ALTHOUGHKANSASCITY
is justly famous for its
down-home food—bar-
becueatArthurBryant’s,
burgers and shakes at
Winstead’s, friedchicken
at Stroud’s—veteran
chefs likeCelinaTio,who
has twonew restaurants
in town, the
COLLECTION
and
THEBELFRY
, and
Jonathan Justusof
JUSTUS
DRUGSTORE
innearby
Smithville, have inspireda
newgenerationwhocan
takechanceswitha farmore
sophisticatedcrowd than
theyhadeven fiveyears ago.
Oneof themostwelcome
comebacks is
BLUESTEM
,
which chef-ownersColby
andMeganGarrelts closed
on its 10thanniversary in
order togive theeateryan
overhaul. Nowback inbusi-
ness, theGarreltses have
given theplacea fresh look
andexpanded thekitchen
for abetterwork flow—and
soMegan canexperiment
with innovative ideas like
pastry tastingmenus. Colby,
a2013 JamesBeardFounda-
tionwinner for Best Chef in
theMidwest, is re-energized
toproduce five-course
meals that include seasonal
favorites likeEnglishpea
soupwith crème fraîche,
pinkpeppercorns and
blossoms, and sautéedbay
scallops and crawfishwitha
biteof chorizo, polebeans
andpattypan squash.
VOLTAIRE
,which the
local
435Magazine
has
called “enlightened,” is
WesGartner’snewglobal-
cuisine restaurant inWest
Bottoms (inaddition tohis
MoxieCatering).With its
longbrick-walled roomand
spaciousbanquettes, the
place isbuilt for comfort, but
Gartner’sunique flourishes
areevident, even ina
humble item like five-spice-
rubbedbabyback ribs that
he smokeswithAsianblack
tea. Heeven serves a cherry-
wood-grilledkangaroo
loinwith juniper-blueberry
juice, anda chicken leg
made intoa succulent confit
withGorgonzolaandpear
risotto. Themenu changes
weekly, sobeprepared tobe
surprised.
RyanBrazeal, chef-
owner of
NOVEL
, prefers
the term “Novel American
Cuisine” to theoutdated
“NewAmericanCuisine.”
And, as a veteranof ahighly
eclecticNewYork kitchen,
he’s appliedall he learned to
his own restaurant, located
near theCrossroadsArts
District in anold shingled
housewith awrought iron
gate. There’sAsian influ-
ence indishes likeBrazeal’s
duck-neckdumplingwith
hakurei turnip, foiegras and
black vinegar, andhis carrot
soupwith kaffir lime, coco-
nut and charredeggplant,
but the soul of theMidwest
ismanifest inhis pig-head
piewith chicken liver and
spicymayo.
KANSASCITY,
MISSOURI
2
FROMTOP:
Patrons
flock toVoltaire for
chefWesGartner’s
globally influenced
comfort food. The
dishes atNovel offer
amore, well, novel,
approach, like the
CrispyEggwith tripe
andbaconhush
puppies. Visit the
bar at the recently
renovatedBluestem.
THEDETAILS
Collection/TheBelfry
1532GrandBlvd.
(816) 471-7111
restaurant.com
JustusDrugstore
106W.MainSt.
Smithville,Mo.
(816) 532-2300
restaurant.com
Bluestem
900WestportRoad
(816) 561-1101
.com
Voltaire
1617GeneseeSt.
(816) 472-1200
.com
Novel
815W. 17thSt.
(816) 221-0785
AA.COM CELEBRATEDLIVING
AUTUMN
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