The Great Big Bacon Picnic - Sept. 24-25, 2016

Hailed by top food bloggers as “The Bacon Event of the Year” in 2015, The Great Big Bacon Picnic is back in Williamsburg, Brooklyn next week, Sept. 24-25, 2016. This indoor/outdoor gourmet bacon festival features UNLIMITED bacon and booze from over 100 chefs, restaurants, food trucks, brewmasters, distillers, mixologists, and culinary experts. Sounds like a dream come true!

Guest blogger, Gail Worley from The Worleygig covered the event for Skulls & Bacon last year and she'll be representing again this year! See her recap of last year's Great Big Bacon Picnic.

In addition to stuffing your face and catching a buzz, the High & Mighty Brass Band will be performing, you can participate in the 1st ever Bacon Toss contest (catch the bacon in your mouth!), and a Great Big Food Nap area where attendees can rest up for the next round.

Some featured dishes that will be in attendance:

Bareburger Maple Sriracha, candied bacon slider with pickled red onion, Boston bib lettuce, Sriracha aioli, on a pretzel bun

Brooklyn Colony’s Breakfast Bacon Empanada

Sweet Chili’s The Porkgasm - Spicy Vietnamese Caramel Glazed Pork Belly


The event will feature three different sessions of inspired bite-sized bacon dishes and the best in craft beers and top-shelf spirits:

• Saturday Brunch 12:00pm – 2:30pm with VIP access from 11:00am
• Saturday Happy Hour 5:30pm – 8:00pm with VIP access from 4:30pm
• Sunday Brunch 1:00pm – 3:30pm with VIP access from 12:00pm

For a list of participating restaurants, sponsors, and to purchase tickets, visit greatbigbacon.com/.

**10% of the net proceeds will be donated to various charities, such as  City Harvest, and vendors are encouraged to use local suppliers and farmers who produce  organic and sustainable ingredients.

Here's a quick peek at last year's festivities:

Going Hog Wild at the Great Big Bacon Picnic

A Guest Blog for Skulls & Bacon
By Gail Worley from The Worleygig



If you weren’t able to make the scene at the Great Big Bacon Picnic, which took place over the weekend of May 16th and 17th, you missed what will surely go down in Bacon Legend among those lucky enough to attend as the Bacon Event of The Year – assuming, of course, that it becomes an annual event! And we will be praying it does!



Held at the old Pfizer Factory in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, a mix of Indoor and Outdoor space provided the absolutely perfect venue for what felt like an early start to Summer, as Bacon fans arrived in herds to taste bacon-infused food and drink from over 100 chefs, brew masters, and distillers who showered attendees with unlimited bacon, extraordinary spirits and local craft beers! Bacon Picnic!



Everyone was in a great mood and the enthusiasm was palpable. It didn’t hurt that this was perhaps the best organized food event I’ve yet attended. Wait times at each booth or food truck was minimal to non-existent, and service with a smile was the order of the day. In order to accommodate the schedules of as many people as possible and avoid event burn-out, the Great Big Bacon Picnic was divided into three two-and-one-half-hour sessions (two on Saturday and one on Sunday.) I attended the Sunday afternoon session, proudly representing for Skulls and Bacon, as we ate bacon until we wished to see no more bacon. Yes, Bacon-overload (though exceedingly rare) is possible.

Here are some photo highlights from the day!





Musical entertainment was provided by Brooklyn’s own High & Mighty Brass Band, whom I spotted lounging the VIP tent between sets.

I began my journey of Bacony Delights by first hitting up all the vendors in the outdoor space, which was set up with the aforementioned VIP tent, plus shaded picnic tables, and picnic blankets on Astroturf for those not hiding from the sun.



Among food trucks and booze booths, the former Pfizer parking lot was also home to the first-ever Bacon Bar: a self-serve smorgasbord dedicated exclusively to endless servings of many different varieties of Bacon. It was a perfect appetizer to the main event!



Who doesn’t love Maple Bacon?




This Canadian Bacon tasted more like delicious roast Pork Loin to me. All good!



During the events, there was judging by not only fans, but also panels of experts, for cash prizes in a variety of categories. Tellers with Black Pepper Bacon won the Judge’s Award for Presentation at Saturday’s evening session.




I enjoyed my bacon Buffet while sipping a chilled Angry Orchard Cider in the VIP tent! Eventually though, I had to go back out into the sun, because the Bacon was calling me.



BacoBurger Steak Company grilled up a mess of their Bacon and Beef blended burgers, served as both sliders on buns, and meat-only morsels dressed up chimichurri style with pickled onions.





Big D’S presents Bacon Tempura with Wasabi Aioli Sauce was a big hit with everyone. They served it up quick!



Fans enjoy delicious Bacon Tempura on a Stick! Because everything tastes better on a stick!




Hard Times Sundaes served no Sundaes, but they served an amazingly juicy Bacon Cheeseburger with sweet grilled onions!



I washed this down with cold Deep Eddy Ruby Red Grapefruit Infused Vodka Beverage. Ah, refreshing!




I was next drawn towards the indoor area of the event, which promised shade, a bathroom, and a place to wash the pig off my hands. Plus: More Bacon!Here are a few photos of the Bacon Things I ate once I got inside.



