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What Izzy’s Smokehouse Has Done to Expand Business During the Pandemic

Pitmaster Izzy Eidelman opened his kosher barbecue joint Izzy’s Smokehouse in 2015 in Crown Heights, Brooklyn and has been a beloved participant at Brisket King for many years, including a win in 2017. While sister restaurant Izzy’s Taqueria has been shut down during the pandemic, the smokehouse menu has incorporated nachos and tacos alongside the usual barbecue sandwiches and ribs. You can support Izzy’s Smokehouse by visiting in person, ordering online and spreading the word about their traveling food truck. This interview has been edited and condensed.

Sauce King NYC Makers Showcase at 5 Boro PicNYC

Calling all sauce makers! The Sauce King NYC competition uncovered some hidden gems, and we want to share our findings with our guests at our summer kick off event. Join us for a Memorial Day Weekend barbecue – 5 Boro PicNYC! The event will take place at Snug Harbor Cultural Center & Botanical Garden on Staten Island, an historic 83-acre campus with dynamic programming in the arts, agriculture, horticulture, and education. The picnic will feature barbecue, grilling, the Rib King NYC competition and a special opportunity for food product vendors to showcase, sample and sell their products as part of the Sauce King NYC Makers Showcase at 5 Boro PicNYC.

The best in the business now have a chance to interact with our engaged Food Karma attendees from all over New York City and the Tri-State Area in person and show off their goods.

We expect a good crowd to attend the socially distanced and all-inclusive food and drink experience. We held our Pig Island event outdoors at Snug Harbor this past September with great success and followed all CDC guidelines, which we will continue to do. Guests will be able to sample your products and purchase to take with them or, if you offerit, through a POS for shipment later.

The rates below are for a spot at the event for sauce makers to sample and sell their products. Sauce makers will need to bring their own tents, tables and tasting equipment. We recommend you also bring an accompaniment such as chips or cheese to go with your product samples. Tasting capability is required, and, for those who are really ambitious, we welcome you to partner with a chef to feature your product.

$250 – 10’ x 10’ spot
$500 – 20’ x 20’ spot

Looking for info about Sauce King NYC? Expect information about the annual event and virtual competition in the spring. Sponsorship opportunities for non-sauce food products are also available. For more information contact foodkarma@gmail.com. Click here to pay.

Kimchi Smoke Keeps Cooking Through It All

Rob Cho of Kimchi Smoke in Westwood, NJ fills us in on how his restaurant, which has stayed open throughout the pandemic, has handled social distancing and indoor dining. Kimchi Smoke has participated in Food Karma events for over five years and placed second overall and took home the People’s Choice Award at Brisket King NYC 2019. You can order pickup or delivery from the restaurant, including bottles of Cho’s new Fat Cho sauce, here.

Morgan’s Brooklyn Barbecue is Weathering the Pandemic the Best They Can

This week we’re checking in with Mat Glazier of GlazierWorks to see how Morgan’s Brooklyn Barbecue is handling the pandemic. The restaurant never fully shut down and has been offering takeout, delivery and, when permitted, indoor and outdoor dining on site since March. We spoke before the latest indoor dining restrictions in New York City were announced, but Matt was pretty sure indoor dining was not going to be allowed for much longer. Read on to learn how Morgan’s has adapted this year and why Matt has hope for the future. You can support Morgan’s by ordering takeout or delivery directly from the restaurant, visiting them in person or ordering their merch and gift cards. As told to Sarah Strong, this interview has been edited and condensed.

Matt Abdoo of Pig Beach on the Pandemic and the Future

We’re checking in with some of our friends to see how their restaurants are doing during the pandemic. We talked to Matt Abdoo, chef and partner at Pig Beach in Gowanus, Brooklyn about what he and his team have gone through this year, what he’s learned and what he thinks needs to happen to keep restaurants alive. You can support Pig Beach by visiting the restaurant, ordering takeout, pre-ordering a holiday meal kit or purchasing their sauces and merchandise. The following was told to Sarah Strong and has been edited and condensed.

An Interview with Nancy Carbone, Founder of Our Community Partner Friends of Firefighters

Friends of Firefighters is an amazing and vital organization that provides free mental health services to the firefighters of New York. It was started by Nancy Carbone, who had no experience in the counseling field, after 9/11 when first responders needed some help processing the tragedy and turned to her to make it happen. Since then, Friends of Firefighters has been assisting the community for almost twenty years, including through Superstorm Sandy and now the Covid pandemic.

Food Karma has been lucky to have Friends of Firefighters as a community partner and participant at many of our events. While the home kitchen is historically and stereotypically been thought of as a women’s space, the kitchen and communal cooking are tremendously important in firehouses. This focus on cooking as a unifier makes Friends of Firefighters and Food Karma natural partners. Read our interview below to learn more about Friends of Firefighters, their mission and how they got involved with Food Karma Projects. You can donate to Friends of Firefighters here.