Wednesday, March 16, 2011

The Plaza: Burgers, Brews and Ball games

"Anybody who doesn't think that the best hamburger place in the world is in his home town is a sissy." -- Calvin Trillin
If you tuned in last time, you might remember that the KC Explorer is currently conducting a three part series on the Country Club Plaza.  Our first post focused on the history, architecture and overall feel of the Plaza.  Next time, we'll look into doing a little fine dining on a budget.  But today the Kansas City Explorer looks into a few of the local places that make the Plaza a great causal eating and night-life destination. 


Before heading out on the town, any city-explorer needs to make sure their stomach can comfortably absorb any brews or spirits they meet along the way.  While the Plaza is home to a variety of popular chain restaurants, we decided -- as KC born journalist and novelist Calvin Trillin notes above -- to try to find the best hamburger place in the world right here in KC.  And put bluntly, we may have come pretty damn close:


Welcome to Blanc Burgers and Bottles.  Their motto?  "Eat local, drink local."  Gourmet burger places seem to be all the rage in cities lately, but some tend to go a bit over the top.  When we dive into a burger, some creativity and uniqueness is nice, but at the end of the day, we want to feel like we've just had a good ol' American burger.  Blanc Burger meets the right combination of creativity and authenticity.  Their burgers variations are intriguing but still have the right amount of... well... "burgerness."  Take one of their favorites for example: voted the best burger in Missouri by the Food Network Magazine, the "Inside Out Burger" may be traditional on the outside (smoked bacon, an onion ring, and lettuce on an onion brioche bun) but after the first bite it's uniqueness hits you in the form of hot, melty blue cheese stuffed into the patty.

Yum.
Blanc also pairs their burgers with four choices of sides: hand cut fries, sweet potato fries, truffle fries, and Boulevard Pale Ale onion rings.  We decided on the regular and truffle fries and both (served in mini shopping carts) were excellent.

Who knew you could truffle a fry?
 
Good ol' fashion fries, served up in a shopping cart.
No burger is complete without pairing it with a great brew.  Boulevard, the local Kansas City brewery and future topic here at the KC Explorer, is heavily stocked at Blanc.  The annuals, a seasonal and a few of the Smokestack series are on the menu.  We decided on the Dark Truth Stout, served---impressively---in true parlor-trick manner:


Overall, Blanc Burgers and Bottles made for a greater starter for our night out on the Plaza.  If you're interested in hearing from the executive chef at Blanc, a local foodie-blogger here in KC interviewed him, and he gives a great overview of the theme and strategy behind bringing a great burger to KC. 

But, as any night-owl knows, you can't linger around food for long, lest you become too sleepy to engage in further mischief.  The KC Explorer and company quickly made our way to stop two on the exploration, the perfect place for engaging in a little tomfoolery:


Tomfooleries is a great bar destination for a few drinks out on the town.  Service is decent and the atmosphere is festive and lively.  Drinks are moderately high priced, but comparable to other Plaza venues.  Simply put, a great place to hit up after that burger or movie flick.  Although be prepared for a few: "what did you say?"s... it can get a bit loud.  Also, with only a few small-screen TVs behind the bar and view-blocking walls, it's not the greatest place to catch the big game.  But they sure pour that Boulevard Wheat well...

If you need to catch that game, you may want to start off at Tomfooleries but make sure to tab out in time to hike a few blocks down the scenic Plaza streets and head into the 810 Zone.  Themed around the local sports talk radio station, the 810 Zone is all about centering your munchies, brews and cocktails around the big game.  Plasma TVs are a-plenty, and there are even a few private rooms available for special parties.  While it losses a bit of the Plaza feel by echoing the average sports bar vibe, 810 Zone is definitely the place to be if you need to grab a beer and check out your team's big game.  

Need to see the game (or games) they've got you covered

Full bar, need we say more?
The Kansas City Explorer ultimately learned that the Plaza has much more to offer than Christmas lights and shopping.  If a night out is in order, and you're willing to skip the reheated meal at Applebee's in favor of fresh burgers, locally brewed drinks and a chance to catch the big game, then the Country Club Plaza is a great destination!  

What's your favorite Plaza destination?  Should the Kansas City Explorer hit up any new places on our next trip there? 

NEXT POST TEASER:  "Free steak?  Yes please."  Join us as we explore part three of our series on the Plaza. 


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