Kansas City Food Festivals

Although barbecue is a given in this "pit-smoked"-style capital, Kansas City is home to several food festivals throughout the year. From rubs and sauces to margaritas and spinach (no, that's not a typo), Missouri's culinary gem has something for every taste. Here's our roundup of three festivals that should be on your calendar:

• American Royal Barbecue
  Sept. 5 – Nov. 16, 2013
  With 545 barbecue teams competing in four categories over 20 acres in Kansas City's Stockyards District, the American Royal Barbecue Fest is the world's largest barbecue contest. In addition to this "World Series of Barbecue," the festival includes cooking demos, a Kids' Korral, and live music.

• Fiesta Kansas City
  June 21-23, 2013
  Featuring food, live entertainment, and vendors, Fiesta Kansas City celebrates the city's Hispanic culture. The gathering highlights a variety of cuisines, as well as the festival's "featured margaritas" as part of "Margarita Cove." Tickets permit visitors to try six different flavors of margaritas and beer.

• Lenexa Spinach Festival
  Sept. 7, 2013
  Located in Lenexa (one of the city's suburbs), otherwise known as the "Spinach Capital of the World," the Spinach Festival is a family-oriented event that celebrates the area's agricultural heritage. For one day a year, festival activities include different spinach-inspired foods, live entertainment, arts, recipe contests, wine tastings, cooking demonstrations, and kid's activities.