2010 Vendy Award Winners!

The 2010 Vendy Awards were this weekend, and Little Scarlet was lucky enough to get in for free – as a volunteer, of course. People in-the-know think of the Vendys as one of New York’s great foodie events, where the best street vendors of the city converge on one location for an all day extravaganza of international foods and inventive desserts. But what a lot of people aren’t aware of is that the Vendy Awards are a fundraiser for New York’s nonprofit, Urban Justice Center – more specifically, proceeds benefit Urban Justice’s Street Vendor Project, which helps fight for the rights of over 10,000 food, flower, book, and merchandise vendors that have staked their claim on small pieces of New York’s sidewalks. It’s a great cause, and this year’s Vendy Awards raised over $100,000!

I was working the afternoon shift at the merchandise table (“T-shirt? Apron? Get your Vendys gear!”), so I had all morning to wander around this part of Governors Island, sampling everything. The official winners were picked by a panel of judges including Food Network stars, local restaurateurs, and Epicurious’s own Tanya Steel. Maybe one day we’ll be listed in that line-up! (hint hint…)

Anyway, click “Read More” for the winners – and some of Little Scarlet’s favorites of the day!

New Amsterdam Market is Back!

September 12 marked the return of the New Amsterdam Market and foodies all across New York rejoiced! This open-air market supports small business that promote local foods, and brings some of the old-fashioned peddler glamour to the cobblestone streets of the Fulton Fish Market and South Street Seaport.

Here’s a sampling of what to expect at the New Amsterdam Market, happening every Sunday, 11 am-4 pm, through December 19 (except for November 28).

Heirloom tomatoes

Peaches are still great, get 'em quick!

Is there really anything better than freshly baked bread? Well... maybe free samples!

So many different kinds of cheese at the Market!

All kinds of pasta doughs and shapes

Peppers!

New Amsterdam Market is full of apples - Macintosh, Gala, Cortland, there’s something for every taste!

Jersey corn and honeydew melon

Spicy habaneros!

Radishes, leeks, carrots - oh my!

Wonderful ice creams from The Bent Spoon, as usual! Recent samplings included chocolate-rosemary ice cream, nectarine sorbet, and beet-basil ice cream (pictured, above)

Spices and tea blends! Stock up on spices like cumin, lavender, ground coriander, and exotic tea blends like Hibiscus Blood Orange, White Tea Raspberry Grapefruit, and Marrakech Mint.

2010’s 8th annual Big Apple BBQ!

Last weekend, 120,000 hungry barbecue enthusiasts came out to Madison Square Park for New York’s 8th annual Big Apple Barbecue Block Party. Little Scarlet was lucky enough to be sent to cover the Big Apple BBQ as a Foodie Correspondent for Foodbuzz, and that media pass was certainly put to good use!

The delicious smell of smoked meat was thick in the air as 17 of the country’s most talented barbecue pitmasters churned out mountains of brisket, pork, ribs – even mutton! Heartland Brewery had its beer garden up and running around the Madison Square Park fountain, right next to the music stage where blues and country twangers like Secret Country and The Derailers were rocking out.

As a newly minted KCBS Certified Barbecue Judge, the best way to become a better judge is to eat as much barbecue as you can and really pay attention to what you’re eating. With this aim in mind, I rallied together a crew of like-minded barbecue lovers to help eat a plate from each vendor over the course of the weekend, so that Little Scarlet could pick favorites for brisket, pulled pork, and ribs.


Best Brisket: Jack’s Old South
Pitmaster: Myron Mixon

Pitmaster Myron Mixon is a fierce competitor on the barbecue circuit, and his brisket is a reflection of that dedication to barbecue. Hill Country’s brisket gives Jack’s a run for its money, but ultimately Jack’s brisket delivers just what you want: it’s tender, juicy, and full of great fatty, beef flavor (although it would be preferable if the brisket were not sliced with an electric knife). The baked beans had a nice dash of heat, though the addition of sliced peaches made them a little too sweet for this Northern girl.


