REVIEW

As soon as you walk in you are hit with a greeting of “Hi, may I help you?” Of course, if you’re new here then at least a quick scan of the overhead menu will be necessary. So step aside and listen to the regulars place their orders: it’s like another language. Folks here are very specific about how they want their meats cut, their meals prepared. Slice this cut of beef in such-and-such a manner from that side, extra meat on a roll. None of these options appear on the menu, mind you; they are simply the requests of experienced barbecue eaters who know what they like. Newcomers can get flustered and overwhelmed.

Burnt ends at Gates really are the fatty trimmings from the smoked beef. If that sounds like your kind of thing (it’s ours!), you’ll enjoy these. This sandwich actually includes a portion of regular sliced smoked beef.

We asked for a burnt ends sandwich and were warned that the burnt ends are trimmings from the beef. We know burnt ends but we hedged our bet and changed the order to a combo sandwich of burnt ends and regular beef. They were happy to oblige. These burnt ends really are the trimmings, unlike most others that try to emulate trimmings but are actually prepared to be burnt ends. Gates ends are luscious and smoky, and frankly fatty (trimmings!). We love them.

The single-serving “Yammer” pie is very sweet, and very good.

On this trip we tried spare ribs at Gates, Jack Stack, Woodyard, Oklahoma Joe’s, and even Wabash up in Excelsior Springs. Not a bad batch of ribs in the lot, but crusty and gorgeous-looking as some of them were, we found the smokiness to be surprisingly restrained. Except for the ribs at Gates, that is. They are far from the largest racks in Kansas City, but they are also well-seasoned with a rub before they spend their alotted time in the smoker, and this pork-smoke-rub is a heady combination, especially towards the end of the short end (unless you are buying the whole rack, ribs in KC come in “short end” and “long end” versions). We didn’t get to our favorite KC Q joint, LC’s, during this trip, but of the ribs we sampled this go-round, Gates came out on top.

A big pitcher of local, and excellent, Boulevard ale

Gates, along with Arthur Bryant’s, are the two descendants of Kansas City’s founding father of BBQ, Henry Perry. They’ve both been around a long time, and we’ve been hearing a lot of mixed reports on AB’s these days, and weren’t sure what to expect from Gates. There are currently six Gates branches around town, two of them on the Kansas side of the state line, and their slick appearance and comfortable dining rooms belie the fact that they are really cafeterias with sassy, but friendly, service, and real Kansas City barbecue.

Service is cafeteria-style at Gates.

Pump your own barbecue sauces. The extra-hot has a fair nip but we didn’t find the hot versions of barbecue sauces at any of the local joints to be particularly fiery. You see Gates barbecue sauce in markets all around town. To our palates, the signature flavor of Kansas City barbecue sauce is celery seed, and Gates sauce falls squarely in that tradition.

LAF TRAK: 

FOOD: 

BEST THING TO EAT: Ribs

Gates has six branches in the greater Kansas City area. We’ve only tried the one on Emanuel Cleaver, so we don’t know how consistent the food is from store to store.