive

November 2007 archive

October 2007 archive

September 2007 archive