21 OF KC’S BEST DISHES AND DRINKS TO TRY RIGHT NOW
A MISSION HILLS HOME RENOVATED FOR A YOUNG FAMILY
A full-service, in-house construction and design team: Ross offers both construction and design services under her supervision which significantl impacts the client experience for the better.
Impeccable attention to detail: Like the show-stopping interiors she creates, Ross understands the art of details and will bring the smallest of project elements to new heights.
The embodiment of luxury: When infusing luxury into a home remodeling project, Ross looks beyond price tags and instead embraces not only what luxury is, but how it makes a client feel.
Invest where it counts: When you work with a kitchen and bath designer it can save you time—and money, not to mention stress.
The art of trend-setting: Ross isn’t shy about crediting her Western European heritage for helping her cultivate a keen eye for interior trends. “I set the trends; I don’t follow them,” she says
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54 IN CONVERSATION WITH D.V. CHERNOV
The Kansas City-based crime novelist discusses growing up in Russia, what makes a good crime novel, and how he landed in the Midwest.
58 RUBY’S LAGOON
In the depths of a renovated midcenturymodern Fairway home, an unassuming door opens into a tiki wonderland. 62
62
21 DISHES & DRINKS TO DEVOUR NOW
The list of what to eat and drink in metro restaurants and bars right now according to our food contributor Jenny Vergara.
68
TRADITION WITH A TWIST
“Just one change” leads to a whole-house freshening.
On the cover Darren and Leslie Mark at Ruby’s Lagoon, their fantastical tiki bar hidden within the lower level of their Fairway home. Photo by Aaron Leimkuehler
Speaking of Cocktails and Cuisine . . .
The latter part of this month is when morel mushrooms start popping up in the woods, the farmers markets, and even on the menus of a few of the better restaurants in town. They’re pricey, and for good reason; morels are one of those mushrooms that, so far, haven’t been domesticated.
But when I was growing up, it was a cheap (free) food that was abundant every spring.
I don’t remember a year when our family didn’t feast on morels night after night during their short season. First, the tiny grays that sprang willy-nilly out of the timber soil (seemingly overnight). Then the yellow ones, which were larger and less delicate of flavor. Until they made their final appearance, morels were on our supper table almost every night.
My mother was the morel hunter of the family. She had her special locations in our timber where she knew she’d most likely find a healthy crop. She had special clothes (long sleeves and pants tucked into sturdy boots), the better to avoid ticks and the scourge of invasive multiflora roses that had taken over most of Iowa’s woods. She even had a special stick to part the undergrowth to spot the elusive mushroom.
In fairness, she was renowned throughout our county as a morel hunter par excellence. The largest morel she ever found was a yellow the size of a quart jar. She was very generous with her tips (first warm rain after the lilacs bloom, look beneath dead elms, etc.), but for one: A talented mushroom hunter never, ever, shares her or his secret locations.
There was only one approved way to prepare them. After soaking in salted water for several hours (a must to remove the debris and still-living bugs that hid in the many crevices), they were drained and shaken in a paper sack with flour, salt, and plenty of pepper, then fried (not sautéed, but fried) in lots and lots of butter and lard. That results in a morel that’s crisp on the outside but meltingly tender on the inside and tastes of that singular, evocative flavor unlike any other mushroom—or food for that matter.
At the beginning of the season, we all devoured them; cleaned our plates of them every night. But toward the end of May (and I’m embarrassed to share this, so callous was I of my mother’s toil), I would whine and complain, “Not morels again!”
Now I rue that cry. Sometimes I’ll venture down to the City Market to buy (at an exorbitant price!) a few.
But to feast on a surfeit of mushrooms night after night, until I push my plate away and say “Enough!” That will never happen again, and I am poorer for it.
As for the “cocktail” that always accompanied our plateful of morels? It was always a cold pitcher of any flavor of red (never orange or green) Kool-Aid.
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Art is everywhere. Liberty Memorial Tower lit up from below; the Shuttlecocks balanced sturdily outside the Nelson; the Lewis & Clark statue at Kaw Point or the Sioux man on horseback in Penn Valley Park. So many of Kansas City’s iconic views are of public art, and we mapped out the best, from the popular to obscure, on inkansascity.com
ENTER TO WIN
Wine and dine. This month, we’re teaming up with Wandering Vine, a fine-dining restaurant in Shawnee with an unrivaled location—an actual castle built in 1907—and a wine list to match. One lucky reader will receive a $100 gift card to the restaurant; all they have to do is enter to win at inkansascity. com/the-magazine/enter-to-win by April 30. Best of luck!
Eat there… no, there. The KC metro is filled with restaurants just begging to be your go-to. We’re talking Italian fine dining, noodle shops, brewpubs that make you forget the brew altogether—all in the same neighborhood. Our staff picked its current culinary obsessions on inkansascity.com.
Fun is waterproof. April showers bring May flowers, sure—but it’s still April, and we’re not letting the rain ruin our good time. For when the rain washes your outdoor plans away, we have a handy list of rainy-day activities—from museums to racing simulators—on inkansascity.com.
This Month IN KC
April
WHERE YOU NEED TO BE AND WHAT YOU NEED TO SEE
Northland Ethnic Festival
April 12
MCC Maple Woods
eeckc.org/northland-ethnic-festival
Branch out! The free-to-attend Northland Ethnic Festival— hosted by the same commission as the Ethnic Enrichment Festival—puts the cultural vibrancy of the northland on full display. Over 25 nations were represented at last year’s festival, bringing authentic food, onstage performances, and exhibits. You can expect even more this year.
Parkville Microbrew Fest
April 26
English Landing Park parkvillemicrobrewfest.com
Nothing micro about it.
Microbrew Fest, despite its name, is a behemoth. It’s set in a giant clearing in English Landing Park packed with dozens of brewery tents, hundreds of beers, plus great food and live music to boot. Tickets are $49 in advance. Bring your own chairs (and leashed pets, if you want) and revel in it all.
The 90th Anniversary of the Count Basie Orchestra
April 30
Kansas City Music Hall kccreativecity.com
A big night for the big band. If you’re itching to see a big band, it doesn’t get much bigger than this. On the last day of April, the Count Basie Orchestra will celebrate its 90th anniversary in the city in which it was born. This is Kansas City culture through and through.
APRIL SPOTLIGHT
Easter Festivities
Various dates and locations
It’s hoppin’! Easter Sunday is April 20 this year, but there’s Easter fun across the calendar.
Two exciting Easter egg hunts: Harry’s Hop ‘n Hunt (April 12) at the Harry S. Truman Presidential Library & Museum, complete with two egg hunts and a KC Wolf appearance; and BunnyPalooza (April 19-20) at KC Pumpkin Patch, with egg hunts, farm games, a candy cannon, and an appearance from the season’s busiest bunny.
On the same property as the pumpkin patch, the Adult Easter Egg Hunt (April 12) at KC Wine Co. promises boozy prizes in addition to the usual farm fun.
If you want to make room for whatever comes in your basket, consider an Easter run. The Always Hope Easter Run (April 19) at Mill Creek Park has a 5K, a 10K, and a half-marathon. The Easter Egg 5K & 10K (April 19) in Overland Park will have post-race food and drinks.
For Kansas City’s most comprehensive calendar of events, go to inkansascity.com/events
Evan Pagano
Patient Camilla with her mom Elissa
__BRANDS
3.1 PHILLIP LIM
AGOLDE
AEYDE
AJE
A.L.C.
