Week Twenty-Two: Seoul Taco

Seoul Taco
1020 E. Broadway
Columbia, MO 65201

After spending a wonderful Fourth of July with great friends in Innsbrook, we made our way back home with a quick pit stop in Columbia, MO.

We heard good things about Seoul Taco in St.Louis and decided to try to the new location in Como.
The other location is in The Loop in St. Louis and there is a Seoul Taco Food Truck making its way around the town.

Seoul Taco is located right on Broadway across the street from The Penguin Piano Bar and next door to El Rancho. The location is awesome inside. Seoul Taco shares a location with Strange Donuts. Very neat environment that has lots of seating inside.

My Order
-Gogi Bowl: white rice, fried egg, veggies, sesame oil, spicy gochujang sauce $7. I subbed the white rice for fried rice which added an extra $1 to my meal.

Clinton's Order
-Two Tacos: One Steak & One Spicy Pork. $2.50 each.

Recommendations: 
I have to say, I was not a huge fan of my meal. The spices in my dish were very different from what I am used to. It was an okay meal but I would probably not go back. Clinton thought it was different but good. He said that he would go back and would like to try something different.

Clinton and I walked into the St.Louis location and it seems like a very popular place but my taste buds just didn't care for it.

Until next time...

Deb

Week Twenty-One - Weston Brewing Company

Weston Brewing Company
500 Welt Street
Weston, Missouri 64098

After a long hiatus of non-blogging, we're back.

On a cicada-filled Sunday morning we headed to Weston for a day trip.  Upon arrival, we stopped by an antique store where I picked up a new wooden chair for my office.

We then headed to Weston Bend State Park for a little hike/jog.

If memory serves correctly, it was a rather humid day.  After about 1/2 mile jog, we headed back 1/2 mile to the car but mostly due to the inordinate amount of ear-deafening cicadas that were also enjoying the park.

After hiking we stopped by The Red Barn Farm and The Farmers House for a little nic-nac and farmers' market shopping.  We also headed to downtown Weston to do a little more shopping at random stores and antique shops.

After running around, we finally made our way to Weston Brewing Company.  We had some other options we considered but settled on the brewing company. 

We sat outside and started with a flight of beers ($6.00):

We had the Royal Lager, O'Malley's Cream Ale, Drop Kick Ale, Carrot Apple Ale, Row Hard Root Beer, and the O'Malley's Stout:

We had already tasted the Row Hard Root Beer previously and we still enjoy it.  It is pretty good a la mode, as well.  The orange beer (top right) is the Carrot Apple Ale.  It was different but I think we still finished it.  The consistency was much different than beer.  Deb wasn't a huge fan. Descriptions for other beers can be found here.  

For food (menu here) we started out with an order of onion rings ($6.99).

The onion rings were good and cooked to perfection.  They came with "bistro sauce" but I can't remember what it was.  If I recall, I enjoyed it but Deb didn't care for it.  Could be wrong.

I ordered the Fish & Chips ($11.99), which was nothing special.

The fish wasn't bad, it just wasn't great.  The fries were pretty good.

Deb ordered the Salmon Salad ($12.99) with poppy seed dressing.

We both had some of the Fish & Chips as well as the Salmon Salad.  We both really enjoyed the Salmon Salad and the poppy seed dressing was great.

After eating we took a (somewhat) self-guided tour of O'Malley's Irish Pub.  No spoilers but if you haven't made it to O'Malley's, its a must do.

We really enjoyed the day in Weston and would like to take a longer day trip soon, perhaps with a group of people.  There are a lot of neat things to do including indulging in adult beverages at Weston Brewing Company or O'Malley's.

- Clint.

Week Twenty- The Good Pie

The Good Pie
6665 Delmar Blvd.
St. Louis, MO 63130

Back-to-back pizza pie weeks! We were in St. Louis for the weekend and chose to try a pizza joint in the loop!

WARNING: The Good Pie has closed, effective June 27th. They will be remodeling and adding a variety of new items to the menu. The Good Pie will be re-opening as Randolfi's in late August. To read more about the transition, click me.

A cute little restaurant.. very nice environment!

Open-style kitchen. The wood-fire oven is located to the left of this picture which I meant to capture... oops. It was a beautiful oven with colorful mosaic tiles that was imported from Italy.

We started with the Roasted Olives ($6.50) that included rosemary and croutons. They were a DELICIOUS olive mix that I would definitely recommend. 

We split a chop salad ($5.00) that had taste of the hill Italian dressing. We later bought a bottle of the same dressing from the store because it was quite tasty.

We chose the simple Marinara pizza ($8.00) that had garlic, oregano, chili and lemon. The pizza was quick to come out and was fantastic! The crust was unbelievable and all of the toppings were very fresh.

