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Mighty Quinn's BBQ
Photograph: Virginia Rollison

NYC's 10 best barbecue spots

They do exist!

Amber Sutherland-Namako
Written by
Amber Sutherland-Namako
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Like the notion that NYC apartments are smaller than fire escapes or that everyone here's a jerk or each and every one of our bars is speakeasy-themed, claims of our barbecue inferiority are mildly exaggerated. Sure, we aren’t famed for it like we are for our bi-annual social media disputes over pizza and bagels, but barbecue does exist in the five boroughs, and plenty of it is better than fine, good approaching great, and even outstanding. These are the best spots to visit for barbecue right now, or at least to use as examples in an internet debate. Just remember: You can only win the former. 

RECOMMENDED: Full guide to the best restaurants in NYC

Time Out Market New York
  • Restaurants
  • DUMBO

Barbecue is one of the finest food groups an omnivore can enjoy. Bark Barbecue has been a moveable feast in NYC since pitmaster Ruben Santana first started serving his low-and-slow, white oak-fueled recipes at outdoor markets and pop-ups citywide (and beyond!) in 2020. Now, Bark’s beautiful brisket, ribs and pulled pork by the pound are available right here, every day, at its first permanent outpost. Pile your pick alongside rib tips, sandwiches and sides like mac and cheese. 

Best BBQ restaurants in NYC

  • Restaurants
  • Barbecue
  • Red Hook
  • price 3 of 4

Hometown Bar-B-Que came in hot to Red Hook when it first opened in the nautical hamlet in 2013. High marks, media darling designation and long lines followed for “Brooklyn style” barbecue incorporating flavors from various cuisine categories. Then, it curiously went through a period of being just ok before becoming excellent once more over the last couple of years. So, though it never left, Hometown is back, with pulled pork, ribs a few ways, substantial sandwiches and classic sides in its sprawling spaces inside and out. 

  • Restaurants
  • Barbecue
  • Williamsburg
  • price 2 of 4

Lived-in Fette Sau is lined with white tiles behind the bar, exposed brick and and a large mural depicting cuts of meat on one wall. Natural wood tables are topped some of those illustrations made real, like pulled pork, pork belly, ribs and wings with five sauce options for max mixing and matching. 

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  • Restaurants
  • Barbecue
  • Flatiron
  • price 2 of 4

Although barbecue in Manhattan could be as confounding as a 1990s Pace Picante Sauce commercial (the Platonic ideal of incongruity humor), Hill Country is right at home in Got–ham City. The ambitious “tribute to the traditional central Texas barbecue experience, Southern hospitality and the artistry of downtown Austin” smokes its meat over wood brought in from The Lone Star State. Order low and slow selections like shoulder clod, brisket spare ribs and small or supersized combo platters. 

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  • Restaurants
  • Barbecue
  • Long Island City
  • price 1 of 4

The relocated John Brown BBQ still attracts crowds a short distance away from its original location, which first opened in 2011. Its Kansas City-style barbecue by way of Queens two times over includes all manner of meat by the pound, slab, quarter or half, as the case might be. Order at the counter and snag a spot in the lofty dining room or under an umbrella on the patio. 

Dinosaur Bar-B-Que
  • Restaurants
  • Barbecue
  • Morningside Heights
  • price 2 of 4

Barbecue lovers from near and far flock to this perpetually popular Harlem destination, which originally got started in Syracuse in 1988. Now with four locations in New York State and two in NYC, Dinosaur Barbecue is famous near and far for its lengthy menu of all the expected hits, plus sliders, steak, burgers, bowls salads and sandwiches. 

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  • Restaurants
  • Bedford-Stuyvesant

Recently relocated Royal Rib grew its following over the course of half a century at its previous address, and now the family owned business is back in action with old and new fans near its original location. Ribs, chicken and the plentiful sides that have pleased generations are all on the menu.  

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  • Restaurants
  • Barbecue
  • Forest Hills

Boozy brunch and DJ tunes set the stage for a party environment at Queens Bully, and orders from the bit provide a foundation to keep the festivities going. Baby back ribs, brisket, pulled pork and smoked jackfruit are all on the menu. 

  • Restaurants
  • Barbecue
  • Astoria
  • price 2 of 4

Pig Beach drew long, sidewalk-clogging lines up and down the Gowanus Canal week after week before it opened this Queens outpost and closed the original. Like before, there's a large outdoor space, plus a variety of meat-lovers sandwiches, ribs, brisket, burgers, dogs and wings. 

Want more meat? Find the best steaks in NYC

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