Posts Tagged ‘simply kc magazine’
My new Simply KC ‘A Man’s Perspective’ column is out today: Man on Location: Dining in Denver. It was born out of a love for the city and the generosity of a few very tasteful locals. Even if you have to tuck it under your arm and burrow through a snowbank as I did, you’ll be eating well.
Man On Location: Denver
I’m in Denver, writing to you from under a couple feet of snow. Rather than try to tunnel out and head for the slopes, I think I’ll stick around town. This is the perfect opportunity to explore the best of Denver and pass it along to you, dear reader. Before you hit the road for your annual Spring Break ski week, allow me a moment to persuade you to explore more of Denver than the travel plaza along I-70. There’s a lot you’re missing.
Highland
Highland is Denver’s newest hip spot and, as a result, plays host to some of the most exciting new bars and restaurants. I was introduced to the neighborhood through weekend brunch at LoLa (loladenver.com). It’s a sleek, modern space whose cuisine draws inspiration from coastal Mexican regions. The dinner menu and downstairs tequila bar looked great, but it was my brunch dish that won me over: Green Chili Hash. Paired with strong coffee and guacamole prepared tableside, it’s a hell of a start to the day.
For dinner in Highland, you can’t do better than Chef Nelson Perkins’ fantastic Colt & Gray (coltandgray.com). Their stated goal is to redefine the neighborhood restaurant. If this is the direction we’re headed, the future is bright indeed. Colt & Gray has a great bar tended by serious barmen who know their stuff. We had several rounds of custom-created cocktails, all of which were excellent. The menu is right up my alley, with dedicated sections for house-made Charcuterie and Offal. We ordered a smattering of items for the table, my favorites of which were the Roasted Marrow Bones, Grilled Beef Hearts – thinly sliced with roasted beets and horseradish vinaigrette over grilled bread – and a charcuterie item mysteriously titled “Forest Moon of Endor”. That’s right Star Wars nerds, Ewok sausage. More accurately, the chef’s interpretation of how a sausage of Wicket might look and taste. Amusing and delicious.
Capitol Hill
NOVO Coffee (novocoffee.com) is my drink of choice while in town. It’s available at any of the Denver Whole Foods Markets (wholefoodsmarket.com), but visiting their roasting facility at 3008 Larimer St. allows you to see them work their magic and is the only venue in town where I can safely recommend attending a “Friday cupping”.
Start your Capitol Hill evening at Bones (bonesdenver.com) which occupies the corner spot in Chef Frank Bonanno‘s complex of deliciousness at 7th & Grant (all 3 of his restaurants there are worthy of your attention). Bones is primarily a noodle bar, but they do many things well. Our entire meal was delicious, starting with the Pork Belly Steamed Buns and ending with Frank’s Soft Serve Ice Cream. I got the Udon noodles with slow cooked pork shoulder, plum-soy broth and poached egg. Dynamite.
After dinner, walk a few blocks up the hill to Dazzle Jazz (dazzlejazz.com) for cocktails and live music. The night I was there, David Amram was on stage rocking his double penny whistles.
City Park
Honestly, who doesn’t love a taco truck? Pinche Tacos (pinchetacos.com) has gained wide acclaim around Denver for its fantastic Mexican street food. On the back of that success, owner Kevin Morrison was able to open Pinche Taqueria as a stationary outpost last fall. You can’t go wrong with anything on the menu, but my favorites were the carnitas, the lengua – crispy Colorado beef tongue – and the queso a la plancha (griddled cotija cheese, avocado, and roasted tomatillo salsa).
Pinche Taqueria’s storyline is strikingly similar to KC’s Port Fonda (@portfondakc), Chef Patrick Ryan’s beloved taco-producing Airstream trailer. They too will be parlaying their food truck success into a brick-and-mortar restaurant. Port Fonda is slated to open in Westport in May.
Federal Blvd
Chances are unless you’re seeking a dispensary, you’re headed to Federal Boulevard in search of some delicious Asian cuisine. You can scarcely throw a rock without hitting one or the other, but I’ve weeded out the distractions and found the phrase you need to remember: Xiao Long Bao.