The Good Pie is located next to Seoul Taco on Delmar, which is on the list to try to as well!

Until next time...

Deb

Week Nineteen - Pizza Bella

Pizza Bella
1810 Baltimore
Kansas City, Missouri 64108

On week nineteen, we went to Pizza Bella in the Crossroads.  There is another location in Mission Farms.

We really enjoyed Pizza Bella and will definitely be back.  It is more on the hipster side (it is in the Crossroads, after all).

We started off with the Brussels Sprouts ($8.00) which come with pancetta, cranberries, almonds, and vinaigrette. We got the pancetta on the side.  Pizza Bella doesn't really have any "typical" appetizers but these Brussels Sprouts were awesome.  The cranberries and almonds were a great touch and the Sprouts were cooked to perfection - in flavor and consistency.

For dinner, we went with the Roasted Eggplant Pizza ($12.00).  Again, the pizzas aren't your "typical" pizza but, again, the food was spectacular.  The crust was somewhat burnt on some pieces but that didn't hold us back.  The ingredients tasted very fresh and the amount there was an appropriate amount of toppings.  Having worked in the pizza industry, I was less than impressed with the topping distribution, but not everyone is perfect.

The restaurant space is small but very quaint.  The pizza is wood fired (oven seen below in the far back left corner).  Both locations have a happy hour from 4-6pm which we would like to go back to enjoy.  Added bonus, you could head down to Up Down KC or pick up some local wear from Raygun, both of which are local spots we enjoy.

Recommendation: A must whether you're a pizza aficionado or a once a year pizza lover.  Deborah is the former. 

To not waiting 5 weeks for the next post,

Clint.

Week Eighteen- Q39

Q39- Kansas City BBQ
1000 W. 39th Street
Kansas City, MO

This weekend we were joined by my sister, Sarah, and her boyfriend, Derek, who came to visit from St. Louis. They were craving some KC BBQ so we chose to make a reservation for Q39. We heard great things about this restaurant and wanted to try it for ourselves! 

We arrived at the restaurant about a half an hour before our reservation time. Awesome atmosphere with a very open large dining room and then another smaller room in the back, which I would assume would be for large parties to rent out! 

We enjoyed a couple beers at the bar while we waited for our table and we (Clinton) watched the Royals game. I have to say that the service at the bar was nothing special and in fact a little disappointing. They were polite bartenders but more awkward than friendly and the way they interacted with the servers was a little off... in a rude way. 

Since we showed up a half hour early to the restaurant, the hostess said that since it was busy we would still have to wait until our reservation time to get seated. No problemo ... as we made ourselves comfortableish at the bar. However, she said that she would come get us from the bar when the table was ready. Our reservation time came about and nothing. Clinton asked about our table and the gentleman said that he called our name and we didn't respond. We don't believe that happened. 

Anywho...
we got seated in the large dining room and had EXCELLENT service right away where our waitress was very quick to greet us!

Onto the food...

Week Eighteen's Instagram Post! 

For the Table:
-Q39 Spiced Onion Straws ($6.50) that was served with a BBQ Aioli. We all thought they were delicious and would definitely recommend.

For Me and Sarah:
-Romain Caesar Salad and added a piece of grilled salmon ($14.00). The salad was very tasty and the grilled salmon was DELICIOUS. We were in the mood for Caesar. Next time we go, I would want to try their Wood-Fired Grilled Salmon Salad. After all, it is award-winning. 

-Midtown Veggie Burger ($8.50). Sarah and I have both had our fair share of veggies burgers out and this one was... different. Not exactly what I was expecting because the consistency was comparable to cornbread and the patty itself was a whiteish color. This burger came with lettuce, red onion, tomatoes, balsamic vinaigrette and a chipotle mayo. The toppings were delicious and we both added a little bbq sauce to try!  

For Clinton:
-Sliced Burnt End Sandwich ($9.50) minus the bun.. Cabo Diet. He really enjoyed the sandwich and said multiple times that it fell apart in his mouth. Very tender and would definitely order it again! 
-Side of baked beans ($3.00) were "frickin' awesome." He would order two sides of it next time. 

For Derek:
-Combo Plate with 2 Ribs and Sliced Brisket ($17.00) which came with a side of house-cut fries and coleslaw. He seemed to enjoy his KC bbq quite a bit! 

Recommendation:
-Overall, this place was delicious and we would highly recommend! It was nice to be joined with great company in such a nice atmosphere. 

