The Kansas City BBQ Restaurant That Anthony Bourdain Called The Best

The topic of American BBQ can inspire some serious big feelings. Several geographic regions of the United States swear that their take on smoked, grilled, sauced, and/or rubbed meat is king and want to claim superiority, and every style has its diehard proponents. For the late, great Anthony Bourdain, KC-style BBQ was the be-all, end-all, and there was one tiny restaurant that was his definitive stop for it. In a Men's Health piece, Bourdain shouted out Oklahoma Joe's Barbecue of Kansas City, Kansas. KC is probably not a contender for Bourdain's personal list of unexpected foodie cities in the U.S., as plenty of folks recognize that Kansas City is a culinary hotspot. But Oklahoma Joe's is definitely an unexpected home for what Bourdain, mincing no words, dubbed "the best BBQ in Kansas City, which makes it the best BBQ in the world" — the restaurant's original location is housed in a gas station.

Oklahoma Joe's Barbecue, which is now known as Joe's Kansas City Bar-B-Que, dishes up all your cookout faves, ranging from racks of ribs to smoked sausage to multiple varieties of pulled meats, all served alongside classic BBQ sides like red beans and rice, potato salad, and spicy slaw. Bourdain enumerated his favorite items to order: "Here, the brisket (particularly the burnt ends), pulled pork, and ribs are all of a quality that meet the high standards even of Kansas City natives."

Even celebrity chefs have their favorites among store-bought barbecue sauces, but, for the crew at Joe's Kansas City, the secret is in the smoke, which it says elevates even less-than-stellar cuts of meat. Anthony Bourdain knew all about transforming underrated meat cuts and, as a culinary genius, saw something in Joe's Kansas City that thousands of glowing Yelp reviews and a long list of accolades attest to: high-quality cooking done with love and care.

In 2017, Foodie's sister site The Daily Meal dubbed Joe's Kansas City as having some of the best ribs in America. The New York Post agreed, declaring Joe's to be number one on its list of the best BBQ restaurants in America. TripAdvisor put it as number two in 2015. And Bourdain wasn't the restaurant's only famous fan: in 2016, then-President Barack Obama sent the Air Force One crew to pick up a $1,400 takeout order from Joe's, including 30 slabs of ribs and 20 pounds of pulled pork. If you happen to find yourself in Kansas City and want to visit Joe's for some of the legendary burnt ends that enchanted Anthony Bourdain, be sure to show up early: there is frequently a line to get in during the lunch rush.

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