The Cafe at Briarcliff Village

[Tim Doolittle]

point taken chef, i agree.  that whole aninimity thing is the key, that is why i dont post that way.  i am not pissy, just want to preserve the integrity of our food and concept, not my ego.

[kcdcchef]

point taken chef, i agree.  that whole aninimity thing is the key, that is why i dont post that way.  i am not pissy, just want to preserve the integrity of our food and concept, not my ego.

which is easier said than done. i cannot tell you how many times i have walked away from a job because the entrepreneurs ( boy, i butchered the shit out of that spelling i am sure ) refused to go along with the concept i was pushing for.

so long as you are behind it, and are doing a quality product, the masses will agree.

[kcdcchef]

river club....gus reedy?   remember clinton? the g.m.  congrats on getting out of our little 'one horse town'.  good luck on the east coast.  keep us midwesterners in good standing with the big dogs out there. 

kansas city is one helluva food town for a metro it's size. pittsburgh, where i am at now, is horrible by comparison. food here sucks ass. same with cleveland and cincy. for a city that size, kansas city has absolute food treasures.

now, i did have the pleasure of doing my trade in washington dc and new york for the majority of 11 years, and yeah, that is where it is at. if i had to make a list of best cities in the us for food, it would look something like this........

new york
boston
san fran
dc
chicago
miami

and then the rest. but kc might make top 15, which is something to be damn proud of, because it would beat the hell out of cleveland, cincy, pitt, detroit, philly, and quite a few others!!

[nota]

Man, that's pretty damn steep for some B&G and a cup of coffee.   :shock:  Hey Nota, have you tried out Caribou Coffee on 64th Street yet?  Just wondering if it's any good.

Speaking strictly from the "ladies who coffee" standpoint, it is OK. Their coffee is waaaaay too hot though. When you hear every table getting their coffee and talking about the McDonald's lawsuit, you know it isn't just you.

The girls in there are really nice. 

I've been twice, but it will be seldom-but I don't go to many coffee places. Panera is my idea of a coffee place.

[nota]

my name is Tim Doolittle. Obviously, and i am the chef at 'the cafe at briarcliff'.  i am not sure what "chipped beef style" is but i am happy to share how i make my gravy. hamburger is not part of the recipe.  it is natural organic pork sausage from missouri berkshire hogs, with an 80% to 20% meat to fat ratio. it is seasoned with salt, pepper, and sage.  the sausage is cooked and flour is added. then milk, more salt and pepper. period.  the biscuit is not hollowed but rolled out and formed into a cup. the cup is then filled with the gravy, as i think b&g is generally a little sloppy, just trying to tidy up the place.  -

You make the gravy just like my mom taught me. I surely wasnt' the only one here who knew it wasn't hamburger. And I'm going to try making those biscuits like you do. If you see a gang of about 6 to 8 women in there on a Monday AM, it is my gang. We'll check you out.

as for the coffee, it is actually 'parisi bros.' not parisian or whatever. it is locally roasted to our specs.  it is the same roaster that 'latte land' and several other companies use, we are all about local economy and sustainable cuisine, so we use a local roaster. really cool little facility they have over on the boulevard.  as for it being 'over roasted' i am inclined to say that is a matter of opinion.  i am also not sure what a 'starbucks' flavor is either, so no comment there.  anyway, would be happy to answer any culinary questions anybody has, as long as i remember to log in and read them.  but if i forget just call me at the restaurant.

thanks

tim doolittle

oh, and yes you absolutely can get a cup of joe to go.  or a turnover, or a pastry or a cookie or a sandwich or lots of things. all hand made. 

I already like you Tim. You kind of put several of these wanna be food critics in their place. 

Starbucks brags on their dark roast. I think that is what some are talking about here. Some like it.

Good luck in your new endeavor.

