Taking it Old School

Our latest outing was Kim's turn as host.   When she was unable to secure reservations at her first choice, she decided to go old school and chose Lidia's.  It was a chilly fall evening and Lidia's ending up being the perfect choice.

This wasn't the first experience for any of us.  Lidia's is a favorite place of many Kansas Citians.   Great food and atmosphere.   The space is a converted freight house  so the ceilings are soaringly high.  The bar has a crackling fireplace.  Despite the huge space, they have done a great job of creating a cozy romantic  feel.  From the moment you walk through the door, the rustic interior pulls you into the warm and elegant setting.  The massive hand blown glass grapes clusters hanging from the ceiling grab your eye.  Creative pastas are Lidia's specialties but you also go for the atmosphere.

We enjoyed drinks in lobby area before being seated at round table.  We quite enjoyed the bread sticks, house bread and pesto spread.  Maybe a bit much.  We ordered another basket before dinner arrived.    We couldn't pass up the Lobster Risotto Balls for an appetizer.  Resounding hit with the table.  We ordered salads and most of us opted for the pasta trio.  The trio is all you can eat and the servers roam the floor coming to refresh your plate with another ladle full of goodness.  You cannot go wrong with the trio.  The freshly made pasta really is to die for and each of the three pastas were delicious.  For dessert we ordered variety from chocolate to pumpkin ice cream. The dessert servings were the perfect size and finished off the evening.

Our service was excellent and we never felt like we needed to hurry to free up our table.  It was a lovely evening all around and we were definitely stuffed by the end of the evening but in a happy satiated way.   Perhaps most of you reading this review have been to Lidia's but it has fallen off your restaurant rotation for other new more trendy places of the moment.  However, it is worth adding Lidia's back whether it is when you have out of town guests or you just want a relaxed evening to dine without feeling rushed.

Let's Not Leave the Neighborhood

In August, Supper Club Six enjoyed a Thursday night at the Tavern in Prairie Village.  It was Holly's pick and the establishment had been receiving positive buzz.  Two of our members had already experienced Tavern a couple times taking advantage of its location.    After meeting at Holly's for predinner cocktails, we arrived at Tavern and we were seated immediately.


The restaurant seems to understand exactly what Prairie Village needed in a local restaurant.  It is more than a neighborhood bar and thankfully it isn't a chain. Instead it is a comfortable neighborhood joint that you won't be embarrassed to suggest meeting your friends for drinks or dinner on a regular basis.  Convenient, family friendly yet hip enough to hang out in the bar area.  For those who lived in the neighborhood, they likely run into people they know and that's what makes a place a neighborhood hang out.

The menu is affordable and the staff attentive.  Although we did have a somewhat quirky waitress with a bad case of the hiccups.
The menu is a twist on bar food.  Not quite what you would get if you pulled up a chair in a chain which is the point.   We ordered a couple sides of bruschetta and Mac n Cheese for our appetizers.   Although delicious, not our top ranked mac n cheese given that we deem ourselves connoisseurs  of our favorite dish.  The bruschetta was topped with tomatoes, house pulled mozzarella, basil pesto and balsamic glaze. Very tasty.

Most of us started with a tomato basil soup or a salad either a green or traditional caesar salad.  The salad sizes were quite generous.  When it came to our entrees, we ordered a variety from the Beef Stroganoff, Bow Tie Pasta, Hamburger, pork and the Garlic chicken.  Most entrees were delicious.  A couple were a miss.  The meat in the Beef Stroganoff was a bit tough.  Overall, a great meal and atmosphere.

The bar area has several televisions so you can while a way an afternoon watching a game.  The dining room is a separate area which is comfortable and cozy.   The majority of the group definitely found the Tavern to be a great addition to the neighborhood and plan to return. In fact, as of this writing several of us have gone there a few times.

