First Look at Station 8 BBQ

What happens when you convert an old fire station into a restaurant? That’s what Jet Bar-B-Q did many decades ago. Unfortunately, they closed, but something new had taken its place. Station 8 BBQ has officially opened to the public. The name is a nod to the firehouse which was number 8 when it was around starting in the late 1920s.

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1100 E 3rd St N, Wichita, KS 67214

Wednesday – Friday: 11am – 3pm
Closed Sunday – Tuesday, Saturday

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Cash/Card Accepted
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Station 8 BBQ did a beautiful job of renovating and building on to the visual legacy created by the former Jet Bar-B-Q space. There was so much to look at and take in. It’s probably one of the cooler interiors for a restaurant around town.

Ordering food was done similar to Chipotle, where you pick which meats and sides you want. There was a lot to choose from. Brisket, pulled pork, turkey, ham, ribs and hot links filled up the meat options while broccoli slaw, BBQ pit beans, traditional slaw, honey carrots, potato salad, cornbread pudding, and smoked mac were the sides. All the BBQ was smoked overnight every night and the sides were made from scratch.

I went a little overboard. This is essentially everything you can order. The below dish was a sampler platter called “The Yeti” included all five meats plus 2 ribs, three sides, homemade bread, pickles, onions, and sauce and cost $36. Then I ordered every additional sides to get a good visual of what you could expect.

I started with the sides and was blown away. Many restaurants put so much focus on the meats (as they should) and sometimes don’t give as much tender, loving care to the sides. Station 8’s sides were some of the best in town. My favorite three sides were the honey carrots, broccoli slaw and smoked mac. The latter was hands down the best; it was creamy, smokey, and nearly melted in my mouth. Have you ever taken a bite of something that caused you to close your eyes and dream of wonderful things? That’s what the smoked mac did to me.

And the meats? Even better. The aroma alone was good enough to get me salivating, but the flavors were so spot on. There wasn’t a bland piece of meat on my platter. What did I love about all of it? There was no need to use BBQ sauce. I love condiments as much as the next person, if not more, but often times found myself just eating the meats straight off the platter. The level of smokiness in each bite put me in a carnivore’s heaven. My favorite three meats were the ribs, turkey and brisket, and it wasn’t easy deciding on just three.

Seriously, check them out. Wichita has been a house of fire (pun intended) with many new restaurants in 2022 that have been off the charts. Station 8 just adds to that list.

Here’s a video look inside Station 8 BBQ:

@wichitabyeb What happens when you turn a fire station into a BBQ restaurant? Let’s check out Station 8 BBQ which took over the Jet Bar-B-Q space! #fyp #bbq #firestation #letseat ♬ Thunderstruck – AC/DC

Here’s their menu.

Happy Dining,
Eddy

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