You Don't Want to Miss Brisket King NYC 2020
Juicy Lucy BBQ stunned at last year’s Brisket King NYC with its perfect brisket.
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As the weather starts to warm up, it’s time to start planning what barbecue events you should head to in the spring and summer. One of my favorite events of the year, Brisket King NYC, is one such festival that you should have on your calendar and an important staple in the NYC BBQ community.
On April 22, Brisket King NYC 2020 will bring together 20 restaurants and pitmasters from New York, New Jersey, and around the country. Held in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, the event will also feature beer, wine, and spirits as well. One newcomer to look out for is Mike Johnson, the pitmaster at Sugarfire Smokehouse in St. Louis, Missouri. Johnson has helped create a popular craft barbecue chain that is expanding nationwide and makes a mean brisket.
Buy tickets to Brisket King NYC 2020 here. (I would strongly advise buying soon because early-bird tickets cost less.)
Brisket King offers pitmasters a chance to show their barbecue skills in a big way.
One of the biggest stories from last year’s Brisket King NYC was Staten Island’s Juicy Lucy BBQ winning despite not even having its restaurant open yet. Juicy Lucy BBQ will be back at this year’s event to defend its crown, so we will see if their team can dominate again.
Robert Austin Cho of Kimchi Smoke and Richie Holmes of Juicy Lucy BBQ will be back this year.
The lineup for the year’s Brisket King is top-notch, with pitmasters and restaurants including:
Matt Abdoo & Shane McBride, Pig Beach NYC (Brooklyn)
Mike Johnson, Sugarfire Smokehouse (St. Louis, MO)
Richie Holmes, Juicy Lucy BBQ (Staten Island)
Robert Austin Cho, Kimchi Smoke (New Jersey)
Ash Fulk, Hill Country BBQ (Manhattan)
Leland Averino, Dinosaur Bar-B-Que (Stamford, CT)
Matthew Worgul, Gentle Giant Brewing Company (Rockland County, NY)
Cenobio Canalizo, Morgan’s Brooklyn Barbecue (Brooklyn)
Phil Wingo, PorkMafia (Chicago)
Carlos Castillo, Martín E Moliné, & Fernando Campo, Carlitos Tacos (New Jersey)
Mike Magyarosi, Main House BBQ (Brooklyn)
Rohan Aggarwal, Suraj Patel, Cesar Torres, & Louis Santos, Queen’s Bully (Queens)
Timothy Smith, Tim's Barbecue (Pennsylvania)
Matthew Deaton, Smoked Provisions (Virginia)
Kevin Roth, La Estacion (Puerto Rico)
Jesse Jones, Pow: My Life in 40 Feasts (New Jersey)
Evan Burrows & Roberto Pastrano, RITIS BBQ (New Jersey)
Look for new takes on brisket like this stunner from Kimchi Smoke last year.
Event organizer Jimmy Carbone expects there will be even more restaurants representing by the time event day rolls around. Carbone told me he’s proud of the chefs and pitmasters he’s been able to assemble this year.
I’m looking forward to the brisket buffet of a lifetime on April 22 and hope to see you all there. Don’t forget to buy tickets before the price goes up!
Sean Ludwig
Founder, NYC BBQ
EAT ALL ABOUT IT
Here are the top BBQ and related food news stories you need to know about this week:
The hosts of Baseball and BBQ podcast, who I dined with last year, were profiled by the Long Island Herald.
The Long Island Herald recently profiled Leonard Aberman and Jeff Cohen, the hosts of the Baseball and BBQ podcast. Aberman and Cohen interview all sorts of people from the baseball and barbecue world on their show, including yours truly and Ryan Cooper aka BBQ Tourist. You can listen to my latest interview with Baseball and BBQ podcast here.
Many businesses in the New York City area, including restaurants, will be affected by the new plastic bag ban designed to cut down on plastic waste. Notable exceptions to the rule include single-use plastic bags for items including uncooked meat and prepared food, and restaurants are allowed to provide plastic bags for takeout.
The 125-year-old steakhouse Gage & Tollner will officially reopen in downtown Brooklyn on Sunday, March 15. The new iteration of the joint will have three owners and 375 crowdfunded investors and its new menu will feature bone-in ribeye, oysters, pork pot pie, and other classics.
ODBQ, a barbecue joint in Ambridge, Penn, will reopen for business soon after a four-month absence. As written about in a previous newsletter, pitmaster and owner James Odell closed the popular joint so he could care for his ailing mother in New York. His mother is doing “extremely well” now and he’s looking forward to getting back to his loyal customers.
Jersey Shore BBQ in Belmar was spotlighted recently by food writer Pete Genovese as being one of the restaurants in “N.J.’s best strip mall for food.” Genovese notes that “strip mall food doesn’t get much respect,” but many of these joints on the list provide dining excellence.
Mission BBQ in York City is being saluted by the Pennsylvania State Troopers Association for supporting the family of an injured trooper. After Trooper Jason Brindle was shot during a traffic stop recently, the restaurant provided free barbecue for family members, troopers and hospital staff and also delivered food to the trooper’s home. Trooper Brindle was released from the hospital Monday and is expected to make a full recovery, reports the York Dispatch.
The Rev. J. Henry Buck, Jr. of Grace Baptist Church of Germantown, Penn. has launched a new barbecue business called Southern Flames that he hopes will help him connect with his community in a new way.
IRL BBQ
Here are the top BBQ and related food events coming soon to the New York metro area:
The 2020 NYC Beer and Bacon Classic will be held in early April in Brooklyn.
Saturday, April 11, 2020: Don't miss the 2020 NYC Bacon and Beer Classic in April. The event, at the Brooklyn Expo Center in Greenpoint, will turn into a foodie paradise filled with decadent bacon dishes, free-flowing craft beer, and games. Cheer on NYC's fiercest foodies as they go head to head in the Hormel Black Label Bacon Eating Contest, challenge your friends in cornhole, ride a bacon seesaw, and more. Buy tickets here.
Saturday, April 18, 2020: Mark your calendars for the Jeff Michner BBQ Benefit 2020 at Pig Beach. Following the successful 2019 version of the event, this will feature many of the top pitmasters from around the country at Pig Beach in Brooklyn. Read about the 2019 edition of the Jeff Michner BBQ benefit here and tickets for 2020 can be purchased here.
April 18 - 19, 2020: The 8th Annual Hot Sauce Expo NYC will be back for two days in 2020. The event will be held at the Brooklyn Expo Center in Greenpoint and features tons of hot sauce samples, barbecue and beer to purchase, fun on-stage events, and more. Buy tickets here.
Wednesday, April 22, 2020: If you love brisket, you won’t want to miss Brisket King NYC 2020 in April. More than 15 chefs and pitmasters will be there serving up their best takes on brisket, pastrami, and more. Early bird ticket sales are available now, so get them before prices go up! Read about the last edition of Brisket King to get a better sense of the event. Buy tickets here.
April 25 - 26, 2020: If you are near Farmingdale, New Jersey, you won’t want to miss out on the 5th Annual Allaire BBQ and Beer Fest, which will feature two days of hops and hogs. The event will feature BBQ, a beer/wine garden, food trucks, crafts, and children’s activities. Buy tickets here.
Saturday, May 2, 2020: Love wings and beer and are willing to travel to Queens? Then make sure you grab a ticket to The Forest Hills Wing Fest, which will be held at the Forest Hills Biergarten at Cobblestones Pub. Lots of NYC's top wing joints will be serving their finest and drinks will be flowing too. Buy tickets here.
Looking for more events? Check out the full NYC BBQ calendar here.
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