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Wildwoods BBQ, on the southern end of the Jersey Shore, opened in 2021 and offers an eclectic, delicious menu that pushes the boundaries of barbecue.

Nearly a thousand people came to Industry City in Brooklyn to kick off their Memorial Day weekend with Rib King NYC 2024, with Staten Island’s Empire BBQ taking the top prize.

Pitmaster Leland Avellino of Connecticut-based Avellino Family Barbecue has been wowing audiences at Brisket King NYC for years. He was finally crowned the Brisket King of NYC after serving perfect brisket sandwiches to the masses.

Anthony Scerri of NYC-based BBQ operation Smoke Sweats visited Austin, Texas, and wrote about the best BBQ he ate.

Here are some of the best BBQ bites I ate in the New York City area in 2023, including from Kimchi Smoke, Hometown BBQ, Morgan’s Brooklyn BBQ, Blue Smoke, and more.

FireFly Barbecue’s Smoked Jalapeño Jam wins the top prize at Sauce King NYC 2023, plus NYC Metro winners, best barbecue sauces, best hot sauces, and link to buy them all.

Barbecue, beer, and bourbon lovers in the NYC area will soon have the chance to enjoy all three at the 13th annual Beer Bourbon & BBQ Festival. This year’s event will take place on Saturday, July 8, 2023, at Industry City in Brooklyn.

Hundreds of barbecue fans gathered at Industry City in Brooklyn for Rib King NYC 2023 to try great smoked meats from 15+ pitmasters and to see who would be crowned as the next “king.” Pitmaster Jose Perez from Connecticut-based Bear’s Smokehouse was crowned the winner, with amazing smoked pork ribs.

The 2023 Rib King NYC event will take place Saturday, May 27, at Industry City in Brooklyn. The event, produced by Food Karma Projects, will feature some of the best NYC restaurants and pitmasters' pork and beef ribs.

On Wednesday night, a new Brisket King was crowned. The team behind newcomer Wildwoods BBQ in North Wildwood, NJ, won both the top prize and People’s Choice trophies at Brisket King NYC at Pig Beach Queens.

In barbecue, smoke and fire are transformative agents. Without smoke and fire, the fat in the meat will never melt, there will be no smoky flavor, and the bark will have no crunch. It just doesn’t work without the smoke. The smoke in my home yesterday was also transformative.

The owners of Pig Beach restaurant operation announced this week that its Brooklyn location would abruptly close at the end of the year after its building was sold.

For the past two years, pitmaster Ruben Santana of Bark Barbecue has made a name for himself by slinging some of NYC’s best barbecue at Smorgasburg and other pop-ups. Now he’s taking a big step forward by moving his operation into the Time Out Market in Brooklyn.

Morgan’s Brooklyn Barbecue — a longtime staple of the NYC barbecue scene — had to close following a devastating three-alarm fire in January 2021. The restaurant will finally reopen in late October 2023 with a revamped space and a new menu full of delicious-looking items.

Following his big win at the Pig Island NYC food event, pitmaster Robert Austin Cho of Kimchi Smoke has opened a new restaurant with exclusive BBQ items in Ridgewood, NJ.

The annual Pig Island NYC event at Snug Harbor on Staten Island featured incredible food and was won by long-time competitor Robert Austin Cho of NJ-based Kimchi Smoke.

The Food Network New York City Wine & Food Festival (NYCWFF), one of the city’s largest annual culinary events, will return to the city on Oct. 13-16 with tons of tastings. Once again, burger and barbecue fans will especially want to keep their eyes on two of its largest sessions — the Blue Moon Burger Bash on Thursday, October 13, and the Backyard BBQ on Sunday, October 16.

Pig Island NYC, one of the New York area’s top annual barbecue events, will take place in September 2022 and feature more than 20 chefs and pitmasters from around the country cooking up creative pork-based main dishes.

Ray Sheehan, aka BBQ Buddha, spoke with us about his new NJ restaurant called Ray’s Roadside Kitchen and his wins at Sauce King NYC.