The 11 Best New York BBQ Joints for Watching Football
John Brown Smokehouse is the most fun place to watch Kansas City Chiefs games.
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With the NFL football season in full swing and there being a large overlap of BBQ and football fans, this seemed like the perfect opportunity to list the best BBQ joints in New York City for watching football.
Check out the list below for details on food and drink specials, information on what teams each joint roots for (if any), and much more.
Arrogant Swine - Brooklyn, New York
Arrogant Swine in Bushwick, Brooklyn is the best place to town to watch the Carolina Panthers play while eating great Carolina-style barbecue. There are no official specials, but sources have told me that “shots may be passed out when the Panthers score a touchdown.”
Brother Jimmy’s - Manhattan, New York
Brother Jimmy’s in Murray Hill offers up barbecue with a space made for watching sports. On Sundays, the joint offers up an “all-you-can-eat-and-drink special” of ribs and beer for $30. The beer choices are Miller Light and Coors Light. The joint is also known as one of the best places in town for watching Cleveland Browns games.
Daddy O’s - Staten Island, New York
Daddy O’s on Staten Island is perhaps the most qualified place for watching football while eating BBQ because both of its locations are sports bars. They show every NFL game and offer $3 beers, $4 drinks, 10 different food specials that include wings and ribs. There are also buckets and 100-ounce beer towers available. Needless to say, if you’re on Staten Island, you should check out Daddy O’s at least to see its two projectors and 30 TVs.
Dinosaur Bar-B-Que - Brooklyn, New York
Dinosaur Bar-B-Que’s location in Gowanus, Brooklyn offers a very good special on Thursday, Sunday, and Monday during NFL games. At the bar, you can get two sliders (pork or beef), four Jumbo BBQ Wings, and one pitcher of Labatt Blue for $16.
John Brown Smokehouse - Queens, New York
John Brown Smokehouse in Long Island City, Queens doesn’t have official football specials but it is the best place in town to watch the Kansas City Chiefs. If you root for the Chiefs or are Chiefs-curious, definitely stop in for a visit. As a Chiefs fan, I've had some very fun days watching games here.
Juicy Lucy BBQ on Staten Island is one of the top choices for eating good ‘cue while watching football games.
Juicy Lucy BBQ - Staten Island, New York
Juicy Lucy BBQ in Staten Island, winner of the 2019 Brisket King event, has a good space for watching sporting events. On Sundays, the restaurant offers Miller High Life buckets for $12, domestic buckets for $15, imported buckets for $20, wing specials, all-you-can-eat pulled pork for $25, and more. They also offer cornhole and beer pong on Sundays as well.
Hill Country Barbecue Market - Manhattan, New York
Hill Country Barbecue Market in Flatiron has a great space for watching football, especially Texas-based college and professional teams. On Saturday, the joint transforms for University of Texas games, with drink specials on Lonestar, Shiner, Austin Dry Cider, Austin Blood Orange Cider, Tito's, Deep Eddy, Dulce Vida Tequila, Garrison Brothers Bourbon. On Sunday, the place transforms into the NFL Fan Cave, with a big screen projector, cornhole, beer pong, sponsored beer specials, branded merch giveaways and raffle prizes for things like NFL merch, NFL tickets and jerseys. On Monday nights, Hill County offers a crazy all-you-can-eat deal from 5 to 10 p.m. that includes brisket, spare ribs, chicken and sides for $39 per person.
Morgan’s Brooklyn Barbecue - Brooklyn, New York
Morgan’s Brooklyn Barbecue in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn only has three TVs but offers a great football viewing option if you live nearby. During football games, the joint offers half-price appetizers at the bar, which provides incredible snacking opportunities during long games.
Pig Beach has a fantastic space in Brooklyn for meeting with friends to watch games of any kind.
Pig Beach - Brooklyn, New York
Pig Beach NYC in Gowanus, Brooklyn has a variety of specials for Saturday, Sunday, and Monday for all of your football watching needs. Every Saturday for college football, they have dollar wings, $5 Pig Beach burgers, and $5 Miller Lites. Every Sunday, they offer $5 pulled pork sandwiches, and $5 Miller Lites, as well as an always changing “master special.” On Monday nights, they offer massive “macho nacho platters” for $13, $1 wings, and $5 Miller Lites.
Randall’s Barbecue - Manhattan, New York
Randall’s Barbecue on the Lower East Side offers football specials for Thursday and Sunday, including $4 beers, 2 for $10 well drinks, beer buckets, and shots. On Monday, the joint gets extra sporty with a Monday Night Tailgate with beer buckets, beer and shot combos, special snacks, $1 wings, and more during the Monday Night Football game.
Virgil’s Real Barbecue - Manhattan, New York
Virgil’s Real Barbecue in Times Square is an ideal location for out-of-towners and those looking for a central location for watching football. They offer several specials all-day on Sunday and Monday, including Coors Light Pitchers ($15), Blue Moon Pitchers ($20), bucket of five Miller Lites ($20), Wild Turkey and Wild Turkey Honey shots ($6), and Bacardi Lime shots ($5).
