If you were surprised that Charles Ferruzza found Denny's pancakes to be the grand slam winner in his battle of the dishes last Thursday, now you can test them yourself -- for free.
Denny's is bringing back its free grand slam breakfast promotion -- the one that sparked such massive lines after last year's Super Bowl -- on Tuesday, February 9, between 6 a.m. and 2 p.m. The original Grand Slam is two eggs, two pancakes, two sausage links and two strips of bacon, and typically sells for $5.99.
There are enough Denny's in the area that you could have second breakfast -- not that we'd encourage you to do that. But if you must, there are Denny's in Overland Park (10480 Metcalf), Kansas City (3832 Blue Ridge, 1600 Broadway, 6887 E. Front Road), North Kansas City (2117 Taney Street), Merriam (9001 West 63rd), Raytown (8810 E. 350th Highway), Lenexa (9471 Lenexa Drive), and Independence (3939 South Noland).
You need plans. Fat City has a recycle bin full of listings. In this post, all our problems are solved.
It's Super Bowl weekend. But before you get to the big game on Sunday, this is a huge weekend for charity events in Kansas City.
The Horizon Academy puts on its annual fundraiser -- The Bayou Bash (seems appropriate with New Orleans in the Super Bowl) --- on the stage at Starlight Theater on Saturday. The Mardi Gras-themed event includes dinner, dancing and drinks for $100.
Also on Saturday, the Medical Missions Foundation hosts its Art for the Children Gala and Auction at the Westin Crown Center. A ticket is $150 and the event begins with a cocktail hour at 6:30 p.m.
And there's an adults-only fundraiser at the Kansas City Zoo on Saturday night from 7 to 9:30. "Kiss and Tail" is a presentation on the strange and interesting mating habits of animals at the zoo. The event -- which includes two drinks -- is $35 per person for Friends of the Zoo and $45 for non-members (add $5 if you buy your tickets at the door).
There's no shortage of opinions on bacon. Some see it as the decline of our civilization; others would argue it's the best thing we've ever done as a culture. Today, you can debate either side when Fat City's Charles Ferruzza and the food critics talk about the ubiquitous pork product on The Walt Bodine Show (KCUR, 89.3 FM) from 10 to 11 a.m.
Possible conversation fodder : the bacon explosion is a local invention that's generated a Web business and cookbook. And there's bacon ranch and bacon popcorn or the unfortunately named meat lamp. All of these might lead you to bacon fatigue, which you can vent about to Walt, Charles and the rest of the food critics.
And on Saturday, if you're still unsure where to go for
the Super Bowl, but want to avoid the sports bar scene, I'll be talking
to Chef Jasper Mirabile Jr. and co-host Mitch Baker on Live From Jasper's Kitchen Podcast
(KCMO 710 AM) between 11 a.m. and 12 p.m. We'll discuss recommendations across downtown, the Northland and
Overland Park, noting where you should go if you want to
eat, and where you should go if the goal is drinking.
A successful Super Bowl party has some of the same characteristics of any party -- with the exception that it's not enough to have food and drinks out for the initial rush. You need to have timed releases that correspond to the game itself. Just as Herm Edwards found out, it's all a matter of clock management.
Before the Game
Set out anything that doesn't need to be refrigerated. Put the bean dip and the tortilla chips in a bowl, but keep them sealed. Get the beer on ice and make sure the bar is easily accessible and stacked with mixers and garnishes.
Think small -- mini bagel dogs and pony beers (the glass beers that are 7 or 8 oz.). When we overeat and drink, it's much more manageable in small portions.
Crack one set of chips and your first beer. After all, you should be building your excitement as well -- this is why you practiced different furniture layouts this week.
First Quarter
Keep it light and small. The Super Bowl is anywhere from a three to six-hour commitment. You want your guests to enjoy it and not feel like they're in an Alka Seltzer ad. You've already set out mini bagel dogs or sliders and chips; lay the groundwork for later by filling a few candy bowls with Peanut M&Ms, but save most of the sweets for after halftime. Doll out pony beers like party favors.
The Beer for Bikes fundraiser -- a happy hour organized by Variety of Greater Kansas City -- is tonight from 5-7 at the Boulevard Brewery.
