Newsletter

Chuck Eats KC: January 17, 2022

Which Cuisines Does Kansas City Lack?

Chuck Munson

Jan 18, 2022 — 8 min read

Openers ~ Which Cuisines Does Kansas City Lack?

One thing that can be said about Kansas City, is that the area has an amazing variety of world cuisine. We have our famous native cuisine such as Kansas City Barbecue. Kansas Citians have their favorites, but love to try new things. Which cuisines does Kansas City lack? This question is often asked in various local food groups. The cuisine and concepts that people cite changes as new restaurants open, old ones close, trends change, and new people from other countries move to Kansas City.

I have followed these discussions closely in recent years and have added my own thought. This week I thought I’d summarize some of the popular answers and expand on some of my own choices.

Delis

This is the most mentioned restaurant format that locals claim they’d like to see more of, but some delis that have opened in the past five years seem to struggle to find customers. Many people say they love a good delicatessen, but will they vote with their money? But maybe Kansas City is keeping delis afloat, with delis like Milwaukee Delicatessen Company, M & M Bakery and Deli, Bay Boy Specialty Sandwiches, Scimeca's, and other independent and corporate options.

South and Central American

One of my favorite cuisines to indulge in when I lived in Washington, DC was Salvadorean. Kansas City has a growing roster of Central and South American style restaurants, but locals seem unfamiliar with these cuisines. Looks like there are less than five Salvadorean restaurants, but the ones that are open include El Pulgarcito, Restaurante El Pulgarcito, The Corner Salvadorian Food, and El Rincon. One of my favorites in this category is Empanada Madness. South American restaurants around the metro include Antojitos Del Peru Peruvian Food, Café Corazón, and Taste of Brazil.

Cuban and Caribbean

Kansas Citians also often ask about Cuban restaurants (and coffee). How about the rest of the Caribbean? Caribe Blue Restaurant is one place that offers Cuban food. Caribbean places include Island Spice, G's Jamaican Quisine, Sankofa Café, and the upscale Mesob Restaurant. Can Kansas City support more of these cuisines?

Nepalese

One cuisine I’ve been hoping for, Nepalese, appears to finally be here in Kansas City. Yuva Eats offers Nepalese food in Olathe. This cuisine offers a slightly different version of the more widely known Indian cuisine. Think chicken with curry, dumplings, lentil fritters, noodles with shredded chicken, butter chicken, lamb korma, and much more.

Vegan Chinese

Kansas City has lots of wonderful Chinese restaurants, but not one that is purely vegan. Why do I care about a vegan-oriented Chinese restaurant? Years ago, I used to patronize a vegan Asian restaurant in Rockville, Maryland. The restaurant had all of the common Asian dishes made vegan style, but also featured more traditional dishes and formats made vegan style. Think Clay Pot Duck (made with gluten). This style would feature the use of meat substitutes (beyond tofu), like seitan, jackfruit and others.

Vegetarian Soul Food

One of my favorite restaurants in Washington, DC, which I wish I had dined at more often, was Soul Veg. The cozy restaurant was on George Ave, across the street from Howard University. There was also one or two more vegetarian/vegan soul food restaurants up the street. From what I remember, one of these had a religious tie-in which explained the vegan angle.

Kansas Citians who remember Ruby’s Soul Food should think of this style as a vegan take on soul food. Typical dinner options at Soul Veg included collard greens, corn on the cob, vegan mac & cheese, lasagna, and beans. They may have had desserts and smoothies. I’d love to see something like this in Kansas City and I think the locals would support it.

Comfort Food Diner

Sure, you can find diner food and comfort food all over the metro in some form, but are there any destination comfort food restaurants that kick the plates up a notch? I’m thinking here of KC version of the Madison, Wisconsin institution, Monty’s Blue Plate Diner. Succotash and You Say Tomato come close, but they aren’t open for dinner and don’t offer Monty’s huge range of desserts (including lots of vegan options).

Affordable Farm-to-Table

Kansas City is seeing more and more farm-to-table concepts like The Farmhouse, Silo Modern Farmhouse, and the recent Black Dirt, but we need something like a fast food version of this format so working class people can have healthier eating options. The existing restaurants are affordable a weekly or monthly destinations, but farm-to-table needs to be more ubiquitous as a dining format.

Health Kits for Budget Conscious

More restaurants are experimenting with this format, more so because of the pandemic, but this was a growing format pre-pandemic. People are looking for different takeout/curbside options and this format can be easier to prepare for kitchens and restaurants with less diners.

Chili, Chili, Chili!

I’ve long been puzzled as to why there aren’t more chili restaurants in this city. Most of us make chili at some point in our home dining rotations and many of us like a good chili or chili dog. I have fond memories of two restaurants in the Washington, DC area that revolved around chili. The legendary Ben’s Chili Bowl in D.C. (opened in 1958) offers classic meat-based and vegetarian chilis. You can get a half smoke chili dog (half smokes are a local cuisine). Hard Times Café is a long-running sit-down chili parlor where you can get chili in multiple formats (with spaghetti, onions, cheese). Can Kansas City support restaurants like this?