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If I missed any great places for eating high-quality barbecue and watching football games in the NYC area, please let me know!
Sean Ludwig
Founder, NYC BBQ
EAT ALL ABOUT IT
Well-liked Central Pennsylvania joint ShakeDown BBQ is closing this weekend after 10 years in business.
Grantville, Pennsylvania’s ShakeDown BBQ has announced it will be shutting down before the end of October after 10 years in business. The owners of the restaurant said on Facebook that, effective October 28, the establishment will close. The restaurant will be open through Sunday and then close for good. Be sure to go early if you want to try a specific item one last time.
Insider recently visited Hometown Bar-B-Que in Brooklyn and shot an 8-minute-video on why the barbecue there is “legendary.”
CBS New York has released a profile of Backyard Barbeque in Freeport, New York on Long Island. “I would describe [the atmosphere] as being at home in your backyard, just enjoying yourself, smelling the food, listening to blues,” owner Archie Ware told CBS.
Insider has released a list of the best mac ‘n’ cheese in every state, which includes several BBQ joints. But none of those are in the Northeast. New York’s pick is Pepe's Place, an American restaurant in New Rochelle. New Jersey’s pick is Tops Diner in East Newark. Connecticut’s pick is Sandra's Next Generation, a Southern joint in New Haven, Connecticut. Pennsylvania’s pick is Barclay Prime, an upscale seafood joint in Philadelphia.
Lambertville, New Jersey BBQ joint More Than Q will soon open a new location in West Windsor (just outside of Princeton), the Community News reports. More Than Q was founded in 2014 by Ron Spada, and has received many accolades since including being an honorable mention in Food & Wine’s list of Best BBQ in Every State 2018 and listed on Pete Genovese’s list of the 25 best BBQ joints in NJ.
Hugh Mangum of Mighty Quinn’s Barbeque was recently interviewed by Click2Houston about the Texas roots of Mighty Quinn’s. “I do think that there’s a New York barbecue, and I think that’s what we call what we do,” Mangum said. “They wouldn’t be able to tell you which one was from New York City and which one is from Houston, Texas, in my opinion. I know this is a lightning rod, but I truly believe that.”
Brocmar Smokehouse in West Reading, Pennsylvania has closed and the space it used to occupy has been taken over by the BBQ Smokehouse at B2. Brocmar had been using part of B2 Bistro’s space to operate, but now B2 has taken over the space to keep the BBQ going, the Reading Eagle reports.
IRL BBQ
This weekend’s Food Film Festival will feature lots of food you can try while watching short films.
Here are the top BBQ (and related) food events coming soon to the New York metro and the Tri-State area:
October 25-27: The Food Film Festival returns to NYC and like it has in the past, it will give you the chance to watch films about food while actually trying the food on screen. Films are followed by an official Festival After-Party with more food, drinks and fun, served up by chefs and restaurants from New York City and beyond. Many of NYC’s top chefs will be in attendance, serving up nearly every type of cuisine. More info here.
October 26: Bear’s Smokehouse in New Haven, Connecticut is hosting a Hogs and Hops Beer Festival this weekend. It will feature a pig roast and 20+ beer vendors. They will raise money for Vie for the Kids, a charity that provides funding for pediatric cancer clinical trials and financial support for patients and families. Buy tickets here.
October 29: The Stand Comedy Club is hosting a Guest Chef Series with Arrogant Swine owner and pitmaster Tyson Ho and other chefs, cooking and creating with Wyoming Whiskey. The five course game-inspired menu is your opportunity to be treated to some outsized flavors and exciting pairings. For example, Ho will be preparing elk and wild boar. There will also be a brief discussion of the whiskies and the chefs will be presenting their dishes. Buy tickets here.
November 7: The Line podcast will be hosting a live podcast taping at the brand new location of Hometown Bar-B-Que in Industry City with guest Billy Durney. Host Eli Sussman welcomes Durney back to The Line (his last appearance was November 22, 2016) to talk about the exciting new location and its menu, which has elements of both a NYC deli and Tex-Mex taqueria. More info here.
November 16: Brooklyn’s Pig Beach will soon be hosting a Memorial Party for Carl Ruiz, who passed away recently. The #ruizingforacause event will feature several top pitmasters from around the city and country, all making fantastic barbecue. It will serve as the launch of the #ruizingforacause Foundation that will be focused on two causes close to Carl’s heart: the culinary world & those getting their start in it and funding research for finding a cure for Alzheimer’s. The event is 12 to 5 p.m., but VIP tickets will get you in the door one hour early. Buy tickets here.
January 18: The 10th Annual Beer Bourbon & BBQ Festival is leaving Manhattan after a decade of fun and heading to Brooklyn. A ticket buys you access to tasting great local barbecue, hot sauces, and tons of spirits. The “Beast Cage” will be back with exotic smoked meats, including alligator, lamb, bison, longhorn rounds, and much more. There will also be whole hog as well. Buy tickets here.
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