15 Best Cafes in Kansas City, MO
Kansas City, Missouri, is a vibrant place known for its jazz history and barbecue.
The city is also home to many excellent cafes where you can enjoy tasty food and spend some relaxing and peaceful time.
They attract people with the help of their unique interiors, calming atmosphere, and delicious foods and drinks.
However, choosing the best café can be a little daunting because the city has many terrific options.
The following list of the best cafes in Kansas City should make it easy for you to find a great spot.
Monarch
Established in 2017, Monarch café is one of the best cafes in Kansas City.
Enjoy delicious coffee with cooked doughnuts, biscuits, and scones after a long working day.
It’s on Broadway Boulevard and offers a wide range of coffees to help you find your favorite one.
The food menu of the café changes continuously and offers a rotating selection of house-made cookies, scones, morning buns, croissants, and protein balls.
If you visit the café on the weekend, try the unique Hana’s donuts.
They’re some of the most popular food items of the café; pair the donuts with the café’s lighter roast.
The refined décor and calming ambiance help you relax.
Likewise, the prompt service elevates your overall experience.
Monarch shines because it has its own roasting company that prepares high-quality coffee.
Made in KC Café
Made in Kansas City opened in 2015.
It is a chain of marketplaces, neighborhood shops, and cafes.
It currently operates five cafes in Kansas City, including Made in KC Café + Bar.
The cafe offers a wide selection of coffees and teas you can enjoy with pastries and cookies.
You can also find a rotating selection of foods, seasonal cocktails, Kansas City spirits, and mixers for an enhanced dining experience.
The café sources all the ingredients and coffee beans from local roasters and bakeries.
With terrific ingredients, they prepare the highest quality food and drinks with outstanding taste.
Café Ollama
Located on Southwest Boulevard, Café Ollama is a Latin American-inspired, Mexican-owned café.
They brew unique coffee blends using a Barro, a traditional Mexican clay jar.
Likewise, they offer a comfortable and intimate atmosphere.
It’s a perfect spot for you to hang out with a bunch of friends, enjoy excellent coffee, and have a vibrant conversation.
The café also offers open-air seating where you can enjoy coffee with a sidewalk view.
One of their most popular traditional coffees is café de olla, spiced with star anise, piloncillo (refined cane sugar), and cinnamon.
It features a Mexican cookie, topped with a sweet foam topping.
Try this drink at Café Ollama.
The Filling Station
The Filling Station is a popular café in Kansas City, which has three different Kansas City locations: Midtown, Westport, and Overland Park.
It used to be a gas station back in the day but now offers a broad menu featuring breakfast food options, juices, and a long list of coffees.
Whether you want a hearty lunch/breakfast or a delicious cup of coffee, you can enjoy it at the Filling Station.
The café offers a great outdoor patio seating space and quick service to elevate your dining experience.
If you’re in the mood for breakfast, you can try the Cadillac ham breakfast Sammy or McGee bacon breakfast Sammy.
The best food options for lunch include a quinoa veggie bowl, chicken salad Sammy, and chicken or veggie wrap.
When it comes to coffee, the Filling Station covers everything from drip coffee and cold brew to cappuccino and latte.
Café Corazon
Café Corazon, which opened in 2019, operates two different Kansas City branches.
One is on Westport Road, and the other is on Southwest Boulevard.
It’s a Latin American café that offers a unique and welcoming environment where no one feels excluded, regardless of ethnicity and language.
The café works directly with Latin American coffee farmers to ensure the quality of their beans, resulting in impressive drinks.
You should try specialty drinks at Café Corazon, such as the Café Bombon, Café con Leche, Horchata Latte, and Mocha Azteca.
The menu also features classic espressos, tea lattes, and Latin sodas to mix things up.
If you’re in the mood to eat, you can order Argentinian sweets, empanadas, pastries, and tamales.
The café offers a range of vegan and gluten-free options, such as Chelsea’s baked star bars, ratatouille empanadas, Elote tamales, and chocolate chip cookies.
Oddly Correct
Opened in 2012, Oddly Correct café has a perfect name for the environment it offers.
It offers a wide range of beverages and food dishes.
Remarkably, this café uses vintage presses to roast its coffee on site.
You can find all types of coffees in this café, including drip coffee espresso, americano, macchiato, Gibraltar, cappuccino, flat white, and latte.
Don’t forget to try one of their specialty drinks, such as brown sugar hazelnut latte, cran in the high castle, and campfire hot cocoa.
The best thing about Oddly Correct’s food is that they prepare all meals in-house using fresh local ingredients.
The popular food options include buttermilk biscuits, hickory bacon, house-made sausages, strawberry jam, and fresh cheese eggs.
You can also find vegan-friendly and gluten-free foods such as the vegan cinnamon roll, gluten-free hotcake breakfast sandwich, and vegan sausage with pimento biscuit.
Banksia Downtown
A group of Aussies opened Banksia Downtown in Kansas City in 2017.
