After nearly a year in the smoker, Brodric Cason is lifting the lid on B-On-Meatz — a catering company with an appetite for ensuring everyone can enjoy Kansas City barbecue, no matter their dietary restrictions.
B-On-Meatz BBQ offers vegan and traditional barbecue, using kosher and halal meats. Launched in early 2025, the business has a simple mission beyond satisfying hunger.
“I saw how after big family functions, graduations, and other events, people would plan to get something to eat, but after talking through who can’t eat certain foods, some people would drop off,” explained Cason, who is also a stand-up comedian and track coach. “So our goal is to keep the family together.”
And BBQ sauce is thicker than water.
The business serves up chicken wings and thighs, pork ribs, brisket, and salmon, plus vegan patties made with a mixture of jackfruit and lion’s mane and oyster mushrooms.
The founder — who started learning his craft around the age of 7 or 8 by helping his dad and uncles at family barbecues and then continued by working several years in the restaurant industry — also is working on perfecting his vegan ribs.
“I really want everybody to get a taste of everything,” Cason noted.
Also on the B-On-Meatz menu: smoked sides, including traditional and vegan mac and cheese, green beans, cornbread, greens, and baked beans.
“Everything is smoked,” he added.
On top of catering for events like weddings, birthday parties, and holiday celebrations, Cason is gaining more experience through popups.
Beyond his expertise with a smoker, Cason wants to caramelize his entrepreneurial and small business savvy through the classroom, he shared. He graduated from the Kauffman FastTrac Program through Kansas City G.I.F.T., and followed the experience by joining a pitch class at G.I.F.T. and a program at the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
“At the same time that we want to be in front of people,” he explained, “I want to get my education up to make sure we’re not ignorant in certain areas that can come back to bite us later.”
Cason ultimately wants to expand into a food truck, then a brick and mortar space, he said, with an eye already turned toward summer when the FIFA World Cup comes to Kansas City — and potentially brings 650,000 fans with it.
“I want to make sure we’re educated at the same time, especially understanding the percentages of how many restaurant businesses fail within the first five to seven years,” Cason continued. “I want to be successful and do what we need to do behind the scenes to make sure when we’re in front of the people that we’re ready.”
But making money with B-On-Meatz isn’t his only priority, he noted. Cason also wants to make an impact in the community. In his free time, he works with youth at this church and as a track coach for the KC Rebels.
“As much as we cook, we’re also a community-based organization, too,” he continued.
Cason — a stand-up comedian for 13 years who is making a comeback after taking a hiatus to focus on his family — also uses his comedy to make a difference, he said. A particular focus: using his humor to show young Black men that being vulnerable doesn’t make them any less of a man.
“We’re not just out here cooking and trying to make money off the place,” Cason added. “We’re also giving back and making sure that the next generation is better off than we were.”
This story was originally published in Startland News, a fellow member of the Kansas City Media Collective.
