"Few pitmasters have had as big an influence on KC barbecue in recent years as Tyler Harp. Since coming on the scene in 2019, he’s launched a local barbecue festival and an educational podcast, and inspired a host of aspiring craft barbecuers to switch to offset smokers. Get here early to sample Harp’s incredibly rich sausages and meltingly soft, thick-sliced brisket. If you’re thinking that brisket sounds more Texas-style, you’re right. But Harp has never let regional expectations define his cooking, adopting techniques from across the country even as he pays tribute to the pitmasters that first put KC on the map. Note: Harp Barbecue plans to close for several weeks and reopen this fall at 12094 W. 135th Street, Overland Park, KS, 66221." - Liz Cook