Deb 

Week Seventeen - Yard House

Yard House - P&L District Location
1300 Main Street
Kansas City, Missouri 64105

This week we were treated with some special guests - Johnny was in town from Dallas, Haley and Lemke both tagged along, as well as Johnny's friend from work, Cameron.  We went to Yard House for happy hour (menu) (M-F 3-6 pm) and all ordered off the happy hour menu.  Additionally, our friend Josh is a manager so we were able to see him, too.

BEWARE: Parking is a nightmare.  There is a lot of construction downtown right now with the street car (which runs down Main - the street Yard House is on) as well as the new high rise lofts.  For quick parking, you can park under Power & Light for $2.00.  We were lucky to find street parking at 13th & Grand and walked two blocks.

Food

I ordered the happy hour chicken nachos ($7.00 - down from $11.35 regularly), as did Johnny.

Chicken Nachos - partially demolished

The nachos were really good.  They are a little on the different side - the beans that come on them make them a little more BBQ than Hispanic/Mexican. Regardless, this plate was empty by the end of the meal (as was Johnny's).

Deborah ordered the Margherita Pizza ($6.00 - down from $11.75).  

Margherita Pizza

In addition to a typical margherita (tomatoes, mozzarella, fresh basil), this pizza had garlic gloves.  Deb said it was good but would order it with out the garlic cloves next time, which is surprising because "there can never be enough garlic," according to Deb.

Haley ordered the chicken lettuce wrap ($7.00 - down from $11.65).

Chicken Lettuce Wrap

The menu says the lettuce wrap comes with chicken, tofu, pine nuts and green onions.  I can't confirm because Haley won't respond to my text message.  It also comes with three sauces (pictured).  She finished a good portion of the wraps so I assume it was good.  Also, I found it weird it was served in a taco salad-esque bowl because I feel like most people order lettuce wraps to avoid carbs.  However, it made a nice presentation.

Lemke got the boneless Buffalo Wings ($6.00 - down from $10.95).

Boneless BBQ Wings

Obviously, this picture was taken after Lemke demolished his wings.  Also, he doesn't like celery, and doesn't use ranch for his wings, so if you ever go to eat with him and he gets wings, feel free to chow down on the condiments for him.  You have my permission - I'm his attorney.

Drink

I believe we all ordered import/microbrew pints, which are $2.00 off regular price.  Each beer is priced differently so I won't list all of them.  I had a River North White and an Odell 90 Schilling.  Deb had an O'Fallon Wheach (surprise!) and ... wait for it... a bud light, with a lime.  I wanted to order one of the Yard House house beers but they are waiting on the bureaucrats in Jefferson City to grant their licensing to brew in-house, or something.

Recommendation:  If you're a beer connoisseur, Yard House is a must.  They have loads of beer.  Also, we enjoyed great service in a great atmosphere.  Two thumbs up.

Until next time - 

Clint.

Week Sixteen- The North End

The North End
(recently changed name and ownership- used to be La Sala's)
910 E. 5th Street
Kansas City, MO

We will be in St. Louis next week for a wedding and to celebrate Mother's Day with my family therefore this weekend we celebrated early with Clinton's mom and family! 

We started off the day at the First Friday Celebration (the first weekend of the month) down in the West Bottoms. There are tons of antique shops in old warehouse buildings that open up (some open every weekend but many are just open on these first weekends of the month.)  It was an awesome event with a variety of food trucks, live music and tons of people walking around.

We were told by someone that we had to try this restaurant/deli called La Salas near the River Market. This restaurant has been around for 90 years but just recently changed names and is now called The North End. The food is apparently the same but now with different ownership and name. There are old family pictures posted on the walls, a patio on the side of the building and bar inside. It is a small place where you order at the counter and a server will bring the food to the table. 

I ordered: 
-Appetizer Cheese Toasted Ravioli ($5.99) with a side of marinara
-A side of Olive Salad ($3.99). 

Both were fantastic! The T-Ravs were very flavorful and better than the average toasted ravioli. I've been looking for a place in KC that sells olive salad as good as St. Louis' The Hill markets. Although it's not AS good as the olive salad that I get in St. Louis, The North End's Olive Salad was GREAT! 

Clinton and his mom, Christy ordered: 
-Homemade Giant Pork Tenderloin Sandwich ($7.49 each). Clinton ordered a side of chips. Christy ordered a side of waffle fries. 

Clinton said that it was large and had a good texture. They both really enjoyed the sandwiches. 

Craig and Justin ordered: 
-Chicken Parmesan Dinner ($8.99 each). Each came with a side of pasta with marinara sauce and two slices of bread.  

They both enjoyed their meals!

Recommendation: The places that may look like a "hole in the wall" are some of the best. I would definitely want to go back and try their eggplant parmesan or one of their pasta dishes. GREAT CHOICE... would definitely recommend. 

-Deb