KansasCity BBQ (Kansas City, Washington, Parkway: city hall, home, buying)

[WILWRadio]

When I lived in the area my favorites were LC's, Gates and Zarda. Haywards Pit BBQ in Overland Park is also quite good.

[CaseyMO]

Originally Posted by MarketStEl

Y'know, I think you're right!

But Wonder Bread lives on still. Its maker, Continental Baking Company, by then a subsidiary of St. Louis-based Ralston Purina Company, got acquired in 1995 by its then locally-based rival, Interstate Brands Corporation (Interstate Bakeries Corporation when we were young), bakers of Butternut bread and Dolly Madison snack cakes (the latter the sponsor of those "Peanuts" specials on CBS).]

You are correct about Continental Baking Company being a Ralston Purina subsidiary prior to Interstate Brands. Prior to Ralston Purina, Continental Baking was owned by ITT, aka International Telephone & Telegraph. During the 1960s and 1970s, ITT was a huge conglomerate. Under the management of CEO, Harold Geneen, they purchased 100 or more companies. Here is a link about ITT.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ITT_Inc.

[Floorist]

Did Gates ever clean up their buildings? They were nasty when I lived in KC. Zarda was fast food BBQ.

[EYEL1NER]

Originally Posted by sub

Occasionally, one might find authentic Kansas City sauce in a store outside of the area.
I was at a Cabella’s in Green Bay recently and they had actually had a decent selection of KC sauce in the grilling section. I think it had Bryant’s, Gates, Jack Stack, etc., among others I think. My guess is Bass Pro does the same.
Not certain if LC’s was one of them, but I know I’ve seen their sauce in a store somewhere and got all excited about it.
The best authentic food is often found in hole-in-wall dives or on food trucks. Jack Stack intimidates me because of that.
*sigh*
Now I need to talk my family into a 600-mile whirlwind-weekend…
LC’s is down the street from the zoo so maybe that’ll sweeten the deal.

The Ace Hardware store closest to me all the way over here in South Carolina has Bryant's sauce. I picked up a bottle last time I was in there despite still having an unopened bottle from the last time I was home in MO.

Originally Posted by MarketStEl

What's your opinion of:

• Gates Extra Hot?
• Arthur Bryant's?
• Jones Bar-B-Q, the place the Fab Five from Q***r Eye made over?
• Jack Stack?
• Meat Mitch Table Sauce, Char Bar's spicy sauce?

I still like Gates Extra Hot, and my own homebrew is based on its recipe, but I think the Meat Mitch sauce has it beat. Night of the Living BBQ is distinctive in that it combines heat and sweet.

KC_Retiree: Vinegar-based barbecue sauce is native to Eastern North Carolina (and I think it's great too). In South Carolina, the sauce is mustard-based (something I have yet to encounter, never having eaten BBQ in that state), and in northeast Alabama, it's mayonnaise-based and served with/over chicken (ditto). Everywhere else, the base is tomatoes. Texas Q is known for being served without sauce, though you can get it on the side at most places, from what I understand (I've only had Texas Q once, in Houston; something else noteworthy about it is that sausages are part of the mix, no doubt related to Texas Q's origin in the German belt of settlement in the central part of the state).

Trust me: it's nothing to write home about (figuratively AND literally for me, seeing as how I consider my 'home' to be the KC-area). It tastes decent-enough on pulled pork, which is the predominant BBQ meat; I can't think of any other style of BBQ that I'd even want to try SC mustard-based sauce on, and there aren't too many other kinds of sauces that I think would go as well with pulled pork.
For anyone from KC, mustard-based sauce I guess would be a fun novelty to try? I've been tasting it for over a decade now though and could go the rest of my life without taking another bite of it, whereas thinking about a BBQ beef sandwich from Bryant's right now has me salivating on my keyboard at work right now.

[MarketStEl]

Originally Posted by EYEL1NER

The Ace Hardware store closest to me all the way over here in South Carolina has Bryant's sauce. I picked up a bottle last time I was in there despite still having an unopened bottle from the last time I was home in MO.

Trust me: it's nothing to write home about (figuratively AND literally for me, seeing as how I consider my 'home' to be the KC-area). It tastes decent-enough on pulled pork, which is the predominant BBQ meat; I can't think of any other style of BBQ that I'd even want to try SC mustard-based sauce on, and there aren't too many other kinds of sauces that I think would go as well with pulled pork.
For anyone from KC, mustard-based sauce I guess would be a fun novelty to try? I've been tasting it for over a decade now though and could go the rest of my life without taking another bite of it, whereas thinking about a BBQ beef sandwich from Bryant's right now has me salivating on my keyboard at work right now.

I think BBQ beef doesn't quite get the respect it deserves.

Smoke a roast and you have good eatin' for several days (if you didn't invite a large crowd over). It definitely beats roast beef on sandwiches.

[Watchful]

Originally Posted by MarketStEl

Next time you're in the area, try LC's at Blue Parkway and Sni-a-bar Road. The business continues to roll after its founder's death, and they have great burnt ends (a KC Q specialty, these are chunks of brisket cut off the point, which chars before the rest of the brisket is done).

Thx for the LCs recommendation! It makes Arthur Bryant’s look like a dress-up place!

The bbq was really good and I am flying home today with some extra burnt ends and sliced brisket frozen with ice packs in my luggage!

[Floorist]

The problem with most places is that burnt ends are not really burnt ends. They chop up the whole brisket which gives it a different texture. I live near Joplin now, and there is no good BBQ in the area.
Of the BBQ places I frequented in KC
Bryants (hated the long lines)
Gates (food was good, building was always dirty)
Smoke House (20 years ago it was good, last time I was there it was nasty)
Zarda. (only went to the one in Blue Springs because it was close)

[Watchful]

I live in Virginia now, and it is easy to find pulled pork, but hard to find good brisket. We do have a food truck where I live that is very good.

Fond memories of Kansas City - Arthur Bryant's did not seem as good on my last visit - and I forgot to get the distinctive sauce to go with my takeout. Probably shoulda had burnt ends instead of the sliced. Tried LC's on my last visit and it was very good (see above).

Two best places anywhere I have ever been for brisket are Corkscrew in Spring TX (north of Houston) and Little Miss in Phoenix AZ of all places! My brother and I were late for the tipoff of the Final Four because of standing in line at Little Miss and both of us thought it was well worth it!

[KC_Retiree]

I love KC BBQ and look forward to it every trip I make to KC. I had not been to KC for a while due to travel issues related to CV19. On my recent trip, I tried three BBQ places. In each place, the ribs were tough, chewy and did not have that fall off the bone quality. This was Jack Stack and Gates (and another place I forget the name of), a couple of restaurants I've visited frequently and never had a bad meal at so I was rather disappointed. Elements of the meal were good but the ribs were underwhelming. I've read that KC restaurants are having a difficult time finding good help and wondering if this had anything to do with the drop-off in quality. Anyone else experience anything like this recently?

[Ycomoque]

Originally Posted by MarketStEl

I think BBQ beef doesn't quite get the respect it deserves.

When done right it's one of the best, most def.

It's been over a decade now since I was in KC last but man...a bbq beef on a bun from Gates (the one by Jaspers in Leawood) with the sweet sauce used to hit...