Best Pulled Pork: Big Bob Gibson Bar-B-Q
Pitmaster: Chris Lilly

After Pitmaster Chris Lilly’s pulled pork brought him eight World BBQ Championships, it should come as no surprise that Big Bob Gibson had the best pulled pork at the Big Apple BBQ. Lilly takes whole pork shoulder, a cut that includes the butt and the picnic, and injects it with an Worcestershire sauce-apple juice liquid, and then rubs the shoulder all over with a dry spice mixture. After the meat spends 14-16 hours cooking in a rotisserie smoker at 225° F, Lilly chops the pork and serves it up on a bun with a side of brightly colored coleslaw. This pulled pork is juicy and fatty, and flavorful enough that it doesn’t need anything extra, but Big Bob’s terrific sauces have brought home Championship titles, too – you really can’t go wrong!


Best Ribs: Pappy’s Smokehouse
Pitmaster: Skip Steele

As you might expect, Pappy’s Pitmaster Skip Steele is also well-known on the competitive barbecue circuit; his team, Super Smokers BBQ, has done particularly well at the Memphis in May competition, consistently placing in the Top Ten. (Fun trivia: Steele’s Super Smokers BBQ catering business counts country legend and heartthrob Randy Travis among its clients!) These St. Louis-style ribs were the talk of the Big Apple BBQ, and they did not disappoint. Prepared with a brown sugar-based dry rub that caramelizes during the low-and-slow barbecuing, they have a beautiful shine to them, and the meat pulls easily from the bone without falling off.


Crowd Favorite: Jim ‘N Nick’s Bar-B-Q
Pitmaster: Drew Robinson

These smoked sausages are a true Southern delight, right down to the Duke’s mayonnaise used to make the pimiento cheese. The sausages are smoked over hickory for an hour and then finished on the grill for that perfect snappy bite – to get the full effect, spread a liberal dose of pimiento cheese on top of a Saltine, then top with a generous bit of sausage and a slice of Serrano pepper. You’ll be craving these all the way until next year’s Big Apple BBQ!


To see other pictures from 2010’s Big Apple BBQ and to read about Little Scarlet’s interview with Chris Lilly, click on the “Read More” link below!

Grillin’ on the Bay 2010 - Recap

The NEBS-sanctioned Grillin’ on the Bay barbecue contest was not at all what I was expecting. It was completely wonderful, and a real learning experience. I had pictured an event similar to the Big Apple Barbecue Block Party (only 75 days away as of March 28!), but with a secluded judging area off to the side somewhere. Instead, I found myself in the middle of a community entirely new to me – the world of competitive barbecue.

One of the first things I learned was that at these barbecue competitions, food is not available for purchase from the competing teams, although the competition’s sponsors – RUB BBQ and Chelsea Brewing Company, in this case – will sell food and beer on site.

Also, the Grillin’ on the Bay competition was less of a true barbecue competition and more of a grilling competition. Many teams were using smokers, but set up only started at 6 am the day of the competition – instead of two days prior.

Beer Belly Porkers, getting ready to compete

And finally, the judging itself was more serious than I was expecting. NEBS has over 6 pages of rules, outlining everything from what is an appropriate garnish for each category, the calculations involved in weighing the judges’ scores from each category, and acceptable definitions of “stuffing” and “bacon” – which vary from one category to another!

Judges sit six to a table and, using a double-blind judging system, score 5-6 entries per category based on appearance, taste, and texture – in that order. The rules for judging the four categories (fish, chicken, pork ribs, and “chef’s choice”) are strict, even a seemingly mild violation can be grounds for disqualification. Did you present your fish entry with a lemon wedge, or perhaps finish it with a chunky sauce? Disqualified. Did your chicken entry have a garnish of anything other than green leaf lettuce, Italian parsley, or curly parsley? Disqualified. And what if your entry missed the turn-in time by only one second? You guessed it – disqualified!

I had no idea barbecue judging rules were this specific, although the seasoned judges at my table told me that KCBS (Kansas City Barbecue Society) rules were much more strict. Assuming all goes well, I will be a KCBS certified barbecue judge on May 2, so I’ll be able to comment more on that in about five weeks!

After judging, the scores are weighed by the Contest Representative and the top ten winners in each category (fish, chicken, pork ribs, chef’s choice, and “best overall”) are announced, with the top five winners from each category receiving trophies and prizes.