ALEMIAS
ALEX MILL
ALIX OF BOHEMIA
ALLUDE
ALOHAS
AMERICAN VINTAGE
ANINE BING
ASKK NY
ATP ATELIER
AUTRY
BAUM UND PFERDGARTEN
BEMBIEN
BOUGUESSA BY MALENE BIRGER
CIAO LUCIA
CITIZEN OF HUMANITY
CLARE V
CLEA
DAMSON MADDER
DÉHANCHE
DOEN
DONNI
ENZA COSTA
EMERSON FRY
FARM RIO
FAVORITE DAUGHTER
FLOWZE
FREDA SALVADOR
GANNI
GESTUZ
GUEST IN RESIDENCE
HERSKIND
HUNZA G
ICON DENIM
JANESSA LEONE
JENNY BIRD
KULE
L’AGENCE
LESET
LITTLE LIFFNER
LIZZIE FORTUANTO
LOEFFLER RANDALL
LOREN STEWART
MADEWORN
MATTHEW BURCH
MAIAMI BERLIN
MAISON IREM
MIRTH
MOTHER
MOUSSY
MUMA WORLD
NANUSHKA
OROTON
POSSE
PROENZA SCHOULER
RACHEL ANTONOFF
RACHEL COMEY
RAG & BONE
RAILS
RE/DONE
ROTATE
SAINT ART
SAMSOE SAMSOE
SEA NY
SIMKHAI
SLVRLAKE
SOLID & STRIPED
STAUD
STINE GOYA
THE GREAT
TIBI
TWP
ULLA JOHNSON
XIRENA & MORE
Entertaining IN KC
by Merrily Jackson mjackson@inkansascity.com
On a home tour recently, I saw an estate that was so huge, so dazzling, so lavishly yet tastefully appointed, so perfect for party-giving, I wanted to go home, pour gasoline on my house and set it alight. I had a conversation later with a woman who’d been on the same tour; she joked that seeing this house had plunged her and her friends into clinical depression. Why, friends, do we do this? Why can’t we appreciate without measuring ours against theirs? “Comparison,” said Teddy Roosevelt, “is the thief of joy.” I would add that it could be the thief of party-giving, e.g. I’m not going to have people over until my house is tour-worthy. Here’s some nickel advice: focus on what you do have. In my case, I have working bathrooms, a round dining table that squeezes ten, a cozy living room, a serviceable kitchen, a rockin’ sound system, a well-stocked bar, and a nice deck.
The Perfectly Unperfect Party
If it’s perfect, everyone will hate you. No one expects you to put on a home-cooked feast. Concentrate on assembling a convivial group, creating a welcoming atmosphere (music! booze! good smells!) and having maybe one spectacular menu item. Give yourself permission to serve takeout or store-bought food, and to let guests bring something when they offer.
You’re a host, not a bartender. Craft cocktails—in which every element is fussily handmade—are all the rage in Kansas City’s bars and restaurants. Which is where they should stay. The busy home host should not be expected to be a mixologist on top of everything else. Realistically, all you need to serve cocktails to a merry group is the makings for gin and tonics, vodka sodas, rum and cokes, some red and white wine and, depending on the crowd, beer. Oh, and at least a pound of ice per person.
Elaborate appies are a waste of time. Don’t spend a lot of time on a complicated appetizer to serve with cocktails before a dinner party. People are too busy talking and drinking, at that point, to pay much attention to your fancy canapes. But you definitely need a little something savory to soak up the booze. I like good cheeses and crackers served on a pretty tray.
The Stroud’s solution. I’ve been on a Stroud’s jag of late. Pan-fried chicken is a swell entrée for a casual dinner party, and Stroud’s can make it better than you, trust me. Order dinner at your leisure then have it delivered via Door Dash or Uber Eats. For a group of eight, order four regular chicken dinners (each serves two very generously) and—this is important—tell them to pack it in bulk. You’ll get salad, green beans, mashed potatoes and gravy, and those killer cinnamon rolls. Transfer everything to your prettiest serving dishes and present it buffet style. If you’re of a mind to cook, I have five tried-and-true dinner party entrée recipes (with serving suggestions) I will happily email you.
This pie, it’s to die. If you’ve come to dinner at my house lately, for dessert you’ve had pie from Ashleigh’s Bake Shop, located inside Pryde’s Kitchen & Necessities at 115 Westport Road. Ashleigh bakes all her pies fresh every morning (Thursday, Friday, and Saturday only, Wednesdays by special request). My favorites are the peanut butter pie (you will weep) and the raspberry rhubarb pie. A whole, fresh pie will set you back about thirty bucks.
Entertaining IN KC EASY DOES IT
EASY DOES IT
If you want to make a pitcher of something, mix two parts of Simply Lemonade with onepart citron vodka and a splash of limoncello. Pour over ice in a tall glass, garnish with a thin slice of lemon and a basil leaf. Matching handcut crystal and pewter highball glass, $92, and bar pitcher, UrBana.
HEAVEN SENT
St. George’s Terroir Gin tastes heavenly, and the bottle makes any bar look hip. Have your featured summer cocktail be a St. George’s Gin with a wildly overpriced, artisanal tonic water, such as Fever Tree. Serve in a handsome rocks glass, garnish with rosemary sprigs or sage leaves. Craft cocktailish
DID SHE OR DIDN’T SHE?
Since you didn’t cook, you’ll have had plenty of time to set a lovely table with gorgeous fresh flowers. Transfer everything to your prettiest serving dishes and present it buffet style. Hand-painted Portuguese platter, $98, at Homesong Market.
LIFE OF PIE
Check out ashleighsbakeshop.com. With Ashleigh’s so nearby, I shall never again trouble myself to make dessert, except possibly my famous (if I do say so myself) Buena Vista Coconut Cake, which I can make in my sleep. I’m tired of making it, but you’re most welcome to. Turn to page 24 for the recipe.
CRESTWOOD SHOPS
Entertaining IN KC
BUENA VISTA COCONUT CAKE
My most requested dessert. It’s a doctored-up cake mix, but no one will know.
CAKE
1 box (15.25–ounce) Betty Crocker Super Moist yellow cake mix
3 eggs
1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
FROSTING
21/2 cups heavy whipping cream
11/2 cups sour cream
1¼ cups powdered sugar or to taste
1 7-ounce can or bag Baker’s sweetened coconut
Prepare cake according to package directions, substituting whole milk for water. Bake, as directed in two round cake pans. Cool and cut each layer in half, making four thin layers. Prepare frosting by whipping heavy cream and sour cream together until soft peaks form. (A stand mixer is best for this job.) Gradually beat in sugar, then stir in most of the coconut, reserving about a third cup. Liberally frost top of each layer, stack and frost sides. Sprinkle reserved coconut over top. Serves 12. (Can be made a day ahead; refrigerate then bring to room temperature to serve.)
Note: you might have too much frosting, but better too much than not enough!
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Our Man IN KC
by Damian Lair dlair@inkansascity.com
A Glittering Mosaic
You know I love an opening. Or, in this case, a grand reopening. Mosaic, the city’s undisputed premier nightclub, recently underwent an impressive $2.5 million renovation and expansion. It’s part of a broader $10+ million renewal happening inside the Kansas City Power & Light District. I was there to get a first look as Mosaic prepared to swing its doors open again.
Perhaps most striking is the size. The space has nearly doubled. The club now features a new lounge space with an expanded bar and additional VIP seating. The new bar offers a lounge-specific cocktail menu that is more craft-focused. You can still grab a vodka soda, but the more relaxed atmosphere allows for finer touches like smoke infusions, specialty ingredients, and copious amounts of shaking.
Graphic wallcoverings throughout the nightclub elevate the vibe and sophistication. It’s nearly impossible to miss the new atmospheric lighting. Spherical shapes canvas the dance-floor ceiling and periodically swoop and tilt. Lighting is critical, and it’s a laudable upgrade for sure. Also critical? Sound. It’s all brand new and state of the art.
There’s also a reimagined DJ booth floating in front of a new high-res LED wall. How could I resist, therefore, making my way up to congratulate Mosaic’s strategic partner and spinning resident DJ, Eric Coomes. I can’t remember precisely, but I suppose I met Eric on my first solid lap at Mosaic when I moved to KC. The P&L District was still new, and Mosaic was the place to be. I took a break and did another tour, as it was the preferred hangout for a new set of friends. But if there’s one nightclub truism, it would be the impossibility of staying red hot forever. Eventually, the star dims, often as something newer and fresher enters the scene.
Over the past few years, I’d already felt a resurgence for Mosaic. Now, that newer and fresher entrant to the scene is none other than Mosaic 2.0. There’s no doubt that this refresh and revival will secure its top spot for years.
Who has a dedicated cat room on the third floor of their Sunset mansion? HOT GOSSIP:
There’s no other place in the city to experience the most prominent DJs from around the world. I could tick off a lengthy list of DJ legends I’ve seen (Steve Aoki, Marshmello, Diplo, Galantis, Loud Luxury, James, Kennedy, Tritonal, Benny Benassi, Cash
Cash—you get the idea), and they were all at Mosaic. For electronic dance music, there is no place in the region that compares. Speaking of DJs, Elephante will be back on April 11, and I plan to be, too. Did I mention their VIP bottle service is second to none? I’ll have mine on ice and hope to see you there. Congratulations to Eric on a vision realized.
CATALINA WINE MIXER
ONE OF THE BEST PARTS about writing this monthly column is having the opportunity to regularly celebrate those who make our city such a special place to live. Thus, I was thrilled to attend an inaugural gala for the Greater Kansas City Restaurant Association (GKCRA). The theme—which was embarrassingly lost on me until a movie clip was played—was a Catalina Wine Mixer, inspired by the Will Ferrell movie Step Brothers
The GKCRA exists as a conduit to elected officials, both locally and nationally, to educate on behalf of its members regarding proposed legislation and how it may affect the local restaurant industry. The association also works to educate the next generation of service industry professionals. It awards scholarships and partners with 23 area high schools on ProStart, a national career-building program for students interested in the culinary arts and food service management.
