KC area makes ‘best drinking neighborhoods in the country’ list

Thrillist, a leading lifestyle website, says any neighborhood can be a drinking neighborhood if you have a few bucks and a flask and/or paper bag.

But for its new list of “The Best Drinking Neighborhoods in the Country” it looked for areas that provided an “imbibing experience that you couldn’t quite be having anyplace else.”

It picked 20 areas across the country, including Beale Street in Memphis, Corktown in Detroit, Logan Square in Chicago, the Lower East Side in New York and the Crossroads in Kansas City.

It had this to say on the Crossroads: “This modest Midwestern mainstay just might be the best booze city you’ve never considered. And with its network of elevated cocktail dens, up-and-coming craft distilleries and breweries, music venues and loaded beer bars, Crossroads is the place to be.”

Its recommendations: SoT Social for its “experimental, tiki-leaning sippers and dreamy back garden”; the “swank, subterranean neo-speakeasy” Manifesto and the “James Beard Award-semifinalist Jill Cockson’s ambitious newcomer Swordfish Tom’s”; Tom’s Town Distilling Co. for its “quality bourbon” and the “locally sourced gin inside a 19th-century stable house at Lifted Spirits.”

For beer, Thrillist said to head to Double Shift Brewing Co. for its “approachable lineup” as well as the “imperial stout and a rabbit pot pie” at BLVD Tavern. The pick for wine enthusiasts? Tannin Wine Bar & Kitchen.

The Brick’s 75-cent tacos on Tuesdays got a nod, as well as arcade bar Up-Down and the shows at Green Lady Lounge.

This story was originally published January 12, 2018 at 11:03 AM with the headline "KC area makes ‘best drinking neighborhoods in the country’ list."