Popular Cutchogue Fire Department Chicken BBQ Back For 62nd Year

CUTCHOGUE, NY — A highlight of the North Fork's summer season is set to unfold Saturday as a hungry crowd heads to the Cutchogue Fire Department's 62nd Annual Chicken Barbecue.

The event, including takeout, begins at 4 p.m. and runs through 8 p.m. at the Cutchogue Firehouse on New Suffolk Road.

Volunteers have been busy all week preparing for the popular event; 3,600 chicken halves will be barbecued for 3,000 guests.

The event is sold out.

This year's chairman is Tom Robins, but all involved have been honored to pitch in for years, at an event that means so much to the community.

John Lademann, former Chief, who's worked at the pit for 57 years, said last year, 3,581 chicken halves were cooked up and served. The grills were heated at about 1:15 p.m., with sand in the pits and 5,200 lbs. of charcoal on top. Lademann, who's been working at the event for 59 years now, says last year that he enjoys the barbecue, which brings the community, young and old, together for good food, fun, and laughter. "We have a good time," he said.

CFD's chicken is so good, in fact, that Martha Stewart raved about it after attending in 1997 — and guests have said for years that it's the best they've ever tasted.

But don't ask for the recipe. "It's a secret sauce," Lademann has said, smiling.

Patch photo by Lisa Finn.