While visiting Overland Park, there was one restaurant I knew I had to try, Buck Tui BBQ. It combines two of my loves, BBQ and Thai food. The restaurant, which has been open for about a year, has quickly become one of the Kansas City area’s most popular BBQ joints. This, along with rave reviews from people I know, made it a no-brainer.
I made reservations on their website because I heard they can get really busy, and stopped by with two other BBQ lovers to check it out.
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6737 W 75th St, Overland Park, KS 66204
913-283-8255
Monday – Thursday: 11am – 2:30pm; 4:30pm – 9pm
Friday – Saturday: 11am – 2:30pm; 4:30pm – 9:30pm
Website | Facebook
Cash/Card Accepted
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The biggest draw of Buck Tui is the blending of KC barbecue with Thai flavors and cooking techniques. When fusion type dishes are done right, it’s a beautiful thing.
That was noticeable from the moments our appetizers arrived. We began with the miniature garlic pork ribs, brisket rangoon, and Thai sausage dumplings. It took us less time to devour them than the time it took for our server to deliver the apps to our table. They were insanely delicious. Truth be told, I’m not a huge crab rangoon fan, but fried wontons with marinated cream cheese and brisket were hard to pass up. Each rangoon had a smokiness that tickled my senses. Easily, the best rangoon I’ve ever had.
The garlic pork ribs came with a Thai sriracha that brought up the heat levels, while the dumplings came in a sweet ginger hoisin glaze that was a roller coaster of emotion. Eating them brought us to these new highs of happiness and then when we saw our plate was empty, the ride down was sadness with a mixture of yelling for more food. (Note: there was no yelling that took place that evening).
We all went back and forth on what we wanted. They had a smoked meat menu along with a Thai inspired entrees section. It was tough.
I knew I had to try a Thai inspired entree. So, I went with the red curry brisket burnt end and we added an order of Tiger Cry Beef because we didn’t want the appetizers to end.
The brisket burnt ends came swimming in a bowl of coconut red curry that was sweet but followed by a swift kick of heat. Delicious, though? 100%!
The Tiger Cry Beef dish was grilled marinated flank steak that came with a side of tiger cry sauce that would make any tiger cry along with everybody at our table. Buck Tui performed some magic in the kitchen and made some of the most tender flank steak we’ve ever had. The tiger cry sauce was no joke and brought tears. It’s probably best described as a toxic relationship: plenty of tears, a bad decision made only for instant gratification, and you knew the end result would be pain… physical and mental.
Did the dinner end there? No way.
The three of us decided to go YOLO (do people still use that term?) and order the $159 Big Buckin’ Platter. It came with brisket, heavenly pork, Thai sausage, pork belly, Thai-KC burnt ends, baby back pork rib (half slab), and Amish Gerber chicken (half). This was all served with BBQ sauce, tiger cry sauce, pickles, and big bowls of seasoned jasmine rice, phad Thai, Issan style papaya salad, and mac & cheese.
This picture doesn’t do the size of the meal justice. The platter could have doubled as a bed for my daughter.
There was SO MUCH FOOD to go around for the three of us.
At first, we were polite and well-mannered, using the tongs to grab our food. But after the first plate, the gloves were off and we ate like cavemen. It was hard to choose a favorite, as it was all delicious. The Thai-KC burnt ends, pork belly, ribs, everything was perfection for our taste buds; even the sides were delicious. The mac & cheese was probably the favorite for most of the group, but I almost single-handedly finished the papaya salad. While much of it was classic BBQ, you could get occasional hints of Thai flavor in some of the meats.
Could the three of us have finished all the food? Who knows, but with hungry people at home, we made the ultimate gentlemanly sacrifice to bring home leftovers. Our significant others were curious about food later that night and because of this order, we arrived home late that evening like three wise men bearing delicious leftover gifts.
And while we spent a pretty penny that evening, the quality of the service matched the quality of the food. It was an excellent dining experience from start to finish. One that I hope many of you get a chance to try sometime.
Here’s their menu.
Happy Dining,
Eddy
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