No self-respecting barbeque web page could be complete without a mention or a full section for this veritable shrine for BBQ fanatics Arthur Bryant's. This is ground zero for barbeque, as far I am concerned.
Their combo sandwiches are incredible and they're large enough to feed a really hungry man or several hungry women. You can get smoked brisket, pork, ham and turkey. They also have spareribs and you can buy their meat by the pound, which if you are in a group, may be the best way to go. This is not health food, especially if you order their fries, (which are still cooked in lard!!) but as they say in that beer commercial, "it just doesn't get any better than this." If you can hear your arteries snapping shut as you are partaking of this manna from heaven, just ignore it, it will be well worth it. If you were to be 'called home' while you were at Arthur Bryant's, it probably guarantees you will be at the head of the line at the pearly gates!If you have not been there before I would suggest you ask them to hold the sauce, until you are sure you really like it. Many folks do, and I am not dissin' their sauce. It is just different from any conventional BBQ sauce you have ever had; it is positively incendiary, and they slop it on quite generously with a paintbrush. Just holler through their little window there, as you go through the line and tell them you want it "dry". If you like a milder sauce, go with their "rich and spicy" one, which doesn't have the heat of the original, and bottles of both will be on your table. Actually, what I have done before is to sneak in a bottle of Zarda's sauce and surreptitiously dab a little on!. (Don't tell!)
There are two locations. I have only been to the original restaurant, located at 1727 Brooklyn, which is not far from the newly remodeled Negro League Baseball Museum, near 18th and Vine, in Kansas City. I don't think you can beat the original flavor of the restaurant New York Times food critic Calvin Trillin called the single best restaurant in the world! Their phone is (816) 231-1123 in case you want to check hours or if you get lost. Their newest and more trendy location is at the Ameristar Casino (formerly Station Casino) on the Missouri River. A friend says it is definitely a more upscale place and probably not even proper to call it a "joint"... their phone is 816-414-7474.
