KCinsiders.joyceinkc

18/07/2025

Three City Market updates. See my story in Startland News

For more Kansas City area restaurant and retail news, follow reporter Joyce Smith .joyceinkc

It’s all about the pan for Carlos Saura, a Spanish chef whose new paella and tapas spot in Kansas City’s bustling and diverse City Market is set to arrive in late summer or early fall — helping bring the historic marketplace district to 100-percent-leased capacity.

17/07/2025

See my story in Startland News

“I needed time to pause, and became more and more interested in wellness practices, eating healthier; time and space to reflect and build healthier lifestyle practices,” said Matthew Matsch, who just opened Klā Sanctuary and the tea-focused Selah Lounge. “I fell in love with the ritual of pau...

14/07/2025

North Carolina-based brunch, lunch, dinner restaurant opening this week in JoCo
It's been in the works for a couple of years.
Now Asheville-based Tupelo Honey Southern Kitchen & Bar is set for a soft opening Tuesday, July 15th.
The Lenexa Restaurant Row location, at 16720 City Center Drive, is its 26th location and first in Kansas.
The 5,600-square-foot-plus restaurant features large windows on three sides. It also has a large patio.
The company said its menu is a “celebration of Southern food and Appalachian traditions rooted in the Carolina Mountains.”
But with a twist.
It includes the Asheville Hot Chicken & Ranch Melt; chicken and waffles; blackened wild-caught mahi-mahi with a basil citrus butter sauce; bone-in honey-dusted fried chicken; shrimp and grits; chicken poblano soup; steak and eggs; and bourbon peppercorn glazed beef and chorizo meatloaf; along with all-day brunch, a happy hour (3 to 6 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays) and a children's menu.
It also offers “Biscuits for a cause”: Two buttermilk drop biscuits - either original (sprinkled with salt and pepper, and topped with whipped butter and blueberry jam), or sweet potato (with cinnamon, nutmeg, and brown sugar, then topped with whipped butter and peach jam). Proceeds go to its employee relief and development fund which has awarded $850,000 to date.
Desserts include Mississippi Mud Pie, Brown Butter Pecan Pie, and banana pudding. Or customers can try the mud pie and banana pudding in the Mini Dessert Duo.
It also has signature cocktails such as the Tupelo Honey Margarita, mimosas (including a four-drink flight), Bloody Marys, wines and spirit-free sips.
The Magic Lemonade is a tableside, color-changing experience made with Tito’s Handmade Vodka, butterfly pea flower syrup and fresh lemonade.
It also will feature local and regional beers including some Free State Brewing Co. and Stockyards Brewing Co.
Tupelo Honey is next to the new Zhoug Mediterranean. Other restaurant row tenants include Cactus Grill and Enjoy Pure Food + Drink.
Hours: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, and 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays.
The grand opening will be at 10:30 a.m. July 24th (free entrees for the first 50 people in line and free biscuits all day).
The company was founded in 2000 in downtown Asheville. It tends to open only one restaurant in a market so the Lenexa spot would be a destination location for the metro. It has 120 employees.

Photo: Bourbon peppercorn-glazed meatloaf

12/07/2025

Don't miss this story from Startland News

Startland News is showcasing five Kansas City small businesses this week through the newsroom’s first-ever Small Biz to Watch series, presented by Bank of America. The following highlights one of the 2025 honorees, curated by editors from Kansas City’s wide array of hard-working entrepreneurs an...

11/07/2025

From KC to KU: Cult favorite “wrap shack” is expanding to Lawrence - just in time for move-in day

***Longboards Wraps and Bowls plans an Aug. 10 opening at 2540 Iowa St., Suite N.
Longboards co-owner John Bailey has a son who will be a sophomore at KU and will be working at the store. (And John’s birthday is on Aug. 11.)

The local chain was founded in 2004 by Gilbert Macapagal who grew up in the Philippines and moved to Kansas City when he was a teenager.

John became his partner a decade later when Gilbert wanted to add more locations.

They currently have restaurants in Lee’s Summit, Liberty, Mission Overland Park (2), and the Northland, as well as in downtown St. Joseph, Missouri.

The “wrap shack” offers flavors inspired by countries on the Pacific coasts. So the menu includes the Cabo Chicken (with guacamole, pepperjack, rice, pico de gallo and chipotle ranch); the Pork Luau (with pepper jack, pineapples, vegetables, rice and teriyaki sauce); and the Viet Wrap (chicken, rice noodles, lettuce, carrots, green ion, cilantro, mozzarella cheese, sriracha, and sweet and spicy sauce).

Other menu items include bowls, salads, quesadilla flat wraps, and Hawaiian sliders (on grilled King’s Hawaiian rolls).

For more Kansas City area restaurant and retail news, follow reporter Joyce Smith .joyceinkc

Photo: Longboards Thai Chicken wrap with pepper jack, vegetables, rice and peanut sauce.

10/07/2025

Southern Living magazine just keeps putting Midwest Missouri in the South. But that's good news for Up Dog in Independence, which just made this listing.
"The menu has traditional recipes like the Chicago Dog, but their Rio Dog (made with bacon, onions, jalapeños, mustard, and cream cheese) really stands out."

10/07/2025

From Startland News. This well-deserved accolade. The family has a long history serving KC. Nice to see the next generation thrive!