Bacon Gruyere Mini Scone! Bacon, Cheese, Bread – whats not to love?





Hilldale’s Deviled Egg Topped with Crispy House-Smoked Pork Belly; because you never say No to a Deviled Egg – especially one topped with Bacon!



Cent’Anni Gnocchi Carbonara with Smoked bacon, Onions and Spring Peas. So rich, and quite a generous portion!




There were booths selling Bacon Swag as well, such as this fashionable United States of Bacon T-Shirt! It looks comfy!We also sampled a few prize winning recipes!




Late day Saturday, the Judge’s Awards for Creativity went to Urbo for their insanely delicious Smoked Bacon Stuffed Oreos.



Seriously, these little guys are some of the best-tasting things you could ever put in your mouth. Sweet Bacon Heaven!



Snowdonia’s Maple Bacon Welsh Rarebit took the People’s Choice Award with its blend of melted cheeses on artisan bread, sprinkled with Candied Bacon.



It’s looks pretty tasty, but check this out:



Sure, that’s how they melted the cheese, but we couldn’t help but wonder what was the secret ingredient that made this dish taste like you were, literally, eating fire? My guess is that there was a secret layer of Sriracha under that melty cheese. Let the eater beware.



Possibly our very favorite savory Bacon dish of the day, Streets’ outrageous Tuna Bacon Truffle Sushi Roll, was awarded the Judge’s Awards in both the Deliciousness and Creativity categories. Well played!



The concept of blending delicious fresh Ahi tuna sushi with crisp smoky bacon and truffle aioli was just too genius to be ignored! The deepest, most bacon-frenzied crowd of any booth at the event said all there was to be said.



We had a crazy fun time at the Great Big Bacon Picnic and hope to return next year!

EDITOR'S NOTE: Big big thanks to Gail from The Worleygig for covering this event while I was on vacation in California. Man, I wish I could have been there. If it happens again next year I definitely plan on being there!

This Is Why You're Fat Scavenger Hunt - 10/29 NYC

Get this - On Oct. 29th, the team behind This Is Why You're Fat will hold a food-truck contest in NYC to promote the release of their first book. For the contest, six mobile food vendors are preparing extra-indulgent items, which TIWYF will describe to participants via their Twitter. The first person to hit all six vehicles and submit a photo of himself eating each treat gets a food-truck party of his choice for 25 friends. Info on the trucks' locations will be updated every 20 minutes. (via Crains)

Holy Crap. I wonder what goodies they'll be serving up? Probably not these:

Meat Baby w/ Bacon Diaper


Bacon Chip Nachos


Elvis's Fools Gold Loaf Sandwich


What do I do? Do I take the day off from work and try it out? Honestly, I don't think I'm fast enough for this contest but it sure sounds like fun.

Hey Chicago........BACON!

Yo, bacon-lovers in Chicago listen up! Stephanie Izard, bacon aficionado and winner of Bravo’s Top Chef (2008) is putting together a dinner for you. On September 2nd, Chef Stephanie Izard will be whipping up the second Wandering Goat dinner, part of a traveling dinner series leading up to the opening of her new restaurant, The Drunken Goat. The menu for the Wandering Goat dinner is all about the bacon!

“After having so much fun at the last dinner, I am really looking forward to meeting another group of new people and sharing some of the new creations I have been working on. At my restaurant, the Drunken Goat, we will serve our own cured meats (including bacon), so lately we have tried out a bunch of different cures and smoking methods. I’m excited to share my findings!” says Stephanie.

Some of the menu items listed are: Bacon Crisped Oysters, Bacon and Smoked Trout Salad with Heirloom Tomatoes, Aji-Braised Pork Belly, and a selection of different Bacon Gelato from Black Dog Gelato.

If I was even close to Chicago I would be there in a heartbeat! If you're interested in going you can follow Stephanie on Twitter (@stephanieizard) where she will announce when the tickets are available for purchase. Price is $65 which includes all food and drink, and the secret location will be unveiled to ticket owners a few days before by email.

Source: The Open Press

Bacon Camp Columbus 2009

Do anything exciting this weekend? Me neither. But the bacon lovers of Columbus, Ohio got down this past weekend with their own Bacon Camp held at Wild Goose Creative. Luckily for us, bloggers were in attendance and Hungrywoolf did a wonderful review and took some great pictures.

There definitely were some creative entries and bacon creations that I have not seen before. I love that people are continuing to innovate with bacon.

Bacon Bouquet - just gorgeous. Better than some dying red roses anyday.
The winning entry - bacon stuffed pierogies (with piggie butter!)
BLT - bacon liquor tinis with bacon peppercorn infused vodka
Bacon and blue cheese ice cream - I would love to try this, bacon and blue cheese go toether so well.
Bacon mustard with a pretzel chip - I bet you can't eat just one.
Spicy bacon chocolate strawberries - this one is my favorite. I want some NOW!

These pics were all posted with the gracious permission of Hungrywoolf and there's more so please visit her blog and drop a comment if you like them.

Someone with good organizational skills please get a Bacon Camp NY/NJ going. I suck at organizing but I'd eat my way through there like a champ!