Arthur Bryant's BBQ and KC

At my insistence, I managed the nine hour drive from Denver to Kansas City. When we arrived, I was tired and in need of some down time. Doug's friend Tony met us at his home and we left almost immediately for one of my favorite barbecue joints in the country, Arthur Bryant's. Once we arrived, I was in better spirits and excited to eat. AB is the BBQ mecca in KC that attracts politicians, tourists, and fond lovers of BBQ such as myself to a city that is one of the country's homes for barbecue.

I stopped at AB once before and was stunned by the meat and sauces. When a return to KC materialized on the drive to St. Louis, I insisted on AB. I read about another BBQ joint, Oklahoma Joe's, and would have liked to try Gates BBQ, but with little time I didn't think it was the right time for a pleasure eating cruise around KC's best BBQ restaurants. I ordered the brisket and burnt ends, the latter of which is the famous AB selection. (Pork is no slouch when it comes to barbecue, but I usually prefer beef when it comes to eating.) The burnt ends were soaked in sauce with an even amount of carbon that exploded with flavor. As you can guess, the richly smoked and evenly fatty brisket, when combined with the rich and sweet sauce (one of three table sauces), was the perfect compliment to the burnt ends. We drank a Boulevard Brewing Company Pale Ale. After finishing a mug I didn't feel like beer so I grabbed a refreshing, yet not too sacchrine, sweet tea. I left with a full stomach and a content body after driving for so long. Doug wasn't too impressed with his ribs (too tough) and Kate wasn't blown away by her pulled pork (flavor wise). Our host Tony gratefully shared some of his pork that I loved.


For the record, I loved KC, and Doug's friend Tony deserves repeated thanks. Tony--who was a wonderful host on so many levels and is due heaps of praise and plaudits--took us on a driving tour of KC that ended with a stop at the Flying Saucer beer bar (a must for any beer nerd) in the the bar choked Power and Light District. Tony's intricately planned route brought us past through the Missouri side's architecture, campus areas, fantastic art museum (or at least from the outside), and glitzy downtown that is benefiting from urban renewal. We saw the ins and outs of KC that we never would have had the fortune to discover, and Kate and I were duly impressed. If you have an opportunity, take the chance and visit KC, if only for Arthur Bryant's and KC's charm.