I Love Fat German Pigs!

OK, that title probably doesn't sound PC, but I recently went to Fette Sau (it means "fat pig" in German), a BBQ joint over in Williamsburg, at the urging of a friend of mine who lives right near it. He is a very knowlegdable BBQ aficionado and I had also heard some other fine reviews of the place, so I knew I had to get over there and try it ASAP. We went last Thursday and got a smorgasbord of meats to sample. I had high expectations of Fette Sau and it far exceeded them - the food and ambiance were both fantastic! Top to bottom, I think this is now my new favorite NYC BBQ joint and I cannot wait to go back soon.

I don't want to reinvent the wheel here, so I will give a quick review and point you to a seriously professional review I found with pictures and everything. (The reviewer went with two members of an NYC grilling team and a judge in BBQ competitions - that's gotta be one 'hard-as-hell-to-please' table!) Here is the short NY Mag blurb on this place too, for quicker read on it. The menu has some regular items, but also has a changing menu of different meats or parts of the pig smoked to perfection. The rub made for a delicious bark that had a very, very unique flavor. I later was told it is a espresso-based rub, and I thought that was pure genius! I had not heard of a coffee based rub before, but it made sense to me that it might work well due to the distinct and powerful flavor of coffee. The pork belly was top notch, but you can only have so much of it in a sitting, as it is very rich and fatty (I mean fatty in the best possible way, FYI). Eat it right away, as you don't want that to cool and lose it's consistency. The ribs were firm, and not fall off the bone, but still tender. And did I mention the killer rub?!

The pulled pork was good and the regular BBQ sauce mixed with a little of the spicy BBQ sauce went well with it on a little potato bun they provided. The turkey was a little bit dry, but the pulled chicken was very moist and tasty. I thought the brisket was the best brisket I have had in NYC to date. It was moist and fatty, but well marbled and very juicy due to this. Again, the rub was killer and made for an excellent firm bark. Also, I thought the boneless beef rib was AMAZING! Now normally I am not a big beef rib fan, so this was no easy task to win me over, but no joke, it was one of the best smoked beef ribs I have ever had. Even though I am not a big beef rib fan, when done right, it can be a great dish. Most of the time I don't find it done right and it is more fat than meat. But not in this case. We only had one side dish, the baked beans, which were also very nice. Burnt ends complemented the usual brown sugar and molasses laden beans. But I never complain about beans with burnt ends in them. Lastly, it is cafeteria-style dining (another plus in my mind) and each meat is sold by weight, as any good BBQ spot should do.

They also offer a rotating and interesting beer selection , which you can get by the glass or in a small or large growler. They also have a very nice selection of whiskeys, bourbons, and scotches, which I thought was a very nice touch. The ambiance was great (even with all the Willy B Hipsters crawling throughout the place) as it is in an old car garage that is well decorated and uses some very interesting items to enhance the atmosphere. I highly recommend that you go and check Fette Sau out this spring and enjoy the weather with some beers and BBQ - you will not regret it!