It’s spring and smoke’s all about – but at Osage City this weekend, all of that smoke is really all about flavor – the flavor of fine smoked meat.
With winter gone, this community welcomes spring with an annual barbecue party, known as the Taste of Osage City. The community celebration and the Smoke in the Spring State BBQ Championship get underway Friday, April 11, 2025, at Jones Park in Osage City; this year is the contest’s 22nd year.
The highlight of the party is Friday evening’s “Taste” – about two dozen of competition barbecue teams cook up samples of all kinds of outdoor-cooked delights, which then can be exchanged for BBQ Bucks (sold on site or in advance).
The Taste of Osage City opens up at 5 p.m. and lasts until “the food runs out”. Each cooker decides what they will serve – but the menu ranges from traditional smoked meat favorites to imaginative or unexpected barbecued delights. See the menu and vendor locations here. The vendors set the BBQ Buck prices for their items. BBQ Bucks can also be used to exchange for a variety of items available at the event, including drinks. BBQ Bucks left over from past years can still be used; and any unused BBQ Bucks from this year can be used next year.
Oldtimers advise Friday night eaters to arrive early with BBQ Bucks in hand – lines start forming before the vendors open at 5.
BBQ Bucks can be obtained in advance at Osage City Hall, 201 S. Fifth St., Osage City. On Friday, BBQ Bucks will be available 1-7 p.m. at the Osage City Community Building, in Jones Park; stop by the concession window on southeast corner of the building.
The party doesn’t end with the food – a live band will fire up the evening beginning at 7 p.m. in the Osage City Parks and Recreation building, where the beer garden is also set up. Starting in the afternoon and until dark, weather permitting, inflatables will be available for kids near the OCPR building. At 9 p.m., a local pyrotechnician will light up the sky with a fireworks display provided by Garret’s Fireworks.
Parking for the Taste is located at the open grass lot west of Highway 170 across from the stadium, or at Osage City Schools parking lot, 420 S. Fourth St.
While the party smolders into the evening, Jones Park keeps on smoking as about 100 competition barbecue teams start stoking their smokers and preparing protein for Saturday’s Kansas City Barbeque Society sanctioned state championship, Smoke in the Spring. This year in its 22nd year, Smoke in the Spring is recognized by cookers and barbecue judges as a top contest on the Midwest barbecue circuit. In addition to bringing many of the top barbecue teams to Osage City, the contest also recruits more than 120 certified barbecue judges and table captains from across a multi-state area, who come to judge the contest.
Although the public is welcome to visit the competition Saturday, there will be no food sales or vendors in the park. Visitors are asked to not to bother competitors while they prepare their entries for turn-in. First turn-in will be chicken at noon, followed by the other three main protein groups, ribs, pork and brisket, in 30-minute intervals. The contest will finish up with turkey entries, as it is designated as the first official Turkey Smoke competition of the season for 2025.
The contest awards and winners will be presented around 4 p.m. Saturday at the community building; everybody is invited to attend the awards ceremony.
For more information about Smoke in the Spring or the Taste of Osage City, contact OCPR at rec@osagecity.com or 785-528-4610.
Cruis’n and Cook’n Car Show
The Cruis’n and Cook’n Car Show is celebrating its 21st year as part of Osage City’s barbecue celebration, and it will fill downtown Osage City Saturday with a variety of makes and models of antique, vintage and speciality vehicles. Registration for the show begins at 8 a.m. and the awards presentation will be at 2:30 p.m. For more information about the car show, contact Richard Swarts at 785-249-5451. The show is free to spectators.
