I'm very happy I ended up going to the bbq - wasn't nearly as hot as I expected, although early on it was a bit rough . . . nothing some of the great cocktails being served couldn't help me overcome. As usual, the volunteers did a tremendous job dealing with people and the elements - they really don't get the credit they deserve.

I too loved the new layout . . . not sure if it was a smaller crowd or the expanded layout, but there were really no lines . . . except by Rick Bayless and Stephanie Izard, where people were just wanting to stop and talk to the chefs. After eating the delicious pork belly at Inovasi, I laughed as I saw all the people waiting for Bayless, wondering if they really knew what they were missing (and I'm sure some missed out on Inovasi).

Lots of great food, as well as lots of items I never got to . . . easy with approx. 85 restaurants. My one gripe, and this one goes out to the chefs, deals with portion size. At one booth, they were putting 2 ribs on a plate, and at many other booths they were plating large sausages. Make them smaller please (or cut them, as difficult as that might be) . . . too much food going to waste IMO.

As for my favorites, in no particular order:

Jo Snow Syrups' snow cones with prosecco and blueberry-mint-fennel syrup - got the evening off to a cool start and was quite good.

Carnivale - beef belly with cheese arepa and pickled corn relish . . . amazingly, I think that was my first beef belly experience and it was a very good one.

Four Seasons - Caprese Sundae - buffalo milk panna cotta with heirloom tomato sorbet and basil syrup chantilly . . . the sorbet could have been a little less sweet and packed a bit more tomato flavor, but I really liked the flavor and creativity, and it was perfect on a hot night.

Inovasi - the aforementioned Ameri-Thai bbq pork belly with mint-cabbage-leek slaw . . . really good. I need to try this place out one of these days.

Lula/Nightwood - stuffed jalapenos - my favorite vegetarian bite of the night.

Old Town Social - lamb ribs with potato and feta salad. One of the best lamb tastes ever for me.

Big Star/Publican/Blackbird/Avec - beef and blood sausage tacos - great in all respects.

Girl and the Goat - goat with . . . can't remember all of the details - tostada? Latin flavors IIRC . . . excellent regardless.

Smoque - that pastrami was so damn good . . . I wish they'd offer it at the restaurant . . . at least on occasion.

Vie - house cured capicola with vegetable salad - a nice small portion, and really good.

Even just taking small tastes of everything left my quite full quite early . . . the heat probably played some role in this, and as a result, there was just so much I wanted to try that I never did. But another great year at the GCM BBQ and I already can't wait for next year's event.

This year's event was a major learning experience for me. My rules for survival:

1. Bring a frozen bottle of water, and drink freely.
2. Bring wipes/wetnaps.
3. Take off the glasses, and wear contacts; there's way too much atomized grease floating around.
4. Ditch the beach blanket, camping chairs, flatware, etc. The stalls are now set up to grazing, not hunting.
5. When you get your program, scan immediately for dishes/restaurants you're dying to try.
6. Take 1 bite, and decide quickly whether or not it's worth filling up on. Ignore the name of the chef/restaurant. Forget everything Mom told you about starving children in Africa - discard anything you're not 100% satisfied with.
7. Bring a partner.
8. Who's not a vegetarian.
9. And not kosher/halal.
10. Share.

Independent George wrote:Forget everything Mom told you about starving children in Africa...

LMAO! A bit callous but so true.

=R=