Big Apple Barbe-queue
Twenty-sixth Street between 5th and Madison Avenues was blocked off this past weekend for the 2nd Annual Big Apple Barbecue Block Party. Seven of the nation's top pitmasters were on hand, cooking up everything from pig snoot sandwiches to baby back ribs.
There's no misspelling in the title of this post -- the event attracted such huge crowds and the lines were so outrageously long that we didn't taste anything. We went on Sunday afternoon and quickly gave up when it looked like there was no hope for us. In fact, after a consolation lunch at nearby Mayrose (even Danny Meyer's Shake Shack was not ready for prime time), we passed back through Madison Square Park and saw that the organizers had actually stopped selling coupons (to redeem for food) at 3:00 p.m. due to the large turnout.
Related:
» Eyewitness reports, close-up photos, rants and raves. [eGullet]
» Early bird gets the brisket. [Walker New York: Eats]
» BBQ sandwiches and tattoos. [NYC Eats]
Blue Hill at Stone Barns
Although it is housed in a building that formerly served as a cow barn, the dining room of Blue Hill at Stone Barns has shed any sign of 
its former farmstead life in favor of a lofty, modernist design. With a high, vaulted ceiling criss-crossed by beams, the room, decorated in dark woods, earth tones, and soft gray upholstered chairs, exudes a relaxed quietude.
Blue Hill at Stone Barns, operated by the team behind Blue Hill in New York City, is located at the Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture, a non-profit devoted to sustainable food production. We capped an afternoon visiting the Center with dinner in the restaurant.
The unusual menu is divided into four categories: “Farm Eggs,” “From the Sea,” “Our Pasture,” and “Hudson Valley Pastures.” Choose any combination from any of the groups, our waiter instructed, and pay as you go (two courses [$46], three courses [$56], four courses [$66]). The dishes hover somewhere between appetizer and entrée size portions.
We were eager to taste some of the food that came directly from the farms at Stone Barns. At this early stage, in addition to vegetables, only eggs and chicken were available directly from the farm. The pork, lamb, and duck on the menu did not come from the property, but did have a Hudson Valley pedigree.
The restaurant has a massive wine list, but after spending the afternoon hiking around the grounds in the sun, we opted to cool off with beer.
My wife, Danielle, had an excellent shrimp cake followed by a chicken roulade served with asparagus, and roasted duck with wilted greens. As a first course, I had the mixed green salad -- 11 types of lettuces and herbs -- coated with a creamy dressing of warm eggs and lemonette. For my second course, I had braised Atlantic halibut, which was served with a meyer lemon and vodka sauce. The third and final course was braised bacon and roasted pig -- a few slices of succulent roast pork with an incredible cube of braised pork belly. The folks at Blue Hill seem to have a thing for braised pork belly, which, in their hands, is transformed into a meaty little layer cake of creamy fat and juicy pork.
While our dinner constituted an entirely pleasant evening, be sure to check out food writer Andrea Strong’s hilarious account of her rather bizarre dining experience at Blue Hill at Stone Barns. Luckily, we seemed to hit all of the restaurant’s high points while (unintentionally) navigating past any of the rough spots she and her companion experienced. If there was anything amiss, perhaps it was the service, which was a little jittery (after our second course -- and before our third -- the table was completely cleared, and we were handed dessert menus), but a shortcoming like this is to be expected in a brand new restaurant.
Blue Hill at Stone Barns, 630 Bedford Road, Pocantico Hills, New York (914.366.9600).
Agenda: 6/9 to 6/15
1. Joys, Sorrows, and Challenges of Living (Not Just Eating) Sustainably, a discussion led by Joan Gussow, author of This Organic Life: Confessions of a Suburban Homesteader, and chef Dan Barber, Wednesday, June 9, 6:00 p.m., at the Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture, 630 Bedford Road, Pocantico Hills. $100/dinner and discussion, $25/lecture only, advance registration required (914.366.6200).
2. Second Annual Big Apple Barbecue Block Party, featuring seven of the country's top pitmasters, live jazz and blues, and educational seminars, Saturday, June 12, and Sunday, June 13, 12:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m., at 26th Street between 5th and Madison Avenues and Madison Square Park.
3. Broadway Panhandler Yard Sale, prices discounted by up to 75 percent on selected cookware, Saturday, June 12, and Sunday, June 13, 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., at Broadway Panhandler, 477 Broome Street (212.966.3434).
4. Nieuwe Maatjes Herring at Grand Central Oyster Bar, the special herring from Holland are on the menu at Grand Central Oyster Bar through June 16. A tasting and book signing with author Russell Shorto will take place on Tuesday, June 14, at 6:00 p.m., at Grand Central Oyster Bar at Grand Central Terminal (212.490.6650). [via New York Post]
5. Taste of Times Square, annual outdoor food festival with tastings from over 50 Times Square restaurants, Monday, June 14, beginning at 5:00 p.m., at 46th Street between Broadway and 9th Avenue. Free admission, tastes cost $1 and up (212.768.1560).
