Blogs about KC visits

[KCMax]

http://akeytothecity.com/2012/07/27/out ... nsas-city/

Lots of great reviews of KC restaurants and cool pics of our city.

I’m convinced Kansas City residents petition regularly to outlaw the preparation of barbeque anywhere else in the country, because everyone else is, frankly, doing it wrong. In between bites of LC’s mouth-watering burnt ends, my boyfriend wondered out loud if we should be making this a bi-annual trip. But we swear this isn’t an eating vacation…

[KC-wildcat]

I've read so many glowing BBQ reviews that they all run together at this point. I know the food is good, but there's a lot more to KC than good bbq.

For me, I couldn't get past....

"If you are an omnivore, it is always worth the trip, and it was recently called one of the cheapest places to vacation. Admittedly, this is probably because there isn’t much to do there, so we build our trips around sporting events."

[smh]

I've read so many glowing BBQ reviews that they all run together at this point. I know the food is good, but there's a lot more to KC than good bbq.

For me, I couldn't get past....

"If you are an omnivore, it is always worth the trip, and it was recently called one of the cheapest places to vacation. Admittedly, this is probably because there isn’t much to do there, so we build our trips around sporting events."

Agreed. I was prepared to share the link on FB as some nice morning KC reading, but the rest of the post couldn't redeem that sentence.

[KC-wildcat]

And, btw, I think she meant KC is worth the trip for carnivores, not omnivores.

[trailerkid]

To be honest, people are going to eat meat when they come to KC. It's just a fact everyone needs to get used to. They will also probably ridicule the small handful of excellent vegetarian and vegan choices. I don't think it's a bad thing to be *known* for a certain type of cuisine. It's much better to be known for something done well than not being known at all like most cities of ~2M.

[KCMax]

FRIED GREEN DIASPORA: Kansas City Barbecue Sauce

[chingon]

FRIED GREEN DIASPORA: Kansas City Barbecue Sauce

That reminds me:

If southerners were a race, I would be racist as hell.

[brewcrew1000]

Some guy who judged our city, only two cities judged so far we faired better then omaha
http://judgingcities.blogspot.com/

[pash]

.

[kcmetro]

Some guy who judged our city, only two cities judged so far we faired better then omaha
http://judgingcities.blogspot.com/

I enjoyed reading that. It's nice to have an out-of-towner actually take an in-depth look at KC, rather than just recycling the same stuff from other articles (BBQ, Nelson Atkins, P&L, etc.).

[shinatoo]

Pretty much nailed it. Except for this little chestnut,

Apart from the Northland, the bulk of the area surrounding KC on the Missouri side of the border brings to mind a recent comment from political blogger Markos Moulitsas. He wrote that, apart from its 2 major cities, the rest of Missouri might as well be Alabama. It is a land of dilapidated roads and strip malls, along with a sizable number of shed-sized homes topped with corrugated metal roofs.

True of some of MO but there are a load of nice towns in Mo.

[grovester]

Whatever he could see from the freeway.

[zlohban]

He really picked up on our culture of unique neighborhoods.

HITS - I appreciate that he acknowledged our quirky roads, parks, parkways, etc. that embrace the rolling hills and valleys. Compared to Omaha where they tried to hard to pave perfectly wide boring roadways on a perfect grid.

MISS - although he mentioned Randolph and how home rule created many smaller towns within KC, he failed to mention Parkville, Liberty, NKC, which have strived to keep their individual identities. Also, the Plaza architecture is not a stretch for a "Cowtown" with historical ties to the southwest.

[chaglang]

Whatever he could see from the freeway.

Bingo. The nice parts of any town are not typically visible from the freeway.

[IraGlacialis]

Apart from the Northland, the bulk of the area surrounding KC on the Missouri side of the border brings to mind a recent comment from political blogger Markos Moulitsas. He wrote that, apart from its 2 major cities, the rest of Missouri might as well be Alabama. It is a land of dilapidated roads and strip malls, along with a sizable number of shed-sized homes topped with corrugated metal roofs.

True of some of MO but there are a load of nice towns in Mo.

Yeah, I can rattle-off a list of healthy and aesthetically-pleasing towns around the state (and not just at strategic locations). Not to mention cities such as Columbia (though that part may be more levied towards the blogger he was citing).

And while he admits his bias towards BBQ, it would have still been nice if he acknowledged our culinary scene in a more in-depth manner.

But otherwise, good overview.

[TheCityJudger]

Thank you all for your feedback. Indeed, Cityjudger loves KC! I just wish to clarify a an issue or two. Contrary to one comment implying that my view of KC is from a freeway, over the past 3 years, I have spent a total of 8 weeks in the KC metro, exploring most every nook and cranny. Also, my use of the Daily Kos quote (which was excerpted above) was in the context of slamming only South and SE KCMO, not the state of Mo. itself. Indeed, there are some amazing towns across Mo., and I did not intend to besmirch them. I am re-editing that entry to hopefully reflect more accurately my sentiments. Thanks again! Everyone's comments have been so helpful!

CityJudger

[IraGlacialis]

Also, my use of the Daily Kos quote (which was excerpted above) was in the context of slamming only South and SE KCMO, not the state of Mo. itself. Indeed, there are some amazing towns across Mo., and I did not intend to besmirch them. I am re-editing that entry to hopefully reflect more accurately my sentiments. Thanks again! Everyone's comments have been so helpful!

Thanks for taking the time to grace this site as well.

And yeah, it is pertinent to note the conditions of S/SE, and I suspected that Cass County was too far to count in the assessment despite technically being connected to the city through sprawl (a whole other issue).
However, though while it was nice to note Lee's Summit, I saw no mention of Independence (unless I missed it and/or it is someplace you are going to cover later).

In the grand scheme of things, I reiterate that it was still a nice review, and it is good to see a nicely nuanced view of this city that still comes off a positive, despite the (well-noted) warts.
The part about the highway signs still cracks me up; been driving around regularly for several years' worth already, and I still get confused on occasion, notably on 435 and 470.

[kimchi]

Stars' (band) Amy Millan on Lidia's http://www.huffingtonpost.com/amy-milla ... 54889.html

"So disappointed, I couldn't help but think if Mrs. Bastianich were here eating with us, how embarrassed she would be with the presentation of this soulless, over-salted, fake feed bag of food."

[bobbyhawks]

Stars' (band) Amy Millan on Lidia's http://www.huffingtonpost.com/amy-milla ... 54889.html

"So disappointed, I couldn't help but think if Mrs. Bastianich were here eating with us, how embarrassed she would be with the presentation of this soulless, over-salted, fake feed bag of food."

I've heard that the Bastianich family couldn't care less about the quality of food here. It sounds like they show up a few times a year to discuss how much money they are making and then leave. Also, it sounds like a relatively large percentage of Bastianich wines have to be sent back due to being corked.

[smh]

I've always enjoyed Lidia's. Perhaps I've been mistaken? The pasta trio is obviously for tourists, but often has some interesting pastas, and I've never found the Caesar salad to be "drenched" in dressing or accompanied by "fake parmesan".