Blazin’ Buttz BBQ took “Best Overall” this year - additional winners are listed at the bottom of this post

Being a judge was a terrific amount of fun, and the food was so good! It’s important to remember to pace yourself and only have a few small bites from each entry, or else you’ll never make it through the day. The only thing I wish had been different was it would have been nice to know if you had tried an entry from any of the winning teams – but the double-blind judging system eliminates that possibility, adding a playful dash of intrigue to the event.

If you’re not a judge, though, the best way to enjoy an event like Grillin’ on the Bay is to slip in as a Table Captain. Table Captains bring the food from the Contest Representatives to the judges, present each entry, and then get to eat any leftover food! Since many entries contain more than six samples, being a Table Captain is a great way to get to see all 27 entries for each category and taste almost all of them (judges can only see and taste the six entries at their table).

My first time as a NEBS judge was kind of like joining an exclusive club for the day. Almost all of my fellow judges had been around the block a time or two, and many were Master KCBS judges (something that requires judging 30 different qualifying events, cooking with a barbecue team, and passing a written test!). It was great to see them have a sort of reunion here in New York, some traveling from as far away as Massachusetts and Maryland.

My clothes still smell like smoke from standing outside before and after the judging, but it’s a price I’ll happily pay. I can’t wait for the next one!

Taste of 7th Street - Event Recap

This weekend, over 1,000 people came out to prove that this stretch of 7th Street is the best block in Manhattan. The first inaugural “Taste of 7th Street” food festival was a great success, and I hope you’ll all be back to visit these great establishments again soon!


Did you go to the “Taste of 7th Street” event? Tell Little Scarlet what you thought!




Many thanks to all who came out this weekend - and if you think there’s another block in Manhattan that’s better than 7th Street, between 1st Ave and Ave A, let everyone know about it!

Roberta’s and Sixpoint Craft Ales: a night of highs and unbelievable lows

Roberta’s
$$
**
261 Moore St., Brooklyn
718.417.1118
http://www.robertaspizza.com/

Last week, Sixpoint Craft Ales celebrated their fifth anniversary with a week-long series of events throughout Manhattan and Brooklyn, one of which was a Fifth Anniversary Celebration at Roberta’s in Brooklyn. When word reached Little Scarlet of an all-you-can-eat three hour event with “unlimited beers and unlimited pizza and organic salad plus assorted dessert offerings baked with Sixpoint beer”, for only $32 - it was a no-brainer!

Unfortunately, this event truly failed to live up to its promise and became a complete disaster.

I met up with some friends from my dinner club a few minutes before the event was scheduled to begin, since tickets were expected to sell out and attendees were advised to arrive early - “so you are not disappointed”, they said. The atmosphere upon arrival was great - long tables of dark, rustic wood lined Roberta’s industrial interior and the staff were weaving in and out of guests, serving pizzas and salads family-style. Growlers of Sixpoint beer were brought to the tables just like the pizza, and the outside bar on the backyard deck was charming, with a bonfire nearby and a light flurry of snow just starting to come down.

So far, so good, right? That’s what we thought. Just wait.

The pizza was good - great, even. Roberta’s pizza belongs to the school of thick, doughy crust, slightly charred in places from their wood-fired oven and with a generous one-inch rim of crust on each 12-inch pie. Their Margherita pizza is satisfyingly saucy, cheesy, and chewy, with the great flavor that only fresh tomatoes, mozzarella, and basil can deliver.

Margherita pizza

Roberta’s topping combinations are creative yet impressively simple, as in their “Madd Martigan” pizza, with mozzarella, mushrooms, pesto, and artichoke, and a special pie for the Fifth Anniversary Celebration, consisting of mozzarella, crispy prosciutto cotto, red onions, and mushrooms.

Madd Martigan pizza

Sixpoint Craft Ales Fifth Anniversary Celebration “special” pizza

Their bibb lettuce salad, full of toasted walnuts and gorgonzola, is brightened by a splash of sweet-tart dried cherry vinaigrette, and Sixpoint’s beers are on point, as always - full of great flavor and exactly what you wanted to go with Roberta’s straight-from-the-oven pizzas.

