Tikkun BBQ Helps Queens Community With Barbecue Pop-Ups
Tikkun BBQ hosted a whole hog pop-up this past weekend. (Photo by Sean Ludwig)
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For more than a year, Queens-based pitmaster Eli Goldman has been hosting barbecue pop-ups under the name Tikkun BBQ. Goldman came seemingly out of nowhere, hosting small pop-ups by himself. But today he has many volunteers helping him and long lines waiting to try his food.
What has set Tikkun BBQ apart from other barbecue operations is that Goldman has used the pop-ups primarily as a vehicle to raise money for community causes, many in the borough of Queens. Goldman has raised over $85,000 to date for nonprofits and causes, including funds for feeding the less fortunate, libraries, social justice organizations, mutual aid groups, and more.
Last weekend, I finally got to stop by one of Tikkun BBQ’s popups, held at SingleCut Beersmiths in Astoria. The event featured delicious whole hog barbecue, made with help from pitmaster Matt Fisher of Queens Custom Barbecue. It raised money for The People's Bodega mutual aid fund.
Eli Goldman is the founder of Tikkun BBQ. (Photo by Amanda DiMartino.)
I spoke with Goldman this week to ask him more about how Tikkun BBQ got started, his barbecue influences, and what he’s working on next. The conversation below has been edited lightly for clarity.
Sean Ludwig (SL): A lot of people’s barbecue journeys start in childhood. Where did you grow up and was cooking a big part of your household?
Eli Goldman (EG): I grew up in Florida until age 10. And then my mom got remarried and we moved to New Jersey. After college in New Jersey, I lived around the country doing AmeriCorps. Most recently, I’ve lived in Astoria for about six years. ... I grew up in a Jewish household where my mother cooked a lot, and she was a huge cook for holiday dinners like Shabbat. So it was not a traditional barbecue upbringing but there was a lot of food.
SL: It sounds like your mother influenced you a lot. Is that right?
EG: My siblings and I grew up in a single-parent household for a while so it was a necessity to help my mom. She raised three kids for a while by herself. She never really took us out because she was frugal, but our way of eating well was cooking well. … I couldn't imagine Tikkun BBQ existing without my mom, because I think what she did without realizing it or not was using food as a way to keep family together and to help other people. She's never turned anyone away and that's a huge part of what this is for me. [Check out Eli’s mother’s Instagram here to see her cooking and baking in action.]
The beef ribs at the recent pop-up were delicious. (Photo by Sean Ludwig)
SL: Where does the name Tikkun BBQ come from?
EG: “Tikkun olam” is a Jewish idea of doing your part to help the world, so that's why I picked it for my barbecue pop-up name. A lot of people don't know that, and especially if you're not Jewish. Sometimes Jewish people come to the pop-ups and they say they know what it means. ... This project really for me is emblematic of the belief that it's my duty to do what I can to make the world a better place than how I found it.
SL: And the Tikkun Olam concept goes well with raising money for various community causes.
EG: Yes, we’ve raised money for all kinds of things that help the community in some way. We’ve had events where gave away all of our food for free to people who needed it. We’ve raised money for City Harvest. … We've even donated to Dave's Lesbian Bar, which is a group of lesbians trying to open up their own bar. There are only a few lesbian bars in all of New York, which is insane. So it’s about donating to causes that I care about and benefit the community.
A volunteer slices brisket and serves whole hog to people waiting in line. (Photo by Sean Ludwig)
SL: When did you start barbecuing?
EG: I’ve only started in May of 2020. After I graduated from grad school, I got myself an 18-inch Weber Smokey Mountain. I think I used it once or twice and it was sitting on my balcony. And at some point, I realized, “I can make barbecue and sell it and donate all the money.” So originally, early in the pandemic, I was doing it from my balcony and lowering it in a basket to people on the sidewalk. And it was kind of crazy because, at some point, there was a line of three people waiting down below, waiting for a basket full of ribs.
SL: It sounds sort of like a comedy sketch, “I’m just lowering down my basket of ribs” to people.
EG: There was definitely a comedic element to me. I was baking bread and lowering it in the basket like I was Rapunzel. And then I switched to barbecue and people would call me “meat Rapunzel.”