A longtime friend, Lindsey Ingle, delivered a chilling rendition of
photo by patrick
binder photography
Damian Lair (right) at the Mosaic reopening with resident DJ and Mosaic partner, Eric Coomes.
E BL KE & SSOCI TES LAKE & ASSOOCCIIATTEES S
Our Man IN KC
the national anthem as we dove into a delicious beef tenderloin dinner at the Kansas City Marriott Downtown Mike Burris, the GKCRA executive director, overviewed an interesting history of the association. I was surprised to learn that the restaurant trade association movement in the U.S. began right here in Kansas City. There’s even a historical marker downtown, just blocks from where we sat. If you can believe this—egg prices had been increasing, and several local restaurants banded together to pressure their supplier to reduce the price. It worked, and they realized their power in numbers. They later went on to establish both the Missouri and National Restaurant Associations.
Tyler Banker of Summit Grill Group was installed as the 2025 GKCRA President and Michael Garozzo led a fundraiser for the association’s education work. GKCRAA awards were presented to Sarah Lorenson for Educator of Excellence and Heartland Coca-Cola for Company of the Year. The affable Joyce Smith presented a new award, Influencer of the Year, to recognize the role these individuals play in promoting local restaurants. Brenda Cortes was the inaugural recipient.
Finally, The Restaurateur of the Year award was presented to Kelly Magee, CEO and cofounder of Q39. In her brief remarks, she described herself as the reluctant restaurateur. She left her career at Hallmark to partner with her chef husband’s dream to open a restaurant. Rob Magee passed away four years ago. In the process of selling the restaurants, Kelly realized that what had been Rob’s passion had also become hers. She decided to keep the restaurants and carry on his dream. In accepting her award, she graciously flipped the script and called on the audience to raise their glasses to those team members at her table who’d been with Q39 since day one. It was a touching tribute to both her late husband and the broader KC restaurant community. Last year alone, Q39 smoked 44,000 briskets, and Kelly has no plans to slow the pace. This year, Q39 will add locations in Lawrence and Lee’s Summit. They’ll do all this while maintaining the chef-driven competition-style barbecue Rob instituted as the restaurant’s core.
HOME AT THE OPERA
THE ANNUAL MIGRATION of monarch butterflies between the U.S. and Canada and a forest in central Mexico is a 3,000-mile journey. The eight-month, continent-spanning passage requires five consecutive generations of butterflies to be born and die along the way. No single butterfly will see both the beginning and the end, but somehow, they inherently know both the way and purpose.
This metaphor conjures thoughts and questions about home. Where is home? Is it where you were born? Where you were raised? Where you live currently? Or where you will spend your final days?
places the classical orchestra with mariachi—a vibrant and lively form of traditional Mexican music. And rather than being tucked away in an orchestra pit, the mariachi takes center stage for the entirety of the performance. Adding further to its uniqueness, the opera is performed almost entirely in Spanish.
Illuminated by the ultimate symbol of migration, the monarch butterfly, Cruzar follows the journey of a Mexican immigrant, Laurentino, who came to the United States as part of the Bracero Program. As he nears the end of his life, Laurentino reflects on family and the sacrifices made in their collective pursuit of a better future. This pairing of emotional storytelling through opera and dynamic expression through mariachi creates a powerful and impactful musical and theatrical experience. Oh, and the butterflies are incredible also.
Days prior to the performance, I had the privilege of hearing from and meeting several of Cruzar’s lead cast members. Across those conversations, what struck me was how Cruzar is a universal story. Immigration is not a topic exclusively localized to the U.S./Mexico border. It has broader relevance. When the cast first performed Cruzar in Paris, they worried the audience wouldn’t connect to this Mexican/American story. Instead, they repeatedly heard from people—“You told my story.” Migration happens all over the world, whether it’s Morocco to France or Syria to Jordan, and that universal truth has allowed this story to resonate with diverse global audiences.
“She moved to Ohio and now only wears elastic.”
When I heard that the first mariachi opera would be presented here by the Lyric Opera of Kansas City, I immediately marked my calendar. Cruzar la Cara de la Luna is the very first mariachi opera. Though opera originated in ancient Greece, the Figaro, Figaro, Figaro style we’re most accustomed to derives from Florence, Italy. This novel opera, commissioned by the Houston Grand Opera ten years ago, re-
I was immensely moved by this endearing story of Laurentino and his family. And I wasn’t the only one. As tears streamed down my face, only a hearing impairment could have muffled the pervasive sounds of widespread sobbing. Don’t be disheartened. The human experience still connects us.
Finally, on this evening, the Lyric announced its ambitious next season, which marks the return to four fully staged operatic performances. The 2025-2026 season begins with two classic masterpieces, Rossini’s Cinderella and Puccini’s Madame Butterfly. As 2026 rolls around, and the U.S. celebrates its 250th anniversary, the Lyric will explore the American experience and psyche with two American operas—Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess and Carlisle Floyd’s Of Mice and Men. A grand slate, indeed.
OVERHEARD
Cecilia Duarte as Renata in Cruzar la Cara de la Luna.
FUTURE PERFECT
VERY EARLY ONE MORNING, I was honored to be invited to breakfast at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art before opening. We would be the first to view six finalist concept designs in the competition to transform the museum into one more dynamic, open, and inviting.
To catch you up, the competition launched with an open call for submissions last October, with more than 182 teams from 30 countries on six continents submitting qualifications. In November, a shortlist of six teams were selected and invited to submit concept designs. Those six designs were just received and have since been revealed in a public exhibition at the museum: Building Belonging: Designing the future of the Nelson-Atkins. Now the community is invited to provide feedback. (You can also view the proposals and provide feedback online.) The Architecture Selection Committee has begun interviewing each team, and combined with community feedback, will recommend a selection to the Board of Trustees for final approval. The selection will be announced in late April. What follows, I’m told, will be the largest private fundraising campaign for the arts in Kansas City history.
Besides circuitously landing on a favorite (I wrongly expected my reaction to be immediate), I left the museum with some conclusions. First, having spent a few hours with the concepts, I’m optimistic that I could eventually grow to embrace all but one. There is one (bonus points if you message me with a correct guess!) that had entirely too much going on. It presented a confusing, limestone luxury shopping mall on steroids. Please, no. Second, I came to terms with what evolved to be my ultimate litmus test: which design least disturbs the beloved south vista of the lawn and stoic neoclassical structure? There, I was in good company. Of the numerous people I queried for their hang ups, no other concern even compared. Subsequent conversations and even peeking into social media comments only reinforce this fear. As superficial as it may seem, this particular preservation appears to be the community’s singular collective concern.
With inadequate space for a detailed analysis here, I’ll just throw it out. Despite desperately wanting to love some of the competitors whose other work I hold so dear, Weiss/Manfredi won my heart. Its light touch was easily the most reverent of the vistas and original structure. The graceful but fresh way they mirror the essence of the Bloch building lenses to the east made me swoon. Plus, there’s an inviting and intuitive new primary entrance, a reconfigured flow from the current parking garage, and deft and delicate utilization of the existing rooftop. It is, as they describe, “a connected tapestry.”
The exhibit is as engaging as the six dynamic designs it puts forward. There are videos, renderings, and (really cool) models. My final takeaway was how incredible the human mind is. Given the exact same parameters (including budget) and a reflecting pool full of daunting, site-specific challenges, the diversity among concepts is astonishing. Imagination and creativity know no end.
Af ter exiting the parking garage, I decided to take a lap around the museum campus. As I approached the south side, I wondered—would I really miss the view of an expansive lawn framed by this commanding but elegant Beaux-Arts icon? I turned the corner and slowed to absorb its presence and contemplate its obstruction.
Yes, I would.
The exhibit is open through June 1. I’d love to know your favorite.
So, KC—where do you want to go? XO
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1900 Building
1900 Shawnee Mission Parkway
Mission Woods, Kansas
by Judith Fertig
Stefan Freund
COMPOSER ANSWERS FOUR QUESTIONS
This month, an “audible landscape” premieres at The Rabbit hOle, the immersive children’s literature museum in North Kansas City.
By turns scary, surprising, and then charming, the storybook in question—The Three Robbers by Tomi Ungerer—tells the tale of black-hatted bandits who strike at night, instilling fear in everyone except a brave orphan girl who turns the tables on the trio.
By turns classical, zippy, and unforgettable, the musical genius of composer Stefan Freund brings the story to all the senses.
