A BBQ Vending Machine In Kansas Offers An Iconic Restaurant's Best Bites On Demand At All Hours

Barbecues are undeniably a part of America's cultural landscape, as just a mere mention of a barbecue evokes images of smoky grills in backyards, cookouts in parks, and lines around the block where hungry folks wait for hours to get a taste of meat from the most famous joints. Barbecue has a long tradition in Kansas City, even longer than other places with signature barbecue styles, like California's Santa Maria Valley. Since its inception decades ago, the city's more than 100 barbecue restaurants have become renowned for their smoky, mouth-watering cuts on offer. The Kansas City's impeccable barbecue reputation has won the city's pitmasters spots on TV shows like "Grill Masters", inspired competitions and festivals, and earned recognition around the globe.

Jones Bar-B-Q, a family-owned restaurant serving all the platters, plates, and slabs you can imagine, holds a well-earned spot in the Kansas City barbecuing field. Aside from its excellent beef, ham, turkey, and pork combos, the restaurant also serves iconic sides like potato salad and rib tips. After an appearance on Netflix's hit reality series "Queer Eye," the Jones sisters sold 11,000 bottles of their homemade barbecue sauce, averaging 1.7 bottles a minute over a single weekend, but the cleverest addition to their business model is a 24/7 barbecue vending machine outside the establishment.

The Jones sisters added the machine as a way for customers to indulge in the restaurant's best bites on demand any time of the day or night, and the neatly packaged sandwiches have been flying off the shelves ever since. A choice of potato salad, baked beans, or coleslaw comes tucked in with the sandwiches. Bottles of their special sauce are also available on the bottom shelf.

The Jones sisters won't divulge what the secret ingredient in their sauce is, but when sharing their story are proud to say that the one thing they always put into their food is hard work. That hard work pays off as the barbecue haven often sees lines around the block for their daily-made creations. The restaurant is open from 10:45 a.m. to 3 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday. But these hours come with a caveat — the restaurant only stays open until 3 p.m. provided they haven't sold out. When the food is gone, the restaurant closes for the day.

The ribs, homemade sausages, and baked beans are some of the dishes that people rave about most, and one barbecue enthusiast on Google even described the burnt ends at the restaurant as "life-changing." Prices here are also quite reasonable and the restaurant is set up with a few picnic tables outside so you can enjoy your meal right away. Freight trains occasionally roar past, drowning out order requests, but that's a good clue that you're about to have an authentic dining experience (for more ways to know if a restaurant is authentic while traveling, here are some clues from Rick Steves).

For those who can't make it to the serving window before Jones Bar-B-Q closes, there's no need to fret, as the vending machine keeps the party going with its delicious sandwich options. While full-on meals in vending machines are common in places like Japan, vending machine meat sandwiches sound like a project that could go wrong if executed improperly. Luckily, Jones Bar-B-Q's vending machine is temperature controlled, and its sandwiches are tightly sealed in clamshell boxes, ensuring that your beef, ham, and turkey selections stay fresh. 

Jones Bar-B-Q is located on Kaw Street in Kansas City, Kansas, under an hour's drive from Topeka. You'll recognize the restaurant by the giant sign sporting its name, the picnic tables, and the vending machine right next to the serving window. If Kansas City barbecue etiquette is anything to go by, to order food from the main window, you should get to the restaurant early before things start selling out.

Also, even with the vending machine, you should arrive before evening to have the best chance of getting exactly what you want. The machine only accepts credit cards, and because it is temperature controlled, the sandwiches will need to be warmed up at home. The price of a sandwich combo with a side hovers around $7, depending on your selected filling. A small container of sauce also accompanies the sandwich.

Planning on doing some barbecuing at home instead? Jones Bar-B-Q has you covered in that regard as well with their range of sauces available for purchase online. Although they don't fill international orders, domestic deliveries should be on their way in one to two weeks. It'll be worth the wait for a taste of the Jones sisters' signature flavors which include hot, sweet and tangy, and coconut and pineapple. The sisters' signature sauce also makes for a great souvenir or gift for your relatives and friends who were unlucky enough not to join you on your trip to the barbecue heaven that is Kansas City.