Kansas Restaurants

KC Grill ‘N Kabob’s owner, Hamid Tafreshi, is proud of his feature on Check, Please! Kansas City because it has raised awareness about Persian and Iranian cooking. The piece also shared nuggets of information about the eatery, including the fact that chefs there marinate halal lamb, chicken, and filet mignon kebabs for anywhere from 12–24 hours in turmeric, ginger, saffron, and cumin.

In the eatery, the aromas of grilling onions and tomatoes swirl up past a gleeful clutter of photographs, from which Iranian soccer players, cooks, and families grin. Skewered morsels of flame-kissed salmon and gyros draped with a thin lace of tzatziki sauce cover tables. After dipping bread in cool bowls of hummus and baba ghanouj, guests can venture to the all-you-can-eat weekend buffet to practice before competitive-eating contests or visits from detectives looking for candy smugglers.

After graduating from Kansas State University, Greg Fuciu decided to make his mark on the world by staying close to home and opening Lucky Brewgrille—a restaurant, coffee shop, and nightspot that coexist under a single roof. The flagship restaurant, whose dark hardwood booths and checkerboard floors evoke the warmth of an intimate pub, lists desserts first on its menu; an odd move, but a surprisingly thoughtful one that gives diners a sense of what to make room for. Of course, it’s still tempting to fill up on the burgers and skewers of hand-rubbed blackened chicken that beckon from the pages along with suggested beer and wine pairings.

The warm, pub-like atmosphere carries over to the coffee shop, where steam rises from mugs only to disappear amid plum walls and crimson velvet curtains. A wash of dim blue lights settles over velvet cubes and low tables in the downstairs Groove Lounge as late-night carousers spend the early-morning hours dancing or sword fighting with olive spears. On Friday night, the music moves upstairs to the outdoor patio, where feet tap and fingers snap to the sounds of live jazz.

Big Larry's Burgers proprietor, Larry, and his wife, Heather, serve up classic soda-shop snacks in an Americana-themed eatery with checkerboard floors and booths lined with red vinyl. Patrons can sink teeth into hefty 3/4-pound burgers, philly cheesesteaks, or hot links and round out meals with sides such as fried pickles and bacon-ranch cheese fries. A children's menu offers pint-size meals served with fruit and special surprises.

The cozy café’s sweet aromas of freshly baked breads and pastries satisfy sniffers without even making them scratch the menu of morning and midday delights. Quiche Lorraine and quiche Florentine ($4), which are new additions to The Palette's bill of breakfast fare, whisper savory complements to sweet stacks of waffles ($4). For lunch, nosh a handheld pineapple-, grape-, and cashew-clad chicken-salad sandwich or a grilled meatloaf sandwich, both served on homemade bread ($6). Cleanse your esophagus with barista beverages such as chocolate café au lait ($3), tropical paradise iced tea ($1.50), citrus smoothies ($4), or raspberry or apple Hot Lips sodas ($3), and complete the sweet with a warm slice of apple pie with ice cream ($4) or carrot cake with cream-cheese frosting ($4).

Master chef David Wirebaugh collaborated with his cooking crew and local farmers to create refreshingly simple lunch, breakfast, and dinner dishes that showcase the diverse agricultural products of Kansas. Infuse a weary workday with elegance by stopping by for a bowl of blistered onion soup ($7), a cider slow-roasted BBQ-pork sandwich ($10), or a mesquite-smoked prairie-chicken salad ($13), dressed in a lovely little strawberry-basil vinaigrette. Carve into your evening with the charcuterie platter ($9), or gobble garden goodies by trying a tomato salad, assembled with pan flashed heriloom tomatoes, calypso beans, and rocket greens, all doused with balsamic vinaigrette ($6). The natural-fed, 12-ounce KC strip steak ($26) can fill any appetite bucket to the brim, while the fire-roasted half chicken with baby potatoes, herb carrots, and natural au jus ($15) provides the perfect portion for a half picnic.

Inside Wichita’s 1870s-themed cattle-town museum, guests can mosey over to the Diamond W Chuckwagon and enjoy three hours of food, music, and family-friendly fun served up by the award-winning cowboy Western quartet known as the Diamond W Wranglers (formerly the Prairie Rose Wranglers). Fans of food, music, music about food, and musical foods will relish the tastes of an all-you-can-eat brisket dinner that includes smoked beef brisket and sausage, roasted rosemary potatoes, cowboy beans, honey cornbread, and chocolate-chunk brownies with vanilla ice cream for dessert. The meal—which may be served by the Diamond W Wranglers members themselves, three of whom own the restaurant together—then merges into an after-dinner show of good-old-fangled cowboy Western tunes interspersed with jokes, tall tales, and coyote brandings. Doors open at 5:30 p.m., and the meal is served at 6:30 p.m. Check the upcoming schedule before making a reservation.