Q39 South — Restaurant in Overland Park

Before I begin, please note my that intention is not to put Q39 in a bad light. I thought the food was very good and the service, even though this review is about that service, was pretty fast and extremely friendly. I would come back even though my experience was not of the best to my mind. So, my wife and I were going to eat at Joe's BBQ in Overland Park, our favorite BBQ place, and worth the forty-five mile round trip for lunch. It was Sunday and we didn't know Joe was closed on Sunday. We were bummed out, but a quick glance at the iPhone gave us Q39 just 3 miles away and also a BBQ place. We had heard good things, and even though we had a 25 minute wait it was still worth the time. The place was crowded, probably with all those other people who had found Joe's closed as well. The waitress was efficient and seated us , and quickly provided our drinks before taking our orders. The people surrounding our table were at all stages of either ordering food, waiting for food, or happily eating food, and it wasn't but 2 or 3 minutes when my wife's order arrived. The older gentleman who delivered it was one of two managerial types, and he was a bit confused to be bringing just one order to our table. He asked me what I had ordered and I explained it to him. He apologized and said he would bring it as soon as possible. It was then 15 minutes before I got served, and I asked my wife to go ahead and begin eating her meal lest her food got cold. The manager again apologized when he delivered my order and said that he would bill it to the house because of the error in ordering at the server level. I thought that satisfactory and enjoyed the dish that I had ordered. With the obvious ordering error causing the disruption to our luncheon, and the length of time it took to begin to enjoy a meal together we were somewhat dismayed at the entire sequence of events. Management's effort at placating us was a welcome one and I appreciate the effort they took in giving us a sense of calm about the entire sequence of events. Please know that Joe's is still our favorite BBQ place, and we will not only remember how our lunch went at Q39, but we will never neglect to report it to friends and acquaintances. That is what one should do when sharing tales of places that we pay to feed us because dining is a very personal thing and needs reporting. To add a further note about BBQ restaurants, we were originally fond of Jack Stack, for years the epitome of local flavor BBQwise. However at some point in the distant past Jack Stack began to serve less and less meat with each order until they lost our business forever. Conversely, when we leave Joe's we are always full and very happy having been served more BBQ than any human should ever eat at one setting. Also, Joe's serves four times the amount of fries as Q39, even though they both serve identical types of fries for the same cost. The reason I mention this is because my wife and I both thought our Q39 portions were a bit meager. I enclose a photo of my selection, a Smoked Beef Brisket Dip, a $14 entree and at that price one of the lesser priced menu items. It boasted a horseradish aioli, one of my favorite selections when ordering a sandwich. I had to ask the manager where it was and he pointed out it was on the bottom of the meat slices. There must have been at least a half teaspoon of the stuff hiding under the few brisket slices. And speaking of the brisket, I thought it pretty slim and about one half of what one should expect on a roll that size. After viewing the menu photos online I see that they are not being misadvertised. Anyone can see that the contents of that order are a bit shy of the reason we ordered it in the first place. Remember, so went Jack Stack, so goes Q39 in my book. I'm...

We all know KC is full of great BBQ, so carving out a share in this market's a chore. Mission accomplished, Q39! Service and ambience was great, so that's out of the way. Prices and portions were in the strike zone. Let's get to the food, and I'll touch on everything we had. Started with Pork Belly and Street Corn appetizer. The Pork Belly was lean, moist, tender and smoky. Had a Filipino BBQ skewer tangy flavor to it. Excellent! Street Corn was terrific; creamy with a unique, difficult to describe, but inviting flavor. Next up, Judge's Plate with Chipoltle Sausage, Sliced Beef Brisket and Pork Spare Ribs. The Chipotle Sausage, in my opinion was the 'Wow Factor' on the plate. That isn't to take away from the brisket or ribs, but that sausage was so packed with flavor - melts in your mouth - didn't see that coming! Brisket was lean, tender and smoky. Ribs were great, but in KC, they should be knock-out, and just didn't quite hit that mark, in my humble opinion. And unfortunately, the Mac & Cheese was the Judge's Plate side. It was frankly disappointing... far below expectations. Maybe an off-day for M&C? The Judge's Plate was served with 4 sauces: Chipoltle - spicy Zesty - South Carolina vinegar base KC - classic Honey BBQ - for ribs. Favorite was the KC - love that classic flavor! Onto the Smoked Beef Brisket Dip sandwich. Served with ample au jus (don't you hate it when they're stingy with that stuff?), on a medium-soft hoagie with slightly melted provolone, and horseradish aoli. Again, the brisket was terrific, not fatty at all, smoky and tender. The au jus was absolutely killer. However, the horseradish aoli was so understated, it was literally undetectable. Shame, too, as that would have been a great compliment to the flavor. That said, it was overall an excellent sandwich. On the side, we had the cucumber and onion salad, which offered a cool, crisp and refreshing element to the plate. In the mix was a side-salad, perfectly prepared, with no off-color 'discards' (becoming a regular thing nowadays). For the grand finale, we had the Carrot Cake. Uh-oh, another unexpected surprise! That was, hands-down, the most decadent Carrot Cake ever - not kidding. A must-have! I would be remiss not to mention our server, Maddie M., professional!! Ask to be seated in her area, and you'll be well...

OK BBQ in a sit-down, restaurant environment.

My fiancee and I visited here on a Monday night for dinner. We were in the midst of our KC BBQ Tour, and Q39 had come recommended by locals and critics alike. Unfortunately for me, I had a horrible migraine and eating or drinking anything in large amounts made me uncomfortable. But I could still taste, and was bent on ensuring I could sample all that I could handle.

The restaurant was not horribly busy, but certainly not empty. We were seated at a center table, and the service was quick and friendly. The ambiance is interesting - it looks more like a bougier sports bar than a BBQ Joint. The kitchen had a window and it looked more like a standard restaurant kitchen than Pitmaster's Paradise.

Because I had to work the next day (and was feeling sick), we each just got a Diet Coke and split the Three Meat Plate with my fiancee - we went with the Brisket, the Sausage, and the Pulled Pork and sides of Mac & Cheese and Fries. The food came out very quick, with BBQ Sauce and Ketchup served on the side. I tried a bit of everything, and here was my take:

The Chipotle Sausage was the best of the 3 meats, juicy and flavorful. While it wasn't the best sausage I had this week, it was a great part of the plate. The Pulled Pork was OK. By itself it didn't really stand out, but with the BBQ Sauce would make for a fine sandwich. Wouldn't feel the need to order again, though. The Brisket, what i was most excited for, was disappointing. The meat was more chewy than juicy and the flavor or smokeyness was not present. The BBQ Sauce in general was quite tangy. Certainly not my favorite sauce and quite heavy - a bit of a disappointed if paired with flavorful dishes. The Mac & Cheese did not have much flavor, but paired with the aforementioned BBQ sauce was a better balance. This has been a typical finding for me - most KC BBQ Joints don't really punch flavor to their Mac's. The fries were good - crispy yet not overwhelmingly oily. A more than fine accompaniment.

Overall - I had higher hopes for my visit here. I would be curious to try the original location next time I visit, but with the large list of great BBQ in the city it may be a while before I make my way back to...