Xiao Long Bao – Shanghai soup dumplings – are steamed dumplings that contain a small amount of gelatinized meat aspic along with the filling. As the dumplings steam, the aspic melts into a liquid filling the dumpling with a warm meaty broth. Lao Wang Noodle House (303.975.2497) on Federal is where I was introduced to this culinary wonder and is still my favorite place to get them.
Congress Park
Don’t leave town without grabbing breakfast at Snooze (snoozeeatery.com) in Congress Park. They’re justifiably famous for their pancakes, particularly the Pineapple Upside Down Pancake. It’s actually not as sweet as it sounds and I found it quite good, even as a savory breakfast man. Conveniently, Snooze offers a pancake flight which allows you to try three smaller portions of their wide selection of creations. More my speed though is the Breakfast Pot Pie – egg, puff pastry and rosemary sausage gravy. Yeah. The wait can get long on the weekends, but I’ve never been disappointed by a meal at Snooze.
“A Man’s Perspective” appears monthly in Simply KC Magazine. You can view my archived columns here. If you have any ideas you’d like me to explore, let me know. I’d love to investigate and include them in an upcoming column.
My February Simply KC column is out: The Man-Pleasing Valentine’s Night Out. This was a fun one to research…a wonderful evening at The Rieger Hotel with great company and a superb meal from Howard Hanna and crew.
A Man’s Perspective – The Man-Pleasing Valentine’s Night Out
Valentine’s Day draws near, the most meaningful of the meaningless holidays for lovers. I’m frequently asked by women for date ideas that a guy would enjoy. Ladies, we’re not complicated animals. Give us pork, whiskey and some live music and we’re happy as clams. Here’s a blueprint on how to plan a Valentine’s date in KC that will please the most stubborn of men.
The Rieger Hotel
Start with dinner. In Kansas City’s increasingly exciting culinary landscape, Chef Howard Hanna and The Rieger Hotel are standout performers. KC’s restaurants have benefitted greatly from talented chefs who head to the east coast and abroad for training and experience, then return home to make a splash. Manhattan, KS-raised Howard Hanna is a prime example. After training at The Culinary Institute of America and working in New York and France, Howard brought his expertise back to the Midwest. Before opening The Rieger, he was responsible for some of the great food at 40 Sardines, Room 39 and River Club. He’s certainly made the most of the opportunity to run his own kitchen. On each of my visits to The Rieger, the food has been both delicious and ambitious. It was a joy to sit at the kitchen counter and watch Chef Hanna’s serene efficiency as he presided over our meal’s preparation.
There were obvious winners: the sous vide lamb shoulder, the sweetbreads and scallops and the house-made mortadella. Even more exciting were the hidden gems: the house-cured guanciale in the bucatini rosso, the impossible lightness of the dressing on the chicken liver and arugula salad (my dining companion’s favorite course) and the two wonderful desserts by Natasha Goellner of Natasha’s Mulberry & Mott. The deliciousness of the food and the convivial conversation with Chef Hanna and the rest of the staff combined to produce a truly memorable dining experience, one that I recommend highly.
Manifesto
Conveniently, The Rieger Hotel is located just above one of the best places to get a cocktail in Kansas City. Manifesto is a modern speakeasy inspired by pre-prohibition era bar culture. Founder Ryan Maybee is notorious for his attention to detail and ability to create a welcoming atmosphere. Manifesto’s cocktails are based on classics, but offer an updated twist of ingenuity. Many feature house-made and local ingredients; even the ice is special. The bartenders here know their stuff. Pick out something from the seasonal menu, sit back and enjoy. There’s nothing else quite like it in the city.
Mutual Musicians Foundation
Finish your evening in the Jazz District at the Mutual Musicians Foundation’s late night jam session. I’m still surprised how many KC residents I meet who haven’t experienced one of our city’s coolest traditions. Our city has a rich jazz heritage and the MMF is committed to preserving and continuing that musical tradition. Every Friday and Saturday night starting at midnight, the Foundation hosts live jazz, food and a full bar until 5am. Stay as long as you can…it’s amazing.
Any one of these three parts will make for a great Valentine’s night out, but combining the three is guaranteed to be something memorable. I’ll leave the rest of the evening to you. I’m sure you can come up with a fitting finish.
