Letters: Raves, faves for Kansas City BBQ

Raves, faves for Kansas City BBQ It was delightful to see Catharine Hamm's well-informed, well-considered write-up about barbecue in Kansas City [\"Kansas City BBQ,\" June 28]. I try to make it back to K.C. every year or two, just for the barbecue and to watch the now-pitiful Royals. I have to...

Raves, faves for Kansas City BBQ

It was delightful to see Catharine Hamm's well-informed, well-considered write-up about barbecue in Kansas City ["Kansas City BBQ," June 28]. I try to make it back to K.C. every year or two, just for the barbecue and to watch the now-pitiful Royals. I have to have Arthur Bryant's, so that usually leaves room for only one other place in my itinerary. Last time it was Oklahoma Joe's. But five in 36 hours? I bow to Hamm, out of respect.

-- Charles Miller, Westwood

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My head sweats every time I eat spicy food; it even occurs when I read an article like Hamm's. I wasted three napkins while reading it. I still can't find barbecue in L.A. that's worth consuming.

-- Bruce Fane, Encino

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My wife and I are Angeleno transplants in Overland Park, Kan., and lament the lack of truly great barbecue here in cow town despite the reputation of K.C. barbecue.

There is no better barbecue than Dr. Hogly Wogly's Tyler Texas BBQ in Van Nuys. When we visit, we make a beeline there for awesome barbecue. Jack Stack, Oklahoma Joe's and others don't come close to what you have in Van Nuys. Please do not send unsuspecting Angelenos to Kansas.

-- Grace and Peter Park, Overland Park, Kan.

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My wife and I thoroughly enjoyed Hamm's article on Kansas City barbecue. We're originally from Kansas City and relished meals at Bryant's, Gates and Rosedale Barbecue. The next time I return "home" (we moved to California in 1976), Jack Stack and Brobecks are on my list of "must do's."

-- Paul Edwards, Pine Mountain Club

If connecting, skip the U.S.

Regarding letters about United Airlines getting it right [June 7] or wrong [June 21].

Here is my advice for travelers to foreign destinations: Never, ever connect in a U.S. airport, no matter which airline you are flying.

If you need to connect, do so in a foreign airport on the way to your final destination. I have found that the risks of connecting problems in foreign airports are very low in comparison. The extra costs, if any, are well worth it.

Also, in the rare event you do get stranded at the connecting foreign airport, you are already at a foreign location! You can adapt your plans, walk out and discover that country.

-- Jacqueline Fischer, Monrovia

Starring role for Avalon casino

Regarding Rosemary McClure's "A Jig Around the Avalon Casino" [June 21]. Let's not forget the casino's appearance in many films, including a 1935 comedy-mystery called "Murder on a Honeymoon," starring Edna May Oliver as sleuth Hildegarde Withers, that was shot extensively inside the ballroom, in the hallway ramps and elsewhere around the Art Deco building. It's like revisiting the place in a time machine, and you'll be amazed how little it has changed in the last 75 years.

-- Jim Dawson, Hollywood