Denis Culinary Tours

The BigRedF Restaurant Group (their spelling) headquartered in Boulder recently has provided me two great happy hours.  We started at 4 p.m. when they opened . . . and just kept eating.  I think this is more than worth going to the Plaza for – and the fact there is plentiful parking through the Hotel Sorella entrance or off Belleview just makes it even more perfect. Now, I don’t eat raw oysters any time of day, happy hour or not. Companions have told me they’re excellent.  At Happy Hour, there are 11 other items, ranging from $5 to $7 plus some oysters at $1.25 each.  The steamed mussels come in two versions and I loved the coconut milk with panang curry version, somewhat to my surprise.  The fried calamari with a lime aioli and even the tuna melt are delish as well – but every single thing we tried there, including the lump blue crab cake on the regular menu, spoke beautifully to us. As befitting an excellent Happy Hour, there are five cheaper dr...

For those of us who consider pie (and ice cream) the perfect breakfast, dessert is more than just the end of the meal.  It is celebration, it is the best reason to linger, it is the ultimate fireworks to the sit-down portion of the evening. It is compulsory. Thankfully, many Kansas City restaurants agree.  They make the grand effort to satisfy the sweet desires of their patrons, whether they outsource, leave it to the chef and kitchen to create, or have a professional pastry chef at the helm. Some restaurants recognize the time and creativity involved in presenting a great dessert and decide to simply leave the work to someone else.  Sometimes they tell you this; sometimes not.  But what most do is to find the very best dessert that reflects who they are and what their customers want.  And if, apparently, it’s the Costco double chocolate cake that people want, I’m not telling you where that was. Waldo Pizza, a place you might not think abou...

I’m going to be doing several more blogs about the sweeter side of life – it’s just so cheerful to think about desserts!  A wonderful dessert is a really great way to extend an evening, even if you have to have it with decaf.  Or more wine. Ra Sushi  - Sweet Mochi Trio My last blog here was about the new monthly desserts now occurring at Harvey’s in Union Station (see below).  It’s nice to know you can count on something different each month and what a fabulous excuse to hang out a while in wonderful Union Station.  And in our spring issue of The Restaurant Guide , I talk about pastry and all things dessert.  One thing I learned is how few true pastry chefs there are out there (and why) and that many “regular” chefs fulfill that function, too, extremely well in their busy kitchens.  I also get to talk to talented pastry chefs like Nick Wesemann at the American and Joseph Jackson at Affäre – look for more on them later. Shasha's Le...

So you're by the airport . . . Think about going to the Hilton hotel, where I've never been until recently.  It's only been there for oh, 16 or 17 years.  It's been redone.  Importantly, from my standpoint as I'm probably not going to stay there:  try their newly re-imagined restaurant. It's quite, quite good.  NOT hotel food, whatever that used to mean.  It doesn't look so much like a hotel, either.  Not the bar, the restaurant.  It is, in fact, a place you could hang out. They have a nice happy hour from 4 - 7 pm.  $3 draft beers, $5 house wines, a $7 specialty cocktail, and small plates, very cheap, ranging from home made chips at $3 to crab cakes at $7.  Not a huge selection, but plenty enough.  Their lunch and dinner selections are reasonably priced as well and the menu is pretty extensive.  The hamburger that walked by us (not on its own) looked just great. Since I don't live close, I'm definitely putt...

- Featured Specials - BUBBLES & PEARLS emersum oyster, lemon crème fraiche, champagne pearls, osetra caviar, chive SALT COD BRANDADE celery, fennel, mustard seeds, pickled red onion, house saltine VEAL OSSO BUCO & CHARRED OCTOPUS coquillo pappardelle, pearl onion, chicories, gremolata SHELLFISH SAMPLER PLATTERS FOR TWO crab, lobster, shrimp, oysters, etc. Happy Hour 4pm-6pm • Full Dinner Menu Available CALL 816.437.7940 FOR RESERVATIONS TUESDAY FEBRUARY 17, 2015 - Featuring - PO’BOYS Catfish • Oyster • Shrimp CHARBROILED OYSTERS with crawfish butter and chipotle SHRIMP AND GRITS KING CAKE - Live Music By - TIM WHITMER   5pm-8pm Happy Hour 4pm-6pm • Full Dinner Menu Available CALL 816.437.7940 FOR RESERVATIONS

Unexpected.  First, it’s in our train station.  Second, it’s actually run by a catering company – Brancato’s.  Third, it’s a new take on a very old tradition – the original Harvey House restaurants that used to grace almost every largish railroad station in the country from Illinois to New Mexico – nearly ninety of them at their peak. Finally, desserts aren’t always key in a breakfast/lunch place (open til 3pm) but Harvey’s is stepping away from the norm, there, too. For instance, they’ve just introduced a new dessert perfect for a mid-morning or after- Science-City- snack: a chocolate peanut butter torte with marshmallow cream frosting and a sugar cookie crust.  Or, treat yourself at lunch.  Kitchen manager Bob Pinnock created this delish concoction AND, now listen up here, there will be a new one EVERY MONTH!  Dessert nirvana.  Every month.  Life can be oh so sweet! 30 West Pershing Road  Kansas City, MO 64108  Ph. 816...

The Bar Crawl caps off an all-day festival featuring live music, “Bourbon Street” entertainers, crazy contests and more. For just $30, the all-inclusive crawl package includes free cover, domestic draft beer, call cocktails and Captain Morgan Hurricanes from 9-midnight. Or upgrade to the VIP package for $40. Use promo code “KCLIVE1” to save $5 off either package! Additional Mardi Gras KC weekend festivities include a Masquerade Party benefitting SocialHeart on Friday, Feb. 13th and the Mardi Gras 5K on Saturday, Feb. 14th.  http://mardigraskc.com/