City: Kansas City, MO

Category: Restaurants

Telephone: (816) 231-1123

Address: 1727 Brooklyn (East Side)

Description: Celebrities and presidents have made the pilgrimage to this landmark since 1930, and today, despite the spot’s location in a neglected neighborhood, the lunch line still forms by 11:30. Even then you’ll wait as much as half an hour to yell “Beef and fries” to the man standing in front of that smoking pit, but it’s worth it to get your hands around 4 inches of brisket slapped on two pieces of Wonder bread. The sauce is an alarmingly orange mixture that’s a bit more vinegary—and a lot grainier—than anything else in town. It’s one reason New Yorker columnist Calvin Trillin named Bryant’s “the single best restaurant in the world.” You can eat in the joint or have your meal to go, whereupon it will be wrapped in two layers of butcher paper that will only partially protect your car’s upholstery.