Barbecue Around the World

Not sure if this format exists anywhere, as it would be hard to pull off in the back of the house. How about a barbecue restaurant that allows you to sample the differences between Kansas City, Carolina, Memphis, and Texas style barbecue? Or would this be too much heresy?

What cuisines or restaurant concepts do you think Kansas City is missing? Drop me a line via the website.

~ Chuck Munson

Quick Review – Meshuggah Bagels

Elsewhere is this newsletter, I talk about my first experience with upgraded bagels beyond the (early 1980s) store variety. Over the decades, after living in cities like Madison, Wisconsin and College Park, Maryland (RIP Bagel Place), I developed an appreciation for high quality New York style bagels. When I moved back to Kansas City in the 00s, it had become impossible to find a good bagel here. Mostly thanks to the Atkin’s anti-bread craze of the late 1990s, which killed so many great bagel places, bakeries and pizza joints. There was one national chain, that had killed off some excellent local options.

When I first heard that a legit New York style bagel bakery was opening on 39th Street in Kansas City, Missouri, years ago, I got very excited. Meshuggah Bagels didn’t disappoint. Big, chewy NY style bagels with lots of flavor. Great schmears including an excellent veggie one for us old school vegetarians. And Meshuggah was quickly found by the many Kansas Citians who were craving real bagels and not corporate bread discs.

I could write a long article about my lifelong lover affair with bagels and my favorite bakeries in multiple cities over the decades. I’m a big fan of everything, poppy and sesame seed bagels. I love a good veggie schmear on the bagel. If I were picking up a bagel other than my favorites at Meshuggah, I’d get an Onion, Garlic, Salt, or the Rye bagel. If I were trying a new schmear, my preferences would be Garlic & Herb, Rosemary Garlic, Garlic Dill, Toasted Everything, Scallion, or Jalapeno.

Meshuggah also has sweet bagels and schmears. Sandwiches include many of the classics with seafood.

Meshuggah has three area locations. 39th Street and Overland Park are Kosher locations.

40 East 13th Street,
Kansas City, MO 64106

1208 W. 39th Street
Kansas City, MO 64111

7096 W. 105th Street
Overland Park, KS 66212

https://www.meshuggahbagels.com/

Photo of the Week

Preview of Part 4 of “Kansas City-area restaurants you’ll never eat at again: Lawrence edition”

Chuck Eats KC has published two articles highlighting the history of Kansas City’s bygone restaurants. A third update is in the works. Today a preview from part 4, on restaurants in Lawrence, Kansas, which will be published in February.

This newsletter will be previewing restaurants from upcoming updates to this series. Do you remember a restaurant that you’d like to see me profile? Visit the articles and use the “submit restaurant” form at the bottom.

The Glass Onion

When I was in high school in the early 1980s, bagels and cream cheese were something you made from frozen Lenders bagels and Philadelphia cream cheese. Pretty boring fare. While this was a change from your standard American breakfast choices, there weren’t all the flavor options you can enjoy today. Nor were there any bagel chains.

When I was a student at the University of Kansas, a cool coffee house opened at the end of campus, above the original Yellow Sub and next door to The Crossing bar. The Glass Onion may also have been the first coffee house I ever hung out in (and I didn’t drink coffee back then). You could also get food and the place was open in the evenings. It was a place where you could study, meet with friends, or have a casual date.

One thing I remember about the Glass Onion is that it introduced me to leveled-up bagels. Tomatoes on open-faced bagels? What is this magic? The Glass Onion also had vegetarian options, which probably helped lead to my decision in 1989 (my last year in Lawrence) to become a vegetarian.

People sitting at tables under a clock and neon sign. The neon sign reads: "Glass Onion" The clock reads: 10:39. A slip of paper attached to the back of the photograph reads: "Fred Sadowski_Kansan" and "The Glass Onion, 624 W. 12th St., is a popular place for people who are not 21 to meet. The coffee shop offers a variety of drinks, food, and a good place to study" (University Archives)

Best Vegetarian and Vegan Restaurants in Kansas City: A Tasty Guide

Have you seen our comprehensive guide to vegetarian and vegan dining in the Kansas City area? Our guide debuted in January 2020 and it is being updated regularly. We list restaurants which primarily have vegetarian/vegan options. We also include a listing of food trucks and restaurants that have more than a few veg options on the menu.

Chuck Eats KC Podcast Coming in January 2022

This blog and newsletter will be joined by a podcast in January 2022! That’s right, expect restaurant reviews, food talk and interviews in the podcast. There are lots of amazing people around Kansas City doing fun things with food, so let’s talk to them!

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