5835 Lamar Avenue

This was not the only A Previous Article BBQ place we'd decided was worth a visit based on our very in depth research of local area 'joints' before we got on the plane.  It's actually pretty hard to pick a couple of the many many that the TV hosts / chefs / faces think are their favorite and ultimately they're all doing pretty much the same thing (certainly to our non BBQ-connoisseur musings) with personal tweaks to rubs and sauces being the obvious differences. 

We only found reference to this joint in one place, but it caught our eye because it was clearly doing BBQ differently to all the others - technically they're doing the BBQ part just about the same as everyone else, but what they put in the smoker, and what they do with it when it comes out is clearly different. 

We had to hike all the way across the border, ultimately an easy drive if you follow the directions provided by google correctly (yes, we zigged when we should have zagged...), but it's nowhere near any tourist places that our guide books told us about.  Once the zigging was sorted out you can't miss it with a big sign, but only a few parking spaces out front.  Not knowing the place, we didn't know the real parking is out the back until later, so it's possibleprobable that we were parked 'illegally' in one of the spots reserved for the to-go crowd.  Sorry!

We got there about 11:3012:00 (remember the zigging and zagging?) and they were still serving breakfast; yep BBQ breakfast.  We were curious, but we had our heart set on a couple of non-breakfast dishes we'd seen on the TV.  The place was never jamm'n but it had a steady flow, both in the Restaurant and through Carry Out.  Inside it's a simple enough room with a bar right in the door and tables all around.  Nothing particularly memorable decor wise, just about what you would expect from a BBQ 'joint'.  One end has a small Carry Out section and we learned later they have a patio type area (that perhaps has more seats than the restaurant?) downstairs and out the back they open up most evenings and have live music there from time to time.

We wonder if Bob has his kids and their friends working the floor - politely of course?  Our Server was fine, and he was perhaps a little bit above the average age (by our observations and interpretations only) of College Freshman.  He got us everything we needed, he answered all our questions, he helped with a kitchen negotiation and he was patient while waiting for us to come up with a replacement for something that was not available (alligator eggroll - drat!).  He also seemed very rehearsed in what he said to people, particularly as they sat down, but if that's the worst thing we can find clearly he did a good job.

There's plenty to choose from on the menu, it's easy enough to navigate.  If we didn't have a couple of things mostly pre-selected it might have taken a bit longer with takes on the 'regularly' expected dishes, great sounding sandwiches and fun BBQ type salads to keep you amused, and it would have gotten a bit harder had we considered the breakfast options.  And, as far as we can tell consitant with the KC BBQ philosophy, it's sauce on the side.  There's their regular and their spicy versions.

Our meal went a little like this:

• Lemonade
• Soda
  
• Bison Empanadas - a different way to start a BBQ meal, but no regrets, no complaints.
• RJ's Signature Brisket Soup - yes, you read that correctly!  When push comes to shove, I think you could argue it's closer to a stew than a soup, but I'm not pushing or shoving!  By serving as a soup it's so much easier to grab up a cup and not feel too guilty about eating soooo much food for lunch, and more people would miss out.  Really good!  Really Really good!
• Denver Lamb Ribs - Not sure what makes them Denver, but RJ's sure makes them good.  Maybe the best ribs I've ever had, any where, any style.  You shouldn't compare them directly to 'normal' ribs, but you should try them.
• Burnt Ends - you can have beef or pork, but a quick negotiation got us about half and half.  Perhaps liked the beef ones a bit better.  Every thing we saw on KC BBQ before we came mentioned the Burnt Ends.  I probably don't need to have them again, but I'm glad we had a successful hunt.
  
  • Cheesy Corn Bake - not sure exactly what we expected, but it's probably in the mac and cheese family. Definitely cheesy, definitely corny.
  • Sweet Potato Fries - crunchy and piled high.

Again, happy with the place and would return (if for no other reason that to try the brunch, but really there are many reasons) if the opportunity presents, but realistically not a lot of chance that opportunity will present.  We congratulate Bob on his creativity, execution and fun menu and will do our best to mention him to anyone we know is visiting KC.