Again - so far, so good, right? This sounds awesome, what could possibly have gone wrong? Get ready, because here it comes.

Apparently, it turns out that “3 hours of unlimited beers and unlimited pizza” was more of an advertising gimmick than an actual guarantee. After enjoying some pizza and beer for a little over 1 hour, we were asked to leave to make way for people who had shown up late and were waiting to sit down. We were surprised to hear that the event had been oversold and that we were “hogging” the table - being savvy New Yorkers, we had shown up early and expected to get what we paid for. But while being asked to leave early didn’t seem right, we were sympathetic to the latecomers’ plight, so we asked for one more pizza and promised to leave right after. One of our friends had been outside refilling our growler of beer during this exchange and upon his return, our harried waiter had “had enough.”

Before we knew what was happening, this waiter-on-a-power-trip took away what was left of the pizza, our full glasses of beer, and told us to “Get the fuck out.” Stunned and confused, we stammered that we had been peaceably enjoying the evening and weren’t sure why we were being forcibly thrown out. Our waiter revealed that he was, in fact, the owner and threw our money ($160 in cash!) at us, telling us to never, ever come back.

Well, Roberta’s, point well taken. The food is good, good enough that I could have been convinced to make the long trek out to Bushwick a second time. But if that’s how the owners want to run their business, there’s more than enough great pizza in New York to keep me from returning.

Bottom line? If Bushwick’s not too far away and you want good pizza, go ahead - give Roberta’s a try. But if they throw any events in the future, I’d be sure to stay far away.

Unless, of course, you’re looking for a good story to tell.

New Amsterdam Market

New Amsterdam Market
$
****
South Street, between Beekman Street and Peck Slip (adjacent to the South Street Seaport)
http://www.newamsterdammarket.org/

Farmers’ markets have long been a favored hunting ground for home cooks, but with the organic and local food movements’ recent surges in popularity, farmers’ markets are becoming the latest trend. I’m generally not a fan of “foodie fads”, but I can only be grateful for a trend that celebrates regional, seasonal produce, and promotes local farmers and their businesses. Not to mention it’s the perfect way to spend a beautiful day outdoors!

The New Amsterdam Market is a relative newcomer to New York’s heavy lineup of farmers’ markets, which includes the infamous Union Square Greenmarket. It used to appear once a year, but in honor of the Hudson-Fulton-Champlain Quadricentennial (the 400th anniversary of Henry Hudson & Samuel de Champlain’s explorations, and the 200th anniversary of Robert Fulton’s historic steamship journey up the Hudson River), there are four markets scheduled this year, one each month beginning with September 2009. Little Scarlet has it on good authority that if the markets are popular and profitable enough, they may continue on a monthly basis into 2010 - so if you haven’t been yet, you must visit December’s market!

Designed in the spirit of London’s Borough Market and the old markets of Paris’s Les Halles (often called “the stomach of Paris”), the New Amsterdam Market revives the old-world European charm of open-air markets in the former location of another well-loved market - the Fulton Fish Market.

Cheesemongers, fishmongers, and gossipmongers all flock to the New Amsterdam Market. There are butchers, bakers ... no candlestick makers, but there are dozens of farmers hawking their seasonal produce, pickled vegetables, and handmade honeys, while vintners sell their wines and hard ciders, offering pairing suggestions for upcoming holiday meals.

Some vendors (Luke’s Lobster & Porchetta, for example) sell sandwiches or soups, but almost everything shown at the New Amsterdam Market can be sampled free of charge. These vendors believe in their products and want to share their smoked, pickled okra and apple cider-washed rind cheeses with the world! Of course, if you want the market to continue into 2010, it helps to buy something, so get out there and support your local farmers!

Look through the pictures below for a small portion of some of the fantastic goods to be expected at the next market, on December 20.

Oysters from W&T Seafood and Stella

Wine and ciders from New York State. Slyboro’s Hidden Star cider and Bellwether’s Liberty Spy ciders were fantastic! Bellwether also makes a Black Magic cider with a touch of black currant - it adds a “mystical” taste and turns the cider a brilliant purple jewel tone.