Tikkun BBQ uses limited equipment but still makes some great barbecue items. (Photo by Sean Ludwig)
SL: And at some point, you graduated from balcony pickups to big pop-ups on the street.
EG: Yes, we’ve grown a lot and struggling right now because we can't keep up with demand. Which is why we brought in Matt Fisher for my most recent event because he has a bigger smoker on a trailer. We are now using two 22-inch Weber Smokey Mountains. We had a Weber 18-inch but that got stolen at my first pop-up, so then I upgraded to two 22 inches. I remember meeting [pitmaster Ash Fulk] at Hill Country and when he like heard my setup, he thought I was insane. But yeah, that’s what we’re using now.
SL: Despite the limited equipment, the food has been quite good, especially the whole hog and beef ribs at the last pop-up. Where did you learn and who have been your influences?
EG: Rodney Scott and Aaron Franklin. Both of their books have influenced my cooking and techniques. I also identify with Rodney Scott because of the [fraught] relationship he has with his father. I like how, despite all challenges in your personal life, you can just put that bullshit aside, and turn out for people.
The whole hog, made by Tikkun BBQ and Queens Custom Barbecue last weekend, was a hit. (Photo by Sean Ludwig)
SL: What does the future of Tikkun BBQ look like?
EG: The future for us right now is taking it step by step. Sometimes people will ask if we’re going to open a restaurant, and honestly, I have no idea. Right now, I work full time at City Harvest and the rest of us all work full-time too. … But we're having fun doing these once or twice a month and we like helping people.
SL: The future also involves some better equipment. You just started fundraising to help you and your crew get a bigger smoker.
EG: We're definitely ready for the next step. So for the immediate future, we're looking to raise $60,000 to get a serious dual setup. We’d like to get a 500-gallon pit, maybe a Santa Maria grill on the other side of the trailer, and a pick-up truck. [Check out the new GoFundMe campaign here.]
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Thanks to Goldman for chatting and for helping raise money for community causes in NYC and Queens. If you want to visit one of his pop-ups for a cause, see the full schedule for the rest of the year here.
Sean Ludwig
Founder, NYC BBQ
EAT ALL ABOUT IT
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Here are the top BBQ and related food news stories you need to know about this week:
Fellow BBQ newsletter The Smoke Sheet (subscribe here) spotlighted five amazing barbecue sauces in this week’s issue. Two of the sauces are local to the area — NJ-based BBQ Buddha’s Memphis Mop sauce and NYC-based Pure Grit BBQ’s Vegan BBQ Sauce. If you like BBQ sauce, both of these are worthy of checking out. Memphis Mop is ideal for your meats, while Pure Grit’s sauce is meant for your veggies. READ MORE.
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IRL BBQ AND FOOD EVENTS
The NYC Food & Wine Festival’s popular Backyard BBQ event will be back this October with a full lineup of great pitmasters.
Here are the top BBQ and related food events coming soon to the New York metro area:
October 1, 2021: Sample hard cider and snacks at Food Karma’s annual CiderFeast event this weekend. The sampling event will kick off Cider Week New York in style with tastings from twenty cidermakers based in New York and beyond. The all-inclusive event will also feature snacks like bread, cheese, and apple pie plus amazing 41-month aged ham from Dakota Hams. VIP and General Admission tickets are on sale now. BUY TICKETS HERE.
October 14-17, 2021: The New York City Wine & Food Festival will return in a more limited format this fall. It will see the return of the “Burger Bash” hosted by Rachael Ray and the “Backyard BBQ” hosted by Andrew Zimmern. BBQ lovers will certainly enjoy both the Burger Bash and Backyard BBQ, but other fun events will be held too. BUY TICKETS HERE.
October 16-17, 2021: The 8th Annual Hot Sauce Expo NYC will be back for two days in fall 2021. The event will be held at the Brooklyn Expo Center in Greenpoint and will feature tons of hot sauce samples, barbecue, and beer to purchase, fun on-stage events, and more. BUY TICKETS HERE.
October 23, 2021: The Bowl of 'Zole Pozole and Mezcal Festival from Food Karma Projects celebrates pozole and mezcal by bringing excellent chefs and top importers together in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The second annual Bowl of ‘Zole will take place on Saturday, October 23. There will be outdoor and indoor spaces to enjoy food and beverages. BUY TICKETS HERE.
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