Labor of Love

August 27, 2012 9:00 am EDT

Here’s to Labor Day – in which we observe the economic contributions of the American worker by solemnly sucking BBQ sauce off our fingers. So this year, pay your respects to the working stiff by attending either (or, god willing, both) of these outdoor pork-a-paloozas.

Pig Island

labor day 2 - pig island

Squeal like you’re eating pig, boy. On Saturday, Governor’s Island hosts celebrated restos (The Darby, Casa Mono, Hecho en Dumbo, the newly-opened Pork Slope, etc.), which’ll be cutting up 80 locally-sourced hogs and crafting dishes like tacos al pastor with caramelized pineapple and spicy Korean pork puns with plum sauce to be consumed picnic-style at umbrella’d tables.

On tap: Sixpoint Brewery beer brewed specially for the festival, which also includes cooking and butchery demos taught by Casa Mono’s Anthony Sasso and others, as well as live music from Ryan Adams guitarist JP Bowersock. InsideHook readers get $10 off tickets by entering promo code “Blogisland” at checkout.

$75 | Saturday, Sept 1st | Get Tickets

Brooklyn Garage Labor Day Lot Party

labor day 3 - brooklyn garage

This first-ever, all-day courtyard affair at Industry City Distillery hog-ties your gullet with a massive smoker filled with Sullivan County Farms hog, plated up alongside Hudson Valley chicken and seasonal veggies and sides straight from the farmer’s market.

Drinks-wise, Mixologists from Lucey’s Lounge will be slinging custom cocktails like spiked lemonade and rum punch, as well as $1 Brooklyn Brewery beers. A host of live bands will perform throughout, rotating from folky bluegrass in the afternoon though straight-up rock and roll in the evening to DJs spinning into the wee hours. Discounted tickets are available exclusively to InsideHook readers till midnight tonight. The porky hoe down is all to support a as-yet-unborn craftsman’s complex called Brooklyn Garage, where they’ll school you on how to work with your hands.

Till then, put them mits around a rib.

$15 | Monday, Sept 3rd | Get Tickets

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