Startland News is showcasing five Kansas City small businesses this week through the newsroom’s first-ever Small Biz to Watch series, presented by Bank of America. The following highlights one of the 2025 honorees, curated by editors from Kansas City’s wide array of hard-working entrepreneurs an...

10/07/2025

Smoke, Fire & Q’Dogs: Q39’s New Executive Chef Shares BBQ Tips and Menu Inspirations 🔥🍖
Rob Magee’s barbecue has long been a favorite of chef Patrick Peluso. Peluso spent a decade on the barbecue competition circuit where he got to know Q39’s late founder.
“I was a huge fan of his whimsical approach to barbecue,” said Peluso, Q39’s new executive chef. “Taking southern flavors and introducing them into barbecue. Some of the spicy profiles such as chipotle barbecue. He wasn’t afraid to go outside the traditional box.”
Peluso long planned to become a chef.
He started early in his grandmother’s kitchen. When his family relocated from Pennsylvania to the metro, he signed up for culinary courses while still at Liberty High School. Then he graduated from Johnson County Community College’s chef apprentice program.
He trained under world-renowned chefs Lidia Bastianich and Mario Batali in the apprenticeship program at Lidia’s Kansas City. He was then regional executive chef and director of operations for multi-unit operations for a New York-based company, overseeing operations at The National WWI Museum and Memorial, The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, and 22 other venues.
He also cooked for professional athletes, and executives.
Most recently he was a culinary specialist at Sysco, where he consulted with Q39.
He joined the barbecue as executive chef in March and within weeks introduced more than a dozen new seasonal items.
Some highlights:
1. The Q Nachos - a mound of large Yoli Tortilleria’s chips, piled high with chicken or pulled pork, street corn. tomatoes, jalapenos, cilantro, and pepper jack queso, then drizzled with chipotle barbecue sauce - has been a huge hit. Peluso says the large chips let you get a little bit of everything in every bite.
2. KC Cheesesteak, a nod to his history in Philadelphia with chopped smoked brisket, caramelized onion, pepper jack and provolone cheese.
3. Smoked brisket meatballs have chipotle sausage, Parmesan-breadcrumbs, and barbecue aioli.
4. A dry rub wing, to go with Q39’s award-winning “Best Chicken Wings on the Planet,” which are typically smothered in chipotle barbecue sauce.
5. KC Q’Dog made with chipotle sausage and topped with chopped with burnt ends, Southern-style slaw, and a Dijon aioli.
Other new menu items include a wood-fired Canadian salmon salad, Q wedge with smoked blue cheese and onion straws, and cocktails including its White Russian using honey from the Overland Park restaurant’s rooftop hives, along with vodka, Kahlúa and cream.
Q39 also has a new collaboration with local non-profit The Golden Scoop.
Patrick and the Golden Scoop team came up with the Salted Caramel Burnt Ends Ice Cream with Q39’s signature burnt ends, mixed with salted caramel ice cream.
Tips from Patrick Peluso:
1. Favorite kitchen ingredients: Fennel, cumin, cloves
Essential kitchen tools: Fish spatula (more flexible and versatile), tongs
2. Never uses: Preservatives. The restaurants have a small freezer for the Golden Scoop ice cream.
3. Favorite dish to make at home: Meatballs with Sunday Sauce made by the whole family - Patrick, wife Nicole, and daughters Ava, 8, and Mia, 5.
4. Never eats: Over-processed foods.
5. A BBQ to keep an eye on?: Harp Barbecue which relocated from Raytown to a south Overland Park spot five miles from Q39 South, “He’s making a wave. He’s made a name for himself.”
6. Best barbecue tip: Premium products. Respect for the process. And a dry rub should be, “Bold enough to boost flavor yet subtle enough to let the beef shine.”
Q39 will next roll out new seasonal items in late October.

Reporter note: Come back later today for a reel on the new seasonal items.

Tag a grill-master friend who'd love this, or a foodie friend who needs to try one of the new dishes. Got questions for the chef? Drop them below! 👇

09/07/2025

See my story in Startland News

09/07/2025

A first look: Martin City Tavern in the South Plaza.
The popular Kansas City restaurant company with four locations - Lee’s Summit, Lenexa, Martin City, and Overland Park - said its fans wanted them closer to the heart of KC.
So they remodeled the former Spin Pizza spot at 4950 Main St., and after a few Friends & Family events, it is scheduled to open to the public at 11 a.m. today.
The South Plaza spot is “next generation,” offering much more than beer and pizza, including smash burgers, pastrami Reuben and Nashville chicken sandwiches, entrees such as fish and chips, bowls and tacos, and a variety of salads including the Taste of Italy with artichokes and marinated olives.
But the menu still includes MCT’s popular specialty pizzas as well as build-your-own, along with crafted beers from sister company Martin City Brewing Company.
“We want to bring it into the city,” said founder Matt Moore. “We’re excited to introduce a tavern-style menu and bring a new experience to one of Kansas City’s most beloved areas.”
It has a front patio and parking lot in the back.
Founded in 2011, Martin City Brewing Company started as a microbrewery. It currently has the four Martin City Taverns - along with a location in KCI, and CPKC Stadium. It also has Station 7 Tavern and Love, Coffee in Lee’s Summit.
Nathan Tilton, formerly with Fiorella’s Jack Stack Barbecue, is now president and COO of Martin City Brewing Company.
Hours: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays; and 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays.