Fete Sau
354 Metropolitan Ave.
Brooklyn, NY 11211
(718) 963-3404

The final destination on the Meat Coma NYC 2010 Tour took me to Williamsburg in Brooklyn. Considering the density of hipsterness in this area, I am actually surprised it has taken so long for a BBQ joint to open here. Thankfully, what did open is one of the best Q joints in the Five Boroughs.

Situated in a converted garage along the still mostly warehouse-esque stretch of Metropolitan, Fete Sau is everything I want in a future Hut location. Exposed brick walls, roll up garage doors, long communal rustic wood picnic tables & funky faded meat cut artwork on the walls. It’s got a perfect Q joint vibe without being fauxbilly or too urban country.

Like Hill Country, Fete Sau is market style. You enter to find the display case filled with pork & beef. Give the carver your order by the pound & then move along to the sides. As I was somewhat full from HNH BBQ, Asia Dog & The Smoke Joint, I decided – again like Hill Country – to stick with meat only. Well meat & a beer.

Ordered a 1/2 pound each of brisket, pulled pork & pork belly. I was a little disappointed to only have the choice of lean brisket, but it was quite tasty. If I had to rank the brisket eaten over the course of the Meat Coma Tour, it would be:

1. Hill Country
2. HNH BBQ
3. Fete Sau/Capital Q Smokehouse

I’ll skip discussing where I think MY brisket falls on that list (*cough*tiedwithhnh*cough*) but it was quite wonderful to discover so many joints on the tour making what – at least to me – is REAL smoked brisket.

Fete Sau’s pulled pork was done exactly the way I believe pulled pork should be done. No sauce – nice rope pull – a bit of crusty bark – & enough smoke to flavor but not overpower the meat. I can’t say I found their use of Berkshire Shoulder to add anything to the product other than price. It’s not that I do not respect the use of heritage/organic/local meat – it’s how I learned to make Q – it’s just that rarely does it actually affect the end product. BBQ is about taking cheap cuts of meat & making them yummy. When you start with expensive meat – you’re kind of defeating the purpose of BBQ.

Then I tasted the pork belly…

OK – I get it here. This is amazing pork belly. Rich, smokey, fatty goodness. It’s not bacon – though you could fry it up like bacon. It’s like concentrated essence of pork with a smoke undertone. I seriously wish I had gotten more of this. It makes me want to start working with pork belly as soon as I can.

I certainly have to agree with those praising Fete Sau. When it comes to hardcore Q in Brooklyn, it might well be the top joint. Besides – you can buy beer by the gallon here & that’s reason enough to love the place.

Though the brilliant Q is an even better reason.

The Hog Pit Barbecue
37 W. 26th St.
New York, NY 10010
(212) 213-4871

Stumbling out of Hill Country in a meat coma induced haze & back into the sweltering NYC August heat – I looked across the street to see the banner for Hog Pit Barbecue. This joint was originally in the Meatpacking a couple blocks over from Hogs & Heifers . Three years ago, it replaced by a somewhat over hyped burger place Bill’s Bar & Burger. I had figured – like many places in the old Meatpacking district – I had missed my opportunity to visit the Hog Pit for their Q.

So – though completely packed from a Hill Country feast – I convinced Cherie to drop into Hog Pit for a beer. My reasoning was we had not drank at Hill Country (so we would not be drinking like lushes) & it would give us a chance to digest our feast before walking in the heat. I don;t think she needed much convincing beyond “beer”.

Hog Pit is basically a Southern bar in NYC. Plain decoration in a not quite dive-y but could topple that way in minute style. The menu is a mix of Southern comfort food & BBQ. Beer selection is pretty much the generic mix of Bud Miller Coors (BMC) & a couple “imports” (like Guinness & Labatt Blue). Country & classic rock on the sound system.

I mentioned to the bartender I was glad to see they had not gone out of business, but was surprised to see they opened across from Hill Country. She said she had never been there but a lot of their staff come over to drink after their shifts.

“Is it good?” she asks.
“Best in NY State.” I reply.

She’s surprised & this does not bode well for the Q at Hog Pit. Generally I feel the best Q joints have employees who care & know about Q. Then again – perhaps she knew a encyclopedia worth of where to drink cheap in NYC. I did not ask.

After looking the menu over for a bit & deciding we should eat SOME Q here as that was the point of the trip (to sample as much NYC BBQ as possible), we chose to share the pulled pork slider appetizer. We felt we could manage one slider each & not completely pass out from Meat O.D.

The sliders come two to a serving on traditional slider buns, unsauced & served with a bowl of house sauce. If this pork has ever seen the inside of a smoker, I’ll eat my Backwoods Fatboy. Absolutely no smokiness or bark to be found. The pull – or more accurately shred – was a bit too fine for my taste but at least did not devolve into pork foam. The taste was pretty nice for roasted & shredded pork with a bit of a stocky flavor. I think they might be heating & holding in pork or chicken stock (or a combo of both). The house sauce was a thick rich ketchup sauce with a nice spicy kick. It worked nicely to punch up the pork.

Definitely not bad sliders though I’m not too sure I’d call them “BBQ” or “pulled pork.” Definitely makes me wonder what their “BBQ’s beef brisket” is like – especially considering their proximity to Hill Country. I’d call this more “Bar BBQ” than ” real BBQ” – something vaguely in the Q realm to eat while drinking – & there’s certainly nothing wrong with that.

Brunswick Barbecue & Brew
3925 State Hwy 2
Troy, NY 12180
(518) 279-9993

Like Capital Q Smokehouse, Brunswick was another Albany area joint we wanted to try at the Troy Pig Out but ran out of appetite & energy. We actually had tried to hit Brunswick prior to the Pig Out, but went on a Tuesday – the only day they are closed.

We ended up here on the same day we visited Capital Q Smokehouse. Decided as we were in the area – though still a bit full from lunch – we’d drop by & have some beer & check out the menu. Brunswick not so much a Q joint as it is a restaurant that serves some BBQ. It also serves a lot of of “not BBQ.” The BBQ side of the menu is pulled pork, three styles of ribs & chicken. I’m always a little disappointed when a BBQ place does not serve brisket or at least some sort of beef.

The beer selection here is outstanding. A great variety of craft beers with several on tap. I forgot to note what we were drinking but I do remember it was delicious. Following our general philosophy of “If you’re going to drink – you must eat”, we decided to check out Brunswick’s appetizers. The only BBQ for a starter is what we have currently become obsessed with: pulled pork sliders. We ordered that & chicken wings with garlic parmesan sauce.

The sliders came five to an order – not the easiest number to share but still a nice quantity. They use a Brunswick house roll – slightly larger & crustier than your standard slider roll. Cherie was a bit put off by the crustiness. I thought it helps stand up against the pork & sauce. The pork was not overly smokey & had a nice pulled texture. it does come slightly sauced but nothing so overwhelming you could not clearly taste the pork. An extra serving of house sauce – nice thick ketchup based with a hint of spice – for those who feel BBQ is just a vehicle for sauce.

The wings had quite a kick. We’re garlic lovers, but this might just be a bit over the top. We were glad we both ate the wings as it would have been an uncomfortable night for the one who did not. Garlic parmesan is definitely not the sauce you want to have before that big important meeting! Good crispy skin on the wings & fairly juicy & meaty. Talking with the owner he said they often cater with smoked chicken wings & it made me wish those were being served in the restaurant.

All in all a nice little joint. It is a bit too far out of the way for our usual travels in the region. We’ll likely make some future trips but when is definitely up in the air. Certainly worth checking out if you find yourself at the beginning (or end depending on which way you’re coming) of State Highway 2 in the Troy area.