BBQgeek

Fette Sau - Brooklyn, NY

Almost four years ago my job began to take me into the NYC area for business.   Over the years I have gotten to sample mind bending yakitori, mediocre BBQ, Vietnamese/French mashups and true fine dining in Manhatttan.  I returned today from another visit to the City and have some very good news to share.  A rose grows in Brooklyn!  After years of searching, I found a BBQ restaurant in NYC worthy of a BBQgeek endorsement.  Fette Sau is located in the Williamsburg district of Brooklyn, NY.  Williamsburg is a trendy slice of the boroughs where bums and graffitti bump up against gourmet cheese shops, cutting edge music venues, high end trendy retail, and kick ass BBQ.  Unassuming and slightly difficult to locate from the sidewalk, Fette Sau strives to offer high quality, locally sourced and properly cooked beef and pork BBQ, homecooked sides, and a fully stocked bar.  From my slightly shakey and poorly shot video perspective, you can hopefully see that the masses agree that Fette Sau is bringing a quality product to the (picnic) table.  What follows is a photo diary with commentary on my Mother's Day meal at Fette Sau.  Continue reading Fette Sau - Brooklyn, NY here..... 

Barbacoa - Jamie Oliver & Adam Perry Lang (Updated)

Barbacoa opened a couple days ago and there are now links available for the menu as well as a bunch of other interesting reading.  The menu is diverse but does tend to lean in part on American BBQ staples presented in cheffed-up manner.  There is also a pretty interesting selection of seafood dishes to choose from.  I'll update this post one last time after the UK press delivers a few reviews for us to chew on.

British superchef Jamie Oliver and American BBQ guru Adam Perry Lang are just a few weeks away from opening the doors on their first joint partnership restaurant, Barbacoa, near St. Paul's  in London, UK.  Jamie has posted a few pictures on Twitter recently and it made me think it would be a good time to share them with you.  I interviewed Adam a few months ago and spoke with him about the restaurant concept.  I had wrongly assumed that Jamie had tapped Adam to bring American style BBQ to London.  Barbacoa is actually going to have a menu that offers live fire cooking styles and techniques from around the globe.  According to the Barbacoa website, the restaurant will also have a storefront selling meats butchered in-house as well as house cured meats.  Adam said that he and Jamie share the same culinary viewpoint in sourcing high quality ingredients from local, natural or organic producers and then treating those ingredients with attention and care to arrive at a delicious conclusion.  I think London has something to be quite excited about when they throw open the doors in a few weeks on Barbacoa.   

Daisy May BBQ Cart - NYC

 

A couple weeks ago I had the opportunity to travel to NYC for the day for business.  On my last visit to NYC two years ago, I published this review of Virgil's BBQ.  I had hoped to steal out for a meal on this most recent trip to Daisy May BBQ.  Time was tight, and I only had time to visit their BBQ cart located on 50th between 6th & 7th.  Daisy May's cart has a quaint character compared to several of the other hot dog/gyro/etc. carts I saw in NYC.  I was really excited to sample Daisy May's BBQ because the restaurant is owned by one of my favorite BBQ chefs, Adam Perry Lang.  I've included Adam's cookbook, Serious Barbecue, several times on my blog because I think it is very well written and has a viewpoint on cooking and presenting smoked meats that really resonates with me.  So, I was really hoping that the Daisy May BBQ cart would blow my socks off and prove that Northerners can cook BBQ.  Continue reading Daisy May BBQ Cart - NYC here.....

Seeger spotted at Community Q

 

pictured left to right - chefs Guenter Seeger (Seeger's) and Todd Immel (Star Provisions/Bacchanalia)

Like a thief in the night, Atlanta's dearly departed, one and only five star chef Guenter Seeger stole into Atlanta today for lunch at David Robert's  Community Q and followed it up with a meal at Shaun Doty's  Yeah! Burger.  

Dave Poe's BBQ - Marietta, GA

 
 

Barbecue brings people together.  Friends and family gather at the table to eat, laugh, and talk while enjoying pulled pork, ribs, brisket, chicken and delicious side dishes.  But for some families, barbecue is more than just a great meal.  Dave Poe of Marietta, GA embodies the idea of barbecue as a way of life.  Dave's family has been in the barbecue business for many years.  Dave got his start in barbecue with his father, catering and competing around the state with Stump and Sons BBQ.   Atlanta magazine recently recognized Dave Poe's BBQ  as some of the best barbecue in the city and the best cole slaw overall.

The  accolades in Atlanta magazine are just a friendly reminder of the quality barbecue served on a daily basis at Dave Poe's.   Over the past few years, Dave has earned glowing reviews from the Atlanta Journal Constitution and a devoted word-of-mouth following that keeps his restaurant packed for every lunch and dinner.  I recently stopped by to visit my best friend and mentor to grab a bite and some photos to share with each of you to remind you why you should make it a point to stop by and enjoy some of the fantastic food available at Dave Poe's BBQ.

continue reading Dave Poe's BBQ here....

Cochon 555 - Atlanta, GA

Pork liver pate with apple jelly from 2010 winner Sean Brock of McCrady's of Charleston, SC at Cochon 555.

Cochon 555, a multi-city, national event celebrating the cultivation of heritage breed hogs, rolled into Atlanta, GA this past Sunday.  It was my second pork-themed event in less than a month.  You may have already read my write up of the Southern Foods Pig Out in the Park.  What can I say?  I'm a lucky guy.  The basic premise of Cochon 555 is to assemble five of the best regional chefs, give them each a 175 lb. heritage breed pig to cook, and let the assembled masses enjoy the fruits of their labors.  Joining these five chefs are five wineries showcasing their wines.  So, the 555 equals 5 hogs, 5 wines, and 5 chefs.  Simple enough.  Atlanta's Cochon 555 took place at the downtown W hotel.  Several hundred foodies, food critics, and bloggers turned out to indulge in everything fine about swine (did I really just make that horrible rhyme?).  I've assembled a simple photo essay with minimal commentary to describe the event for you.  Enjoy.  Continue reading Cochon 555 - Atlanta, GA here....
 

