15 Best Restaurants in Kansas City, MO
Kansas City is a well-known city in Missouri, not just because it is the hometown of Dorothy.
Besides the famous saying, “There’s no place like home,” Kansas City has produced beautiful jazz music, fantastic barbecues, and fabulous fountains.
Aside from the many museums, jazz heritage, and history, this city is all about food and competitions!
People who live in Kansas enjoy their life to the fullest.
They don’t worry about calories and attend barbecue contests!
Locals don’t eat mere portions of food.
You should eat as much as possible when visiting Kansas City, like the locals.
If you are on a restricted diet, you might not be ready for Kansas City.
However, if you want to eat a lot of fantastic food, here are the best restaurants in Kansas City.
Eddie V's Prime Seafood
Eddie V's Prime Seafood is a sophisticated seafood restaurant with the highest ranking in Kansas City.
Their dishes use fresh and high-quality ingredients, and their vast selection of cocktails complements the meals perfectly.
According to customers, Eddie V's Prime Seafood restaurant staff is professional and will take excellent care of your needs.
Aside from the seafood dishes, the elegant restaurant offers a great steak menu and a fabulous cocktail lounge.
The live jazz music performed at Eddie V's Prime Seafood restaurant goes perfectly with every meal and makes you feel calm and undisturbed.
Cascone’s
Established in 1954, this family-owned Italian restaurant offers many traditional and modern Italian dishes.
You can hardly find another place in Kansas where you can order Italian nachos and fried calamari as appetizers.
Their pasta dishes include rigatoni and fettuccine alfredo, all prepared with fresh vegetables and butter.
The combination plates at Cascone’s are a real hit; they are great for people who want to try everything!
Joe’s Kansas City Barbecue
If you are in Kansas City, you can’t miss out on Joe’s Kansas City Barbecue!
According to Joe’s Barbecue, the smoke can transform even the least preferable meat into a tasteful delicacy.
Joe´s Barbecue is one of the unique places in Kansas, probably because it is a BBQ restaurant at a gas station!
In 1997, Joy and Jeff Stehney bought off the original owner’s share of the Kansas Barbecue restaurant and became sole owners of Joe’s Kansas City Barbecue.
If you ever find yourself near Joe’s Barbecue, you must try the two-meat BBQ dinner.
The dinner specialty comes with ribs and brisket, making you lick your fingers and cry for more.
Also, if you are up for a unique Joe’s sandwich, you should order the Z-Man.
Enjoy the stack of brisket with onion rings and smoked provolone.
Whatever you try, prepare to feel full for the rest of the day.
Corvino Supper Club
Corvino is a restaurant you don’t want to miss in Kansas.
This restaurant with a sleek design is one of the most elegant dining options in the city.
What is unique about this restaurant is that it consists of two separate concepts.
The restaurant comprises a Supper Club and a Tasting Room.
If you visit the Supper Club, you can sit in the dining room and order one of many shareable plates.
However, if you can steal a place in the Tasting Room, you can watch the professionals creating an unforgettable meal.
Essentially, the Tasting Room in Corvino will make you feel like you are in a kitchen theater!
This unique experience is a must for every foodie in Kansas City.
Jasper’s Italian Restaurant
Jasper’s Italian Restaurant has served fine Italian cuisine since 1954.
The restaurant’s menu includes many authentic Italian dishes such as pasta, bruschetta, soups, salads, and panini.
Jasper’s Italian Restaurant is famous for the delicious Sicilian pork chop, eggplant Othello, and the pesce San Pietro.
Additionally, the restaurant offers six separate veal entrees for all of you who love veal.
According to customer reviews, whatever you decide to try, the food will not disappoint you!
Scott’s Kitchen and Catering at Hangar 29
Scott’s Kitchen and Catering offers the most American and relaxing atmosphere in Kansas City!
Kansas City is big on competition, and Scott’s Kitchen is no exception.
The restaurant owner, Scott Umscheid, has won multiple awards at BBQ competitions.
Then, he decided to open a restaurant in 2017 to fulfill his dream.
Scott’s Kitchen serves everything from BBQ dishes to breakfast burritos, sandwiches, wings, and rib or shrimp tacos.
Happy customers say the egg and brisket breakfast tacos at Scott’s Kitchen will be the best thing you’ve ever tried!
Il Lazzarone
Did you ever want to try authentic Neapolitan pizza without traveling to Europe?
Well, II Lazzarone Pizzeria has the most original Italian pizzas in town.
An Italian family from Naples owns the place, assuring you of its authenticity.
The unique taste of the pizzas from Lazzarone happens due to the wood-burning ovens that come straight from Naples.
Their pizzas will be the best pizza you’ve tried in your life.
Likewise, you wouldn’t have to wait long because they prepare the pizza in under 90 seconds.
The Kansas City branch is the second that opened out of their multiple locations across the country.
The owners say that the secret of their delicious pizza is in the four main high-quality ingredients, which remain secret.
You can only guess while enjoying the delicious Margarita from II Lazzarone Pizzeria.
