But you can compete with it. And in this last trip (and two before it), I ate my approximate weight in barbecue just to see if I could find a contender or two.
If you're K.C.-bound this year -- and you'll find plenty to love about it if you are, including that prices for these feasts often run less than $15 a plate -- I offer these suggestions, old and new, fancy and not. My list is by no means complete, because there are said to be about 80 barbecue places here, although recent news reports suggest the economy may have finished off a few of them.
As you're planning your barbecue feast, remember that the Kansas City metro area is about 2,000 square miles, about half the size of the L.A. area with about a sixth as many people. That's a lot of ground -- less crowded ground but lots of it. Your choice in barbecue may depend on where you are and which style you prefer.
Also, before you begin your trek, you should know about the three distinct personalities of the areas we'll be visiting.
First, there's Kansas City, Mo. It's the big red dog, the place that was once wild and woolly, where machine politics and the Mafia proliferated. You wouldn't know it by looking at the mansions along Ward Parkway today, which are the height of elegance. KCMO may remind you of your niece who seems so lovely when she's around the grown-ups, then sneaks away to do the fandango at the local naughty place.
Then there's Kansas City, Kan., or KCK. It's sort of the stuttering second cousin to KCMO. It tries hard. Sometimes it succeeds, oftentimes it doesn't. It's not as large and not as prosperous as KCMO, but it does have some great barbecue.
And finally, there's Johnson County, Kan., or JoCo, which is neither of the above. It comprises several towns, has top-drawer schools and multimillion-dollar houses. It's been called cupcake land, but it also has plenty of barbecue, so that counters the accusation of suburban bland.
Depending on your taste, your temperament and your geographic meanderings, you'll find a place that suits you. Here, then, are some places from which the world should take its 'cue.
Fiorella's Jack Stack
If you're not in the mood for a hole-in-the-wall barbecue joint but you are in the mood for Spanish Moorish architecture and many of the city's 200 fountains, choose the Jack Stack on the Country Club Plaza.