Stay JOLLY!
D 

3002 West 47th Avenue

Although technically not on our to-do list The List... we did arrive in KC knowing we'd be stopping by.  I think everyone knows that you have to do some Barbecue whilst in town so we spent some time with the TV chefs / food hosts looking for their opinions and more than one rates this as the best BBQ ever - one even put it on his list of 13 places you must eat before you die.

It is a place you'd be exceptionally lucky to find by driving by.  The building certainly won't catch your attention - it's a gas station and not a converted gas station, but a working fill up your tank one.  It's not out of the way, but it's certainly not in a tourist part of town and even if you noticed the sign mentioning BBQ you probably wouldn't put 2 and 2 together.  Oh, and you need to be a little bit creative and / or brave to find a spot in the parking lot.  The smells may get your attention, I guess depending on how the wind is blowing. 

What is most likely to get your attention though, is the line out the door.  We arrived a little before 11:30, and not because we knew the line can be out the door, but because we had an early flight and were hungry.  The place was packed, the line was to the door (perhaps 40 people in line?) and growing.  Normally, lines annoy us but based on a low stress schedule for the day and recomendations from TV and beyond we joined in.  On the plus side everyone in line was happy and patient and mostly followed the rule of not finding a table until you had your food in your hand (the bigger the group, the more likely to cheat...).  And on the double plus side it moves pretty quick.  When we left a little after 1pm there were perhaps 20 people in line outside the door too where it had hovered at least the whole time we were seated.

If you want to be pedantic, it's not really a restaurant.  It's a takeout place with some figure-it-out-yourself seating.  While we were in line, I'd guesstimate 75% of the people ahead of us did carry out (which is kind of odd because they have a call ahead for carry out section and that line was mostly empty) meaning the panic we had relating to not being able to dine in was unnecessary and once we had our trays in hand we went straight to a table, even having a choice of a couple.

In terms of getting your meal, it's cafeteria like.  Get in line, change your mind 5 or 8 times as you move through the line, order with the order taking dude, listen to a whole bunch of holler'n as the order gets disseminated to the people who do each part (ok that part might not happen in a cafeteria), shuffle down to the cashier, select a beverage, confirm that all the holler'n was holler'd correctly, pay (and not a whole lot, really!), muddle through the soda machine and then find a table (which already noted was no drama).  In general, tourists inside, locals back to the office...

The menu is easy enough to navigate, easy enough to understand and certainly has enough options to choose from if you decided to make this a regular haunt.  It looks like there's a daily lunch special (perhaps a dinner special too?) and it seems that the people who looked like the regulars tended to gravitate towards.

Our meal went a little like this:

• Boulevard Wheat - The local brew, not all that wheaty but fine with my lunch.
• Boulevard Pilsner - Another of the many from this brewery.  Probably our favorite of the 2.
• Side of Smoked Chicken Gumbo - It comes in 4 sizes.  We got the smallest (called a side) and if we had have gotten the biggest there's no way we could have had our other stuff.  It's rich, and Gumbo like, and rich, and smokey and meaty.  And good!
• Hog Heaven (Pulled Pork and Sausage Sandwich) - Don't eat this wearing a white shirt.  It's a little messy, but a lot tasty.
• 2 Meat Dinner - a nice way to increase the variety and not so much the waist line
  • Brisket - dry rub only, sauce added at service time.  It looks the way it should with that smoke ring everyone wants to see.  Cut thin, but not too thin, tender and juicy and yummy.
  • Sausage - definitely smoked sausage, but not too rich.  Goes well with the sauce.  Might be fun to eat in a brat sort of way, rather than with a fork and knife?
  • Fries - seasoned heavily with something secret.  Quite rich and almost hard to finish the whole bag when combined with everything else we had.

So, would I put it on my list of 13 places to dine before I die?  Probably not.  I'm certainly glad we got to try it out, but I don't think I'd feel a life unfulfilled without it.  I do get that not all 13 places should be / need to be crazy expensive and crazy particular and crazy snooty and crazy exclusive and crazy hard to get in to so I'm quite happy to agree to say that a BBQ Joint should be on that kind of list.  You can decide on your own which one, but you probably should get Oklahoma Joe's on your short list of BBQ Joints as you work towards that final 1 (perhaps 2) that makes your ultimate 13...

Would we go back?  Sure.  Will we?  Unlikely - that whole being in a different State thing causes a problem.

Stay JOLLY!
D