"We couldn't be more excited for young people to get out, have fun, and help out children in Kansas City," says Deborah Wiebrecht, Variety's Executive Director.
The "Kids On the Move" campaign hopes to raise enough money to purchase 100 therapeutic bicycles for area children with physical disabilities and standard bicycles for children without means. This event is the first in a series planned for the next several months.
The fundraiser is all you can drink -- straight from the Boulevard taps
-- for a $15 donation at the door. It's cash only. You can also buy
tickets ahead of time at Variety's Web site.
If you want to learn about wine without committing to a full slate of classes (in case you discover you'd just rather drink the stuff), JP Wine Bar's classes could be a good option.
The classes, which begin tonight at 7, run on consecutive Tuesdays with JP Wine Bar General Manager Thomas Goerdel leading students through a study of different wine-producing regions and varietals. The classes will alternate weekly between kinds of grapes and wine regions. The curriculum spans the spectrum of red and white and sweet and dry.
So you're convinced that Valentine's Day is a manufactured holiday designed to extract more cash from outside your joint bank account, or further elucidate your status as single. In an effort to save you the inevitable backlash that comes from skipping a holiday built on being a sensitive romantic, here's a list of your available options in order of price.
Christopher Elbow Chocolates has a Valentine Collection with five hand-painted hearts with infused caramel centers and 12 seasonal chocolates for $36. These chocolates were released yesterday and need to be ordered by 12 p.m. on February 10 to arrive by Valentine's Day.
On Saturday, February 6, Christopher Elbow makes a stop at Leawood's Dean & Deluca to talk about his chocolates. From 11 a.m. and 1 p.m., you can get free samples along with heart-healthy caviar and biscotti with Dutch process hot cocoa. Bob Benish from Benish's Bakery will also be there to talk about the traditional Italian cookies.
Bo Lings has a Valentine's Day menu at all six of its locations, with 20 percent off the $38 price going to the Heart to Heart Relief Fund for Haiti. The three-course menu with your choice of two entrees features imperial shrimp, Beijing roast duck with duck bone soup and coconut panna cotta with caramel sauce.
Kobe is one of the 21 restaurants participating in District Restaurant Week
As the saying goes, when one restaurant week closes its doors, another will open them. The Power & Light District is piggybacking on the first Kansas City Restaurant Week and bringing back District Restaurant Week.
The event runs from today through Sunday, February 7, and you'll have your choice of a prix fixe lunch ($10) or dinner ($25 or $30) from one of 21 participating restaurants. MeMa's Bakery and Savvy Coffee and Wine Bar will also be offering discounts during the week.
MeMa's opens at 7 a.m., giving away a free bakery item to the first 100 customers each day. Savvy offers half-off brewed coffee, espresso and iced tea between 7 a.m. and 2 p.m. and $3 and $5 wine specials from 4 to 7 p.m.
You need plans. Fat City has a recycle bin full of listings. In this post, all our problems are solved.
Another weekend, another rivalry. The men's basketball teams at Kansas University and Kansas State University battle each other on the
hardwood at 6 p.m. on Saturday. Lew's Grill and Bar in Waldo has drink specials on UV Vodka, bloody marys and Miller Lite drafts up until tip-off.
Even though it's winter, farms are still operating. The Mahaffie Stagecoach Stop and Farm House is open on Saturday from 10 a.m to 4 p.m. You can learn about soap and sausage making as well as corn shelling on this working farm in Olathe. It's $6 for adults, $4 for children.
This morning my coffee ice cubes offered a sign that it was time to post Valentine's Day menus
Like New Year's Eve, Valentine's Day can be more hype than joy. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't enjoy a good meal.
Grand Street Cafe offers a trio of special dishes on February 13 and 14: a soy glazed Chilean sea bass with bok choy, carrots, shiitake mushrooms, bean sprouts, sticky rice and lobster consomme ($32); a six-ounce filet and two grilled jumbo prawns with oyster mushroom potato hash, creamy spinach, maytag bleu cheese and a demi glaze ($36); and three-cheese ravioli hearts with shrimp, snow peas, roasted tomatoes in a lemon pepper cream sauce ($20).
On Saturday, a dozen or so professional chefs and culinary students worked with hammers, picks, saws and electric hairdryers to create elaborate ice sculptures in the courtyard in front of the Crown Center Ice Terrace. The guest judges included Danny O'Neill, founder of the Roasterie.