“I grew up in Memphis, Tennessee,” says Freund, “and its music and culture have been a great influence on my life. Another important force in my development as a musician has been my dad, Don, a great composer and pianist. At age 5, I began playing piano, composing, and improvising. At 10, I switched over to cello, since it was easier to read music with one staff rather than two. When I played one of my own pieces for Janos Starker at my Indiana University audition, he said I was a better composer than a cellist, so I pursued that track in earnest.”
Now a professor of composition at the University of Missouri and the artistic director of the Mizzou New Music Initiative (MNMI), Freund performs, conducts, composes, and produces new music. He is the founding cellist of the new music ensemble Alarm Will Sound, made up of 20 musicians who met at Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York. His cello performances include Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, the Met Museum, Merkin Hall, Millennium Park, Disney Hall,
the Barbican (UK), the Hermitage Theatre (RU), the Muziekgebouw (ND), the World Financial Center, Culture Station Seoul, and the Beijing Modern Music Festival. His cello playing can be heard on 18 released albums featuring Alarm Will Sound.
Coming up are two projects: Performing with Alarm Will Sound for Mary Kouyoumdjian’s Pulitzer Finalist Paper Pianos at the Univer-
IT’S YOUR MONEY IT’S YOUR MONEY
Arts & Culture IN KC
sity of Maryland on Saturday, May 10, and composing a concerto for Mizzou saxophone professor Leo Saguiguit and the Mizzou Wind Ensemble to be premiered this fall.
INKC: You have been called a musical “chameleon,” as you write in many different styles. What’s on your playlist these days that keeps you inspired?
Stefan Freund: I’m old school when it comes to listening to music and really love the radio. I find it intimidating to have to decide what to listen to when every piece of music from the history of the world is at your fingertips. I prefer for those decisions to be made for me by tuning into various radio stations and hearing whatever comes on. Similarly, as a composer, I hope I can dial up whatever style of music is appropriate for expressing the emotion or idea that needs to be communicated.
INKC: The composition for The Three Robbers began with a picture book. What are other jumping-off points you have had when creating your music?
SF: The music for The Three Robbers came very easily to me since the text and pictures of the book were so evocative. There are also refrains in the music that had a particular rhythmic feeling that I used as motives. Other inspirations for the music were a lullaby when Tiffany goes to sleep, a march when the children go to the robbers’ castle, and rich chords that represent the robbers’ loot.
INKC: Tell us about American Wild Ensemble’s music and your work with them, especially Wild Revival
SF: My first experience working with the American Wild Ensemble was for their Missouri Music at 200 commissioning program. They asked composers to write pieces based on Missouri history, culture, and geography. I had wanted to write a piece influenced by Missouri fiddle music for a while, and I felt this opportunity was the perfect time to do so. There were three string players in the chamber ensemble, and they all have featured roles playing various virtuosic licks and riffs.
INKC: Tell us about your work with Alarm Will Sound, which pushes the parameters of music by incorporating text, video, theater, and movement in performances.
SF: AWS just did a concert at Mizzou last Tuesday that featured interdisciplinary works. First, we premiered Brittany J. Green’s gLitchED dreams//invisible BEINGS , with narration and singing by Brittany as well as video by Kate Alexandrite. Then we premiered Ana E. López’s NÉBULA , which featured narration by Ana and a visual installation by Óldo Erréve. The second half was more conventional, at least by AWS’s standards. We played Oscar Bettison’s Livre des Sauvages . This three-movement piece includes the incredible sound world of the sinfonietta augmented by conch shell, recorder, harmonicas, tuning forks, melodicas, toy piano, electric guitar, and many unusual percussion instruments.
Arts & Culture IN KC
by Judith Fertig
A FIELD GUIDE TO SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST
WHEN CHARLES DARWIN published On the Origin of Species in 1859, he caused a seismic shift in the way people began to see the world, its history, and our place in it. Instead of the previously accepted idea that it was “poof”, and all the animals appeared on the earth at once, Darwin theorized that a slow process of change—or evolution—had occurred.He introduced the term “survival of the fittest.”
From now through August 22, the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art showcases a traveling exhibition of 45 masterworks by four European wildlife artists whose imaginations were piqued by Darwin’s discoveries. Richard Friese (German, 1854-1918), Wilhelm Kuhnert (German, 1865-1922), Bruno Liljefors (Swedish, 1860-1939), and Carl Rungius (German, 1869-1959).
Known as the Big Four, these artists—who had sketched exotic zoo animals as part of their Art Academy training—began painting animals in the natural places they lived.
You can pick up your Field Guide at the entrance to the exhibit, find all the wild things, then bring your completed Field Guide to the Museum Store for a limited-edition Nelson-Atkins patch.
For more information and tickets, visit nelson-atkins.org
DISCOVER THE VALUE OF YOUR COLLECTION
Find out what your fine art might sell for at auction. Contact us today for a complimentary valuation on a single piece or collection.
Anna Shaver | 314.833.0833 annashaver@hindmanauctions.com HINDMANAUCTIONS.COM
Thomas Hart Benton (American, 1889-1975) The Doctor, 1952 Property from a Private Kansas Collection SOLD FOR $355,600
AUCTIONS & APPRAISALS SINCE 1805
Giraffes in Blooming Field, Ulanga, Tanzania by Wilhelm Kuhnert.
HAPPY 300TH BIRTHDAY TO VIVALDI’S THE FOUR SEASONS
ON APRIL 11 AT 7 P.M., the Harriman-Jewell Series offers one of the most celebrated and beloved pieces of classical music— Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons—at the Folly Theater.
Since it was first published in 1725, Vivaldi’s Opus 8, Nos. 1-4 has been a fan favorite.
This new production by Les Arts Florissants, with Théotime Langlois de Swarte on violin, features a more narrative style. In the original score, Antonio Vivaldi included sonnets on the fleeting, cyclical nature of time. Did he write these poems himself? Or was a mysterious poet involved? Les Arts Florissants is a Baroque musical ensemble in residence at the Théâtre de Caen in Caen, France. They travel the world, performing over 100 concerts a year.
For more information and tickets, visit hjseries.org
Violinist Théotime Langlois de Swarte.
Arts & Culture IN KC
by Judith Fertig
Brad Taylor
INTO THE GRAY ZONE, A GEO-POLITICAL THRILLER AT UNITY TEMPLE ON THE PLAZA
WHAT DO YOU DO after you retire from a 21-year career in the U.S. Army, eight years of it with Special Forces?
You write best-selling geo-political thrillers. At least that’s what Brad Taylor, Lieutenant Colonel (Ret.), has done. His new book Into the Gray Zone takes task force operator Pike Logan to India on what he thinks is a routine security assessment. It turns out to be anything but.
Logan foils an attempted attack on a meeting between the CIA and India’s intelligence service. Both government agencies believe it’s nothing more than a minor terrorist attack, but Pike suspects that something much more sinister is at play. After another terrorist operation at the Taj Mahal, he begins to believe that outside powers are attacking India in the gray zone between peace and war, leveraging terrorist groups for nothing more than economic gain. After a massive slaughter and kidnapping of hostages during an elaborate Indian pre-wedding party, two global powers are destabilized, and only Pike Logan and his team can de-escalate the tension by rescuing the captives. It will take everything that Logan and the taskforce have to foil an intricate plot that leaves countless lives in the balance.
On April 24 at 7 p.m., Taylor comes to Kansas City on a book tour and will hold forth at Unity Temple on the Plaza.
For more information and ticket, visit rainydaybooks.org
AILEY II AT THE FOLLY THEATER
IT’S A LEGACY. It’s a performance. It’s a movement.
Alvin Ailey (1931-1989) was a dancer, choreographer, director, and activist. Since the Alvin Ailey Company’s first performance in 1958, it has made an imprint on modern dance. Ailey’s work fused theater, modern dance, ballet, and jazz with Black vernacular, creating upbeat choreography that’s credited with spreading global awareness of Black life in America. Ailey’s choreographic masterpiece Revelations is recognized as one of the most popular and most performed ballets in the world.
“Dance is for everybody,” he proclaimed. “I believe that dance came from the people and that it should always be delivered back to the people.” Today, the company shares the power of dance in theaters, classrooms, and communities around the world.
On April 25 at 7 p.m., a new cadre of young dancers in Ailey II debut at the Folly Theater performing works by emerging and established choreographers. Francesca Harper, the artistic director and a former student at The Ailey School who has choreographed for both Ailey companies—guides Ailey II with her unique perspective, paying homage to Mr. Ailey’s legacy while taking the company in bold, new directions.