<a href="http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/34/1569235/restaurant/Kansas-City/Tavern-In-The-Village-Prairie-Village"><img alt="Tavern In The Village on Urbanspoon" src="http://www.urbanspoon.com/b/link/1569235/biglink.gif" style="border:none;padding:0px;width:200px;height:146px" /></a>

Lit and Ready to Eat

Last Friday was my turn to host our Supper Club.  I decided to stick close to home and chose the new gastropub Gram & Dun on the Plaza. Gram & Dun is part of the trio of restaurants owned by the Bread & Butter Concepts.  BRGR and Urban Table are the other two restaurants.  Supper Club Six visited BRGR last year.  Interesting to note the name Gram & Dun is derived from the owners wives' maiden names.  They must love their mother-in-laws.  After meeting at my place for wine, we headed to the Plaza for our 8 pm reservations.  When we arrived, they were not quite ready to seat us.  No biggie.  We headed to the bar.  The host assured us she could find us despite not handing us any contraption to buzz us to attention.  The place was hopping.

The bar area was packed with fellow patrons waiting to be seated.  We nudged (elbowed) our way to the bar and ordered a round of drinks.  Maggie and I stuck with our standard Dirty Martinis.  They did not disappoint.  Joan--who was in town and making her second guest appearance at Supper Club--ordered a D Cup.   This was by far the most popular choice copied by other members throughout the evening. It was a combination of Kettle One Citron Vodka, St. Germain, lemon and lime juice and simple syrup.  The space in general was very nice.  Although self-described as a Gastropub, it isn't very "pub like".  The decor is almost like a mountain sky lodge.  Exposed wood and leather lend to an upscale feel.  Definitely a different vibe than Baja 600.  Cozy elegant.

Wild Boar and Bison Meatballs

We proceeded to chat away and away and away.  The bar started to clear out and we were ordering a second round.  Something was wrong with this picture.  Around 8:40, I went to see if they forgot us and was assured we would be seated soon.  8:40 became 9 and then finally our host found us.  To be fair, we added a party when we arrived but an hour wait when you had reservations seemed excessive.   We weren't expecting to have two rounds of drinks before we were seated.  When our host finally seated us in a table, we were lit and ready to eat.

Now on to the menu.  Unique is the only way to describe it.  The cocktail, wine and beer list are very extensive.  Our server was delightful and knew her way around the menu.  She answered all our questions and made recommendations.  We ordered an insane amount of appetizers.  Lightly battered peppers--Kathryn ate all of these.  Wild Boar and Bison meatballs, Joan and I inhaled these.  The meatballs were delicious and the sauce very subtle.  We actually did share the first order with the table and then Joan ordered a second round.  We slapped the hands of anyone that tried to have a bite.  We also ordered the potato chips with the unique ketchup trio--a vanilla bean, avocado and blood orange habanero.  Very tasty.   The French Onion Dumplings were excellent combination of Gruyère, sweet onion broth & brioche crouton.

Chicken and Waffles

Kim ordered the short rib grilled cheese.  Although she expected a more interesting variety of cheese (and more of it), she thought it was tasty.  Michelle ordered the mushroom ravioli and I believe licked her plate clean.  She also enjoyed the D Cup Martini but may have instead ordered a Double D.  Holly had the scallops which were served with blackened cauliflower and covered in a Bourbon cherry butter sauce. She said the cauliflower may have been undercooked but I believe most of the vegetables were served more on the crispy side.  I enjoyed the double pork chops.  Very moist.  Perfect temperature and served with brussel sprouts which I've come to love in the last 5 years or so.  I have to admit I did not do my meal justice because I was over served appetizers.  Maggie took home my leftovers.  Joan enjoyed the fried goat cheese and avocado salad.  Kathryn ordered the shrimp and grits with an jalapeno avocado sauce.  Very different dish.  A bit salty so the verdict was so so.  Maggie ordered the dish I wish I had but didn't.  The chicken and waffles.  Cute little round waffles with lightly battered chicken--without the bone.  There was a concern by some the chicken would still be on the bone.  The combination of waffles, chicken and syrup was divine.  I'm so ordering that the next time I go.

Despite being completely stuffed, we ordered a Gram & Dun Bar for the table.  It was a delectable chocolate mousse, peanut nougat, ganache,  and salted caramel bar topped with peanut butter ice cream.  Their version of the snickers bar.

