Barbecue

On any given day you are likely to smell the aroma of barbecue in Kansas City. The very fabric of the community is saturated with the intoxicating scent. Breaking the barrier to become a successful BBQ restaurant in this town is no easy feat. Chef J has learned this lesson as the new kid in town. Working out of one of the historic warehouses in the West Bottoms, his days are spent tending a smoker. Moving beyond the traditional First Friday weekend, you will find him serving up delectable dishes every weekend. Chef J BBQ, at 1401 W. 13th Street, is carving out [...]

Breaking the BBQ barrier in Kansas City isn't easy. On any given day, the smoky aroma of barbecue permeates the very fabric of the city. It isn't reserved just for game days or the Fourth of July. Barbecue is the lifeblood of the city. The idea of launching a new restaurant in this atmosphere can be more than unnerving. So many have come and gone, while there are the standards that have stood the test of time. Every once in a while, new blood will rise up and challenge the hierarchy for a chance to join this elusive club. We traveled to Midtown [...]

While many of us are happy to see 2020 wrapping up, there were still some good things that came out of this year. Our hometown Kansas City Chiefs have been sailing to another playoff berth. Since we are still finding a lot of lockdown situations, game time has become a home event. That suits us, since the best seats are those on our couch. Of course, that doesn't preclude us from enjoying ourselves, we have just had to learn the art of tailgating COVID style. Many of you have been with us for years, and probably remember when my old blog was mostly [...]

As we approach the one month mark, since our hometown implemented the "Stay At Home" rule, we find ourselves adapting to this new reality. While we all hope it is temporary, we know that there is the possibility that it will remain around, in some form, for many months. In the meantime, we are working at finding ways to incorporate our local small businesses into everyday life. Shopping is pretty much out the window unless you need groceries, toiletries or lumber. There is still the opportunity to eat dinner prepared outside of our kitchen, but it requires being willing to pursue creative carryout [...]

Let's face it, us Kansas Citians have a thing for barbecue. There may be other cities that claim the crown for this delectable cuisine, but there is a reason that the World Series of BBQ is held in our hometown. For those needing more proof, just drive by Arrowhead Stadium before a Chiefs game, and take a whiff of the smoke-filled air. We have taken 'Cue beyond the backyard and turned it into an iconic symbol of our city. What we really enjoy is the variety of sauces that can be found throughout the metro. Our local favorite is Big Q Bar-B-Q, located [...]

It seems the whole world has seen or read something about Joe's KC Bar-B-Que. When we think of barbeque restaurants nearby, this is one of the most well-known. A visit to one of their restaurants will usually result in taking a turn at the waiting game. Although the lines may be long, Joe's staff has refined the ordering process to a fine art. This helps them serve the largest number of customers in an efficient manner. Prestigious Past Even though their delectable dishes are familiar to many, the story of their rise to fame is less well known. Kansas City is a BBQ [...]

A couple of weeks ago, we released an article from a trip in Little Rock, Arkansas, where our schedule was interrupted by Guy Fieri. Most of you will recognize his name as the host of Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives. It got us to wondering how many restaurants in our own hometown this TV icon has visited. It didn't take much work to find a trail of his trips on the internet, and low and behold, one of our regular BBQ joints was on the list. Johnny's Hickory House BBQ was featured in April of 2010, which means they had only been open 33 [...]

We can always count on one thing happening when we release a restaurant article in Kansas City. It will create a lot of conversation among the KC Foodies, which almost always results in a list of more restaurants to add to our "Need To Visit" list. Such was the case for Blind Box BBQ, which was mentioned by a few readers after we posted a previous barbecue article. We made plans to drop in to what we thought was a newer KC BBQ joint. Located at 13214 West 62nd Terrace, in Shawnee, this place has actually been open for around three years. It [...]

Kansas City is such a mecca for barbecue, that we believe you could easily eat this cuisine at a different restaurant every week and never repeat locations. It seems like wherever we travel in the metro, we run into at least one place we had never visited before. This was the case when we stumbled upon A Little BBQ Joint at 1101 West U.S. Highway 24 in Independence, Missouri. The outside decor screamed at us to visit, and our hungers joined in. Local Haunt This day had already been filled with a visit to the Vaile Museum and their annual Strawberry Festival. (You [...]

Whenever we post an article about Kansas City BBQ we receive lots of feedback. Talking barbecue in KC is like discussing pizza joints in Chicago or Philly steak sandwiches in Philadelphia. While it seems that everyone has a different opinion on their favorite, the one thing we can agree on is that Kansas City is the place to be for delicious 'Cue. Recently we made a return visit to S.L.A.P.'s BBQ for a quiet KCK lunch. It was a cool day, so we figured that we might luck out and get the place to ourselves. Those in the know will be chuckling right [...]