Our Story

The Setting

Lil' Piece is the restaurant at Island Green, a golf, lodge, and events resort in Greenville, NY. The property hosts golf outings, weddings, corporate retreats, and weekend getaways. Play a round, check in to the lodge, and eat BBQ that came off the smoker that morning. Few BBQ spots in the region can offer that.

The Chef

Chef Andrew Tobin graduated from the Culinary Institute of America and spent years in professional kitchens before applying classical culinary discipline to low-and-slow BBQ. That became Lil' Piece.

Andrew grew up in the Hudson Valley and knew he'd come back. After training at the CIA in Hyde Park and cooking in high-pressure restaurant kitchens, he returned to Greene County with a battered smoker and a clear idea of what he wanted to make. Lil' Piece started as a passion project in Greenville and grew on word of mouth alone into the area's favorite weekend destination.

The Process

We hand-trim every piece of meat to order, dry-rub it with our house spice blend, and smoke it low and slow over real hardwood. No gas assist. No shortcuts. No reheating. The menu that day is what came off the smoker that morning.

Briskets run 12–14 hours over oak. Pork shoulders go 10–12 hours over apple wood, which gives the meat a subtle sweetness that pairs with the savory bark. St. Louis ribs get a dry rub and no sauce. Good ribs don't need it. The sauce is on the side. Always.

Wednesday Through Sunday

Real BBQ can't be rushed. Briskets go on Tuesday night and are ready Wednesday evening. We run five days a week and stop there — opening every day would compromise the quality. Drive out to Greenville and leave impressed. The Catskills is worth the trip. So is the food.