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Short answer: Missouri barbecue is two cities: Kansas City, the official state barbecue capital since a 2026 law, known for burnt ends and thick tomato-and-molasses sauce, and St. Louis, known for St. Louis-style ribs and grilled pork steaks. Below: the places that cook it, two road trips with real road times, and the yearly contests and festivals.
- 24Places listedeach from its own site
- 6Yearly festivalsfrom organizer pages
- 2Road tripswith road times
- 2StylesKansas City and St. Louis
How we checked: the places’ own websites, Visit KC’s barbecue list, the Missouri Secretary of State, Explore St. Louis, the African American Heritage Trail of Kansas City, festival and KCBS pages, and our own events calendar. All read on November 4, 2026. Hours, prices and dates change, so confirm with the place or organizer before you drive. Anything we could not check is marked Not Confirmed where it appears. We rank nothing: no source we used ranks these places, and we did not taste, rate or compare them. Nobody paid to be listed.
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How Missouri Barbecue Works
Missouri has two barbecue cities with different habits. A 2026 state law made Kansas City the official state barbecue capital; the Secretary of State’s page says Kansas City barbecue is served with thick sauces made from tomato, molasses, brown sugar and spices, and that burnt ends are the charred, fatty bits cut from the end of a beef brisket. In St. Louis, Explore St. Louis says St. Louis-style ribs lead the local scene, barbecue there often means grilled and sauced, and a pork steak in tangy sauce is a sign of summer. Read both side by side on our styles page, which also compares five other Southern states.
Kansas City’s barbecue story starts with Henry Perry, who began selling smoked meats from an alley stand around 1908, per the African American Heritage Trail of Kansas City (Visit KC dates his pit to the early 1920s). Visit KC names the Bryant, Gates, Boyd, Harris, Fiorella and Thompson families as the next wave, and counts more than 100 barbecue restaurants in the metro.
This section is built so you can act on that. Where To Eat Barbecue groups places as Kansas City, St. Louis and elsewhere in Missouri, each linked to its own site with the days it says it is open. Barbecue Road Trips turns the two cities into two drivable days with road times between stops. Barbecue Festivals lists the contests and festivals, and says plainly that the American Royal now cooks across the state line in Kansas.
Next Barbecue Events
No barbecue events are on our checked calendar right now. We add them when the organizer publishes a date. The barbecue festivals page lists the yearly ones.
Map of Barbecue Places
Not pinned (no confirmed location yet): Zarda Bar-B-Q – Blue Springs, Sugarfire Smoke House – Olivette, Lutz BBQ – Jefferson City.
More Barbecue Pages
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between Kansas City and St. Louis barbecue?
Per the Missouri Secretary of State, Kansas City barbecue comes with thick sauces of tomato, molasses, brown sugar and spices, and burnt ends from the brisket. Per Explore St. Louis, St. Louis is known for St. Louis-style ribs and grilled, sauced pork steaks. Our styles page has the detail.
Is Kansas City the official barbecue capital?
Of Missouri, yes. The Secretary of State’s page says a 2026 law designated Kansas City the official state barbecue capital.
Is the American Royal barbecue contest in Missouri?
Not now. The American Royal is a Kansas City organization, but its 2026 World Series of Barbecue was on its campus in Kansas City, Kansas, per its own page. See Barbecue Festivals.
What are burnt ends?
The Missouri Secretary of State describes them as charred, fatty bits cut from the end of a beef brisket.
Sources
- Missouri Secretary of State, Official State Barbecue Capital, read November 4, 2026 (2026 law, Kansas City style, burnt ends)
- Explore St. Louis, St. Louis barbecue, read November 4, 2026 (St. Louis style)
- Explore St. Louis, emblematic eats, read November 4, 2026 (pork steak)
- Visit KC, barbecue beginnings, read November 4, 2026 (history, more than 100 restaurants)
- African American Heritage Trail of Kansas City, Henry Perry, read November 4, 2026 (around 1908)
- Visit KC barbecue list, read November 4, 2026 (tourism list)
- American Royal, World Series of Barbecue, read November 4, 2026 (venue and 2026 dates)
- Kansas City Barbeque Society, sanctioning information, read November 4, 2026
How we check: editorial standards. Spot a mistake or a closure? Tell us.
Cite this page: It's Missouri, “Missouri Barbecue: Styles, Places, Road Trips and Festivals”, itsmissouri.com/barbecue/ (updated ). By the It's Missouri editorial team. Free to quote with attribution and a link to this page; data and tables are licensed CC BY 4.0.