For more information and tickets, visit follytheater.org
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Look IN KC Fashion
TICKLED PINK
Bright, bold Barbie-doll pink is so 2023. This season, pink is a gentler hue. Pink is always appropriate for spring, but a provocative, pale, ballet-pink palette embraces a touch of whimsy. Almost a neutral, this delicate powdery pink feels oh, so lady-like.
Shirting in a pink-and-white stripe or gingham check is classic
1)Joseph Ribkoff blazer, $319, vailable at Trapp and Company 2)Versace Tag mini bag. $1,095, available at Halls. 3) Michele Deco Sport Chronograph watch, $495, available at Meierotto Jewelers. 4) Staud ballet flat, $385, available at Clairvaux. 5) Catalina sweater, $98, available at mersea.com.
prep. It’s a natural paired with white anything, but pair it with brown and it takes on an edge.
Wear the trend now in comfy, but lighter-weight sweaters and cropped jackets. Wear it any time on your wrist wrapped in a blush-pink leather watchband or over your shoulder in a whispy-pink leather bag. And wear it this summer in cool, still trendy mesh ballet flats.
TAKE YOUR PICK
Flowery hues are blooming this spring creating a fresh, dewy makeup look to match the season. Are you blushing, or is that dewy flush on your cheeks courtesy a swipe of creamy balm? Watercolor shades of peach, rosy pink, and coral go straight from your paintbox to the apples of your cheeks. For a sun-kissed look, tap a little on the bridge of your nose, too. Blurry just-bitten lips look soft, hydrated, and natural, as if you’ve been sampling from your basket while picking berries. Smudge a single shimmery pastel hue across your eyelids for a quick as a wink finish. Skip the eyeliner for day, while oodles of mascara in fun colors finish the look.
at Sephora
L’Oréal Voluminous Original Washable Mascara in cobalt blue, $11, available at Ulta Beauty
Westman Atelier
Squeaky Clean lip balm in Nana, $38, at Welwythn.
pink, $12, available at lover-cosmetics.com.
by Judith Fertig
Is Biotherapeutic Drainage the Same as a Detox?
A CONVERSATION WITH NATUROPATHIC DOCTOR JULIA ST. CLAIR
Pollutants in the environment, microplastics, heavy metals, and cellular waste from simply living and functioning— these are just a few substances our bodies collect that we don’t want to keep because they can lead to health problems over time. Although our bodies have natural ways to eliminate waste, sometimes we need a bit more help. Biotherapeutic drainage is one such treatment option, says Julia St. Clair, ND, naturopathic doctor with the AdventHealth Whole Health Institute.
What is biotherapeutic drainage? How is it different from detoxing?
Biotherapeutic drainage is a treatment based on the idea that our bodies are like leaky buckets. The holes in the bucket represent the ways our body gets rid of things we don’t want, and water represents things that our body has to process and then get rid of. Our body’s natural pathways to get waste out are called emunctories—the holes in the bucket, if you will—such as the liver, gut, kidneys, lungs, and skin. When these pathways are blocked, the holes in the bucket are blocked and instead of allowing water to enter the bucket and pass through, the water gets trapped and overflows. It’s at this point that our body is toxic and we
begin having symptoms.
Some of these symptoms can include fatigue, headaches, muscle and joint pain, mood changes, brain fog, nervous system issues, increased allergic response, chronic infections, gut issues, hormone imbalances, and skin problems.
Biotherapeutic drainage can sound a lot like detoxing, which means eliminating things coming from outside the body. But biotherapeutic drainage does more than that. Biotherapeutic drainage not only makes sure that the emunctories are open so the body can effectively manage the toxins coming in from outside the body, but acknowledges that our body’s own cells, simply functioning the way they are created, also make a large amount of waste that our body needs to get rid of. Keeping the emunctories open allows the cells to get rid of the waste and keeps our body functioning optimally at a cellular level. Ultimately, if the cells of your gut are func-
Julia St. Clair, ND
Health IN KC
tioning correctly, then your gut itself will be functioning correctly. This optimization of health at a cellular level is the goal of biotherapeutic drainage as a treatment.
What types of biotherapeutic drainage remedies do you use?
Biotherapeutic drainage uses remedies called UNDA numbered compounds, Gemmotherapies and Phytogens. These are plant-based liquid remedies that are often taken in doses of 5 to 7 drops or a teaspoon or two at a time. A lot of these remedies are homeopathic doses (microdoses) that stimulate a healing response from the body without overwhelming cells and forcing action. All remedies work together encouraging waste elimination through emunctories, aid in tissue repair, stimulate growth, and promote proper organ and cellular function. Lifestyle recommendations are also key for biotherapeutic drainage to promote avoidance of toxins and to open emunctories.
How can you tell if a patient could benefit from biotherapeutic drainage?
Any patient can benefit from biotherapeutic drainage, especially those with chronic concerns. The people that I almost always recommend biotherapeutic drainage as a treatment option are people who have cases that have not responded well to previous treatments or patients who are extremely sensitive to treatments or things that enter their environment. For example, someone with IBS who has tried everything and still can’t
get their symptoms under control. Or a person who gets headaches when there is a strong scent around or who must be extremely careful about their diet because they have a very large list of foods they react to.
What conditions respond well to treatment?
Almost any chronic condition can be helped with biotherapeutic drainage. Some specific things that I see respond well are as follows:
•Hormone disruptions like PMS, menopause/perimenopause, meta bolic syndrome, adrenal insufficiency
•Chronic conditions like osteoporosis, hypertension, migraines, allergies, eczema and rashes
I do find it beneficial to focus on biotherapeutic drainage with almost all patients at some point in our health journey together, tailoring treatments to each person’s individual needs as they feel comfortable. At the AdventHealth Whole Health Institute, I make sure to treat each patient with a focus on the whole person and ensure that any treatment recommended complements and supplements any other healthcare you may be receiving. WholeHealthInstituteKC.com
Never underestimate the value of bright, beautiful, functional storage solutions to help you start your day Inspired.
BLUEPRINT
OF EXCELLENCE IN KANSAS CITY REAL ES TAT E
Rule Real Estate Guided by Experience
Kristena treats clients how she’d want to be treated, supporting and celebrating life’s milestones. “I feel so lucky to have a big community I can do life with.”
Just a Phone Call Away
Backed by a dedicated team and carefully vetted partners, Kristena goes above and beyond for her clients, offering unmatched accessibility. “If you hire me, I’m available anytime.”
The Sky is the Limit
Kristena tripled the size of her team by leveraging ReeceNichols’ resources and technology. It empowered her to focus on leadership, nearly doubling her business in four years.
With quick access to responsive ReeceNichols mentors, Kristena resolves challenges quickly, ensuring her clients get seamless, professional service. Her support team is “worth its weight in gold.”
Follow the Leader
With ReeceNichols’ roots in Kansas City, Kristena gains instant credibility and trust from clients. They feel confident in a name they know, giving her a distinct edge.
Kristena Richey Real Estate Consultant
by Patricia O’Dell
Step Right In
BUYING A HAND-KNOTTED RUG DOESN’T NEED TO BE INTIMIDATING
When my husband and I bought our new home, we were faced with rooms for which we did not have right-sized rugs. While we’d lived happily with sisals and rugs from big-box stores, for this house we wanted our rooms to be relaxed, but more distinct and personal. We thought upping our rug game might be a good way to start.
I’ve purchased a couple of dhurrie rugs from Knotty Rug Company over the years and have always felt comfortable there. Several months ago, on the way to a party, I suggested we stop in and look around. Owner Darrel Wingo and manager Doug Veach have created such a warm environment, and they were happy to show us around and share both knowledge and experience. I thought the information they shared with us might be valuable. Ever helpful, Wingo agreed to share their experience and expertise.
What do you think the biggest challenge is for people when they want to buy a hand-knotted rug?
Customers new to the hand-knotted rug market tend to concentrate on color and patterns rather than a specific style or origin. When they come in, we try to help them by educating them on some of the different styles that are available and talk to them about where the rugs are from. Fortunately, many weavers are now on the leading edge of the color trends, offering traditional styles with modern colors.
How do you lead people through the process of determining the best type of rug for them?
Our initial consultations usually begin with the room size and how the room is used. Then we try to understand what their general style is—traditional, transitional, or modern—and what colors they
are leaning towards.
Often, we flip through a large hanging rack that has multiple colors and styles in it, to help them see the different styles and colors. With our Kansas City area customers, we suggest they take their favorite options to see how they look in their home, allowing them to see the rug throughout the day with both natural and interior lighting.
Are you able to provide information on wearability, scale, and cleaning?
