char bar

everytimei go to char bar, i fall more in love with it. on sunday's 12-close they serve the best fried chicken i've ever had. their chive butter biscuits are amazing.

the food at char bar was pretty good overall. the atmosphere was really fun/trendy and the beer selection was better than average. it’s a shame the service here is so, so bad.

i came in with a small party to celebrate my birthday a couple of weeks ago and the first staff member we encountered ignored us to the point of awkwardness. we stood in the entrance alone for a couple of minutes wondering how the seating worked (it was our firsttimehere). there was noone at the welcome counter, but there was a young guy walking around near where we were standing. a member of my party walked up and asked if the restaurant was open seating. he was visibly put off that we asked the question and curtly responded that no, it’s not. a second char bar employee came to the welcome desk and happily asked us how many were in our party. we told her and she asked us to follow her outside where we were seated. as we walked away i realized that the first employee’s job was to be a host. horrible first impression.

our waitress was very good. she was attentive and our order came out perfect. she had great timing on asking us if we wanted more to drink. props to her.

after eating, my party decided to play bocce ball ($5/hr i think) and have a couple more drinks. we wanted to sit by the court, but the tables in that location were covered in bottles and glasses. one glass was broken. it took us about 5 minutes to find and flag down an employee to ask that the tables be bussed. when we found one, we received a similar “why are you bothering me with this” attitude from a blond-ish guy in a black button up. someone, not the person we asked, came over and gave us more attitude while they cleared the empties that we did not leave and had been sitting there for at least 30 minutes without being bussed like we were somehow putting them out.

this holier than thou attitude continued at the outdoor bar when i tried to order a drink. i tried to ask the bartender (they had a ponytail, goatee and long, manicured nails) about a sour on tap that i hadn’t seen before. they didn’t turn around to respond and mumbled toward the taps. when i asked them to repeat what they said, they started pouring a different sour that i did not want. when i tried to stop them and point out that i was asking about a different beer, they rolled their eyes and began pouring the second beer without answering me.

probably not going back unless someone drags me here. it’s a cool concept, but the staff needs some training on how to conceal pretension and provide quality, attentive customer service.

we met some friends there before we headed to the "k". it was our firsttimeto try this place. we ordered hush puppies that were out of this world. the main meal was completely amazing. brisket sandwich was huge and very filling. my boyfriend got the burnt ends and i would say they were the best i've ever had! we give this place an a+++++.

this is a decent place but needs to focus on their take out menu and customer service.
pros: the bbq ribs and burnt ends are reeeeeaaaaalllly good!

the sides are pretty good. some are better then others. they have good mac n cheese especially if you get a small side of pig tail mac n cheese and stir it in. amazingly good, smoky and cheesy.
they have delicious fried pickles and fried green tomatoes. i have had an amazing pimento grilled cheese sandwich on sour dough w/ avocado for the vegans out there. delicious. i have enjoyed the jalapeño corn bread muffins and the chive butter and tobasco jelly were perfectly matched. i even used the tobasco sauce to dip my burnt ends in because it's that good.

the cons: all the wonderful and delicious things i just mentioned are hit and miss!!!!'
this place suffers from inconsistent execution of food quality. i will give them one reprieve in this critique and say that the burnt ends have been exquisite every time. but you are rolling the dice on there sides, the sandwich and especially the corn muffins. i had to return the corn muffins twice in one take out order because they were coming out cold, hard and dry. i get take out a lot because i can't always come in to eat and i have had one manager explain how much better the food is if you just come in and sit down. i think that is a ridiculous response to an insatisfied customer when they even charge you .50 cents extra per item to get it to go.
not an ignaramous and yes food is usually presented better when dining in but did my fried pickles have to come in a rows paper bag where all the breading fell off and they balled up so the grease ran out the bottom and leaked through the main bag that it was in. and remember they charged me extra for that awesome service!!!! :-/
my mac n cheese may have bread crumbs and cheddar on top of it in the to go container and sometimes it doesn't. the corn bread muffins were so moist and flaky the firsttimethat i went on yelp and raved about them and the nexttimeafter two tries they kept over cooking them. and....um.....excuse me mr. manager. but do i have stupid written on my forehead? don't tell me these are made to order ween i sat there and waited for them and they came out cold, hard and dry again. i have been insatisfied with their food lately but that's probably my fault for going to often and expecting to much based on what they served the day before.

the food has the potential to be amazing but they are severely inconsistent in what they serve day after day.

on an ending note: i was irritated after dealing with a male manager that seemed butt hurt that i didn't like his hard corn muffins so my wife and i were going to go to jack stacks bbq in the plaza where the service is phenomenal and the sides are always consistently delicious every time. however, we haven't had their actual bbq yet. so filled with a mission to show the char bar that hey suck and i'm going to spend my money over here at js instead i ordered the burnt ends.

