It’s that time of year again for the carnivores to come out and celebrate the meat. Meatopia X in NYC by NYCWFF kicked off in October this month and it was not to be missed. We were one of the first pioneers to attend the first Meatopia in 2004 and this had a lot to live up to. Let’s just say it didn’t disappoint. A head on a pike display from meat purveyor Pat LaFrieda was like a tribal call of the wild and warning to a vegetarians. Meat, meat, meat, meat…

I think everyone wants to see the all stars out there in the food world, the tried and true amazing chefs we have all come to love, but I also like to see the new comers on the scene and the chefs that are far from our reach. I love events like this that have all that range, because it really is about the food and the talent behind it, no matter where it comes from. For example, it’s been awhile since I’ve been to Dallas so it was great to taste first hand what John Tesar of Knife Dallas was serving, and yes it was divine. Where else can you have Sous Vide Colorado lamb over a red oak fired Korean pancake with a kimchi and sriracha butter sauce that was cooked on a parking garage roof overlooking the Hudson and NYC?! Yeah, nowhere else:)

I don’t want you to think this festival is just about grilled meat flopped around a grill with your grocery store BBQ sauce, it goes much deeper than that and it’s sophistication of flavors created by each chef and their teams. One dish of note was from chefs H. Alex Talbot & Aki Kamozawa, from Ideas in Food, was a Creekstone beef New York strip steak seared on a smoked salt slab with a Pumpkin Puttanesca sauce (to die for!). And you know you can’t go wrong with a whole hog like Anthony Goncalves of 42 The Restaurant, with his slow-roasted whole hog with salsa verde coleslaw and a traditional handmade Corn Pupusa (corn cake).

 

We also had some local favorites like Pit Master Matt Fisher from Fletcher’s Brooklyn BBQ with hoisin glazed spareribs, grilled flatbread and daikon pickles and classic taste combination of sweet and tangy.

Chef Jamie Bissonnette of Toro NYC went all out on the flavor profiles with a tripe and yellow-eyed pea stew with an incredible blood sausage. It’s one of those dishes that you just need to try, it will change your mind about tripe and blood sausage. And can I say, THEY COOKED IT ON THE ROOF OF A PARKING GARAGE people! If you can cook tripe and blood sausage to perfection in those conditions, all I can say is: bow down!

To help with the blustering chilly day there were open brown liquor tastings, custom cocktails and moonshine from Ole Smoky Moonshine. Let’s just say we kept ourselves warm and toasty. And if that wasn’t enough the High and Mighty Brass Band kept you moving, to an unexpected well appreciated beat.

Here’s the fun part for our readers! JC Penney has provided the amazing BBQ items listed below as a give away, so you can get grilling at home. When we lived in an apartment, we practically lived off what we could cook in a grill pan. They are one of our kitchen staples.

• One Calphalon® Contemporary 11” Nonstick Square Grill Pan
• One Charcoal Companion® Sauce Pot and Basting Brush

To enter, leave a comment below and we’ll use a random number selector to pick the winner. Good luck!

Thanks so much to JC Penney for the tickets, we had a great time. We look forward to next year, and highly recommend checking out Meatopia  if you are local to NYC. Susan tweeted some of the paper crafts at the JC Penney booth here and here

JC Penney’s provide Meatopia X tickets, all opinions our own. Give Away items provided by JC Penney’s as well. Thanks for supporting the sponsors that make it possible to publish original content.