In general, hand-knotted wool can be very durable and, if taken care of, can last several decades. Many antique rugs in service today are well over one hundred years old. There is even a modern discovery of rug fragments surviving the ice and tundra in Siberia that have been carbon dated to 500 B.C.
Scale is a personal choice, for a whole room we recommend leaving a border of 12 to 18 inches around the rug to show off the tile/hardwood flooring, just as you would frame any other piece of art. You can also use a rug to define a specific space, such as a seating area or game tables.
Fortunately, wool rugs clean beautifully. In fact, we recommend they be wet washed every five years, and more often for heavy traffic areas and homes with pets. Pure silk rugs wash well, too, but require a delicate touch when cleaning. We offer rug cleaning and clients can
MIDCENTURY MODERN
MAGIC!
Now showing at Rensen House of Lights
Classic design elements, Midcentury modern style, and a surprisingly affordable price makes the “Auggie” chandelier our new favorite!
Come SEE, TOUCH and TAKE HOME your favorite light today at Rensen House of Lights!
drop off or call us for pickup and delivery.
Are there times when you need to steer folks away from a certain style?
We don’t steer people away from a style necessarily, but some clients like a looped or shag pile rug and they have pets in the house. In that case, we recommend going with a shorter-cut pile or tighter weave with smaller and more knots per square inch.
What are the “selling points” for a hand-knotted rug?
We specialize in high quality “one of a kind” pieces. These high-quality wools and natural vegetable dyes grow more beautiful with age, adding to their uniqueness as true pieces of art.
Is it possible for you to find a rug to meet someone’s specifications if you don’t have what they need in stock?
We carry several designs that are part of a weaver product program, which allows for customization, including multiple sizes and different colorways. If that does not cover a client’s needs, we can source rugs through our relationships with many weavers across most rug-producing countries. These well-established relationships allow us to help many of our customers looking for that very unique piece. knottyrug.com
Below: Designer Brittany
WWhat’s Old is New Again
DESIGNER BRITTANY BROMLEY CELEBRATES CLASSIC INTERIORS IN HER NEW BOOK
by Patricia O’Dell
hen designer Brittany Bromley was growing up in Chicago, her family had a pied a terre in New York. Her parents were passionate hunters and gatherers, so she spent a lot of time in antique stores and built very fond memories of her visits.
Her new book Relaxed Elegance features her work, with rooms that are layered with texture and pattern, and Duchene silk lives happily with sisal and leather. Reminiscent of the rooms of the 80s and 90s, this is right up the alley of grandmillennials, as well as those of us who have a lingering love of the design of that time. In addition, there’s a painted floor or two, a particular favorite of mine.
Bromley’s book is a valuable primer in pattern mixing, a daring use of color, and the ability to consider design styles from different decades as well-suited roommates. If you’re ready for a bold new world—or dining room—this might be just the book for you.
Above: Decorative painter Mary Meade Evans painted the original floors of Bromley’s 1790 colonial center hall in a checkerboard pattern. Top right: The ceiling of Bromley’s family room is sheathed in a reflective Phillip Jeffries wallpaper and then painted in treillage by Meade Evans. Bottom right: Bromley covered the walls of a Park Avenue apartment in white silk and livened it up with bright and colorful fabrics.
Bromley. Left: The cover of Bromley’s new book, Relaxed Elegance.
HOME CAN SPRING ETERNAL
ART PROVIDES AN OPPORTUNITY FOR GREEN PASTURES YEAR ROUND
I ALWAYS LOOK FORWARD TO SPRING and each year I’m disappointed. I’ve said before, that while I love Kansas City, “No one lives here for the weather.” I found that art featuring nature can be something of a reprieve. Fortunately, we are headed into sunnier days. But if the sogginess and often chilliness of spring is bringing you down, the answer may be art.
Yes, I know, for me art is the answer to just about anything, but we are so fortunate to have a breadth and depth of artists and their work here in town. We are lucky as well to be able to access great art at reasonable prices.
One of my favorite examples is Emily Johnson’s small works. Represented by Blue Gallery, Johnson’s Vista series seems to capture the engaging quilt-like aerial landscape of the plains. In addition, her smaller work is approachable even if you’re considering multiples. bluegalleryonline.com
GROWNative!
Two FREE events in partnership with the Missouri Department of Conservation, Grow Native! and Missouri Prairie Foundation
Anita B. Gorman Conservation
Discovery Center
4750 Troost Ave
Kansas City, MO 64110
816-759-7300
Native Plant Sale Saturday April 19 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM
The Missouri Prairie Foundation (MPF) is on site for a spring native plant sale. Grow Native! vendors will be on hand with a wide selection of native flowers, grasses, sedges, shrubs and trees for a variety of growing conditions.
SPECIAL EVENT: Go Native Saturday April 2 6 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM
Come celebrate Missouri’s native plants! Join us for a day of learning about the wide variety of native plants that can suit your landscaping needs.
Scan this QR Code or visit us on the web at mdc.mo.gov/events to find out more about these and other free events!
Emily Johnson’s Vista 44 (top) and Vista 45.
D.V. Chernov IN CONVERSATION WITH
words by Cindy Hoedel
His father is Ukrainian, his mother is Jewish, he was raised in Russia and emigrated alone to Kansas City at 17—the year Gorbachev was overthrown and tanks rolled into Red Square. Crime writer D.V. Chernov (Dennis to friends and family) has written three novels. The first, Commissar, was a finalist for the Hemingway International Book Awards. His latest book, Cold Trace, the second in the Nick Severs Mysteries series is a finalist for the Chanticleer International Book Awards (winners will be announced this month.)
Chernov graduated from high school in Ukraine and earned a bachelor’s and master’s degree in English from Truman State University. He lives in Parkville with his wife, Laura, and their daughter, Bayla, 20. Writing happens early in the morning before he turns to his full-time day job working remotely for a global high-tech company.
IN Kansas City recently spoke with Chernov by phone about his Russian childhood, his Ukrainian/Russian/Soviet identity, cultural stereotypes, how history informs his writing and ethical issues raised by AI.
Why is it that nobody likes crime, but everybody loves crime fiction?
I think for many readers it’s about the thrill of solving the mystery alongside the book’s detective. A well-crafted plot can make the process into an enjoyable puzzle. But I also think finding out “whodunit” is only a part of the intrigue. I think finding out “why” adds a whole other layer. And while the justice system does not care much about the motives, I believe readers do. Compelling characters are like people—they are products of their pasts and of their environments. It’s
important to give readers some insight into why the characters act or think a certain way. In Commissar and the Nick Severs Mysteries series, character psychology plays a key role.
You can do your day job and your writing from anywhere, so why do you make your home in Kansas City?
My wife’s family is from here, and we love the small feel of Parkville. English Landing Park is phenomenal and the lovely Park University campus is as well. We love all the trails and the proximity to Kansas City while having this abundance of nature and beautifully designed spaces that allow you to experience nature.
What was your childhood in Russia like?
I was born in Omsk, a significant city in the southwest of Siberia. When I was around eight or nine, we moved to the Caucasus Mountains, on the west side of Russia, close to Ukraine and the Black Sea.
What was Omsk like and what were the Caucasus like?
Omsk was a major city on a big river. It was an industrial hub in Siberia and during the Russian Civil War, the time frame of my Commissar book, there was an opposition government set up in Omsk with anti-communist forces battling for control of the country in 1918 and ’19.
What was the weather like in Omsk?
When you say “Siberia” to people in the United States, they imagine snow-filled streets and bears roaming around and the sun never coming out. But Siberia is more than half of geographical Russia. Latitude-wise, it spans from China to the Arctic Circle. Omsk is on the very southern
fringe of that expanse, so it had four seasons. It got hot in the summer and cold and snowy in the winter. In winter the river would freeze and in spring people would gather to watch the ice break—that was the big festival of spring.
The Caucasus was quite a juxtaposition. We went from this major city with a million population to a very small place. My parents worked for the Soviet Academy of Science. They supported one of the astronomical observatories in the mountains. We were up in a tiny town with a population of maybe 500, mostly scientists, teachers, and essential service providers.
In typical Soviet fashion they plopped some big five-to-seven-story high-rises right into the side of the mountain. You walk out of that building and you can start hiking. And I did. That gave me a love of nature that I still have today.
How did you wind up in Kansas City?
I don’t know if you are familiar with the program “People to People International.” It originated in Kansas City.
I know it was founded by President Dwight Eisenhower to encourage peace through cultural exchanges and was later run by his granddaughter Mary Eisenhower.
Yes. We lived in a scientific community, and this was at a time when there was a thaw in relations between the Soviet Union and America. Gorbachev was in power. There were a lot of cultural exchanges happening. There was a relaxation of the old Cold War mentality.