Located on 9th Street, the café allows you to experience Australia's bakery and café culture.
The café offers a broad menu featuring beverages, sandwiches, soups, salads, cocktails, spirits, wine, seafood, pasta, rice, and desserts.
Some of the best items on their menu include sausage rolls, lamb sausages, and meat pies.
You can also order delicious wine and desserts to complete your meal.
If you want to spend some time relaxing, you can order a cup of freshly brewed americano, mochaccino, or latte.
The quick and courteous service, attractive prices, beautiful décor, and lovely atmosphere will enhance your overall dining experience at Banksia Downtown.
Westport Café
Established in 2010, Westport Café is one of the best spots in Kansas City for French-American fare.
It’s a French café on Westport Road that offers a vast array of food items and beverages for brunch and dinner.
Some of their best items include arugula salad, salmon en Croute, burger le royal with cheese, and seared diver scallops.
The menu also features a wide selection of international and regional beers you can enjoy.
You will also like the cur décor and welcoming atmosphere of Westport Café that allows you to relax and feel comfortable.
Café Sebastienne
Café Sebastienne has served the community of Kansas City since 1994.
You can find it inside the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art on Warwick Boulevard.
Several installations and artworks by artists from across the globe surround the cafe, offering a unique dining experience.
Chefs at Café Sebastienne use sustainable and organic ingredients to prepare delicious and high-quality food.
From teas, coffees, sodas, juices, cocktails, and wines to salads, sandwiches, and desserts, the café offers everything to help you enjoy a full meal.
You can also find a list of wines offering sustainable, organic, and natural wines.
Café Sebastienne is also famous for its friendly staff, excellent service, average prices, calm ambiance, and modern décor.
Grand Street Café
Established in 1991, Grand Street Café is one of the most popular cafes in Kansas City.
It’s a family-owned café that specializes in American cuisine and offers a great atmosphere to hang out and kick back.
The café is a perfect spot for brunch/dinner gathering, organize a business meeting, celebrate a love story, or anything in between.
You can visit this place for an exciting and elegant dining experience.
Try the grilled salmon salad, great street stack sandwich, and braised short ribs.
If you have a sweet tooth, you will like their phyllo brownie, creme brulee, apple pie, and an excellent bar.
You can also visit Grand Street Café to enjoy coffees, including cappuccino, latte, macchiato, and cafe mocha.
The Roasterie Brookside Café
Established in 2005, the Roasterie Brookside Café is an inviting and warm café located on Brookside Boulevard.
The café specializes in traditional coffee drinks but also offers smoothies, teas, sodas, pastries, and other food items.
Try the café’s signature drinks such as white chocolate and macadamia nut espresso, mint chocolate espresso, and local honey vanilla espresso.
If you feel hungry, you can try a black bean burrito, chicken/veggie wrap, chicken salad sandwich, or seasonal parfait.
Roasterie Brookside Café presents a cozy and welcoming atmosphere, which allows you to kick back while enjoying delicious food and drinks.
Carmen's Café
Carmen's Café has served the Kansas City community since 1990.
You can find it inside the Brookside Plaza, which offers a perfect space to hang out with your friends or even with your special someone.
Carmen’s Café offers delicious savory and sweet food and a range of drinks to complete your dining experience.
Some of their best offerings are lobster ravioli, meatballs, and cooked chicken fettuccine.
You can also enjoy tiramisu, chocolate cheesecake, pistachio cream, tort spumoni ice cream, and white chocolate strawberry cheesecake.
Urban Café
Urban Café opened in 2017, a perfect spot to enjoy vegan-friendly breakfast and brunch fare.
You can find the café on Troost Avenue, offering a bright and welcoming environment to spend a relaxing time.
You can visit this café for a full-fledged breakfast or a hearty weekend brunch.
The most popular breakfast items on Urban Café’s menu include sourdough French toast, Midwest omelet, and shrimp and grits.
You can also order a cup of your favorite coffee or tea to complete your breakfast.
Try the urban cheddar burger and pork belly burger paired with your favorite beverage on a weekend brunch.
For a dessert, you can try freshly made lemon cake or warm chocolate brownie at Urban Café.
Blip Roasters
Blip Roasters opened in September 2014.
It is a motorcyclists’ café that serves home-roasted coffee and tastes doughnuts and biscuits.
You can find it on Woodswether Road, offering various coffees, including espresso, macchiato, americano, cappuccino, and latte.
The rustic look and calming environment of the biker-themed Blip Roasters allow you to relax and improve your dining experience.
Spend an afternoon at a biker café inside an urban brick building that serves fair trade, home-roasted coffee.
Final Thoughts
Kansas City buzzes with unique cafes offering all types of drinks and foods.
The list in this guide should help you choose from the best cafés in Kansas City that suits your style and taste.
Some of them feature a modern and contemporary theme; others offer a rustic look.
However, every cafe here provides a relaxing environment you’ll appreciate.
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