Best BBQ restaurants in Kansas City? (Independence, Blue Springs: college, live, club)

[Okey Dokie]

Originally Posted by luzianne

^^^^^The only Famous Dave's I know of in KC is at the Legends and it seems to still be going strong.


Mission BBQ sounds cool; I like what they stand for. If there were a KC location, I'd try it tonight.

Two of CD’s biggest antagonists bury a hatchet over KC BBQ. Beautiful.

Speaking of Applebee’s BBQ, years ago we were vacationing in Maine and for some reason ended up eating at an Applebees. The server is telling us “the riblets are really good.” I told him we were from Kansas City and I wasn’t going to eat BBQ from Applebees, just like he wouldn’t eat seafood from Red Lobster.

[TabulaRasa]

I'm always curious when a place (typically not in KC) lists something along the lines of "traditional KC sauce," because for my part, I'm not sure I've got a good handle on one overwhelming sauce flavor profile that's particularly iconic. Most places, at least most places I go, kinda do their own thing.

Based on KC Masterpiece, I have to think that the collective consciousness feels that iconic "KC style" sauce is a heavy, overly sweet tomato-y sauce, but TBH, this describes none of the sauces I use at my favorite places, all of which are thinner and more spicy.

[MarketStEl]

Originally Posted by TabulaRasa

There are loads of neighborhood joints that never make the must-do list, which gets dominated by the brochure faves of Gates, Arthur Bryant's, Joe's KC, and Fiorella's Jack Stack...and Q39 seems to be positioning itself with the big dogs in some people's estimation. But there are a number that are great BBQ experiences, only they don't come up on KC BBQ Buzzfeed lists and the like.

Of the heavy hitters, Gates is the only one I'm super lukewarm on. I'll eat it, especially their catering spreads, which always seem better to me than when I dine in. But I never say, "Man, I'm craving some Gates." The other biggies are all better, IMO. Bryant's used to be my top pick, but I agree with others who've said it's become inconsistent. I still like their sauce best, because it's unlike really any other sauce in the city, and the location itself on Brooklyn has history. Now, I'm likely to choose Joe's KC, though I really won't wait in the line if it's out the door. I go to the original Mission Road and County Line gas station location, because it's closest and coolest. Jack Stack is qualilty, but I've never been into the ambience. It just doesn't square with BBQ, for me. Q39 has not impressed me, and there's a similar "I don't like the ambience" issue to Jack Stack.

Of the lesser touted places, I like Woodyard for the ambience (it is literally a woodyard) and meats, but the sides are mediocre. BB's Lawnside is fun and unique, and has live blues reguarly. Hayward's Pit BBQ is kind of off the beaten path, and has some great sides. Rosedale is an old school place that offers a lot of sides other places don't, like fried green tomatoes. RJ's does a Cajun twist and also has live music, but they've done some jacking around with their pricing that has turned me off. LC's has super burnt ends.

(emphasis added)

In my Kansas City Star Saturday-night copy-desk days back in the 1970s, "Bryant's or Gates?" was akin to "Protestant or Catholic?" My family had long been Gates' partisans: Mom used to spend lots of time in son Ollie's original spinoff, OG's at 31st and Indiana (anyone here remember it?), and once the mothership opened a branch on Swope Parkway off the Paseo, we would go there often (closer to our home than 12th and Brooklyn).

I took one of my dearest and closest friends to the Linwood and Main location on my second-to-most-recent trip Back Home. The "Hi, may I help YOU?" shouted as we walked in wasn't as loud as I had been used to, and as we plowed into our ribs, I said to my friend, "This place is resting on its laurels."

I also took him to Jack Stack on that visit; it was my first time there as well. (I went on the recommendation of a friend and Sunset Hill semi-classmate who now runs the Faultless Starch/Bon Ami Company.) I liked the atmosphere on the terrace at the Crossroads location; since both of us are train buffs, we appreciated being able to look out onto the Union Station tracks across the parking lot. But as we dined (I liked everything and loved the baked beans), I said to him, "This is what happens when you dress barbecue up in a suit and tie."

I do, however, like that they stuff a burnt end into the olives they use to garnish their Bloody Marys.

Othewise, agree with you about the burnt ends at LC's, which my brother (who now lives in KC once again) won't patronize because he's heard they have Issues with the Health Department. I think that if we had to use that as a guide, about a third to a half of all the Q joints in the city would have to shut down.

Originally Posted by kcmo

IMO, the best bbq chain by far outside of KC is Mission BBQ. They have really grown now and have locations all over the east coast and parts of the midwest and south. The first location was opened on 9-11-2011 in suburban DC right when we moved here and we told them they nailed it. The BBQ is VERY good, probably as good or better than many places in KC because the quality is always top notch.

They have their own bbq sauces from all different places, Memphis, Texas, etc and all are really good to try in one setting, but their KC style sauce is really good and is a nice mix of different KC bbq places.

I think they even named the first restaurant after Mission Road in KC.

https://mission-bbq.com/our-story

This place is all about giving respect to our first responders and military. When you go into any location, they have patches, photos etc from local fire departments, police and military. My son is a first responder and gets free stuff often when he goes.