So with People to People, we started an exchange program for American kids who wanted to come and study astronomy. They would come to a summer camp in our town and stay with scientists. We hosted several kids and teachers as well. It was a phenomenal opportunity. We had top scientists there, not just Russian but German, French, British.
It was a reciprocal exchange, so then I came and stayed in Kansas City.
Without your parents, at 17?
Yes. I wasn’t intending to stay. I came to study and eventually ended up working here and life just kind of happened.
Did you go straight to Truman State University?
No. Because there are only 11 grades in the Russian school system, they put me in 12th grade at Liberty High School. I didn’t mind. It was a great opportunity to assimilate into the culture and learn the language. I missed the beginning of the school term because that was 1991 and there was a coup in Russia. Gorbachev was ousted and there were tanks in Red Square. They froze all the flights, and I couldn’t get out of the country until October. I stayed with a wonderful family until I graduated, and it was time to go to college.
What did you do after college?
I ended up teaching at Truman State for a year and then I taught at Missouri Western State College in St. Joseph for three years. Then, I was looking for a change, so I joined Cerner and went into the high-tech world.
Where did you meet your wife? Is she Russian?
[Laughs] No, she’s not Russian. We met in Kansas City on match.com, so I’m dating myself there.
How often do you get back to Russia?
I don’t. I haven’t been back since I left. My parents ended up moving to Germany a few years after I came here, so I don’t have any living relatives left in Russia. And honestly, it’s a completely different country now. When I left it was the traditional Soviet Union with a socialist economy and socialist values. It had just gotten its first McDonald’s.
What’s it like watching such big changes in your former country from over here?
It’s bewildering, of course, the magnitude of changes that have happened. But Russia is a country that is accustomed to change. The Soviet regime was only in place for about 70 years. Before that, you had almost two millennia of extreme monarchical autocracy. The Romanovs had been in power for about 300 years at the time of the Russian Revolution [1917], but you had all the wars. Unlike in the U.S. where we’ve enjoyed the relative stability of nobody invading us over the last couple of centuries, in Europe war is something most generations have witnessed. Russia went through tremendous change in 1917 with the Russian Revolution and the ensuing Russian Civil War.
Coming at the tail end of World War I, it gets forgotten that the Russian Revolution was considered such a threat to the West that the Allied Forces at the time—Britain, France, Canada, Japan and the U.S.—actually landed troops in Russia and were there for several years supporting the anti-communist forces in the Civil War. That was probably the only time in history when American soldiers engaged Russian soldiers in battle. That time was so pivotal, and I think it set the tone for a lot of the anti-West sentiment in Soviet/Russian rhetoric to this day.
You like to work history into your novels. Do you think Russian history can teach us things that apply to the world today?
Yeah. Looking at the period at the end of World War I and the Russian Revolution, I think we’re seeing a lot of the same conflicts replaying today. There was Russian and Ukrainian and German and British and American conflict in Ukraine back in 1918. Ukraine wanted independence in 1918. Russia didn’t want Ukraine to have independence but some of the western countries didn’t either.
We forget how recent some of the borders are in Europe. We kind of accept that these places have been there for centuries, but a lot of the countries in Europe, they’ve only been there since World War I ended. They didn’t exist. They were part of larger empires. Maps were drastically redrawn and not in a way that set us up for continued peace. I think if we approach the problem the same way we did back then, we’re going to get the same results.
Are you an American citizen?
Yes, since around 2012.
After living here for 35 years, how much do you feel like a Soviet, like a Russian or like an American? How do those identities coexist?
It’s such a complex question, you don’t even have any idea. It’s so easy to say, “I’m Russian.” What does that really mean? The Soviet Union stretched over 11 time zones. It had over 100 different nationalities, ethnicities, and languages. It was a tremendously complex world. Even the tsars struggled with it. There were always uprisings, and you had
to try to Russify newly founded countries that had been parts of the former Russian empire. Just like other imperial powers, you make your language official, and kids have to learn in that language. My Soviet passport identified me as Russian, but my mother was Jewish, and my father was Ukrainian.
When I think back to my youth in Russia, and when I read the news about the war, my heart breaks. But I don’t have a strong feeling of, “I am Russian” or “I am Ukrainian” or “I am Jewish.” It’s just devastating. I’ve been in the United States for most of my life at this point. It honestly feels like another lifetime. But there is still a connection—I know what it’s like to be living in that part of the world. I know what it’s like to speak the language and understand the values and eat the food—all those wonderful things. But I dream in English. Like many immigrants, my life is splintered into two parts, and they are not always in harmony with each other, in terms of how I feel about certain events.
Is it challenging to be Russian in the U.S., given Americans’ limited knowledge about other countries?
It can be, but most of the people I meet are extremely educated, and I don’t feel they have a strong prejudice against Russians. But it goes through periods—sometimes it’s not great and other times people don’t care.
Is it weird watching Netflix when Russian characters are usually villains?
That can be irksome, of course. Or you watch a movie where they could have cast a Russian or at least a Slavic actor as a protagonist and they chose not to. I think it’s probably typical in every culture, that they interpret in a way that makes sense to them. But there’s been over a century now of, one way or another, anti-Russian or anti-Soviet propaganda in American culture, just because it’s so different from the American way of life.
From the very first years, the Russian Revolution was seen as a threat. You had American companies advertising paper towels to factory owners (with the selling point being) if you offered your workers better hygiene in the restrooms, they wouldn’t revolt against you. [Laughs] The threat was perceived as very real, and it permeated the popular culture. I think it hasn’t changed that much. Back in the day (1919-1920), you had Palmer raids and then you had McCarthy hearings in the 1950s,
and then the Cold War for several decades didn’t help. In some ways we live in a world that’s very small and in some ways very fragmented. That’s an idea that interests me as an author.
Can you give an example of how the world is small, and how it is fragmented?
In my tech job, I’m talking to people in Germany, in Spain, in Italy almost every other day. It’s instant connection. And I think we all realize how small the world becomes when we have an epidemic outbreak, or we realize a cyber-crime here has been committed by someone in Slovakia or Belarus.
But I also think technology can move us farther apart. My daughter was just entering high school when Covid hit, so technology became the way she interacted with the world. It gave her some tools and abilities my wife and I didn’t have at her age, but it also took things away from her. We had just moved back from seven years in Colorado, and she didn’t get to go to that new school and be the new kid and learn to talk to people.
Another theme in your books is how human-to-human contact is declining with the advance of AI.
Yes. Did you know they now have AI dating companions? Instead of dating real people, people are choosing to subscribe to this app and that becomes their digital boyfriend or girlfriend. And I don’t judge. I think to each their own. But it’s an indication that in our society we’re becoming increasingly more comfortable with doing things on our own terms at the expense of a connection to another live human being.
Your protagonist, Nick Severs, is not on the cutting edge of technology and grapples with the pace of change brought on by AI and the ethics around it…
Absolutely. He’s a luddite. I think in some ways he’s like me. Because even though I’m in this world [of AI], I also see the appeal of just unplugging everything.
When you’re writing how do you keep from getting lost in the tech-y details to the detriment of pacing?
It was definitely an effort to make sure the story didn’t get bogged down
Books by D. V. Chernov: Commissar is a gripping historical spy thriller based on real events. Severed Echoes and Cold Trace are part of the Nick Severs Mystery series.
Ruby’s Lagoon
IN THE DEPTHS OF A RENOVATED MIDCENTURY-MODERN FAIRWAY HOME, AN UNASSUMING DOOR OPENS INTO A TIKI
WONDERLAND
‘‘Growing up in Florida, I was immersed in themed design. I’d go to Disney World and this Polynesian revue in Ft. Lauderdale—it’s called the Mai Kai. It just felt to me like themed design should be part of anyone’s normal life,” says Leslie Mark.
Leslie Mark runs the eponymous Kansas City interior design firm, Leslie Mark Studio. And it was just a matter of time before she’d create and build Ruby’s Lagoon, a fully immersive, head-to-toe themed bar that’s hiding in a former storage room in a midcentury-modern home.
Our home. Leslie is also my wife.
We’ve been married for more than a minute, so when she floated the idea of an in-home tiki bar, I knew she wasn’t intending to staple a sheet of bamboo to the wall and declare dominance. Whether she’s working on a new theater design for a national movie theater chain or a kitchen remodel for one of her residential clients, Leslie is Spinal Tap eleven. But
words by Darren Mark
photos by Aaron Leimkuehler
Vintage floats caught in fishnet soften and add color to the overhead lighting. Leslie found the mermaid on Ebay and painted it to resemble an 18th-century ship’s masthead (with red hair).
immersive design is where she evolves into her superhero’s alter-ego.
