When Andrew and I were in Kansas City much of our vacation revolved
around Food & Drink. Although I'm not sure I would classify either of us as
"foodies" (I tend to think of those with more highbrow tastes rather
than someone like me who is quite happy to eat PB & J or pizza &
burgers), we do always seem to seek out interesting flavors (though probably
more with drink than food).
One of the first things we did after arriving in Kansas City was go on a
Food Walking Tour of the City. It wasn't cheap at $45 a person, but I don't
think you go on these tours for the food alone (or at least I hope not because
you probably won't get your money's worth).
Here's a link to my review on Trip Advisor:
Unless you're actually going to Kansas City, you probably don't care
where we ate exactly, so I'll just tell you what we ate instead: Biscuits &
Gravy with bits of bison meat in it (would not have been my first choice, but
wasn’t bad actually), Flat Bread w/Balsamic Vinegar and mozzarella cheese
(yummy!), a gluten-free roll, shredded beef pot roast, a side of cilantro,
Chimmichuri, and a small pot of passion fruit pudding, and lastly, a macaroon
of our choice (I selected a white choc raspberry whilst Andrew tried a poppy seed
one).
The majority of the places were at the City Market, which is one of
Kansas City's gems and similar in size to the North Market we have here in
Columbus (and most restaurants aren’t open in the evenings either same as
ours). Aside from picking up a pizza one night we never did make it back to the
market to try any more of the tempting KC fare.
You can't leave Kansas City without trying some of the barbecue, so based
on Andrew's research we decided to eat at Jack Stack’s Barbecue in the Country
Club Plaza (Kansas City's answer to Easton Town Centre, but much, much older
and with a Spanish architectural theme). Our waiter, Eugene, helpfully
suggested trying a sampler plate with each of us ordering different things so
we could share, so we did that. It didn't take me long before I started filling
up, so I suggested leaving enough for another meal to reheat at our Air BNB
(since we had a full kitchen) not wishing to push myself to the breaking point.
Guess who ended up eating all the leftovers? I am ashamed to say I polished off every last shred of pulled pork and brisket, etc. and a 4" cheese pizza on the side. I didn't fancy eating a whole plate of meat just on its own. [Andrew wasn't feeling well & we were running out of time to use the leftovers, so it was that or toss it all.]
Our next food/drink expedition was a visit to the Boulevard Brewery for
their free, but quite popular tour. They advise you to queue up at 10am when
they open in order to book your time slot for the day. Since we did it later in
the week it wasn't that busy so we didn't have any problem getting in.
Having already toured a couple other breweries we were no strangers to
the process, though we have yet to see an assembly line in actual production
(like at the beginning of "Laverne & Shirley"). I especially
enjoyed learning about how the head of the company became interested in starting
his own brewery after visiting Europe and being impressed with the overwhelming
amount of choices of beer you get over there (ale, lager, stout, etc.). One
bartender apparently handed him a phone book-sized catalog of choices. It's
almost getting to that point here in the states with the explosion of
Microbreweries.
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| (two of those are Andrew's samples) |
Even though I'm not a fan of beer (haven't yet gained an appreciation for
hops), I did manage to choose a couple flavors for the duo we were entitled to
at the end of the tour (I waived off the other generous sample we received
while we listened to the history lesson). I selected Bully Porter (roast,
toasty coffee flavor) and its exact opposite, Extra Pale Ale (black pepper,
peach, grapefruit). I preferred the Extra Pale Ale because it had less of a
hop-py after taste. I also liked one of Andrew’s samples, but I forget what it
was.
One of my favorite meals was the lunch I had at Rozzelle Court at the
Nelson Atkins Art Museum. Although the sandwich was a masterpiece on its own, I
have to think the ambiance of eating in a light, airy courtyard with a
fountain in the center, surely made everything taste better.
Remembering how much I enjoyed the sample of my uncle's beet salad in
Carmel many years ago, I thought I would be brave and order the Beet Reuben
Panini: Roasted Beets, Sauerkraut, Fontina Cheese and Russian Dressing on
Pumpernickel Rye. I had a cup of cream of cauliflower soup on the side, so I
was definitely full after half a sandwich and my soup. Andrew's lunch (though I
don't recall what he ordered) must not have been as filling since he went back
up and bought a piece of rhubarb cake for dessert. It looked good, but I was
feeling over my quota of fat and calories, so I simply watched him enjoy it. I
can't help but think this is a meal my uncle would have ordered had he been
with us (but he was on a European river boat cruise probably eating lots of Weiner
schnitzel and streusel).
On our last day in the city we toured the Roasterie, which is a coffee
brewing company that was actually somewhat in production while we were there
(Fri a.m.). We watched a short film about the history of the company and about
how they select their beans. Having never toured a coffee factory before
(closest to that was the chocolate factory we toured in Wales last summer) it
was all new to me, though there are some similarities to that of a brewery in
that the terroir of the beans will affect the flavor much like the terroir of
hops or grapes.
Among other things I learned that coffee actually comes from a cherry and
that the bean is the pit. I bet not many people know that, or that hops is a
member of the cannabis family. You learn something new every day…
Also, unlike other coffee manufacturers, they roast their beans in an air
roaster, similar in concept to a popcorn popper, which apparently gives a more
even roasting to each bean, as opposed to the drum roaster that most other
coffee factories use.
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| our talented tour guide, Audrey showing us one of a couple different brewing methods. |
After we were done touring the factory we were treated to a sample of
coffee brewed using two different methods – the first being a French press, and
the second was filtered using a chemex I think. I’m not sure I have a
preference, but I really liked the flavor of the coffee considering we sampled
it black. It didn’t really need much in the way of sweetening. The name of our
sample was Yirgacheffe Hafursa and the beans apparently came from Ethiopa:
Lively and bright with a high acidity, we’re tasting fresh blackberry, raisin,
and a caramel undertone before a sweet, lingering finish. We also got to sample
the Nitro Brew, which is a carbonated coffee with a taste and texture similar
to that of Guinness. Not my favorite, but Andrew really liked it (and had one
with his lunch when we were there for lunch the day before).
I was a little saddened, but not surprised when I stepped on the scale
after returning home to discover that I had gained a pound or two. I think it
was all worth it though…
Have a great week everyone!
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