[nota]

oh, and if i could be so bold, i would suggest that if anybody is not privy to all the information needed to make a statement such as 'the gravy is made from ground hamburger', that they prefice that statement with words like 'it seemed like' or 'i suspect' or 'it seemed as though' or 'my opinion is' or 'i thought' or 'my impression is'       ...not just make a statement that seems factual when in fact is is absolutely and obviously not true.

i am wise enough to never assume. as we all know, it makes an a-- out of u and me.


happy eats all..

chef tim

Dandy comment. Of course those who make comments like the hamburger one just show their ignorance of foods anyway. Most times it doesn't need to be pointed out 

as a chef, can i offer you a little advice?

get over it. i have been praised and ripped in food reviews. life goes on, especially on an anonymous message board.

Chef-I agree with Tim. That hamburger comment made about a brand new place is something that can help make or break a place's reputation. but I still love you anyway.

[ray]

Just wanted to give a shout out to all my fans in Kansas City..........Pete/SORedux

[monkfish_103]

The next time I'm up north filling the family truckster with RedX cigarettes I'll definitely give The Cafe a try.  Biscuits and gravy are pure alchemy to me.  And cassoulet?  That would help me thaw out after being outside early this morning!

[rigatonicarloni]

Wow.  Tough crowd.

But back to the presumed topic.  Not much of a breakfast person but wondering about later in the day?

[mean]

You make the gravy just like my mom taught me. I surely wasnt' the only one here who knew it wasn't hamburger.

Well, one would hope not (hence my earlier comment) but you never know what some wacky chef might try to do and I couldn't imagine someone eating your standard sausage gravy and mistaking it for hamburger. Especially someone who often posts about restaurants and claims to have food knowledge.

[DaveKCMO]

i just love it when the people we bag on come to this forum to defend themselves. it's as if it all becomes very real (which is a good thing).

[butter_breath]

If it was pork it was the blandest I have ever tasted. Maybe the size wasn't right for sausage? It was the smallest  grind size I had ever seen. About the size of Taco Bell meat . It really doesn't matter. I only commented on the cost in comparison with B&G prices in the area. For that price I expected the hog to be dancing on the plate. I didn't dog the place, oh I could have but I held my tongue. This is a forum and that whole unanimity's thing is the key, I dined at the restaurant it was just my thoughts. I didn't tell anyone not to dine there because the interior looks like an Applebee's & a bus station caught in a tornado. I didn't tell people the gravy was grounded up smaller than the chunks I blew Saturday night. (I had Taco Bell that night by the way)  Maybe I was wrong for saying it was hamburger I should have stated "reminded me of hamburger". Get over it this is just a forum and breakfast was just S.O.S.(shit on shingle). 

[Tim Doolittle]

Nota!! 

i found out today that we will be closed on monday morning, so i can teach a pig how to dance on the tables, just kidding.  to avoid a lawsuit and simplify our lives, we are allowing our flooring people to re-apply our par terre floor, this will prevent us from opening on sunday and monday mornings.  sorry!  hope you see this.

chef tim

[nota]

Nota!! 

i found out today that we will be closed on monday morning, so i can teach a pig how to dance on the tables, just kidding.  to avoid a lawsuit and simplify our lives, we are allowing our flooring people to re-apply our par terre floor, this will prevent us from opening on sunday and monday mornings.  sorry!  hope you see this.

chef tim

We already have Corner Cafe on our list for next Monday. We will be there the following Monday. And for any of the smart---- folks here who might see us, we aren't the group of bluehaired older ladies although we joke about "there we are in about 5 years."

[butter_breath]

Looks like they lost their chef and sous chef heard on npr today a new food concept or at least new menu coming in March.

[nota]

I knew that was coming. That's why I didnt' report back on our visit there. It was the old, "if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything."

[WinchesterMysteryHouse]

Hey! We saw SORedux while looking for a dive one night, and went this week for lunch!  It was fun, recommended.  Good work and good addition to NE. 

[rigatonicarloni]

Lunch?

[butter_breath]

Didn't know they were open for lunch I'll have to give it a try.