This weekend, Madison Square Park will be filled with the sweet smell of smoked flesh, as the ninth annual Big Apple Barbecue Block Party rolls into town. We spoke to pitmaster Ed Mitchell last week about his plans for the gut-busting party, and today we're checking in with a few of the other pitmasters (there's 16 total—that's a lot of meat). more ›

Wondering where the smell of grilled meat is coming from? You should probably point your snout to Madison Square Park. This weekend is the 7th annual Big Apple Barbecue Block Party (so popular that their website is even down, but here's a pdf map). You can get your fill of food — whole hog, brisket, pork shoulder, ribs and sausages — for $8 a plate from 15 different pitmasters until 7pm tonight. Proceeds from the weekend benefit the Madison Square Park Conservancy. more ›

What do you get when you combine bacon, peanut butter and bananas? If you answered a stomachache then you may wish to stop reading this entry and go indulge in a rice cake or two. If not, then you probably know that those are the ingredients in one of Elvis Presley's favorite sandwiches. more ›

Down at the Big Apple Barbecue Block Party Sunday it sure seemed that everybody was having a grand ole' time. It seemed bigger than ever, with people spilled into every nook and cranny of the park, filed into a long row of picnic tables on Madison, and splayed out on to the sidewalk everywhere else. Our group was made of up veterans of the previous four events, had the lay of the land and knew many of the returning players. Everyone had an opinion, but when all was said and done, we enjoyed a delicious day of barbecue. more ›

through June 18: 1996 at Rain more ›

We've been there from the beginning: the first, and the second, so it goes without saying that when we found out about the 3rd Annual Big Apple Barbecue Block Party, we knew we'd be going. But, we'll admit that last year, even though we were ultimately placated by some of the best barbecue in the country, we were pretty annoyed by the crowds and the lines. Apparently, we weren't the only ones. This year brought some welcome changes, including moving the event from the North side of Madison Park to the East side, providing more space and room for four additional pitmasters (hooray!), and creating the "Bubba Fast Pass" option, a VIP card which allowed cardholders and a guest to access the barbecue tents through a separate entrance, with little to no waiting involved. more ›

June 9th: The Rosés of Summer more ›

Two food events of note over the next few days. Don't let a little snow keep you away! more ›

Fall is in the air, bringing with it a handful of new restaurant openings. Both the Daily News and New York Magazine have released their Fall preview lists to get us ready for the season. Gothamist has whittled down the lists to create our own short list of places we'd like to hit first: more ›

If you missed the Big Apple Barbecue Block Party, and BBQ NYC and Blues, BBQ & Fireworks, you can still eat your fill this weekend at the Brooklyn Brewery this Sunday from 1 to 5 pm. For a $45 donation, which supports cancer diagnostics through Patient Focus, you can enjoy unlimited beer, award-winning barbecue from Big Island BBQ, authentic key lime pies, and music. more ›

We were a little worried about the rain, and were in no mood for crowds like the ones at the Big Apple Barbecue Block Party, so we headed over to Blues, BBQ and Fireworks on Pier 54 on the early side to get our meat fix for the day. Thankfully, the lines were minimal so we headed over to Daisy May's BBQ USA for our first stop -- some Kansas City Sweet and Sticky Pork Ribs and a Carolina Pulled Pork sandwich. When we stopped to say hello to Daisy May's Adam Perry Lang, he was chatting with Chris O'Neill from Virgil's Real BBQ. more ›

City Rag tipped us off to another annual NYC barbecue event. Gothamist has attended the Big Apple Barbecue Block Party this year and last year, but we haven't yet made it to BBQ NYC, which was held on July 24th in Flushing Meadows Park. City Rag was able to interview the founder of the event, Travis Mills, and take some mouthwatering pictures which makes us even more sad that we weren't there. We'll be sure to go next year, thanks to CityRag's following tips:

- go to the official website for information on how to attend and to get on the mailing list BBQ-NYC.com (and there will be pix and updates about the event there in the coming days) more ›

We don't know the exact numbers yet, but Gothamist overheard Paul Kirk, of K.C. Baron say that he went through 1600 pounds of meat on Saturday and 1500 today. Whoa. [Tien has some great photos of Paul Kirk here.] His ribs (above) were quite delicious, but we couldn't try just one kind of 'cue, could we? more ›

There will be jazz and seminars, as well as lots of delicious food. Gothamist thinks the big event will be Saturday's All-Star Barbecue Sauce Tasting that has authors and gourmands Jeffrey Steingarten and Calvin Trillin putting their palates on the line, with Colman Andrews of Saveur moderating. You buy tickets that will let you purchase all sorts of 'cue and fixins' - we couldn't find any info on the sit, but expect to spend around $10-20 (depending on how big your appetite is and how much beer you want to drink). All proceeds go to the Madison Square Park Conservancy and VH1 Save the Music. more ›

It's taken a month to calculate exactly how much was eaten at the 1st Annual Big Apple Barbecue Block Party, but here are the numbers: more ›

Gothamist was wearing a sweater and puffy coat during this week in June. There are so many things wrong with that. Anyway... more ›

What do you do if you love barbecue, can recognize obscure though notable writers, and have no qualms about introducing yourself? If you're me, you find yourself at the 1st Annual Big Apple Barbecue Block Party, hands sticky from eating a pulled pork sandwich, debating the best way to approach famed food raconteur Jeffrey Steingarten. more ›

Big Apple Barbecue
Gothamist tries barbecue from around the country without leaving Manhattan. more ›

Last week... more ›