A KC restaurant could be honored as the hottest new concept in Kansas. See the nominees

UPDATE: See the Kansas City-area restaurant winners here.

The Kansas Restaurant and Hospitality Association in Wichita will hold its annual “Hospitality Night Out” banquet on Monday, and several KC restaurateurs and home-grown concepts will be honored.

Here’s some of the categories and area nominees:

▪ Hot New Concepts. This award recognizes restaurants that are at the “cutting edge of food service and positioned for growth.”

Local nominees in the running are Chicken N Pickle (with locations in North Kansas City and Wichita); Q39 barbecue (with locations in Overland Park and Kansas City); and Freestyle Poke (with locations in Overland Park, the Liberty area and the River Market).

The other nominees: The Pennant in Topeka, Nortons in Wichita, and Prost in Wichita.

▪Hall of Fame. Vic Allred, owner of Jazz, A Louisiana Kitchen, has been nominated for the association’s honor roll. He has three area locations, as well as restaurants in Columbia, Missouri; Omaha, Nebraska; and Lubbock, Texas.

▪Restaurateur of the Year. Nominees are Kevin Timmons, co-owner of Nick & Jake’s (with locations in Parkville, Overland Park, Shawnee and just south of the Country Club Plaza); T.K. and Emily Peterson of Merchants Pub & Plate in Lawrence; and T.D. O’Connell, owner of Hog Wild Pit Bar-B-Q (with several locations, including one in Lawrence).

This story was originally published October 11, 2019 at 5:00 AM.