Kansas City chef to open ‘craveable, farm fresh deli’ with grab-and-go in City Market

After longtime Kansas City chef Hope Dillon shut down her catering business during the pandemic, she spent a few months planning a new eatery that will open in the City Market this month.

“Daily Kitchen is a craveable, farm fresh deli with menu items made in-house,” Dillon said.

The breakfast menu will include a BLT with egg, buttermilk biscuits with fruit preserves, a daily frittata and fruit bowls.

For lunch, it will have items such as a roast pork sandwich with caramelized onion mayonnaise, lettuce, tomato and cheese; a grilled havarti cheese sandwich with apple slaw and bacon; a meatloaf sandwich with onion jam and cheddar; tuna and white bean salad with shredded romaine, tomato, red onion and cucumber with a light vinaigrette; and a daily soup special.

It also will have coolers for grab-and-go items including fruit cups, salads, bowls, and entrees such as a chicken chimichurri plate and pesto ratatouille.

Dillon has been in the Kansas City restaurant industry for three decades, including stints with Poco’s Latin American Grille and The Grille on Broadway in midtown, Vivilore in Independence, the Drop Bar & Bistro on Martini Corner, and the Feed Supply Market & Deli in Gladstone.

Three brothers, all friends of Dillon’s, are financing the new City Market eatery.

“You go from working 60 to 70 hours a week and all of a sudden you are quarantined during the crazy loneliness of COVID,” she said. “I feed off of interaction with strangers and friends. Now I’m back doing something I love. I never thought about doing anything else.”

Dillon is taking the former Beignet spot at 307 Main St. for a scheduled May 18 opening.

Beignet was one of the first area restaurants to close during the pandemic. It shut down in April 2020 after seven years in the City Market. The owner recently opened Le Chronic Cafe nearby.

This story was originally published May 6, 2021 at 12:07 PM.