Frederico Hernandez, sous chef at the Hyatt Regency Crown Center Hotel, won for his sculpture of a harp and swan bedecked with candles. That night, the sculpture was featured in the foyer of the Hyatt Regency's ballroom for the 2010 Greater Kansas City Chefs Association Inaugural Ball.
You need plans. Fat City has a recycle bin full of listings. In this post, all our problems are solved.
Kansas City Restaurant Week has begun, and runs through Sunday, January 31. Get out there and see how many hometown calories you can consume in the next few days.
If you're craving Girl Scout cookies, scouts and their families will help you through the annual rite of diet-busting passage. They'll be selling boxes in front of Old Shawnee
Pizza starting at 6 tonight. You can try two new flavors:
Thank U Berry Munch (cranberries and white chocolate chips) and
caramel-infused, bite-size Dulce de Leche.
If you think you'd like something other than cookies or pizza for dinner, Tannahs Asian Fusion has a four-course, dinner-for-two special for $39. You share the calamari or spicy shrimp appetizer, get your own wok dish with a soup or salad and then split mochi ice cream or molten chocolate cake dessert. The restaurant also has a late-night happy hour at the bar after 9 p.m. when all appetizers are half price with the purchase of a drink.
Over the next two weeks, farmers and eaters have a chance to talk about what's next for agriculture in the Kansas City area.
The Kansas City Center for Urban Agriculture hosts its annual urban farmers and friends meeting on Saturday, January 23, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Master's Community Church in Kansas City, Kansas. It brings activists, community leaders and farmers together over pie and coffee to help facilitate relationships and partnerships that will fuel the growth of urban farms.
To celebrate the opening of the area's ninth LaMar's Donuts, the storied franchise is giving away a free Ray's Original glazed donut and small brewed coffee to customers who come to the shop between Thursday, January 21, and Saturday, January 23.
The latest LaMar's opens at 12520 Quivira in Overland Park with a ribbon-cutting ceremony scheduled for 8 a.m. today. With the new Dunkin' Donuts on W. 151st Street, U.S. 69 may have to be renamed the donut highway.
The Blue Bird Bistro has two different dinners this week designed to highlight organic and local produce.
The Wednesday Night Table features four courses for $40. The first is a house-made ravioli with local cheese and fresh tomato ragout. After that it's wild caught shrimp with organic mixed greens, Bob Burn's honey vinaigrette, organic orange slices, bacon bits and Maytag blue cheese.
The entree is a Good Shepherd Turkey Ranch heritage turkey potato au gratin with steamed broccoli and drizzed with a mustard sauce. Dessert is organic Garden fuji apples poached in red wine and served crisp.
It might be an American's version of zen -- but can you still call something sushi without the raw fish?
That's the plan for chef Tracy Griffith -- author of Sushi American Style -- who will be at Dean & Deluca (4700 W. 119th Street in Leawood) on Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. to demonstrate her fish-less version of sushi and autograph her cookbook.
Griffith is the half-sister of actress Melanie Griffith and the first female graduate of the California Sushi Academy. Here's video
of Griffith in action -- where she shows how to create her uniquely
American take on Japanese cuisine and also explains her motivation for
turning a BLT into sushi.
You need plans. Fat City has a recycle bin full of listings. In this post, all our problems are solved.
Canstruction
opens to the public today at Union Station. The benefit for Harvesters uses canned goods to create massive
pieces of art, which will be on display until February 11.
This is also the last weekend to see the Chocolate: The Exhibition.
New beginnings can be sweet, especially when they come with an extensive $5 happy hour menu. The Majestic
-- Charles Ferruzza reviewed the restaurant in this week's Pitch -- has a solid menu from 2 to 6 p.m. on Monday through Friday.
You can get a duo of sliders (lamb, salmon BLT) or filet mignon with
fries, a 1/2 pound steak burger, fried green beans, pork medallion,
grilled lamb chops or a charcuterie plate, all for $5 with a minimum
beverage purchase of $4.
Stretch out your legs and your heart -- Swayzefest is coming to the Westport Flea Market in January and February.
