Food critics: The best Kansas City dishes to honor Juneteenth in 2022

Juneteenth, which traditionally marks the day enslaved people in Texas learned they were free, was declared a federal holiday last year. Food traditions have grown with the holiday, and there are plenty of ways to honor Juneteenth with Kansas City chefs and restaurants.
Now in its second year as a federal holiday, Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865, was when federal troops stood on Texas soil for the reading of General Order No. 3, informing residents of Galveston that all enslaved people were now free — more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation.

The official date this year is June 20, but Natasha Bailey, co-host of KCUR’s podcast Hungry For MO and executive chef at Thelma’s Kitchen, and Carlton Logan, administrator of Kansas City Eats, were eager to talk about the date's history and food traditions — including the colors of red, black and green.