barbecue, Joe's Quest

Barbwire Barbecue in Eudora, Kansas

Me with one of the owners of Barbwire Barbecue, Jay Musick.

Saturday night I visited Barbwire Barbecue in Eudora, KS. Barbwire is a relatively new barbecue restaurant in the area. Co-owners Jay and Jason Musick started out participating in barbecue competitions and then bought and ran a food truck for about five years before opening the restaurant last September. I found this place to be a hidden gem that is not too far from Kansas City, less than a mile off of K-10 in Eudora, Kansas.

Jay and Jason are two cousins of a good friend of mine and I’ve wanted to try Barbwire for a while. We got there around 4:30 on Saturday and quickly learned that it is a good idea to get there early. After we ordered, the line was out the door the entire time we were there.

This is a restaurant where you order at the front counter and they give you one of those table flags with a number on it and they bring your food out to you. The dining room seats about 25-30 people and they have a picnic area patio out back that seats a lot more than that. They also have live music on the weekends, making for a great atmosphere. They have a variety of drink choices and a good variety of beers on tap.

I ordered a brisket sandwich and fries and my friends ordered a variety of items so we could try a lot of different things. I received my food about five minutes after ordering and my friends received their food shortly thereafter.

The brisket is served chunked on a brioche bun with the sauce on the side. They have four sauces that they make in-house along with their rub. They have a regular sauce, a sweet sauce, a hot sauce, and a habanero sauce. All of the sauces were great, and I’m generally not a fan of barbecue sauces. The fries were good and had a good seasoning on them. The brisket was tender and juicy with no fat and a very strong hickory smoke flavor. This sandwich was great and I had zero complaints.

Jay came out and talked to us for a bit and told us the story of how they opened and how they cook their food. they have a smoker out back and he puts the brisket on at 8:00 at night and lets it smoke with hickory logs until the next morning.

Snapped a pic of the smoker

Once Jay found out that I write a barbecue blog and that I’ve visited every barbecue place in Kansas City, he asked if I ordered the burnt ends. I said “no, should I have?” He said he’d take care of that and would be right back. He disappeared for a few minutes and came out with a bowl of burnt ends that were fantastic. They were trimmed of all the fat, were burnt like they’re supposed to be, and were tender and had a great flavor from their in-house rub. I asked Jay if they’re selling their rub and he said “not yet.” Once he starts selling it, I’m gonna buy some!

My friend Chris ordered some chick-arrones, which are chicken thigh and skin pieces served with a Teriyaki honey glaze. They were great as well.

Chick-Arrones

One of my other friends ordered a cheeseburger and she thought it was so good that she asked if I wanted to try it. Of course I said yes! I had a piece of it and it was fantastic. All the food I tried was excellent.

I took a picture of the line, which was constant the entire time we were there

After eating we decided to grab a drink and go outside to watch the band, which had started playing. They have a really nice area out back to kick back and relax and listen to some great live music.

I could have hung out here all night since it was so beautiful outside.

Great weather and great barbecue with great friends. Can’t beat it!

This is some of the best barbecue I’ve had in a while. It’s worth the drive to Eudora to check it out. They know how to do it right. It’s a family-run place and everyone is extremely nice. Their kids were running food out to people and bussing tables. If you live in the area and are looking for a job, they are hiring! If you’re a fan of great barbecue, do yourself a favor and check out Barbwire!

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