On Monday, January 18, Staged Readings gathers professional actors at 7:30 p.m. for a dramatic reading of the Roadhouse screenplay. And on February 15, a new cast tackles Dirty Dancing. The suggested donation is $5.
If you can't make the tribute to the late film star -- Swayze passed away at age 57 in 2009 -- you can take inspiration from his films with the Swayze Man's Diet. This is a diet of Fat City's creation, inspired in part by the Caveman Lifestyle post from earlier in the week.
You need plans. Fat City has a recycle bin full of listings. In this post, all our problems are solved.
Ever worry you might spontaneously combust? You can watch Zach Galifianakas go through the same thing in the movie Visioneers -- at a free screening and party at the recently re-opened Savvy Coffee and Wine Bar on Saturday. Three Olives cocktails are only $5.50 and the film starts rolling at 8:30 p.m.
If you're ready to brave the cold, the Polar Bear Pub Crawl is at the Power & Light District from 8 to 11 tonight. The $5 entry gets you drink specials at six bars -- and benefits Harvesters.
If you'd rather stay indoors, the Granfalloon Bar & Grill
has $1.75 domestic draws, $2.25 well drinks and $4.95 appetizers during
happy hour Monday to Friday from 4 to 7 p.m. The Plaza bar has a good
plate of hummus and solid spinach and artichoke dip.
Happy hour at Cafe Sebastienne starts tonight from 5 to 7 at the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art. Along with $5 martinis will be a new appetizer menu -- here's hoping that the mussels (leeks, pernod, safron and cream) and spinach and ricotta gnuda (with homemade tomato sauce) migrate over from the current dinner menu.
Friday-night happy hour is a new promotion with plans to continue for the foreseeable future at the museum's cafe. An Evening of Cabaret is also scheduled for Saturday, January 30, with Chef Jennifer Maloney preparing a pre fixe menu with two drinks for $65. The dinner seating begins at 6:30 p.m., the show starts at 8 p.m., and reservations can be made by calling 816-561-7740.
Without water, polar bears are naturally drawn to ice. Thus, you might want to think about what's going to be your drink on the rocks at the first annual Polar Bear Pub Crawl at the Power & Light District this Friday from 8 to 11 p.m.
With six bars participating, an crawlers getting commemorative T-shirts and the chance to win $1,000 worth of gasoline, KC Live! could be a zoo. The entry is $5 and all of the proceeds go to Harvesters.
Jason Pryor is trying to figure out where he's going to take his wife for dinner.
"I'm lining up a babysitter, I'm heading to the Web site and I'm going to see where we are going over the next ten days," says Pryor.
It's hard to choose from the 96 restaurants participating in the first annual Kansas City Restaurant Week, January 22 to 31. Pryor knows that better than anyone: He's the outgoing President of the Kansas City Restaurant Association.
"I'm blown away by the diversity. There are burger joints and four-star restaurants, all of whom have tried to design a value menu they think their customers would be interested in," says Pryor, who organized the event in conjunction with the Kansas City Convention and Visitors Association.
With this city's appetite for seafood, lobsters don't last very long in Kansas City. That theory gets put to the test tonight with the Bristol Seafood Grill's fresh lobster special.
The downtown seafood restaurant will sell you a live, one-pound, Maine lobster at cost between 4 and 7 p.m. if you sit at the bar. That's convenient because it also happens to be happy hour, where cocktails and martinis are $5.95. Fresh lobsters are usually slightly sweeter and more tender than their frozen counterparts, and are not easy to find in our land-locked city.
If you can't make it tonight, this deal will continue on Wednesdays for the foreseeable future.
It has been a great year at Fat City and I'm glad to have been at the helm since July.
Since taking over for Owen "Steel Gullet" Morris -- I sampled more than a dozen tacos in the quest to put together our first Top 10 list -- only weeks after more spoonfuls of baked beans than I thought possible. I can only hope that we continue to expand the gustatory limits in 2010.
Another of my favorite stories came via Boulevard Brewery, when Eric Henry returned a 12-pack of wheat from the brewery's first run after keeping it for 19 years. Henry, co-owner of the City Cement Construction Company on Southwest Boulevard, only wanted to see a piece of his neighbor's history come home.
