The Piggy Bank — Restaurant in City of Beacon

I came here fully expecting to prove this other reviewer wrong on how ‘not so good’ this place is. He was not wrong (sad face).

Ambiance/Room: Loved it! Very cool. Good place to hang out for drinks.

Service: Jackie (spelling) is a KEEPER!!! She is the best thing going here. Super nice and big smile. She loves what she does, serve people and make them smile.

The Q Sauce: It was super dark and watery; had a very heavy vinegar base to it; almost like red wine vinegar rather than apple cider vinegar.

Corn Bread: Ok flavor, but too dry. Even the butter did not help much.

The Ribs: Fall off the bone… dry! Not moist at all. The fat was moist… The dry rub is a little off-putting. Not much sweetness, which you would expect to enhance the flavor of the pork. Then there is the ‘fuel taste’, like they were cooked under heavy black smoke, rather than clean smoke. Basically, they were over cooked. Not to mention that the Ribs were served pretty much at room temperature.

Food safety recommends that you serve any meat at least around 140F. The French fires were hotter…

The Brisket: The first serving was about 1/2 all fat from the Point end. The fat did not look completely rendered. My wife was brought the lean/flat end. Again, very dry, felt and tasted overcooked. Again, that fuel taste of dark smoke.

Do not be fooled… a smoke ring does not make good BBQ. It just looks cool with that red smoke ring.

Again, brisket was served at room temperature.

Conclusion: I am not a professional, but I think I am professional eater that enjoys good food. I don’t go in expecting amazing food, but I expect at least decent to good food. I travel regularly to Texas, so I know great Q, and not so good Q. I have also tried the other local places in the Newburgh area.

Do not get me wrong, I am not expecting a new restaurant to match the decades of experience seen in Texas, but you have to try a little harder. Try eating at your local competitor’s places, or at least do some secret take-out. How else are you going to know how you measure up to the others…? You cannot expect to compete when all you know is what you think is good.

Heck, I could even make you some of my brisket and ribs and let your cook try some to compare. BBQ is not hard, but you have to love it and want to improve.

If you take to heart, without being offended by honest reviews, then your Piggy Bank will be a...

Unfortunately, top tier BBQ still eludes the Hudson Valley, but Piggy Bank didn't even come close to that mark.

The ribs although seasoned decently, weren't tender or juicy enough, so you can forget about it falling off the bone and melting in your mouth.

The mac & cheese was overcooked and sloppily prepared. The cheese hand pie that came with the salad was an interesting touch, but very clearly used the same cheese that the mac & cheese was using, offering no additional uniqueness in flavor.

The room temp cornbread seemed store bought and paired with a cold butter didn't really make sense. The cinnamon butter was actually pretty decent, but at least warm it up or warm up the cornbread so it can be more easily spread.

The fried chicken on the salad was decent, but still nothing to write home about.

Service was friendly and I like the revived atmosphere of the interior and patio. We got our food quickly, but it took forever to get the check.

Ultimately, I won't be back or recommend it. Piggy Bank just feels like another NYC tourist trap that's benefiting from being the only BBQ place on Main Street. This isn't a BBQ joint, it's a restaurant that sells...

The. Best. BBQ. Around!

The ribs are tender and delicious. Amazing dry rub! Had the onion rings and corn bread as sides. Both were great. Onion rings were not greasy and were hot and crisp. Corn bread come as a mini loaf. Sauces are included with everything. BBQ sauce for the ribs if you like them wetter. Onion ring sauce was good and the sweet sauce that comes with the cornbread made it that much better.

My wife had the pulled pork sandwich and Mac and cheese. Very large serving of pulled pork on the sandwich.

Inside is a former bank. The vault is still there to look at but used as storage for the liquor.

Nice looking bar inside. The decor is a little plain inside with booths and tables. I do not believe there was free wifi at the restaurant.

Nice outdoor deck on the side to eat outside on a nice day. Probably could use some fans for the hot sunny days.

Only suggestions I’d make are to provide a bowl to put bones and used napkins in and wet wipes at the end.

The bathroom is shared men and women. It needed attention the day we were there.

The bbq was great and we will...