Jase Franklyn started selling barbecue out of his own backyard in Brooklyn in 2017, slow-cooking pork, chicken and pig tails for neighbors who kept coming back for more. Nearly a decade later, his Caribbean-inflected smokehouse, Jase's BBQ, has landed a permanent stall at Time Out Market Union Square, serving jerk brisket finished with a passionfruit sauce that traces its roots straight back to his mother's grill in Tobago.
According to Time Out, Franklyn learned to grill from his mother, who cooked pork, chicken and fish back home in Tobago, and he later folded a blend of Caribbean spices into his own brisket once he began experimenting with the cut during the pandemic. He spent roughly a year on research and development before he felt the brisket was ready, telling Time Out that “brisket can be simple but technical if you do not know anything.” That patience shows in the jerk brisket itself, which the stall cooks low and slow for 12 hours before it ever reaches a plate.
Franklyn's path to Union Square ran through several New York neighborhoods first. He sold barbecue out of his Brooklyn backyard starting in 2017, then moved to the Rockaways in 2019, where he built a following slinging brisket and other smoked meats at pop-ups around the city, including a stint at Strong Rope Brewery in Red Hook, per the same Time Out account. That grassroots run through backyards, breweries and street festivals gave him room to refine a menu that now includes rice and peas, jerk chicken, barbecue chicken, pig tails, pulled pork and spare ribs.
A Viral Boost and a Mentor's Advice
The stall's profile got an unexpected lift when Rob Martinez sampled the brisket while filming an unrelated video and, per that video, called it the best barbecue in NYC. Before landing on his current recipe, Franklyn also sought tips from Ruben Santana of Bark Barbecue, the Dominican-Texan pitmaster whose own Time Out Market stall grew into an 8,000-square-foot Bushwick restaurant in July. Santana's mentorship reflects a broader pattern among New York's newer wave of pitmasters, many of whom trade smoking techniques while building out concepts that blend Central Texas methods with Caribbean and Latin flavors.
Franklyn's cooking has always leaned on two techniques in tandem: slow cooking in the oven and a charcoal-and-wood smoker, a combination he has used since his earliest backyard sales. That technical grounding pairs with an athletic background rarely seen in a barbecue pitmaster — Franklyn was an ECAC champion in the shot put and hammer throw at Lehman College before coaching at Long Island University Brooklyn and later serving as throwing coach at Poly Prep Country Day School in Brooklyn, according to The Polygon.
From Tech Repair to Full-Time Pitmaster
Franklyn immigrated from Tobago to the United States in 2003 to study Computer Information Systems at Lehman College, and he ran an electronics repair business fixing phones and computers from 2014 to 2019 before committing to barbecue full time, as reported by The Rockaway Times. Before he ever set up in Manhattan, Franklyn built a loyal following in Queens running weekend pop-ups and winter takeout out of Postcard Brewing Company on Beach Channel Drive in the Rockaways, keeping sales going through online ordering when cold weather shut down the outdoor bar.
The stall now anchors itself at Time Out Market Union Square, the 10,000-square-foot food hall at 124 East 14th Street that houses seven curated kitchen stalls alongside an outdoor terrace and full-service bar. Jase's BBQ joined the market's initial roster announced in a lineup that also includes Chef Kwame Onwuachi's Patty Palace and Unapologetic Foods' Kebabwala, before testing the space further with a month-long pop-up residency in April ahead of securing the permanent spot in June.
What's on the Menu Now
Lunch-goers can get a brisket sandwich, a pulled pork sandwich, or a two-rib plate with a side for $14, alongside sides like sweet cornbread and mac and cheese. Franklyn has also used pop-ups and street festivals to test fusion items, including crispy smoked brisket spring rolls served with a house barbecue dipping sauce, and he plans to roll out new items periodically at the market, including his award-winning pig tails.
Franklyn remains active in New York's wider Caribbean food scene beyond his own stall, popping up at Smorgasburg and collaborating with figures like Chef Picky of Everything Oxtail at events such as On D Pavement to showcase Trinidadian and Tobagonian cooking. The move to a permanent Union Square counter caps a run of recognition for the concept, which won Best Food Overall at the 2018 Bacon and Beer Classic NYC, a Hidden Gem award for jerk pork and pigtails at Pig Island NYC in 2020, and Best Rib Dinner at Rib King NYC in 2021.