Porchetta sandwiches from (where else?!) Porchetta

Smoked, pickled okra from Rick’s Picks. Handy corn, too!

Kale from McEnroe Organic Farm & beautiful flower arrangements from Zone 7.

Fresh, raw pasta from The Ravioli Store

Breads from Pain D’Avignon (featured above), Sullivan Street Bakery, Balthazar, Hot Bread Kitchen, Nordic Breads, and many more!

NYC Dumpling Festival - Sara Delano Roosevelt Park

NYC Dumpling Festival
$
***
Sara Delano Roosevelt Park, Houston Street b/w Forsyth St. & Chrystie St.
http://www.dumplingfestival.com/

New York’s annual dumpling eating contest has gained such popularity over the last six years it has given way to the first annual NYC Dumpling Festival. Organized by the New York City Food Bank, over a thousand people flocked to Sara Delano Roosevelt Park two weekends ago to sample dumplings from all over the world.

These dumplings went fast, with all but two of the dumplings selling out only about a third of the way through!

The world’s largest whole-wheat dumpling (prepared by Chef One).  Stuffed with 945 regular dumplings’ worth of filling, this massive dumpling weighs in at 768 lbs.

Dumpling lovers lined up for gnocchi (Italy) and bao (China).  Other featured dumplings include tamales (Mexico), palitaw (Philippines), kuih koci (Malaysia), idli (India), and pierogi (Poland).

Be on the lookout for next year’s festival (all proceeds will benefit the Food Bank for New York City).

NY Craft Beer Week

NY Craft Beer Week (September 11-20, 2009)
****
$$ (Passport, $35 + $2/beer - 20 beers for $75!)
http://www.nycbeerweek.com/

2009 marks the second annual NY Craft Beer Week, a celebration of 162 craft beers from New York City and beyond - 71 breweries from 19 states! NY Craft Beer Week is great because all of these wonderful beers that can usually only be bought in special beer stores are available for mass consumption at your favorite local bar. 83 bars throughout New York’s five boroughs will be participating in NY Craft Beer 2009, and the best way to take advantage of this week is the “passport” - for $35, any of the 162 craft beers served can be purchased for just $2, along with a few other additional perks. This is a huge discount over New York’s regular, pricey drinks - only seven drinks over a week-and-a-half will have you break even!

The NY Craft Beer Week starts with the Gotham Cask Festival, but make sure you check out the website for a full list of events happening this week: http://www.nycbeerweek.com/events/.



Gotham Cask Festival (September 11-13, 2009)
****
$$ ($20 buys about 6 half-pints of cask-conditioned beer)
http://www.nycbeerweek.com/events/cask/

The Gotham Cask Festival was this past weekend, but it’s a recurring part of NY Craft Beer Week and is a definite must if you love beer, want to learn more about it, or just like drinking things that taste good with people who are excited about them! Over the course of three days, over 60 kinds of cask-conditioned beer are served at three different bars - Swift Hibernian Lounge, Rattle 'n' Hum, and Jimmy’s No. 43.

This weekend, Jimmy’s, for instance, served 18 different firkins of ale, served in one of their anterior rooms where private tastings happen (admission - $20). Cask-conditioned ale is often called “real ale” - this unfiltered, unpasteurized beer is naturally carbonated by secondary fermentation. By definition, no additional carbonation is used to push these beers through their taps, like you would normally find in a regular bar; the casks at Jimmy’s use gravity to dispense beer through a tap hammered into the casks’ front. Also, cask-conditioned beer is meant to be served cool, but not chilled, at a temperature around 55° F. These two elements make the beer taste “warmer” and “flatter” than what most people are used to - that sounds pretty gross, but it actually tastes terrific. And it’s a great thing because it lets you notice all of the flavors that would be overlooked when you can only notice the cold bubbles.

The cask-conditioned beers are served as half- or full-pints. If you’re feeling ambitious, I’d recommend taking a group to one bar each night and getting enough half-pints so that you and your friends can taste them all (click “Read More” for a list of beers featured at Jimmy’s No. 43).

