Kansas City Barbecue

Oh, my.  I don't think there's any finer barbecue in the nation.   Now, those of you who like mustard based sauces or white sauce will certainly disagree.  Myself, sign me up for some good, old Kansas City barbecue.  My right hand woman, Steph, and I headed out to KC for the America's Wealth Management Radio Show conference.  We decided it was much less expensive to drive than to fly and have to rent a car.  And, super double bonus, we could work in the car much more easily than we could work in airports and on a plane.  Besides, neither of us likes to fly AND with the weather this time of year being a bit unpredictable, it was a no brainer. 

Into the car we went with two suitcases and a MOUNTAIN of paperwork.  Oh, and some wine in the trunk.  Can't forget that - lol.  We did a great job of checking the projects off the list but even after 18 hours in the car came home with unfinished projects.  I know, way too much to do and not enough time.  Well, to make a long story short, we got to KC and checked into our hotel and hightailed it to Jack Stack's.  We were both exhausted.  Totally, completely and entirely.  But, I wanted some of that KC bbq.  FORTY minute wait.  ARGH.  Ok, let's get carryout.  Perfect.  Now, what to get.  I ordered the rib sampler.  Two beef ribs, three pork ribs and a few lamb ribs.  Cole slaw and the best beans in the world on the side.  One problem.  We had no cooler for our leftovers and we had nothing but the cheap plastic glasses from the hotel room.  I know, if I'd stay in a great hotel there'd be glass glasses.  Guess what?  That's not happening on my nickel!  Oh, and Steph's a fan of Coors Light.  I lovingly refer to it as moose piss.  She laughs.

What to do?  Well, we found a liquor store so Steph could buy her beer and I could buy a stryofoam cooler and some decent glasses.  Ok, time to laugh here.  I found glasses.  Riedel.  The stemless pinot noirs that my stepson David LOVES.  So, he's going to get a gift of some slightly used glasses.  He's still going to love them. 

Back to the hotel.  Unpack our feast.  No weapons.  Nope.  Gotta scoop our cole slaw with our fingers and drink our beans.  You have never seen two women laugh harder than we did.  Steph drank her Coors Light out of a Riedel. 

I drank my Beaujolais Villages. 

These were my leftovers. 

Yes, that's what I said, leftovers. 

Wednesday we spent the whole day in meetings.  We learned a LOT.  Then it was off to dinner at Sullivan's with the rest of the crew.  Very average dinner.  Typical chain steakhouse.  Paid for by a wholesaler.  That's nice.  The best part of Wednesday was lunch.  Jack Stack, baby.  This time it was sliced brisket and pulled pork.  YUM!!  Thursday was incredible Mexican food for lunch.  By Thursday at 4:00 our little brains were stuffed.  Time to head out for more barbecue.  Yup, one might actually at some point OD on the stuff.  I'd like to try :-) 

Now, the best part of Thursday evening was the company.  Don't get me wrong, Gates Barbecue is fabulous.  But, the company was wonderful. 

Recognize her?  That's right, Lauren from Foodie House.  We've gotten to be friends over the last year or so, so I let her know when I was going to be in town and we hooked up for dinner.  She and her hubby, Sammy, are wonderful.  Loved spending time with them and I'm so looking forward to a repeat next year!

On the way home from Gates, we stopped at Jack Stack's for carryout for the boys.  Steph was sure her significant other, Bud, would want the lamb ribs.  But, no, he wanted the beef ribs.  Connie, well he did want the lamb ribs.  Time to really use that cooler!  I can say with assurance that my handy dandy bag holds eight ice buckets of ice. 

Once the  cooler was packed, Steph got right to work on email. 

I know, no rest for either of us!  She did pause once in a while for supplies from the sink. 

Gotta keep that beer cold, you know.  Well, all in all, it was a very successful trip.  Connie LOVED his lamb ribs and I'm told Bud loved his beef ribs.  But, I think his favorite was the leftover burnt ends from Gates.  Now, if I could only dig my way through the 700 emails that came in while I was gone...