A MIRACLE IN THE DESERT

COREY, chef

BROOKLYN, NY

Corey is one of Brooklyn’s most beloved BBQ chefs, but after COVID hit, everything changed. Like many in the restaurant industry, Corey was struggling to stay afloat. Then came a phone call that changed everything. The caller? A larger-than-life figure Corey had met through roommates and colleagues, a man he describes as a “Bruce Wayne type.” Think race car driver, tech mogul, world traveler, and someone who liked to do things big. He was organizing a private camp for Burning Man and wanted Corey to be the chef. The deal: build a kitchen from scratch in the middle of the Nevada desert and feed 150 people, twice a day, for three weeks.

Corey had never been to Burning Man, but the chance to cook for such an influential crowd and prove himself on a new stage was too good to pass up. He packed his gear and flew west. Then came the curveball. For the camp’s opening night, Corey was tasked with roasting two whole pigs on a massive rotisserie mounted inside a three-story fire dome where dancers would perform around the flames. It was part feast, part performance art. As the pigs began to roast, word spread that a major dust storm was approaching. He had 90 minutes to act. Corey grabbed rolls of foil and began wrapping the pigs directly on the spinning rotisserie, letting the foil unravel while the pigs turned. He sealed the tent, put on a respirator, and got ready.

What followed looked like a scene from Mad Max. Blinding dust clouds swallowed the desert. Winds slammed into camp. Inside the tent, Corey worked through it all, hand-cranking the rotisserie when power failed, keeping the coals alive, reinforcing the structure, and fighting to stay awake after 48 hours with no sleep. The storm lasted eleven hours. Visibility dropped to inches. The tent nearly lifted off. But somehow, Corey held it all together. When the dust finally cleared, the pigs were perfectly roasted, untouched by the storm. He and his crew moved them into the fire dome, flipped them upside down, and served 300 hungry guests. Within 15 minutes, every bite was gone. There was no trophy, no spotlight, no press. But Corey had done the impossible. And that night, deep in the desert, surrounded by dust, fire, and music, Corey and his feast became a Burning Man legend still spoken about today.