A Missouri barbecue spot is starting a new chapter — this one across the state line.
After five years in Raytown, Harp Barbecue will start over in the coming weeks in a new Overland Park space.
Owner Tyler Harp said he aims to reopen the restaurant in its new digs by early September.
Harp Barbecue will be at 12094 W. 135th St.
- The restaurant is moving into a space just off West 135th Street and Quivira Road, near new Asian eatery Saki and Abelardo’s Mexican Fresh.
- Pizza Shuttle previously occupied that space before closing in April.
- Once it opens, Harp Barbecue will be open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday, and from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday.
Harp Barbecue serves “fire and fresh meats”
Customers at Harp Barbecue can choose from a range of smoked meats, from burnt ends and pulled pork to brisket and sausage.
The restaurant’s menu also features side dishes like baked beans, baked potato salad, cheesy corn, and macaroni and cheese.
For the most part, Harp said the Overland Park location’s menu will mirror the Raytown menu — at least at the beginning.
There will be some potential new twists, though, such as lighter items like salads, some traditional soul food dishes and maybe even a Sunday brunch.
“It will look pretty similar in the beginning, but I think we’ll be able to evolve it quite a bit once we get going,” he said, of the Overland Park location’s menu.
This will be Harp Barbecue’s first JoCo spot
Harp Barbecue started out as a pop-up at Crane Brewing in Raytown before moving to its first brick-and-mortar space two years ago.
Leaving the town where his restaurant got its start is bittersweet, Harp said. But at the same time, the move will put Harp Barbecue closer to a lot of its most loyal customers.
“We just got a really good opportunity that was on the side where a lot of our customers are already coming from,” he said. “So that kind of made it easy.”
The move also comes as kind of a full circle moment for the Overland Park space itself.
Before Pizza Shuttle occupied that space, it was home to Jon Russell’s Kansas City Barbecue. As such, Harp said, the space is “more or less built for barbecue,” so there wasn’t a need for a ton of renovations.
Eventually, Harp said he might even expand his restaurant some more. But for now, he’s focused on steering Harp Barbecue toward its new chapter.
“We’ll try and take care of what’s on our plate and then see where we land,” he said. “There’s not too much barbecue on the south side of Overland Park, so we’re excited to have some (more barbecue) down that way.”
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