Ongoing Events:
1. Chocolate, Coffee, Tea, a special exhibition of the utensils developed to serve these products when they were introduced through trade in the 17th century, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1000 Fifth Avenue at 82nd Street. The exhibition closes July 11, 2004 (212.535.7710).
2. Cookin': A Sizzling Entertainment, "a fast-paced kitchen percussion show combining comedy, rhythm, and non-verbal performance," at the Minetta Lane Theatre, 18 Minetta Lane (212.420.8000).
3. Beer Garden at the Brooklyn Historical Society, every Friday, 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., through August 27, at the Brooklyn Historical Society, 128 Pierrepont Street, Brooklyn. The Beer Garden is part of "100 Bottles of Beer on the Wall," an exhibition on the history of brewing in Brooklyn, on view through October 16 (718.222.4111).
A Visit to Baltimore: Navigating Past Cicadas Toward Crabs
We knew we were getting close to our destination when, exactly 156 miles south of New York City, we heard the distinct thud of a cicada that flew into the windshield of our car. We were just over the Maryland/Delaware border when the flying insects appeared, their wings fluttering, dive bombing into automobiles on Interstate 95. Pulling over at a nearby rest stop, you could hear the whirring, humming call of Brood X coming from the nearby woods. We were on our way to Baltimore, and the sight of the noisy beasts was a physical sign that we had entered into new territory.
Unified architecturally by the omnipresent rowhouse, Baltimore is divided into a series of small neighborhoods, each of which has a strong sense of place and personality. We stayed in Canton, on the Eastern edge of the city, and ventured into nearby Fell's Point, Federal Hill, and Mt. Vernon, as well as Hampden to the north.
Billed as "Charm City," Baltimore could also be nicknamed crab city for all of the crabby iconography visible on signs and advertisements around town, not to mention restaurants offering the crustaceans steamed and cracked or transformed into crab cakes. They enter your consciousness after 24 hours, and we had our fill on our last night. Click below for a few of the gastronomical highlights of our visit:
» Click to Launch Photo Gallery
Agenda Addenda: National Hunger Awareness Day
Today is National Hunger Awareness Day. To focus attention on the estimated 35 million Americans living in hunger, America's Second Harvest, a nationwide network of more than 200 food banks and food-rescue organizations, has launched One Big Table to share recipes as a way to build awareness of and raise funds for hunger relief.
America’s Second Harvest is collecting recipes in two ways: through an online recipe submission form and through benefit potluck dinners to raise funds.
Recipes submitted to America’s Second Harvest will be considered for inclusion in a cookbook edited by Molly O'Neill, and a portion of the proceeds will be donated to benefit hunger relief.
Agenda: 6/2 to 6/8
1. Beertasting Party, featuring nine different imported German beers presented by food historian Jeremy Parzen, with live German music, Wednesday, June 2, 7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m., at Loreley Restaurant & Biergarten, 7 Rivington Street. $17-27/person, tickets are limited (212.253.7077).
2. New York's Finest: Artisanal Cheeses & Wines of New York State, Thursday, June 3, at Agata & Valentina, 1505 First Avenue, $40/person (212.452.0690).
3. Cooking for Kings, a performance based on the life of eighteenth century chef Antonin Careme, through Sunday, June 6, at 59E59 Theatres, 59 East 59th Street, between Park and Madison Avenues. $30/person (212.753.5959).
4. Wines of Piemonte, wine class and tasting, Sunday June 6, 3:00 p.m., at Otto Enoteca Pizzeria, One Fifth Avenue. $35/person, reservations recommended (212.995.9559, ext. 10).
Ongoing Events:
1. Chocolate, Coffee, Tea, a special exhibition of the utensils developed to serve these products when they were introduced through trade in the 17th century, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1000 Fifth Avenue at 82nd Street. The exhibition closes July 11, 2004 (212.535.7710).
2. Cookin': A Sizzling Entertainment, "a fast-paced kitchen percussion show combining comedy, rhythm, and non-verbal performance," at the Minetta Lane Theatre, 18 Minetta Lane (212.420.8000).
3. Beer Garden at the Brooklyn Historical Society, every Friday, 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., through August 27, at the Brooklyn Historical Society, 128 Pierrepont Street, Brooklyn. Free with admission (718.222.4111).
Thank You
A big thanks to Emily Kaiser for guest editing The Food Section last week and filling us in on all sorts of gastronomical goings-on in Washington, D.C. -- a Moveable Feast of cicadas, crabs, bison, and shrimp grits.
You can find more of Ms. Kaiser's writing at her Web site, which contains recent articles, as well as a particularly useful Q & A section that even features instructions on how to make a DIY cherry pitter.
Thanks again!