Snapple Big Apple BBQ Block Party, Madison Square Park

Big Apple BBQ Block Party – Madison Square Park (June 13-14, 2009)
****
$ (admission is free, food is $8 per plate, desserts and drinks are $2-$6 - free drinks are passed out at certain times throughout the event)
http://bigapplebbq.org/
All proceeds go to the Madison Square Park Conservancy

Every June, the country’s best barbecue pitmasters flock to Madison Square Park for a weekend of showcasing their wares in the Snapple Big Apple BBQ Block Party. I’m a big fan of block parties, and a die-hard meat lover, so there was no way I would miss out on a festival like this! I also had to bring my friends Becca and Scott along, which wasn’t a hard sell since they’re both barbecue fanatics.

On the first day of the weekend-long BBQ, we started by going straight to the Information Booth so that we could map out a plan of attack. After a lot of debate, we decided to go for pulled pork first and then eat it while standing in whatever line seemed shortest after that.

Our first stop was the line for Big Bob Gibson Bar-B-Q, which had about a 45-minute wait - their pulled pork sandwich was UNBELIEVABLE!!! I can’t even explain to you what exactly made it so good (deliciously fatty, without being greasy – juicy and tender), I just felt like I was knocked flat by some incredible barbecue-drug! Becca’s Southern roots make her biased against anything that isn’t the mustard-based pulled pork of the South Carolina low country (does it get any more niche than that?), but even she said it was one of the best sandwiches she’d ever had! Scott took one look at the beautiful, pink smoke-rings around each bite of pork (a sign of long hours in the smoker) and was won over before even tasting it.

As Chris Lilly (Big Bob’s Chief Pitmaster and my new idol!) explains it, his pork is so awesome because of his method of seasoning and slow-smoking. First, the pork butts are injected with apple juice-based seasoning and covered in dry rub before spending 14 hours in a smoker - then the pork is hand-pulled and chopped into generous bite-sized pieces. Big Bob uses a vinegar-based sauce on their pulled pork, but the sandwich (served on plain, white-bread buns) doesn’t come with an actual “barbecue sauce” – regular sauces are on a table to the side, and you can add however much of whatever sauce you like, although the meat truly doesn’t need anything extra.

Big Bob’s was a tough high to come down off of, but our next stop was Drew Robinson’s smoked sausage from Jim ‘N Nick’s Bar-B-Q. I’ve eaten my share of sausages, but I’d never had anything like these! Jim ‘N Nick’s insist their smoked sausages be eaten in a particular way - covered in their signature sauce, on top of a Saltine that’s spread with pimento cheese, and topped with a slice of Serrano pepper. This was fantastic!

Top: The smoked sausage from Jim ‘N Nicks - you can see the Saltine crackers, pimento cheese, and freshly sliced Serrano peppers.
Bottom: Becca got barbecue sauce all over Scott’s shirt. Since Oxy-Clean helps sponsor the Big Apple BBQ, the late, great Billy Mays was at the block party, but this stain wouldn’t wait for his personal touch - Becca and I had to step up.

I would have gone back for a second one, but we needed to try out some other places before going back for seconds anywhere. We visited The Salt Lick and 17th Street Bar & Grill, which were both pretty good - click here and here for their respective reviews. Ultimately, we just couldn’t get Big Bob’s sandwich out of our heads, so we went back for a second one of these before leaving on Saturday. We wound up waiting an hour-and-a-half for it, but it was TOTALLY worth it!!!

When we came back on Sunday, we started with an easy 30 minutes in line for our third (and regrettably, final) sandwich from Big Bob’s – I know, I know, I think I might have a problem!

Scott and I (and Scott’s sister, Julia) enjoying our third pulled pork sandwich from Big Bob’s. Becca was off getting free drinks, but you can tell how excited we all still were about these sandwiches!

We also visited The Pit and Pappy’s Smokehouse (pulled pork and ribs, respectively), but these were both just kind of “okay” - maybe that’s the risk you run with cooking for such a huge crowd during a multi-day food festival. We spent the rest of the afternoon on a bench in Madison Square Park, listening to the live music, eating watermelon, and drinking root beer floats. Shake Shack had a long line during the Big Apple BBQ, but I can’t imagine who would want a New York burger when they could have Alabama barbecue!

(click here for a full list of pitmasters & their menus)