The Pie Five Pizza Co. — which sells individual pizzas made to order and cooked in five minutes — has picked a place for its first area location. Pie Five plans to open later this summer at 13366 Metcalf Ave., Overland Park.
The new business -- named Mio, An Italian Pizzeria -- opened at 4800 W. 135th Street, a few doors down from its sister restaurant Mio, An Italian Trattoria. Both Mios share appetizers, soups and salads. But the new pizzeria has a build-your-own bruschetta bar ($6) and a wide selection of customizable pies with thin, chewy crusts.
Ivan Marquez has built a strong following with two Overland Park restaurants, one full-service, the other fast-casual. Now he’s expanding with a third restaurant. But this one is on the other side of the metro area, in Gladstone.
“Mesob” means table, specifically a woven version that holds large platters of Ethiopian food. “Pikliz” is the word for Haitian coleslaw, a pickled cabbage and carrot slaw that gets its heat from habanero peppers. Put the words together and you have an attractive Northeast KC destination for adventurous diners.
Tony Conigliaro, a renowned British bartender, is a pioneer in molecular mixology, but he’s got a lot of company these days as more bartenders on both sides of the Atlantic work on elevating the art of the cocktail to science. The best of the new breed of drinks look like regular cocktails but “taste like nothing you’ve tried before,” cocktail historian Erica Duecy says.
Dubbed the “DomniCopter,” the remote-controlled, eight-propeller aircraft flew two pepperoni pizzas over the skies of a town near London.
At Kitty’s Cafe, you can be quite happy with a double cheeseburger, juicy and simple patties layered in a medium-soft bun with American cheese, lettuce and tomato. It rings up at $4.50.
Kansas City barista Pete Licata got a taste of international glory over the weekend. Licata, the quality assurance manager at Parisi Artisan Coffee in Kansas City, won the 2013 World Barista Championship on Sunday in Melbourne, Australia.
Restaurant patios around the city are abuzz with al fresco diners eager to sip and sup under the stars. Festivals are in full swing, serving up barbecue, cotton candy and street food. Farmers markets on both sides of the state line supply shoppers with local produce for bountiful dinners on the grill.
Anything pink with an umbrella or sugary rim is dismissed as girly and lightweight. But summer spirits are my favorite. When you’re landlocked like we are, who doesn’t want that beachy feeling that daiquiris, margaritas and coladas bring? Here are some of my favorites.
More than three years after it closed, Westport mainstay The Corner Restaurant has been resurrected in the same spot but with new owners, a new decor and new menu. Executive chef Natasha Sears said the kitchen uses many local vendors, and makes about 90 percent of the menu from scratch on-site.
Oak Park Mall said it has signed local fast-casual chain Ingredient for its food court. Menu items include salads, grilled sandwiches, soups, wraps and panini, burgers, and gourmet pizzas.
At this French fusion bistro in the One Block South entertainment complex in Overland Park, the chefs’ training and pedigrees are evident in the well-executed, interesting and tightly focused menu — five hors d’oeuvres, a soup, four entree-size salads, five sandwiches, five entrees (ranging from $12 to $20), plus a few desserts.
Anthony Accurso, 26, has designed a sleeker space, yet it’s clear that he’s still paying homage to his family’s roots with sepia-toned family photos on one wall and a menu still aiming to balance the whims of a hipper dining crowd while taking care of loyal regulars.
Zagat has your “must-try” dishes when traveling from “sea to shining sea.” They include a burnt-end sandwich in Missouri (specifically Arthur Bryant’s) and barbecue ribs in Kansas.
Robert Duensing, the owner of Best Regards Bakery & Cafe, starts with seriously good breads and cheeses and adds interesting extras including fresh basil and avocado or Black Forest ham or extra-sharp Tillamook cheese.
Fans of the Crossroads restaurant Grinders now can get some of their favorite menu items at Sporting Kansas City soccer matches at Sporting Park in Kansas City, Kan. Starting Saturday, the Crossroads restaurant will offer some of its menu items in the stadium’s Boulevard Members Club.
The new owner is making changes, renaming the restaurant The North End. He has remodeled the spot at 910 E. Fifth St., putting the kitchen in back and opening up the dining room for more seating. He has added menu items including such appetizers as mozzarella sticks, along with handmade “giant” pork tenderloin sandwiches and a hot Italian beef sandwich called “The Don Bosco.”
A Joplin, Mo., family is moving to Kansas City and bringing their restaurant concept with them. Zola is scheduled to open in July at 916 E. Fifth St., by Lasala’s Deli.
A PB&J founder is among the partners in the first of this franchise in the Kansas City area. Meanwhile, Chacko’s Eatery is to close in Mission, and Jimmy John is opening near Crown Center.
Award-winning chef Debbie Gold is leaving the American Restaurant. Gold, who joined the Crown Center restaurant in mid-2008, plans to depart on April 13 for another Kansas City opportunity.
For more than a year, a father-and-son team has been converting a building on Swift Avenue into Kansas City SmokeShack BBQ. They plan an April 17 opening less than three blocks from Smokin’ Guns, which more than quadrupled in size this year.
A huge American fusion menu, and nearly four dozen wines, promises something for everyone at Cooper’s Hawk, a Chicago-based chain now open on the Plaza in the former 810 Zone space.
The Center for Science in the Public Interest’s new report found that 97 percent of children’s meal options at the nation’s largest chain restaurants do not meet its nutritional criteria for 4- to 8-year-olds.
Contests and culinary school join forces at Jon Russell’s BBQ, where fruity sauces complement the smoked meats. And, as is turned out, the fire truck parked nearby was a good omen.