i have been humbled!

the jack stack burnt ends can't hold a candle to the char bar. yes, the char bars service is mediocre in comparison to js. yes, they can't seem to give you the same quality of meal, especially with their take out, like js. but, they have the best damn ribs and burnt ends i have tasted and js can't even compete with the quality and flavor. it hurts me to say it but it is true. the char bar has better bbq and it is worth spending a little more money because they are also a little higher priced but it's worth it.

this rating is all the flavor of their bbq and the lost points are due to the inconsistency with their take out food and the lack luster service.

so delicious! even on a wednesday there was a wait, but we sat at the bar. i ordered a showgirl, a whiskey drink, it was fantastic! i am usually not a huge fan of mescal, but it wasn't over powering. we sat on the lower level in a huge booth- nexttimei would love to sit up by the bar, the dining area has floor to ceiling glass doors. in the fall it has to be beautiful, they open it up and have a fire pit. at the table i ordered a ricochet, i was worried it was going to be super sweet because of the pineapple, but the lemon juice and mint added enough to keep it on a level i like. for dinner we orders the naked burnt ends, black angus brisket on the bun, sweet potato fries and pig tail mack and cheese. everything was wonderful! i tried all of the sauces. my favorite was the original with the meat and the spicy with the fries. i even put some on the mac and cheese! i am excited to try it in the summer when the games are open again!

great place to go with friends!. i finally got to check this place out when my husband and i can to kc to visit friends and so he could compete in a bjj. i'd heard and read so many positive things and it didn't disappoint! the atmosphere is fun and lively! while waiting on our table, we used their foosball table and ordered drinks, which got everything off to a great start.

i ordered the triple crown (smoked ham, smoked bacon and pulled pork). it wasn't as impressive in size compared to the other orders at my table, but there was a actually a really decent serving of meat there. and it was pretty delicious!

but i have to say that i liked my husband pick even more - a sandwich comprised of burnt ends and sausage with coleslaw on top. so good!!! i definitely plan on getting this nexttimewe go!

i also got to try a rib from out friends' holy trinity plate and it was fantastic! awesome, crunchy bark with tender meat underneath. he was also in love with the chicken he got - he claimed that the skin tasted just like bacon!

this was such a fun and place to have dinner with friends! we'll definitely be back to try more!!

southern inspired.. we visited the char bar for the firsttimelast week. the food was good. i was immediately drawn to the pimento and cheese sandwich with fried green tomato. it was spot on. the bread was perfect the pimento and cheese was creamy espically since i'm positive they can't possibly use duke's mayo. my only regret is i didn't throw a fried egg on it. my boyfriend had the portabello sandwich, i tried it and didn't care for it. i found the greens over powering. my boyfriend liked it but agreed sammy was better. being a southern girl up here in the midwest i had to try the "hush puppies". at 7 bucks i was expecting a huge bucket o puppies.. when the server brought out four puppies i was surprised. char bar's version of hush puppies are fancy deep fried grits and cheese with a corn meal coating. the sauce was a perfect compliment to the fritter. i could even taste the beer in the sauce. i still think four is a little chinsey but whatever i get it. we finished the meal with their butterscotch creme brullee. i loved it.. i later noticed they have jo jos which is a gas station fav back home. our server courtney was also very sweet and attentive. i can't wait to go back especially since now they are serving brunch!

absolutely stunning bbq.... we've been twice in the last two weeks. the firsttimewith the family; great with the munchkin, had the holy trinity tray, pickled pig sandwich, hand cut fries, cheesy hushpuppies and smoked turkey for the boy. fantastic!!! easily in my top 3 for burnt ends and all the smoked meats were spot on.

next stop was on boy's night because their beer and tap selection is stellar. all the gents were flat out impressed with their food and immediately put it on our short list of returns.

here's the deal... get to char bar sooner rather than later. if you're a bbq afficionado then it's a must stop.

amazing food, service, and atmosphere. i've eaten at the char bar the past two weekends, and both times had a great experience. the firsttimei tried their chicken and waffles, having never had chicken and waffles before. the savory bacon/cheddar waffle was amazing, and the chicken had a great spicy kick. a little smoky hollandaise and it was mouth heaven.
this last weekend my table went all out and ordered the whomp platter, which has all of their meats. the burnt ends and ribs topped any i have had in kc hands down. i wasn't as jazzed about the jackfruit, but for what it is it wasn't bad. their barbecued beans were amazing and have a lot of smoky, barbecue flavor without being over-sweetened like most traditional bbq beans.
i can't wait for their outdoor area to be completed!

awesome service, best food. my wife and i love this place, we have been there twice now and everything we have had has been amazing!
the most recenttimewe went we got the whomp platter which was totally worth it.

a must for anyone who wants a high end product at a reasonable price.