Big Apple BBQ Block Party 2008 REMINDER!!

Just a friendly reminder that in approximately 12 hours BBQ madness will be in full effect on the island of Manhattan. The event will take place at Madison Square Park (home of the Shake Shack) on 23rd and Madison on both Saturday and Sunday from noon to 6 pm. Be prepared for some loooooooooooong lines. Fastpasses, which cost $100 and allow express line access, have been sold out. Some might be available if you show up early. Plates cost $8, sides and desserts $2 to $4 and beverages $2 to $6. Bless whoever can eat $100 worth of grub.

The list of pitmasters and their offerings is on the site (see bottom). Still on my cowboy shit, I'm primarily interested in brisket and beef ribs, and possibly some sausage. According to the list only several stands will be serving beef, 1 of them being from NYC, and another from Connecticut. It's pointless to eat from the local restaurants when you can go anytime. I might have to put Fairfield, CT in the same category since the ride up there is only about an hour. I figure I can get in 2 plates before retiring uptown- between the lines and the sweltering heat- we're talking 90 plus- it's got to be done quickly. Take care of business and bounce. My hitlist includes The Salt Lick BBQ from Driftwood, TX serving brisket and sausage, possibly Mr. Cecil's California Ribs serving beef ribs, and Mike Mills of 17th Street Bar & Grill and Memphis Championship Barbecue from Vegas serving babyback ribs- a 3x BBQ world champ. I prefer babyback to spareribs. There's a bunch of pulled and chopped pork, but as of now, they look like a pass. The Fairfield, CT participant, Wilson's BBQ, serving Texas style brisket is the wildcard. As I said, it's only an hour away so they're cooking has to be on some "you sexy motherfucker damn what's the recipe" steez if I'm going to patronize. Or the line has to be short. Who knows- the shit might be delicious coming in like Casino Drive killing Big Brown's Triple Crown dreams. I mean, my money's on Texas at the end of the day.



Big Mahalo thanks to the little brother for bringing the ceremonial BBQ garb straight from hallowed Hawaiian ground. Hopefully it has the opposite effect of Bobby's tiki on Brady Bunch and allows me to eat everything in site without having to empty the system. Not sure if I mentioned this in the Shake Shack review, but right outside of the park on Madison Ave., 30 feet north of 23rd Street there is a self-cleaning restroom that costs a quarter. About time NYC started treating us civilly.

And a little theme music...

Main Source - Live at the Barbeque ft. Nas, Joe Fatal and Akinyele

GET ALL INFO HERE:

Big Apple BBQ Block Party