Which barbecue is best, KCMO or KCK? Tasty short film explores biases | Opinion

In the short film “Stateline,” two of the lead characters in this 10-minute comedy debate a question near and dear to Kansas Citians: which city has the best barbecue, KCMO or KCK?

Full stop: I have no skin in this fight, but since the time I moved to Kansas City in 2007, I’ve found myself partial to BBQ joints on the Missouri side — and that is no shade to my KCK folks because Slap’s BBQ over that way does slap.

But Fiorella’s Jack Stack, Q39 and Gates Bar-B-Q are my go-to spots for smoked meats that fall off the bone, and their delicious sides. If I could combine the short end of ribs and baked beans from Gates with the cheesy potatoes and smoked chicken wings from Jack Stack tossed in Q39’s chipotle BBQ sauce, I’d be in barbecue heaven.

No shade to colleague Yvette Walker’s love of the long-end ribs at LC’s Bar-B-Q on Kansas City’s East Side.

But back to “Stateline.”

Written, directed and produced by Chuck Browne, a filmmaker born and raised in Kansas City, the movie is making the rounds this week at the Black Harvest Film Festival at the Gene Siskel Film Center in Chicago.

The film is a lighthearted take on relationships, food and perceptions. Browne said he came up with the concept based on personal experiences. “Stateline” pokes fun at the biases some Missourians have against their brethren from Wyandotte County.

“I have family on both sides,” Browne said. “I used to go to KCK on a regular basis because I have sisters that live over there. I’ve gotten to know some people in KCK very well. I wanted to do something that would make light of the whole KCMO-KCK beef and bring us together.”

“Stateline” stars Kansas Citians Gerald Hutson as Kevin, DaJah Garrett as Latrice and Petey McGee as Mitchell. In the film, the characters, portrayed by Hutson and Garrett, are a couple from Kansas City making the trip across the state line to visit McGee’s character – who is Latrice’s cousin and the owner of a barbecue restaurant.

“I’m here to put my boyfriend up on that good barbecue,” Latrice says. “That real barbecue.”

Then the territorial barbs begin.

Mitchell says to Kevin: “You look familiar, though.”

“No, I don’t,” Kevin shoots back.

“Yeah you do,” Mitchell says. “You went to Wyandotte, huh?”

Obviously agitated, Kevin replies: “You’re playing with me, right? I ain’t go to no Wyandotte, bro. I’m from Missouri, bro. Don’t play with me like that, I don’t play them types of games.”

Film plays on city rivalry

The short opens with the couple riding in Kevin’s 1970 Monte Carlo. Spoiler alert: the film ends with the couple standing in the restaurant’s parking lot sans car.

“I don’t know why you got me going over here anyway,” Kevin says in the opening scene.

“Oh my gosh, babe,” Latrice says. “I’m actually really excited for you to come over.”

From there, the exchange between the two hits on some things I’ve heard Missouri natives say over the years, including this quip from Kevin: “Every time I come over to KCK, the police be on (expletive).”

Latrice says: “What (expletive) are you even talking about?”

To which Kevin replies: “First off my car. You see what we’re riding in. A young Black man running around in a car this clean … they think I stole it.”

Touche. Touche.

To me, perhaps the funniest line of “Stateline” is when Kevin quips to Mitchell: “I ain’t really got no beef with KCK, I just hate the way it smells.”

Coming home to Kansas City

Browne, 41, is a married father of three living in Lee’s Summit. He’s a 2007 graduate of Texas Southern University, a historically black college or university in Houston. The Central High School product studied filmmaking while in college, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in mass communication with an emphasis in television and film production.

The following year, he started Chuck Browne Productions, a client-based business that shoots commercials and film projects for others. Browne said he moved back to the area after college to spend time with his ailing father.

In 2020, he said he pivoted to shooting his own films — his first movie, “The Shutdown” was released in 2021.

The film is about the pandemic, racial tension and how neighbors of different races and their worlds come together unexpectedly.

“It highlights the tension we all felt in the beginning stages of the pandemic,” Browne said.

I asked Browne did he ever consider relocating to a bigger city to start his career. He said he considered going to one of the entertainment meccas of the world, but decided being a big fish in a small pond like Kansas City would be a better option.

Moving to Los Angeles or Atlanta was on the table, Browne said.

“The main reason I didn’t jump to any of those cities is because my dad got sick,” Browne said. “I moved back home in 2009 to be around my father and bring my video and filmmaking talent to KC and do some stuff that had never been done.”

Relocating not mandatory

With the advent of technology and the proliferation of streaming platforms like Amazon Prime, Tubi and others, talented people from Kansas City no longer have to move away to succeed in show business, Brown said. He added that while it is still valuable and necessary to build relationships in larger cities, relocating is no longer mandatory.

“Your work can be more accessible now no matter where you’re at,” he said. “Your work can be seen across the world without uprooting your life or family. You don’t have to move to these places anymore.”

With “Stateline,” Browne said he wanted to break down some of the stereotypes folks on both sides of the border have against their neighbors. He also wanted to make it a point that all of us should support small, local businesses no matter where we’re from.

“It doesn’t matter where the business is located, it’s in Kansas City,” Browne said. “Let’s support it regardless.”

In fairness, Kevin, one of the main characters in “Stateline,” changed his tune when he sat down to sample Mitchell’s barbecue — he actually enjoyed the fictional meal cooked up by a KCK chef and indicated he’d return in the future.

In real life, Browne, the filmmaker, didn’t hesitate when I asked him his preference for Kansas City-style BBQ.

“It’s hands down KCMO and that’s not me being biased,” he said. “But I’ve been to some good KCK barbecue spots.”

“Stateline” is available for viewing on YouTube. For more information on the film or Chuck Browne Productions, visit www. chuckbrowneproductions.com

This story was originally published November 13, 2025 at 1:09 PM.