We really enjoyed our experience at Gram & Dun despite the long wait.  Our server more than made up for it in her extensive knowledge of the menu and her genuine engagement with us.  It is nice to see an establishment with a fresh concept on the Plaza.  This location is prime real-estate and I always thought this was the best patio on the Plaza.  We definitely recommend that you try Gram & Dun.

Strip Mall with a Side of Personality Disorder

Michelle was in charge of our latest outing of  the Supper Club.  She had us guessing until the last minute in choosing a new Leawood restaurant Fo Thai.   Fo Thai is located in One Nineteen Shopping Center.   This restaurant met with mixed reviews.  I don't mean some of us liked it while others didn't.  Each of us seemed to swing wildly in our reviews from "fun place" to "cheesy" because before our eyes the restaurant was transformed into a second venue.  More on that later.

First impressions when we walked in the door was how different the place looked from other establishments in Leawood.  The restaurant after all is in the strip mall.  A nice strip mall but a strip mall nonetheless.  It is almost too much as you pull the heavy doors and enter into extreme dark.  In fact, you could not really take in the decor until your eyes start to adjust.  We were taken into a lounge area to await our seating.

Kathryn savoring her Outcast

We were seated almost immediately on the second floor which overlooks the main dining room.  The main floor has a ginormous Buddha and water fall.  This is when it starts to sink in that the place feels a bit  "themey".  Almost like, Rain Forest for adults.  However, we were game for anything.  By anything, I mean cocktails.  So we started with one of their signature cocktail called Overcast.  These were delicious pear ginger vodka martini served with dry ice.  Gimmicky? Perhaps.  However, a few of us ordered a second one.

Maggie taking lighting into her own hands

We whipped out our iPhones to read the menus as the candle light wasn't cutting it in the cave like atmosphere.  We ordered the 7-Spice Crusted Crispy Calamari with sweet mango miso sauce and the Tempura Rock Shrimp with spicy “Tom Yum” aioli and their Spring Rolls.  Heavenly.  So far so good.    The entree menu offered an array of what we'd call Asian Fusion.  Although Thai appears in the name of the restaurant that isn't all they offer.

For entrees, we ordered an assortment.  The 7-Spice Crusted Salmon with bamboo rice and red curry sauce was tasty.  It was a little on the hot side for some of us but not for others.  Two of us ordered the Broiled Saikyo Miso Chilean Sea Bass with coconut sticky rice and orange miso glaze.  They were very inconsistent because one version was very tasty and other had an extremely fishy taste.  Pad Thai noodles came with fish sauce and pine nuts.  You could select your spiciness.  Prices were moderate and we did leave filled.

Throughout dinner each of us made our way back to the restrooms.  This was dangerous people.  Too dark and at least one bathroom had a step up that you soon forgot when you exited and stumbled out the door.  The bathrooms were dark and consistent with the theme of the restaurant.  A little additional lighting would be helpful because you shouldn't need a search party to find the toilet.  Thank goodness for iPhones that light the way.

Our waiter was adorable.  I won't mention which member was eyeing this charming twentysomething but it would violate the "I could be his mother" rule. . . . which only narrows it down to 5 of us.  He was friendly and attentive until the end after our table was cleared and we had to hunt him down for a final round.

Sometime around 9ish, a strange thing began to occur.  The main dining room was being cleared as patrons left.  Then before our eyes, it became a dance floor.  The restaurant we entered was transformed into a cheesy nightclub best located in the Power and Light district not Leawood.  It was actually fascinating to watch as surprised patrons avoided the dance floor while a younger crowd began to appear to fill the floor.  Perhaps this is just what the suburbs need to avoid the drive downtown.  We finished our drinks and skedaddled because the music was so loud we were shouting at each other.  Obviously, we are the target customers after 9 pm.

So, by mixed reviews, I mean each of us enjoyed part of the meal, found the decor fun yet cheesy.  Thought the conversion into a downtown nightclub bordering on schizophrenic and predicted the place might be closed before I got around to writing this review.  We hope not.  It is a fun place it just seems out of place in Leawood.  So please go experience Fo Thai and expect to enjoy your evening, eat some fun food and bring a headlamp.