Besides going to college, my friend Jordan has lived in the DC area for, basically, forever. Even in a place as great as DC, if that is the place you grew up, it can easily start to feel like the same old thing after awhile… Jordan decided he needed to get away. He got a good job offer and took it. Then announced to us all, I’m moving to Kansas City!
Ummmm, why Kansas City? This was the first thing out of everyone’s mouths. We understand the reasons for getting away, but Kansas City? Isn’t that in the middle of nowhere? Is there anything at all to do there??
Well, yesterday Megs and I got to visit Jordan and investigate the mystery of Kansas City ourselves! Our initial impressions driving through to Jordan’s place?
Umm, did we just pass the city? Welp…
We met Jordan at the Walmart closest to his house. I greeted him with a big ole bear hug. Jordan was gracious enough to pick us up and bring us back to his place for showers and to fill up our water bottles. Hopefully we didn’t smell too bad…
Clean and pure again, we plied three wide into his pickup and headed to the City! This time, I was able to get some pictures of it on the way in…
Jordan was an excellent tour guide and even surprised himself with how much he knew about the city in the few months he has been here…
He showed us the downtown area, even though there were about as many people walking around as we had seen in St. Louis…
He showed us Union Station…
And the World War I museum…
And the 18th & Vine, Blues & Jazz area that Kansas City is known for…
Also the College Basketball Experience…
And then took us to a block in the city called Power & Lights. Before leaving, Jordan had mentioned to me that Kansas City had this full city block where you could walk all around with drinks and whatnot. It sounded terrible. I imagined a dirt lot with fences around and a couple bars strewn about… Not the case at all, it was really cool. The entire block was filled with bars along the streets. Then on the inside of the block was a big open space with different levels of patios, some big screen tvs, and a huge glass canopy overhead. Apparently the entire place is packed on the weekend nights, as well as big events like the World Cup and football games. Not Kansas City Chiefs games though, obviously. They stink…
The other thing that Kansas City is known for? Barbeque! And Jordan knew just the place to take us…
Oklahoma Joe’s is a BBQ place which doubles as a gas station for some reason… But it also was featured as the only BBQ place in Anthony Bourdain’s article, “13 Places in the World to Eat Before You Die”. It was packed. I guess its always packed… So we had a good 30 minute line to wait through. At first there was lots of conversation, but as we got closer to ordering, everyone fell silent. Our excitement was palpable. As was the glorious smells coming from the kitchen.
I had already decided what I wanted… 1 pulled pork sandwich. 1 beef brisket sandwich. Fries. Boulevard Wheat Beer, a local brew. I made it a point to look away from the menu on the wall, too many other dishes were beckoning… I stayed strong. I was next in line. But then, the lady in front of me said, “I would like a regular pulled pork on toast.”
My mind was blown! Texas Toast?!?! Instead of the bun it’d normally come with?! I had to have it. Greatest. Decision. Ever.
It was glorious. The thinner toast was a perfect complement to the pulled pork and brisket. Jordan had independently chosen the same meal as me, and was in so much bliss that he couldn’t be seen by camera…
Megs had been enthralled with a beef brisket and onion rings sandwich which she had spotted immediately as she first gazed at the menu. It was great as well. But she also ordered a side salad in some sort of attempt to be healthy…
We made fun of her, of course.
Supremely satisfied, we decided to go check out the shopping mall where Jordan works. It is an outdoor mall called Legends. Jordan basically is in charge of the landscaping for the whole complex. There were plaques everywhere dedicated to famous people from Kansas. We obviously knew hardly any of them… But there were some sweet statues of Dwight D. Eisenhower and Wyatt Earp. And we found a plaque for Naismith, the inventor of the greatest sport ever, basketball.
Finally it was time to say our goodbyes and shed some tears… Back to the Walmart parking lot for an early bedtime. Tomorrow was to be a long, long drive across Kansas to Colorado!!! Originally we had planned to go north into Nebraska, check out Omaha, Lincoln, etc. But that route was going to basically be two days of driving before reaching Denver. By going straight across Kansas, yes it would be a 12 hour day of driving, but it would give us an extra day in Colorado for us to play with! And we are all about maximizing our time on this trip, so that’s the plan!!
Big thank you to Jordan though for being an awesome host and tour guide! We discovered that Kansas City is a pretty fun city, home to a pretty extensive population of 20 somethings. That’s always a recipe for good times. I may have to go back and visit Jordan again sometime…
so awesome you got to see Jordan! mmm pulled pork - i need to take you to the other (and i think better) place here, Q Shack. And we need to try the famous BBQ in Raleigh! Enjoy Colorado, kids.
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