Char Bar
Another barbeque restaurant that you must visit in Kansas is the Char Bar.
The restaurant opened in 2014.
The barbeque restaurant is famous because of its pitmaster, Mitch Benjamin.
According to locals, Benjamin creates magical smoke and combines it with the most amazing sauces to deliver special meals.
His sauces are award-winning and available for you to buy and try at home!
The appetizer will make you want to try everything on the Char Bar’s menu!
Jack Stack Barbecue – Freight House
The Jack Stack Barbecue serves the best barbecue in the heart of Kansas City.
The barbecue restaurant started as a storefront stand back in 1957.
Since then, their gourmet meats cooked on hickory wood helped Jack Stack to develop one of the most impressive BBQ menus in the whole country.
This barbecue restaurant’s menu has many options for appetizers, entrees, dinner dishes, salads, and soups.
Jack Stack Barbecue Freight House's most famous appetizers are the smoked salmon dip and the jalapeño cornbread.
Apart from the usual brisket, spare ribs, pulled pork, and turkey, the dinner menu includes stuffed baked potatoes, delicious wings, sandwiches, grilled meats, and burnt ends.
Gram & Dun
Undoubtedly, Gram & Dun is one of the buzziest restaurants with a splendid warm interior in Kansas City.
The restaurant opened in 2011.
Since then, it has offered its guests the ultimate neighborhood and relaxing vibe.
Besides the gorgeous design, Gram & Dun has very approachable and exciting dishes such as coffee-crusted ribeye or baked potato gnocchi.
Book a table on the patio if the weather outside is nice and warm.
That way, you can enjoy the best neighborhood in town while eating great American food!
Lidia’s
Until 1998, Lidia’s was just a railroad farmhouse.
Since then, this beautiful farmhouse has grown into the most refined Italian dining restaurant with glass chandeliers.
The restaurant’s renowned chef Lidia Bastianich is also an Emmy-winning TV host.
She developed the delicious dishes on Lidia’s menu.
The chef’s daily pasta specials, customized after the admired Becco’s services, make Lidia's restaurant unique.
Lidia’s is an upscale Italian restaurant you don’t want to miss the next time you are in Kansas City.
Chelly’s Cafe
Chelly’s Café is a Mexican diner that takes pride in its authentic dishes and their fresh ingredients.
Each salad at Chelly’s Café is prepared fresh, and their guacamole comes from the most pleasing avocados.
Chelly’s Café offers an extensive menu where you can find fajitas, tacos, enchiladas and quesadillas.
Their appetizers include adorable mini chimichangas, taquitos, and burritos.
If you are ready to experience the Mexican flavor, you can find almost every Mexican dish at Chelly’s Café in Kansas!
Red Door Woodfired Grill
Red Door Woodfired Grill has six restaurants across the Kansas City region.
You can find Red Door Woodfired Grill restaurant on several streets in Kansas City.
Whichever you choose, you will get excellent service and a delicious meal.
The secret to Red Door Woodfired Grill’s recipes is adding a bit of oak, pecan, and hickory to achieve a rich smokey taste.
The restaurant's appetizer menu includes primer rib egg rolls, sheet pan nachos, and killer calamari.
You can also order many different soups and salads, such as Thai chicken salad or chimichurri salmon.
All of their weekend brunch options will make you drool instantly!
Pigwich
Pigwich is a sandwich shop that believes in the slogan “less is more.”
Their tiny menu includes five standard sandwiches and the Pigwich, a daily special.
Yet, don’t let the five-sandwich menu fool you.
Once you’ve tried Pigwich, you will be back for more!
Every local in Kansas City knows that one of the best cures for the Friday night hangover is a Porchetta Sandwich.
Pigwich has also built a reputation for fast service and a fun, cheerful spirit.
This sandwich shop is the go-to place for a delicious burger, cheesesteaks, or banh mi.
The Russell
The Russell is a casual American restaurant that offers an extensive menu of home-cooked meals, burgers, grills, cakes, cookies, and even cocktails!
Their signature burger is called The Russell burger, which includes truffle aioli, arugula, onions, and gouda cheese.
The restaurant also serves many interesting sandwiches.
For example, you have the steak chimi, a grilled baguette with gorgonzola and chimichurri.
Aside from the friendly atmosphere, their menu includes many different bowls, including the salmon bowl with bacon, almonds, and goat cheese.
They also have fish, chips, and mouth-watering ribeye.
If you ever find yourself in Kansas City, you’ve got to try one of The Russell’s specials!
Final Thoughts
Kansas City has a lot of great dining options, from excellent gas station barbecue restaurants to fine Italian dining and fantastic sandwich stores.
Whether driving by or staying for a few days, you must try these best restaurants in Kansas City!
Kansas is the right place to try everything from Wagyu steak to the infamous Kansas BBQ if you are a real foodie.
Locals enjoy a great barbecue.
If you want to feel like a true Kansas native, you should think about dinner immediately after a massive lunch.
Ultimately, if you aren’t afraid of overeating, you will fit in Kansas without a problem.
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