By CONTRIBUTING WRITTER DARREN MARK
CHEERS!
It’s hard to pin down my most memorable evening in Kansas City, but the night I attended the soul-out Riedel wine tasting at The American Restaurant would definitely qualify as a contender. That was the evening in which company grandfather, Georg Riedel, berated paying customers for chit-chatting, holding their wine glasses incorrectly, and participating in variety of other offenses deemed punishable by public humiliation. It was like seeing a mean version of Don Rickles. Well, meaner. And yet, somehow, in the same way that beautiful women fall at the heels of Dracula, this audience of more than 100 hung on Georg’s every word, collecting his insults as if valuable keepsakes. This month, Georg’s on Maximilian carries the company torch, as he descends upon The American for this latest chapter of the Riedel road show.
Unfortunately for thrill seekers, max tends to holster the insults, but he doesn’t holster his family jewels. For $95 plus tax, lovers of wine can partake in a three-part Champagne tasting, featuring the lauded 2002 vintage of Doom Perignon. That, alone, would command a lofty fee. But that’s just the asterisk to the real excitement: participants will take home the three Riedel Champagne glasses from which they just sipped some killer juice-glasses that retail for a total of $140. Earmark November 3rd for a night of rockin’ wine, expensive glass, and sadly, no insults. Theamericankc.com
Now that’s A CANNONLI!
I’m sure that the cannoli that sits on the bar at jasper’s Ristorante isn’t the world’s largest. For the sake of argument, let’s just assume that some Midwestern burg, population 80, lays claim to a concrete cannoli the size of my grandfather’s Bui k. said city, of course, is the self-proclaimed cannoli capital of the world, and each year the town fathers host a legendary celebration called the Cannoli Festival, where three years ago, old men Saragucci choked on a cannoli en route to (almost) becoming the world’s fastest cannoli eater. It’s true. I just know it. So this cannoli that sits atop Jasper’s bar isn’t the biggest, I’m sure, but it’s still pretty big. It’s a (slightly larger) replica of Jasper’s golden cannoli: the $26,452.25 dessert that the calls the most expensive cannoli in the world. Sure, of course it’s that good. Really. The fact that it’s paired with a $26,000 Italian diamond necklace and bottle of ’90 Cristal is just icing on the cake, so to speak; a footnote, if you will. Customers who aren’t interested in the ice and the bubbles can purchase the cannoli by itself- one dusted in 24-karat gold, and created for the restaurant by Sprinkled with Sugar- for only 12 bucks. And that, my friends, is a pretty crazy discount, considering that it was more than 26 grand when packaged with a bottle of juice and some rocks. Jasperskc.com
COMING ATTRACTIONS
It’s hard not to marvel at the number of restaurants that are constantly opening in the Kansas City metro. We’re not talking only about those run-of-the mill chains that pop up like pimples. Included, too, are unique concepts that, in many cases, boast local roots. These past several months, Kansas City’s Kitchens have increased, and are increasing, exponentially.
I’ve been to Urban Table twice now, and I can’t help but be amazed by the seemingly airtight appearance of the concept. Here’s a place that would be at home inside an upscale strip mall in Brentwood. And yet, instead, it’s breathing the smog-free air of Prairie Village’s Corinth Square. I sidled up to the bar during launch this past fall, where I ogled a well-edited selection of craft and Belgian brews, enjoyed a simply prepared yet well — balanced salad for lunch and took home a pumpkin whoopee pie, which could have passed for a carrot cake sandwich (minus the carrots). I’m excited to go back. The folks behind Urban Table — Bread and butter Concepts — are the people that create BRGR Kitchen. And later this month, they’re set to open Gram & Dun on the Plaza, a new concept that will fuse an emphasis on beer with Urban Table’s devotion to seasonality. Gram & Dun is billing itself as a gastropub, that magical concept that’s given birth to some of my favorite restaurants in America, like The Publican in Chicago, Brasserie Beck in D.C., and the restaurant that launched it all, The Spotted pig in N.Y. Hopefully, Gram & Dun will follow in stride.
Seasonality is the word a la mode in today’s restaurant scene — so much so that it’s appearing in the manes of the nation’s newest restaurants, including Seasons 52, yet another new restaurant that landing on the Place this fall. Seasons, which opened in October, features (of course) a menu that plays off the seasons. This fall, open the dinner menu to an exhaustive list of item, inspired by Eastern and Western cultures, finding common ground by way of their devotion to the time of year. Season 52 is a nation concept, but it seems to have the polished appeal of other out-of-state-owned restaurants like Leawood’s North.