tbutler | Stuff to do in Kansas City (Reply)

Things to do in Kansas City

Food

Kansas City is best known for its barbecue and its steak, which is reasonable given its livestock history. But as a crossroads of the continental US, it's got stuff from all around.

Arthur Bryant's is the big "historic" BBQ place in Kansas City, with a lineage stretching back to 1908 and Henry Parry, the "father of Kansas City BBQ". Bryant took over his restaurant when he passed away, and it's stayed in the same hole-in-the-wall location for 75 years. (They opened two branches, and both later closed.) Many celebrities visit, including most of the presidents in the last 50 years, sports stars, Spielberg and other movie stars. As one friend put it, they don't sell sandwiches, but sandwich construction kits. Notable for the main sauce being very dry with paprika, not sweet like most other KC BBQ.
Gates and Sons B-B-Q is the other restaurant tracing its lineage back to Parry; its founding cook was one of Parry's cooks. Sauce is not dry, but has a sharp tang that counters the sweetness.
Rosedale BBQ isn't as famous as the big two, but still has quite a bit of history of its own, dating back to the 1950s. Used to be aimed more at basic BBQ for a low price, but prices have risen over the last decade. Sauce is very peppery with almost no sweetness.
Fiorella's Jack Stack BBQ is higher-end than others, sit-down with fancier decor and waiters. Several locations, including one in the downtown trolley house across from Union Station. Don't miss the barbecue shrimp.
Joe's Kansas City BBQ (formerly Oklahoma Joe's) came out of the KC barbecue competition scene (KC has multiple BBQ competitions); the original restaurant was located in a gas station. Nods to Memphis tradition with a slaw-topped sandwich.
Lulu's Noodle Shop is part of the robust Asian scene in KC; original location downtown, another fairly close to Joe's original location.
Thai Place is my local favorite, fairly close and with friendly people.
Hot Basil is another good one, hurt a bit by the bare concrete floor.
Little Saigon Plaza is an older strip mall colonized by Vietnamese restaurants in the north Kansas City area, where I used to live. Unfortunately across the city for me now, so I don't get up that way often. The places I've been to there tend towards 'cafe Vietnamese' (soups, bun noodle bowls, other fast and simple dishes) rather than full service.
Pho Sai Gon - far southern edge instead of north, but still closer than Little Saigon Plaza. Still cafe-style, but a somewhat broader menu.
Stroud's - famous pan-fried chicken restaurant. Oldest location is in an old farmhouse in the northlands; newer location down in the far south.
Cascone's and V's - historic Italian restaurants, both north of the river.
Pizza Shoppe - KC chain, thin crunchy crust.
Old Shawnee Pizza - Another KC chain with nice crunchy crust.
Minsky's - KC chain founded in the 70s, overexpanded and came close to collapse in the 00's, slowly growing back. Medium-thick crust and more of a 'fancy' style.
Third Coast Pizza - deep-dish place near me, great the time I had it.
Planet Sub/Yello Sub - hot sub shop in nearby Lawrence that expanded to the KC area. Bake their own bread in-house.
Manny's - I'm generally not a Mexican food person, but I do like Manny's - they have some dishes without cheese/onions that I can eat. :)
Louisburg Cider Mill - about a half-hour south of Kansas City, get your fresh apple cider and cider donuts!

Sadly, despite KC being known for steak, all the famous hometown steak restaurants I knew have closed in the last couple of decades; one spun off a couple of locations before the original restaurant burned down, but I don't think they're as good.

Museums

Liberty Memorial/National World War I Museum - Biggest 'name' museum in KC. Liberty Memorial is a good monument; the WWI museum has less display space than I'd like (though they recently put transparent walls on the archives so you can at least see some of what they don't have room to display), but is very good within those constraints, and absolutely does not sugarcoat the horrors of the war. On top of a hill, facing Union Station.
Union Station - Century-old train station; fell into decay and was refurbished into a science museum/train museum/exhibit hall/gathering place/post office. Beautiful architecture, thank Ghu it wasn't torn down. Still hosts a much-reduced Amtrak presence.
Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art - Not a world-class art museum, but probably the next tier down. Goes from Ancient Egyptian through Greco-Roman, China/Japan/Asian, Medieval through 19th century Europe, Native American, contemporary American, African, photography, and more. A couple of blocks from the Country Club Plaza (see below).
Miniatures Museum - On the University of Missouri - Kansas City campus, exhibits dozens of miniature dioramas and hundreds of tiny item replicas. Upstairs is a toy section, generally less interesting for me, but still some nice stuff.
Truman Library and Presidential Museum; the museum is very nicely done, and also nice for being a working library (Truman had his office there until he passed away, and it's viewable as it was when he worked there).
The Jazz Museum, part of the 18th and Vine historic district; a few blocks down from Arthur Bryant's.
The Downtown Airport hosts two museums, though sadly one is currently closed. The TWA Museum is relatively small, but has a number of large airline models, a Lockheed Electra (similar to the model Amelia Earhart was lost flying), and several full-size airline simulators (MD-80, L-1011, and 707). The Airline History Museum has a Lockheed Constellation, Martin 404, and DC-3 in or being restored to flying status, but is in a legal dispute with the company hired to run the Downtown Airport.
KU Natural History Museum - About 30 minutes west is Lawrence, KS, home of the University of Kansas. KU has some nice museums, but the Museum of Natural History is probably the best. Dyche Hall was built in 1903 to house a great nature diorama from the 1893 World's Fair in Chicago.

Parks, Scenic and Other

Country Club Plaza - Built in 1923, the Plaza is home to beautiful architecture inspired by Seville, with 14 blocks of statuary, fountains, and mosaic art. The Brush Creek walking area runs alongside. Start of Ward Parkway (below). Just north of Loose Park (below).
Boulevard system - Kansas City is known for its network of wide boulevards with median landscaping and fountains; Ward Parkway is one of the most notable, and runs through some of the city's fanciest districts.
Loose Park - Third-largest park in KC; includes a lake, rose garden, Civil War battlefield historical markers, shelters, and more.
Minor Park - On the south edge of the city, notable for a section of the Santa Fe Trail and Old Red Bridge at the original river ford.
Penn Valley Park - On one of the bluffs in the downtown KC area, hosting the famous statue The Scout; a short distance from Liberty Memorial.
West Terrace/Case Park - built on top of a bluff overlooking the confluence of the Kansas and Missouri rivers, scenic view of the Downtown Airport (sadly the old chrome-plated viewer scope is gone, though the base remains). A Lewis & Clark Expedition memorial statue highlights a street circle at the center; a quick walk brings you to a statue of James Pendergast (by some grace note, with a scenic view of the livestock yards.)
Eagle Scout Memorial - More notably known as the last remaining clock face sculptural group from old Pennsylvania Station in New York City, rescued when the station was torn down in the 1960s.
River Market - old trading district dating back to when Kansas City was a major river port. Today the main market is a square block with two sides filled by an enclosed hall of small shops and markets, one side of restaurants, and one side by the Steamboat Arabia museum and a few more shops.
KC Streetcar - line runs along Main Street from the River Market to Union Station, with an extension to the Plaza due to open by Spring 2025. Some nice stops along the way, including the main branch of the Kansas City Library, the Crossroads Art District, and the Power & Light District.

(I haven't posted here much lately; my myasthenia has been flaring up again and I haven't had much energy for photography. Put this together after someone on the J-Novel Club forums was interested in a list of things to see in KC.)