Judge's Table - Southern Foods' Pig Out In the Park

Pictured from left to right are a few of the chefs, as well as one judge, that participated in Southern Foods' Pig Out in the Park - Jose Hernandez and Matt Swickerath (Valenza), Shane Touhy (Dogwood), Allan Benton (Benton's Hams), Stephen Herman and Guillermo Hernandez (Haven)

Twelve chefs from some of Atlanta's best restaurants gathered yesterday at the Park Tavern in Piedmont Park to participate in Southern Foods' Pig Out in the Park, a food industry showcase featuring a pork cookoff.  The participating restaurants included Holeman and Finch, 4th and Swift, Haven, Rathbun's, Dogwood, Valenza, JCT kitchen, Serpas True Food, Speakeasy, Parker's on Ponce, Two Urban Licks, and Miltons.  The pork cookoff was judged by Allan Benton, David Roberts, and me.  Allan is famous throughout the American culinary world for crafting some of the highest quality artisinal country hams in the world at his smokehouse in Tennessee, Benton's Hams.  David Roberts is a the chef and partner in Atlanta's most recent barbecue darling, Community Q.  Me?  I run a little BBQ blog, and I'm still trying to figure out how I managed to be lucky enough to land a seat at the judges table.  Chefs, line cooks, service professionals, and restaurant owners all stopped by the Park Tavern to sample all manner of foodstuffs from some of Southern Foods top line vendors, as well as taste dishes from all twelve of the competing restaurants.  Continue reading Judge's Table - Southern Foods' Pig Out in the Park here....

Pig Out at the Park - March 23,2010

Southern Foods will be sponsoring an event for food industry professionals at the Park Tavern in Piedmont Park, Atlanta, GA, on March 23rd from 3pm to 8pm to highlight their services and products.  Pig out at the Park will feature a BBQ cookoff competition between 13 of Atlanta's top chefs.  The competition will be judged by Allan Benton of Benton's Hams, David Roberts of Community Q, and yours truly (the BBQgeek!).  Here is the lineup of competing chefs:

1    Rathbun's  - Kevin Rathbun 
2    Dogwood Restaurant  -    Shane Touhy   
3    Serpas True Food  -   Scott Serpas  
4    Two Urban Licks   -   Cameron Thompson   
5    Holeman and Finch  - Jason and Ryan
6    4th and Swift  -  Jay Swift  
7    Miltons  -   Boyd Rose  
8    Haven  -    Stephen Herman
9    Valenza  -    Matt Swickerath
10   JCT Kitchen   -    Ford Fry   
11   Speakeasy  - Wes Chapman   
12   Prestige Gourmet   - Robert Guillou
13   Parker's on ponce   - David Hartshorn

The Pit - Raleigh, NC

 

Business took me to Durham, NC this past week, but it was my love of great BBQ that took me to downtown Raleigh to visit Ed Mitchell's retaurant, The Pit.   Ed is one of the true superstars of the BBQ world.  He has been featured many times on TV, including the Today show and Throwdown with Bobby Flay (in which he beat Bobby in a spare rib contest).  Ed is not only famous for his traditional NC style BBQ but also for his belief in cooking with local and sustainable vegetables and meat.  Ed has organized a co-op of local hog farmers that raises free range hogs (I was told they eat better than most humans) which he then uses for the BBQ in his restaurant.  He also sources his vegetables in the same manner.  In addition to fantastic BBQ and vegetables, the wine and beer selections are better than most high end restaurants I've visited.  I've spent a lot of time in this blog talking about the idea of taking BBQ to the next level and presenting it in a quasi-fine dining format.  Unquestionably, The Pit is the closest I have come to seeing that idea manifested.  Continue reading The Pit - Raleigh, NC here...

Top Chef Loves Community Q!!!

Pictured left to right - Mike Fincham, Eli Kirshtein, Jim Laber, Jennifer Carroll, Kevin Gillespie, Bryan Voltaggio, Michael Isabella.

Despite the cold weather, five of the contestants in Top Chef 6 gathered in a parking lot in downtown ATL to engage in a little tailgate festivity before the Falcons v. Eagles game at the Georgia Dome.  According to Eli, this mini-reunion had been planned since last June.  Tailgates are all about food and friends.  It's obvious that the Top Chef alum really enjoy each other's company, and Eli and company chose  Community Q  to provide a BBQ spread for the pre-game.  Jim Laber and I showed up (without David Roberts who had cooked every last morsel of this delicious food but had to stay behind to run Community Q) with a full spread of pulled pork, brisket, chicken, ribs, cole slaw, mac-and-cheese, brunswick stew, and beans.  Eli and his way-too-awesome parents provided the Pabst Blue Ribbon and some great stories.  I'm very happy to say that everyone loved the BBQ and had a great time.  It was a great day for Community Q.    As far as Top Chef gossip goes, I was very jealous to learn that the Top Chef crew had done a culinary tour de force of Atlanta restaurants the night before, including Pricci, Eno (Eli), Pura Vida (Hector), and Woodfire Grill (Kevin), and Holeman & Finch.  Past that, I've got no gossip for you.  We hung out, drank PBR, and ate delicious BBQ.  Good times and good people.