STORY AND PHOTOS BY Pete dulin


Most romantics go to the moon and back to make sure every detail of an amorous night is delivered with perfection. Luckily, one thing lovebirds don’t have to fuss over is finding the perfect spot to have a spectacular dinner with their sweetie. So for all those with sweaty palms, don’t worry—KC restaurants have you covered.

With some modest effort, a romantic dinner can express more depth and meaning than a bouquet of flowers. Make sure to share your intentions with the staff at these local restaurants, and communicate your wishes and special requests. They can help create a memorable night to make your sweetie swoon.

STORY BY Kelly Cannon
PHOTOS BY Phil Kline

Just a stone’s throw away from Kansas City proper, Parkville remains one of the area’s best-kept secrets with a burgeoning arts scene, classy cafés and a park perfect for lazing away an afternoon.

“Parkville is awesome!” was one of the first things I overheard when I walked into the River’s Bend Restaurant & Bar (2 Main St.) in downtown Parkville. Little did I know that “awesome” would become a recurring theme as I explored the little city that sits perched in the bluffs above the Missouri River. Everything about Parkville is truly impressive, including its fascinating history, blue-ribbon restaurants, varied shops and scenic vistas.

STORY AND PHOTOS BY Pete Dulin

The act of eating food for comfort is a means to an end—gaining strength and hope or finding relief, solace or well-being. That’s a lot to ask from a slice of Grandma’s apple pie. Yet, we crave certain foods in moments of need or when we want to recapture a feeling or memory.

Comfort food is often associated with Midwest staples such as meatloaf or mashed potatoes with gravy. Being half-Thai, I realize that comfort food holds different meanings for people in various cultures. Accordingly, I compiled a list of dishes served locally that give comfort, invoke nostalgia or simply appease hunger in a moment of need.

Beth Barden, chef and owner of Succotash (2601 Holmes St.), features honest-to-goodness comfort food on her menu and winter specials. The Cake and a Smile, a large buttermilk pancake with two sunny-side up “eyes” and a bacon “smile” ($6.25), is a pleasing treat any time of the day. Psst, the mighty BLT ($7.50) is not to be overlooked.

The Brick’s (1727 McGee St.) go-to comfort food is definitely the spicy meatloaf sandwich. Featuring meatloaf, pepper jack cheese and owner Sheri Parr’s homemade chipotle ketchup served on wheatberry bread ($8.45), it’s a house favorite. Elvis would have found solace in Parr’s Fluffernutter sandwich ($5.75) with creamy peanut butter and gobs of marshmallow fluff on toasted wheatberry bread. Make sure to ask them to add bacon, hound dog. Opt for sweet potato fries, cooked to perfection, as a side dish.

STORY BY Kelly Cannon
PHOTOS BY Ryan Nicholson

As I’ve explored 15 Kansas City area neighborhoods, each with its own feel and flavor, some naturally stand out because of the shopping opportunities, others because of museums and events, but almost all had one thing in common—wonderful food. My favorites are varied and sometimes surprising, but if you’re willing to be a bit adventurous, I’m sure you won’t be disappointed.

Downtown Overland Park has shops where aspiring cooks can buy the tools needed to make delicious dinners. The Culinary Center (7920 Santa Fe Drive, Overland Park) offers classes for any expertise level and sells pots, pans and other kitchen gadgets to make it all easy. Don’t miss its fall garage sale where you can pick up almost-new kitchen items for a song. Nearby, Penzeys (7937 Santa Fe Drive, Overland Park) has a huge selection of high-quality spices and herbs. I keep bottles of its sandwich sprinkle in my spice cabinet and vanilla sugar by the coffeepot.

If you’re tired of cooking but still want something close to a home-cooked meal, try the prepared food section of Cosentino’s (10 E. 13th St.) in the Power & Light District. The pot roast is juicy and tender, and the fork-soft root vegetables and brown gravy that accompany it deserve their own accolades. If you’re hungry for something a little more exotic, the sushi is the best grocery-store sushi in the area.

The Plaza, of course, offers so many upscale restaurants that it’s hard to choose just one, but Starker’s (201 W. 47th St.) stands out for so many reasons. The food is exceptional with the restaurant’s emphasis on seasonal dishes and local ingredients, and the dining room offers one of the best views of the Plaza.

STORY BY Kate Leibsle
Chef of the year STORY BY Katie Van Luchene

With all the amazing restaurateurs, chefs and sommeliers that make the Kansas City food scene worth talking about, you can imagine how hard it is to funnel down the field to just three annual honorees. This year, we’re proud to honor the most brilliant culinary stars and say goodbye to one who shined the brightest.

Chef of the Year: John McClure, Starker’s Restaurant
There are three reasons we chose the people to honor in this year’s food issue, I told our writer for this story, Kate Leibsle. Of course, they all have talent and passion. So do dozens of other worthy contenders we considered. But these individuals bring in an element often missing from the dining experience––a sense of playfulness.

Never is this more evident than in what John McClure has done at Starker’s Restaurant, I continued. When he purchased the place from Cliff Bath in 2006, he removed the servers’ white gloves and created an atmosphere where diners could feel comfortable in jeans. After several more minutes of this verbal lovefest, Leibsle said, “You obviously know John well. Do you want to tell him we’re naming him Chef of the Year?” I said, no. Let’s keep it a surprise.

This was on a Friday evening in October. The next Wednesday, John McClure was gone.