If you haven't made plans for greeting 2010 in Kansas City, here are some options:
Grand Street Cafe is taking reservations -- they've got a surf-and-turf special ($38, lobster tail and filet mignon) or a sea bass ($32, with spinach risotto and bacon-wrapped asparagus).
La Parrilla in Lawrence has a menu influenced by Central and South American flavors -- dishes like Peruvian style octopus ceviche, seafood chowder, and Steak Parillada. Dinner is from 5 to 10 p.m. and the menu is a la carte.
The Blue Bird Bistro features its full menu as well as a number of dinner specials from 5 to 11 p.m. Keep an eye out for the butternut squash soup topped with pea shoots ($7), beef tenderloin, scallops and savory bread pudding trio ($36), and housemade cheesecake with a pecan crust and sweet potato champagne sauce ($11). There's also a four-course prix fixe option for $45; wine pairings are an additional $20.
If you need to escape the family or just want to take everyone out for a drink, you have a fair number of options on Christmas night.
The restaurant in O'Dowd's Little Dublin Irish Pub at Zona Rosa opens at 6 p.m., offering $3.50 pints of Boulevard Wheat. If you want the feel of an Irish pub in Shawnee, Waxy O'Shea's opens the doors at 6:30 p.m.
It's all about food today on the "Walt Bodine Show"
Hey Fat City friends, because Friday is Christmas Day, the staff at KCUR-FM has moved this week's edition The Walt Bodine Show's "Food Critics Panel" to this morning at 10 a.m. The subject will be a look back at the highs and lows of dining out in Kansas City during the year 2009.
Over the last year, you've read about restaurants opening and closing in 2009 as well as our picks for the top soups, pumpkin dishes, milkshakes, chili, tacos, places to be seen, among other things. This is your time to call in to the station (816-235-2888) and give your thoughts on your favorite meal of 2009, which restaurants you were sorry to see close and which new spots you've already visited.
You need plans. Fat City has a recycle bin full of listings. In this post, all our problems are solved.
The classic date is dinner and a movie -- so why not enjoy the classics before dinner? The Tivoli Cinemas have teamed with 13 restaurants in Westport for Movie and a Meal. A matinee of a classic film (Some Like It Hot this weekend) is $4 and a coupon gets you discounts like buy one sandwich, get one sandwich free at the Jerusalem Cafe. The promotion is for the next four Saturdays and Sundays.
Saturday is the last day of the Kansas City Art Flea Market. In addition to art of all kinds, you never know what kind of homemade baked goods and treats await you. The flea market is at 1522 Holmes from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is free.
Depending on how much you want to spend, you have a lot of options for how where to eat out on New Year's Eve.
Michael Smith has six seatings. The first three are at 6, 6:30, and 7 p.m., with a four-course meal costing $75 per person. The second set is at 8, 8:30, and 9 p.m., with a five-course menu for $95 per person -- and that includes a champagne toast. The menu is highlighted by foie gras tortellini in a prosciutto brodo, a seared blue fin tuna in a romesco sauce with lobster stuffed piquillo pepper and a slow cooked veal "steak" with braised bacon, spaetzle and broccolini in a natural reduction sauce.
Cafe Europa offers a three-course menu for $45. There's the favorites menu, with the roasted beet salad, scallops and wild mushroom risotto, and the lemon cake. But there's also a chef's choice menu (smoked salmon, foie gras stuffed quail, and fried huckleberry pie with oatmeal ice cream) and a holiday favorites menu (caviar with buckwheat blinis, filet mignon, and frozen chocolate terrine). Or you can mix and match from all three as a guest's choice option. The Crestwood restaurant will have seatings between 5:30 and 10 p.m. on New Year's Eve.
You need plans. Fat City has a recycle bin full of listings. In this post, all our problems are solved.
Knock off work early and get to Nara for happy hour specials in the Crossroads. From 3 to 7 p.m., you can fill up on martinis, Kirin drafts and spring rolls -- they're all $4. After that, it's just a short walk over the Power & Light District. There, the Secret Santa Sip N' Crawl is going on from 7
to 10 p.m. If you bring a new, unwrapped toy for Toys for Tots, you get
a Secret Santa card that can be used at six different venues in KC Live
(visit all six and you're entered into a prize raffle). There's a free
T-shirt for participating and a specialty beer at each of the six bars.
The best costume wins a cash prize of $300.
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