Food|Is Kansas City Still the Barbecue Capital of America? https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/10/dining/kansas-city-barbecue.html You have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load. Most mornings, Ollie Gates, the 93-year-old patriarch of a Kansas City barbecue dynasty, drives himself to the Gates Bar-B-Q location on Emanuel Cleaver II Boulevard and sits down in an office just steps from the counter.