Mighty Mighty Quinn's Barbecue

hugh mangum [daniel krieger for the times]New York City got a slew of new barbecue restaurants at the end of last year. Fletcher's Brooklyn Barbecue setup shop on Third Ave in Gowanus, BrisketTown opened on Bedford in South Williamsburg, and Hugh Mangum brought Texalina Barbecue to Second Ave in Manhattan via Mighty Quinn's. Mangum's barbecue is a hybrid of sorts, inspired by the traditions of Texas and the Carolinas, and in today's Times, Pete Wells awards his efforts two stars.

Wells weighs in on each of the three newcomers in his review. He likes the sides at Fletcher's, "like the beans that lap up wood smoke as they bake in the pit next to the meats; the crisp house-made refrigerator pickles, put up in a jar; and the macaroni and cheese when it is topped with the great burnt-end chili." He's also a big fan of the brisket at BrisketTown, where Daniel Delaney "rubs the brisket generously with salt and cracked peppercorns and smokes it for many, many hours, until it is very, very tender." But it's the barbecue at Quinn's that has his heart. To make it easy for you, here's a list of the restaurant's barbecue with their prices and what Wells has to say about each:

Brisket ($8.50 single serving/$22 by the pound) - "The brisket is cooked patiently to render much of the fat from the top cap, moistening even the leaner lower muscle until it gleams."

Pulled Pork ($7.25 ss/$18.75 btp) - "The pulled pork is the only one in town that doesn’t make you embarrassed for New York. It is staggeringly good."

Smoked Sausage ($7 ss/$12 btp) - "While there is nothing wrong with a smoked hot sausage, the one here isn’t quite strong enough to build a meal around."

Spare Ribs ($8 ss/$23 per rack) - "Spare ribs are exceptional, too, meaty and juicy, with a smoky outer ring the color of cherry soda."

Brontosaurus Rib - ($23 ss) - "The beef rib is an instant conversation stopper, a long block of impressively tender meat clinging to a Jurassic curve of bone."

Half Chicken - ($8.50 ss) - "The only disappointment is the chicken, no better or worse than what a skilled weekend cook can produce with a kettle grill." [NYTimes]

Donde Dinner? - 358 Third Ave

Donde Dinner? wants to make your next dining experience an adventure. So, every Friday, we pick a restaurant and post its address for you. The catch is, that's all the information you get. No name, no type of cuisine, and no Googling. Here's last week's address:

103 Second Avenue = Mighty Quinn's

This week's restaurant follows typical Donde Dinner? fashion. Price, quality, and accessibility have all been taken into account. You won't be waiting at the bar for two hours with $15 cocktails and you never have to worry about a dress code. Just hop on the train, or your feet, or your bike, and head to:

358 Third Avenue (@ 26th St)

Mighty Quinn's is Open

Mighty Quinn's opened yesterday in the former Vandaag space at 103 Second Avenue. It's the fifth restaurant of 11 to open from our Taste of Tastes to Come.

The barbecue here is the work of Texas native Hugh Mangum, who started serving his Texalina Barbecue at Smorgasburg. His is a hybrid of sorts, inspired by the barbecue traditions of both Texas and the Carolinas. Mighty Quinn's offers a traditional menu of brisket, pulled pork, smoked sausage, ribs, wings, and chicken. From the restaurant's website, "We cook our barbeque the old school way, with plenty of wood and time, adding just the right amount of salt and spice to let that lovely marriage of process and product evolve into something transcendent."

The website also explains, "Mighty Quinn’s is the first authentic barbeque experience in a fast casual setting." Part of the setting is provided by tables built from century-old wood planks salvaged from the recent Puck Building renovation. The Puck Building was built in the late 1800s and is one of the city's oldest landmarks.

There's no bourbon at this barbecue spot, but a total of 16 beers are available on tap and in bottle. Mighty Quinn's is open for lunch and dinner seven days a week and late (2am) Thursday - Saturday.

Mighty Quinn's | 103 Second Avenue (6th Street) | 212-677-3733 | www

Sunday - Wednesday 11am - midnight, Thursday - Saturday 11am - 2am