As summer officially began on June 21, the season of BBQ is in full force.
Lawnstarter released its list of the top BBQ cities in America. They compared the 200 biggest U.S. cities based on five categories. They looked at access to barbecue vendors, consumer ratings, competition awards, and the number of barbecue festivals, among 20 total metrics.
The number one city on the list is Kansas City, MO followed by St. Louis (No. 2). St. Louis stands out with the 2nd-highest number of BBQ vendors per capita and the most National Barbecue & Grilling Association (NBBQA) members.
Many Southern cities grill up impressive barbecue. On the list, Orlando (No. 6) offers the most barbecue vendors and smokehouses per 100,000 residents. Tennessee cities Memphis (No. 4), Nashville (No. 9), Knoxville (No. 16), and Chattanooga (No. 28) are among the top 16 cities for BBQ vendor access, alongside Atlanta (No. 23) and Richmond, Virginia (No. 10).
| Best Cities for BBQ | |
| Rank | City |
| 1 | Kansas City, MO |
| 2 | St. Louis, MO |
| 3 | Kansas City, KS |
| 4 | Memphis, TN |
| 5 | Houston, TX |
| 6 | Orlando, FL |
| 7 | Springfield, MO |
| 8 | Omaha, NE |
| 9 | Nashville, TN |
| 10 | Richmond, VA |
