Yes, I know it’s Thursday, but I wanted to tell you about this place a little early in case you’d like to get dinner from there sooner than later.
What do you get when you take a graduate from the Culinary Institute Of America, with over twenty years of experience as a chef, a little pulled pork and a touch of Southern hospitality? You get a rare gem of a place in Haverstraw known as Big Daddy’s HomePlate BBQ. After working in the culinary world for 27 years chef Parker and his family opened Big Daddy’s in 2017 and have been serving up southern cuisine to those lucky enough to find them. They got the name for the place because Chef Parker was dominate on the pitcher’s mound and received the nickname big daddy.
Located at 167 route 9w in Haverstraw NY, you may have passed it many times as I did but it’s hard to see. To me the building resembles a dugout, but once you find it you’ll never miss it again. I have been several times and each time I have tried something different and every time the quality has been very good. You can see there’s an attention to detail, yet the feel of a down home southern BBQ joint is kept intact. There’s something about the food that is just a little notch above what one would expect from a BBQ place. I’m thinking it’s the 27 years of chef experience that I’m tasting when I go there. This could also be the reason I find myself craving the ribs or pulled pork on somedays. I have only done take-out as the place is small and I’m usually in a hurry, but it’s always delicious when I get it home.
On this trip the order consisted of fried chicken and ribs, with a side order of corn soufflé, collard greens and mac n cheese. I’m not going to say the fried chicken was better than my mamaw’s but it certainly was close and it has that southern thing going for it. It’s moist with a nicely spiced and crunchy outside, that wasn’t greasy. I can’t really explain (that southern thing) but if you’ve ever eaten fried chicken in the south you know what I’m saying. The ribs were just the right amount of tender and texture that held onto the BBQ sauce. They don’t smoke the ribs like some places do but that doesn’t hurt the taste one bit. The corn soufflé was light and held together nicely so the taste really comes through. The collard greens were exactly the way I like them, tender ,slightly bitter and jumped up when I added hot sauce. They are probably the best collards I have eaten in a long time.
I have also had the brisket, which is smoked and it was amazing. The pulled pork sandwich is also delicious and one of the things I get a hankering for. There’s lighter fare too, such as salads or fish sandwiches. I heard the spicy Caribbean chicken sandwich is really spicy and folks love it, so if heat’s your thing give it a try! I’d advice you to look at the menu online just to get the tastebuds ready. You’ll be in for a treat no matter what you order, but sometimes they may be out of a certain item so have a backup in mind. The dining area is small and can get a little cramped, but as I’ve said before doing take-out works great and it might even be fun to grab some on your way to Bear Mountain for a picnic. How ever you do it, you owe it to yourself to give Big Daddy’s HomePlate BBQ a try.
As always if you do go or have gone please leave us a comment in the box below and let us know how your experience was. If you have any questions or comments please leave them in the box below and I’ll answer them as soon as I can. Until next time Boone Appétit!