It's just a really cool place with really good bbq.

So seriously if you ever get a chance, check them out. If they ever tried to enter the KC market, I'm afraid they would actually do quite well against some of the un-predicable local places.

I have not been to any of their newer locations outside of DC, so I don't know if they have been able to maintain their quality with their expansion, but older DC locations are really good.

Also, it's not on their menu but if you ask for KC style burnt ends, they have them. They keep them only for those that know about them.

Well, even if they didn't, clearly it's an influence based on the rotating illustrations on that page. But in any case it's a good double-entendre.

Mission BBQ has a location in King of Prussia; they catered a press conference the Valley Forge Convention and Visitors Bureau sponsored that I attended. I was suitably impressed with the Q and would recommend it to friends over Famous Dave's any day (if we're talking chain barbecue). Should I find myself in the area and hungry, I'll pop by and ask for the burnt ends. But there's a place in Lansdale - an indie joint called Smoke Daddy's - that does them better; I told the proprietor that he could hold his own in Kansas City when I went there on a tour of the town's Main Street (it didn't make it into my writeup on the town, though). They don't list them as a menu item either.

I am, however, now curious to try Mission BBQ's Maryland-style sauce. They really do put Old Bay on everything, not just crabs, there (one of my friends here in Philly does likewise), so I think it would be interesting to see what it does for barbecue sauce.

Originally Posted by TabulaRasa

I'm always curious when a place (typically not in KC) lists something along the lines of "traditional KC sauce," because for my part, I'm not sure I've got a good handle on one overwhelming sauce flavor profile that's particularly iconic. Most places, at least most places I go, kinda do their own thing.

Based on KC Masterpiece, I have to think that the collective consciousness feels that iconic "KC style" sauce is a heavy, overly sweet tomato-y sauce, but TBH, this describes none of the sauces I use at my favorite places, all of which are thinner and more spicy.

IMO Rich Davis ruined it for Kansas City with his sauce, which tastes like it has a whole tank of molasses dumped into it. Most of my favorite KC sauces simply aren't that sweet either. But if you go into a supermarket these days and see a store-brand "Kansas City" barbecue sauce on the shelf, you will find it also heavy on the molasses (often with high fructose corn syrup as a backup, in which case I won't try it). The one national-brand KC-style sauce I find at all acceptable is Heinz, which my local supermarket has stopped carrying.

I still consider Gates' sauce the best on the planet, period, and neither its Original Classic or its Extra Hot (my preference) are that sweet. However, I knew the game was up and Davis had won when I learned that Gates had come out with a "Sweet and Mild" variety. I make my own variant rather than order it from the website ever since they started using HFCS as the principal sweetener; I've made versions with both brown sugar and with molasses.

I consider Q39 sauce (I prefer the Zesty) a worthy addition to the pantheon of Kansas City sauces, and my new rave fave is Char Bar's Table Sauce, the spiciest of that place's sauces. (See a pattern here?)

[luzianne]

Originally Posted by MarketStEl

Othewise, agree with you about the burnt ends at LC's, which my brother (who now lives in KC once again) won't patronize because he's heard they have Issues with the Health Department. I think that if we had to use that as a guide, about a third to a half of all the Q joints in the city would have to shut down.

I like the way your brother thinks. I check health department inspections regularly and I don't patronize any restaurant that has roaches, dead or alive, or mouse droppings. Nope.

[Floorist]

Originally Posted by luzianne

I like the way your brother thinks. I check health department inspections regularly and I don't patronize any restaurant that has roaches, dead or alive, or mouse droppings. Nope.

As nasty as Gates is, how do they avoid getting fined? The floors are always just gross.

[kcmo]

Originally Posted by MarketStEl

(emphasis added)
I still consider Gates' sauce the best on the planet, period.

And I think that's the sauce that Mission is closest too.

I have never had a problem with Gates. Personally, I think the Brush Creek and Paseo Location is always super clean and well run and that's the one we typically go to. The one in Midtown has always seemed clean and well run too. I have very little experience at the other locations.

When in KC, we will typically hit Gates (paseo), LC's (east side) and Jack Stack (crossroads) and will order different things at each one (was not a fan of Jack Stack in Lee's Summit. I think KC bbq just tastes better in the city I guess lol). There are lots of other places and I'm sure they are all good, but those are my three favorites.

[Mad Anthonie]

A newer place worthy of a visit is A Little BBQ Joint out in Independence, a family owned and operated joint on US 24 Hiway just west of the Truman Library. Great food and a great automotive ambience.

[kansascityproud]

Kansas City BBQ is (in my opinion) pretty good across the board. My favorites are Smokehouse and Zarda's, and of course, Joe's KC is always a solid choice as well. Go to Gates for an experience. My least favorite is Arthur Bryants.

[Floorist]

When we lived in Buckner we went to the Smoke House on 39th a lot. The last couple times we drove up there to eat (we now live 100 miles away) the food was awful.

[Floorist]

We live closer to Joplin now and there is no decent BBQ there at all.