The Rieger Hotel Grill & Exchange
1924 Main Street
Kansas City, MO 64108
816.471.2177
TheRiegerKC.com
Manifesto
1924 Main Street
Kansas City, MO 64108
816.536.1325
Mutual Musicians Foundation
1823 Highland Ave.
Kansas City, MO 64108
816.471.5212
TheFoundationJamsOn.org
“A Man’s Perspective” appears monthly in Simply KC Magazine. You can view my archived columns here. If you have any ideas you’d like me to explore, let me know. I’d love to investigate and include them in an upcoming column.
Here’s my January column for Simply KC Magazine, an homage to BBQ and the burnt end.
Kansas City’s BBQ Quintessence: Burnt Ends
Burnt ends. Best thing on earth, right? But do you really know what they are and why they taste so good? Spoiler: it’s the fat. This month, I’m getting to the bottom of the burnt end mystery. To that end, I packed up and headed to All Slabbed Up BBQ in Leavenworth, KS to chat with pitmaster Charlie Brown about what it takes to make great burnt ends, why our restaurants in KC do it so well & how we can all improve our BBQ at home.
Burnt Ends
Generally speaking, burnt ends are hunks of beef brisket. That’s a bit oversimplified though…like calling Picasso a painter. The brisket most of us are familiar with, the one that’s vacuum-packed in the grocery store, is actually just a part of the brisket called the flat. It’s the leaner portion of the cut that’s best suited for slicing. The commercial whole packer briskets that are used by restaurants and BBQ competitors also have a fattier end called the point or deckle. To produce true burnt ends, the point of the brisket is removed from the flat after the initial cooking period and returned to the smoker for a few more hours. The fattier meat in the brisket’s point benefits from this extended cooking time and can stand up to copious amounts of the dark bark that develops on the exterior. After the additional cooking time, the point is removed from the smoker and cut into cubes, ideally with a portion of the bark on one side of each chunk. Xanadu.
Like so many of the best cuts of meat, burnt ends started out as a throwaway item. Pitmasters would collect the pieces of bark and fatty scraps that fell away as they sliced brisket and serve them to patrons waiting in line. Before long, it became apparent to these restaurant owners that they were giving away their hottest commodity. Burnt ends have since become Kansas City BBQ’s claim to fame. They are a limited quantity by definition, so often you’ll see BBQ restaurants where they’re only served on specific days or where they sell out early. Plan ahead.
All Slabbed Up
To hear Charlie Brown tell it, creating outstanding BBQ sounds simple. Start with quality meat. At All Slabbed Up that means fresh, never frozen Certified Angus Beef brisket and big meaty pork ribs and shoulders. Next, they rub them with a spice blend and toss them into a propane-fired smoker with some hunks of oak. Wait. It does sound simple, but I can tell you that there was nothing simple about the complex flavors I encountered while at All Slabbed Up. Judging by the 500 pounds of brisket and pork shoulders and 300 slabs of ribs they churn out every week, I’m not the only one who thinks they’re doing something right.
Charlie’s burnt ends were served just like I like them: large unsauced cubes with a good mix of bark and fat. They were excellent alongside their molasses-based sauce, a pleasing balance of smoky and sweet. We chatted a bit while waiting for the food to be served and he mentioned offhandedly that a lot of customers really like their beans. Right. This would be more accurate: All Slabbed Up’s Bunkhouse Baked Beans are the best I’ve tasted in the Kansas City area. THE BEST. The ribs are meaty and tender, barely clinging to the bone. The pulled pork is rich and succulent. Even the onion rings are special. This is destination BBQ. Head out there on a Thursday evening for dinner and stay for the live music. You won’t regret it.
Home BBQ
“Slow and low” is the barbecuer’s mantra, so it wasn’t a total surprise when Charlie’s number one recommendation to improve my home BBQ was slower and lower. That’s the biggest difference between what you get at a top notch BBQ restaurant and what you make at home: time. For years, Charlie got by at home on charcoal-fueled Weber “Bullet” Smokey Mountain Smokers (Amazon.com
All Slabbed Up BBQ
405 Muncie Rd.
Leavenworth, KS 66048
913.727.5227
“A Man’s Perspective” appears monthly in Simply KC Magazine. You can view my archived columns here. If you have any ideas you’d like me to explore, let me know. I’d love to investigate and include them in an upcoming column.
