LarryRGV

Anyone have rec for restaurants fairly close to Sprint Center. Will have car so we could drive but since we will be at basketball tournament we don't want to get too far away. When we were there 2 years ago the area immediately around the Center were just too crowded and more fast food oriented. Something nice but not necessarily fancy. Not barbeque. We will be staying in Country Club Plaza area so a rec for that area also. Thanks.

Attnymom

The Power & Light District is directly across the street from the Sprint Center. There are lots of restaurant choices there- some fast food and some finer dining. Of those, I recommend The Bristol (known for seafood, but has other options as well).

http://www.bristolseafoodgrill.com/

Another option that is a little further north in the River Market area is The Farmhouse:

http://www.eatatthefarmhouse.com/

I haven't eaten there, but it received great reviews from the local food critic. We hope to get there soon.

Another option a little further east in the Westside neighborhood is Westside Local:

http://www.thewestsidelocal.com/

I haven't been there either, but we are going Saturday night with some friends. Heard it is great too.

For the Plaza area, we love Plaza III for steaks:

http://www.plazaiiisteakhouse.com/

It is a local favorite and not a chain restaurant.

You should also try Blanc Burgers on the Plaza:

http://www.blancburgers.com/

Best burger I've ever had and a fun beer list.

If you like pizza, try Spin Pizza just south of the Plaza on Main Street:

http://www.spinpizza.com/

Spin has wonderful pizzas and salads and a fun atmosphere.

For more upscale Italian dining we like Osteria Il Centro:

http://osteria-ilcentro.com/home.aspx

It is also on Main Street just a block or so south of Spin.

Have a great time in Kansas City !

Not sure who you are rooting for but Rock Chalk : )

Terp08

Attnymom covered it. Power and Light will be PACKED during the tournament. The line for Chipotle was around the block last year.

We had better luck with finding available places up at the Plaza. There's a Cheesecake Factory, P.F. Chang's, Panera and a bunch of other restaurants and sports bars (plus great shopping) up that way. It's a fairly reasonable cab fare from P&L.

LarryRGV

Thanks, Terp. When you'll say Plaza I assume you mean Country Club Plaza. I got confused when you said "up" at the Plaza. And, yes, I know the Power and Light District will be packed. I was there 2 years ago. Getting a taxi, while reasonable in cost, could be a long wait to get one. I have a parking pass at something called the "KC Live Garage" so that might help somewhat if it is a convenient location.

Attymom, you gave me some good recs. Since we only have about 1 1/2 hours between day sessions and night session, I would like to stay close to the Center so I don't have to drive but Bristol looks too concentrated on seafood for me. Plaza Steakhouse looks great to me, but am concerned I could be rushed for time by the time we get there. I think that would be a good choice for an early dinner on Friday or Saturday when there aren't afternoon games. Is the Crossroads area any closer than the CC Plaza area? Zagat is giving a good review to an Italian place called Lidia's on W. 22nd. What do you think?

And Go Horns (though I think we have fallen apart after hitting *1. I can't see anyone competing with your Jayhawks.)

Thanks again to both of you.

montereybob

Lydia's is great! And it's much closer to sprint center than the Plaza. 10 min. drive. You will need reservations. Also next door to Lydia's is a great restaurant called Jack Stack. Although they specialized in BBQ, it is also upscale dining and you can get really great steaks or seafood. I would highly recommend both.

Attnymom

Hi Larry,
Yes, the Crossroads are closer to the Sprint Center than the Plaza. If you think of all of these venues in (more or less) a straight line you would have at the north end the Sprint Center, then moving south is the Crossroads area then south of that is the Plaza.

Lidia's is a well-known restaurant (she also owns Becco in NYC) but I didn't particularly care for my meal last time I was there. I know lots of people who love it, so if you are interested in Italian food you should give it a try. Lidia's is near 22nd street (be sure to google directions because it is tucked away in a hard to find location if you don't know where you are going) and the Sprint Center is near 14th Street so they are about 8 blocks apart. I would think that is completely doable in 1 1/2 hours.

Another option in the Crossroads district is Extra Virgin:

http://www.extravirginkc.com/

I have eaten lunch there and it is very good. Michael Smith is a well known chef in town and a James Beard Foundation semi-finalist.

For much more casual dining (i.e. bar food) in the Crossroads, check out The Cashew (next door to Extra Virgin):

http://www.thecashew.com/

I just checked out the website and it is the official hangout for the Jayhawk fans during the Big 12 so you might want to skip that one : )

Another option just south of the Sprint Center on 15th street is JP Winebar:

http://www.jpwinebar.com/

You could easily walk here. It is a local favorite.

A VERY casual but kind of fun place is Grinders:

http://www.grinderspizza.com/

If the weather is nice they have a huge outdoor beer garden that might be fun. It is on 18th street a little south and east of the Sprint Center.

If you are looking for a great breakfast, try BlueBird Bistro:

http://www.bluebirdbistro.com/

It is in the Westside area near Westside Local (mentioned in my previous post)

Other favorite restaurants on the Plaza are Classic Cup and Houstons (yes, it is a chain but they do a fantastic job on both food and service).

Have a great time!

LarryRGV

Thanks again everyone. Your recs are always appreciated. Mom, ExtraVirgin has a great looking menu and my wife and guests would absolutely love it.Unfortunately the guy that pays the bill (me)would have a hard time finding something to order. JPWine Bar has a nice menu also and I like the idea of small servings of wine. Good location also. So I made a res there. Thanks a lot. I might try Lidia's for an early dinner before the games on Friday and since Saturday's final starts at 5pm we will be able to go to PlazaIII for steaks afterwards. Maybe if things go as I would like, I'll see UT beat KU on Saturday. That would make for a better dinner, but not too much chance of that happening. We'll be lucky to win one or two games, but I'll be there with my burnt orange on anyway. Thanks again,all.

ksbeem

Michael Smith, next door to Extra Virgin, is great. On the Plaza, my favorite is JJ's. www.jjs-restaurant.com

ChefBurger, right by Chipotle, is good in the P&L. Was closed for a while, but I think it's reopened. Also, there's a really great breakfast joint at 26th and Cherry called Succotash. http://www.pitch.com/locations/succotash-4856

Attnymom

ksbeem - totally agree about JJ's - can't believe I left it off of my original post. Best wine list in town! Heard about Succotash on the Food Critics on Walt Bodine a few Fridays ago and it got great reviews. We'll have to try that soon.

Larry - hope you have a great time!

LarryRGV

Back now from KC. Had good time even though my UT guys lost fairly early. Thanks Attnymom and others for recs.I did eat at JP's. Turns out I had eaten there 2 years ago at last Big12 Tournament. Probably got the rec from you guys then also.We enjoyed it and it is very convenient to Sprint Center. I don't think the other Crossroads restaurants would have been convenient enough for us. I drove by there earlier to see where they are. We did have breakfast/brunch at Lidia's. Nice place. Salads were very good. I couldn't eat my turkey sandwich tho. Mayonaise they use on it was inedible in my opinion, tho my wife liked it. Portions are very large. Lunch at Panera in Plaza was good. Dinner on the last night was chosen by KC friends we were with. Starker's in the Plaza. Very nice place. Rather formal setting which actually was a nice change after 4 days of basketball and more casual dining. Menu a little too limited for me, but good salad and a great wine list plus excellent wine by the glass. Rather expensive restaurant but not overly so for such an upscale place.
Anyway, thanks to all. I'll probably be back online in 2 years looking for new recs when we come back to KC again.