by John Hardaway (@CoachHardaway)10/11/2022 1:42:36 PM
posted in: Skordle Sampler | 2,297 views
While watching the Kansas City Chiefs on Monday Night Football, I decided it was time share my recent trips to three of the most well-known BBQ places in KC.
Kansas City is a prime American BBQ destination, right there with Texas, North Carolina and Memphis.
My three BBQ stops in Kansas City were Arthur Bryant’s, Fiorella’s Jack Stack and Q39, which all have their place on the KC BBQ map.
Arthur Bryant’s is a Kansas City BBQ landmark, established in 1908, and I visited it before going to the Chiefs game last December.
The line was out the door with plenty of Chiefs fans, but probably more out-of-town Broncos fans. We got a little bit of everything just to give it a try and my favorite was the thinly-sliced brisket sandwich and their ribs with the famous BBQ sauce.
We also got Burnt Ends along with coleslaw and potato salad. I did not care for the coleslaw, but really liked the potato salad.
Arthur Bryant’s is a legendary Kansas City BBQ joint and a must stop for any BBQ enthusiast. No place in Kansas City has been on more TV shows and had articles, reviews and visits written about it than Arthur Bryant’s.
Fiorella’s Jack Stack BBQ is a popular restaurant that got its start in 1957 and has expanded into multiple locations around the Kansas City area.
When you go inside, it has more of a steakhouse type of feel to it, but the BBQ is top-notch.
Most of their BBQ is served family style for sharing, which I really liked (uh, yeah, sure, I shared).
We got the KC sampler platter which was thin sliced brisket, pulled pork and ribs. All three meats were fantastic!
Very smoky, moist and full of flavor.
Jack Stack gives you a couple of different sauce options and all complemented the meats perfectly.
For sides, we went with the cream corn casserole and pot of baked beans, which were both good. In my opinion Jack Stack had the best brisket of the three places I visited in Kansas City.
Q39 BBQ has developed quite the reputation in Kansas City as well since its opening in 2014.
It has a little trendier and more modern feel, but the food that is served here is great.
For starters, we decided to get the “Best Wings on the Planet” because how can you not if something is going to be titled that?
(From the Q39 Facebook Page)
Normally I’m not a big wing guy, especially at a BBQ joint, but these wings were incredible!
They were so good, in fact, we ended up getting two more orders (yet, somehow, not one single picture).
They are smoky, tangy, lightly crunchy, sweet and so good.
After the barrage of wings, we decided to get three different sandwiches just to do something a little different and try several things: Brisket Burnt End Sandwich, the Brisket Burnt End Burger, and the Triple Pig Sandwich.
The first two sandwiches are self-explanatory, but the Triple Pig was a three-meat sandwich of smoked pork belly, chorizo sausage, and pulled pork with cole slaw on top and this one was my favorite.
Q39 also had the best sides I had including onion rings and bakes beans.
If I had to rank the three Kansas City places, I would go with 1) Jack Stack 2) Q39 3) Arthur Bryant’s.
All three places have a different feel to them, but all three are uniquely Kansas City.
I know Oklahoma Joes also has a devout following from its fans as well and I will be going there on my next Kansas City trip.
Sauce is very important to Kansas City BBQ and I enjoyed this as they brought a lot of different flavors to these meals.
Kansas City is known worldwide for its BBQ and these three joints delivered high quality BBQ eating experiences.