Ruby’s Lagoon is the nautical story we didn’t know we needed: abandoned pirate ship sinks into Mermaid Lagoon—which is unsurprisingly stocked with an alarming quantity of rum, Chartreuse, and who knows what else. I’ve been making tiki drinks for years, but always in borrowed spaces throughout the house. Ruby’s is a proper home for the cocktail program, and by “proper,” I mean one with an undulating stainless-steel ceiling, a cement reef molded to look like coral, and a wall of water framed through the ship’s starboard portholes. A suspended cluster of illuminated Japanese floats anchors the lighting scheme. And the designer’s self-portrait-like mermaid hovers over the patinaed copper bar top.
I know what you’re thinking: Perhaps we’ve had one too many of those drinks? Ask me again after that mermaid wakes up with a bandaged right ear.
“We want more from our interiors these days,” Leslie says. “I think a result of us all being more connected is that everything starts to feel the same. We influence each other creatively, and it’s hard to find uniqueness in that.” For her, themed design is a path toward originality. “All interior design is theming, but it’s usually more subtle. Midcentury modern or traditional—those are themes. Tropical theming, or any immersive design, hits you over the head with a very specific story, and that’s what I love about it. It’s meant to transport you outside of your every day.”
Immersive design is bewildering. It’s equal parts aesthetics, emotion, and magic, and when it works, it has an almost cinematic way of superseding reality—of creating a sense of wonder. That’s Ruby’s. It’s textbook escapism.
Leslie adds, “I love the contrast of stepping from a ‘serious’ home into a kitschy pirate bar. I think that’s really fun. I don’t ever want to take myself too seriously, and I think Ruby’s is a reflection of that. Interior design isn’t meant to solve the world’s problems. It’s meant to bring beauty and fun and comfort into our lives.”
That fun is infectious. There’s magic in it. And we’re excited to share it.
Track our Instagram adventures @rubyslagoonbar
THE IT LIST
Interior Design
Leslie Mark Studio lesliemark.studio
Ruby’s is named in honor of Darren’s grandfather, Ruby Kaplan, who played a role in Prohibition. In the ’30s, his older brother would drive them to Boston Harbor, when he and Ruby would pick up and haul back illegal Canadian whisky. When Prohibition was repealed, the Kaplans opened a liquor store on Beacon Hill.
Clockwise from top left: A pair of velvet shell-back loveseats that Leslie discovered online provide comfy seating. The “coral” wrapping the seating area are tree branches painted red. Encapsulated LED-lighted bubble wall panels evoke tranquil water flow. Undulating stainless steel applied to the ceiling magnifies the underwater effect. The couple’s collection of tiki mugs represent tiki bars they’ve visited throughout the U.S.
Jenny Vergara
21Dishes & Drink s
Othrough its food and drink, and in Kansas City, that means seeking out the perfect combination of craft cocktails and exceptional dining. This town is a haven for those who appreciate a well-balanced drink made with house-infused spirits, fresh ingredients, and a touch of creativity—paired with a meal that’s just as thoughtfully prepared.
Kansas City may have gotten its name “Paris of the Plains” from newspaper reporters who were describing the loose rules around liquor that gave rise to illicit saloons and speakeasies operating in Kansas City during Prohibition, but the name has stuck, and it’s reflective of the cocktail scene that exists in this town today.
This city’s cocktail culture has evolved beyond the basics, with bartenders crafting drinks that showcase both classic techniques and bold innovations. Whether you’re sipping a smoked old fashioned in a cozy speakeasy, enjoying a seasonal gin cocktail on a sunny patio, or indulging in a perfectly executed Negroni at a chef-driven restaurant, Kansas City’s bar scene delivers.
But the best part? You don’t have to choose between great drinks and great food. Some of the most exciting places to eat in Kansas City
borhood spots serving inventive small plates to upscale dining rooms where mixologists work alongside chefs to create perfectly paired menus, these places prove that a thoughtfully crafted drink can be just as essential to the dining experience as the food itself.
So, whether you’re a cocktail connoisseur or simply someone who loves a good meal with an equally good drink in hand, Kansas City is the place to be. The only question is: What are you ordering first?
Bacaro Primo | bacaroprimo.com
This Italian American restaurant from Todd Schulte and Cory Dannehl, the same owners of the sea-faring restaurant and tiny bar, Earl’s Premier, is located in the Crestwood Shops. There’s a satisfying menu of Sunday supper favorites, including pizza, pasta, and some meatier entrées for both lunch and dinner. The handsome bar offers Italian wines, beers, and cocktails that will have you celebrating aperitivo like the Italians do.
EAT: Paccheri pasta with Bolognese sauce, ricotta cheese, Parmigiano-Reggiano, and basil
DRINK: Moderna Spritz with seasonal fruit, aperitivo, and sparkling Lambrusco red wine
photo by aaron leimkuehler
Paccheri pasta with Bolognese sauce from Bacaro Primo.
Top to bottom: Salmon crudo from The Campground. The charcuterie plate from Cheval. Xiao Long Bao from Chewology. A classic Negroni from Extra Virgin.
The Campground | thecampgroundkc.com
As patio season is upon us, owners of The Campground, Christopher Ciesiel and Cristin Llewellyn, have doubled their seating by reimaging their parking lot as a campsite. Take that and pair it with a clever craft-cocktail program and the culinary stylings of their new chef, Donovan Stabler, (who has cooked at both Novel and Corvino) and you have the right kind of “roughing it.”
EAT: Salmon crudo served with parsnip, gooseberries, and shiso
DRINK: New Home made with Midori, Basque “Chartreuse,” yuzu vodka, unaged apple brandy, Licor 43, and lime
Cheval | chevalonmain.com
This tiny Main Street bar is located across the street from Tailleur, the French bistro, and one door down from the bakery and lunch spot, Enchanté, all owned and operated by Heather White. Whether stopping in for a before-din ner drink or for happy hour with friends, this quaint spot offers excellent cock tails, wine, and enough food to take the edge off.
EAT: Charcuterie plate comprised of a fine mix of meat, cheese, and colorful condiments along with French macarons for dessert
DRINK: The Baked Manhattan made with Enchante almond croissant-in fused cognac, rye whiskey, amaro, and bitters
Chewology | chewologykc.com
Having found a home kitchen inside Torn Label Brewing Co.’s Public House, the chefs Kendra Valentine and Pablo Muñoz, along with Roger Avila, are changing the way we understand Mexican cuisine one taco at a time. They make their own masa daily with heirloom Mexican corn created in small batches using a stone mill.
EAT: Xiao Long Bao or pork soup dumplings
DRINK: Sake-Wrench cocktail made with Lucky Dog Maneki Wanko sake, Bronson’s milk punch, salted plum-lemon bitters, and soda water
Extra Virgin | extravirginkc.com
Something about Extra Virgin always feels like you’ve just walked into the best party. The crafted cocktails and wine are flowing, and the kitchen is putting out a wide variety of Mediterranean small plates for you to have a little taste of it all. Michael and Nancy Smith are hosting this party nightly in Kansas City’s Crossroads, and you’re invited to join them on the covered patio or inside the buzzy bar and dining room.
EAT: Cucumber Salad with cucumber, peanuts, onions, cilantro-scallions and cumin dressing along with chicken spiedini with herbed breadcrumbs, garlic, and nine-spiced Lebanese tomato sauce
DRINK: A classic Negroni
Top to bottom: A margarita from Fern Bar. Crab cakes from Ground Control. The Beverly Bane cocktail from the Hey! Hey! Club. Fillet-o-Fish sandwich from Lucky Boys.
Fern Bar | fernbarkc.com
Bryan Arri’s year old sugarcane- and agave-focused cocktail bar features drinks made with alcohol from small, artisan rum, tequila and mezcal producers. The Latin-inspired food menu matches that energy, featuring tacos, a crunchwrap, ribs, and quesadillas. This is the perfect spot to stop in for just one drink or for the rest of the evening.
EAT: Meat and cheese board with cured chorizo, four-month aged Manchego cheese, and Marcona almonds
DRINK: Fern Bar Margarita made with Libelula Joven, Tapatio Blanco, house curacao, agave, lime
Ground Control | thebelfrylounge.com
Celina Tio’s tiny basement bar inside The Belfry, Ground Control, serves as the tasting room and cocktail laboratory for her own spirits line, Annx Spirits Co. A few delicious “cheffy” dishes are also on the menu. Tio hosts monthly coursed dinners that highlight Tio’s culinary skills.
EAT: Tio’s famous crab cakes or her wagyu smash burger
DRINK: Black Star Boulevardier made with Moon Age bourbon, Amaro di Angostura, Poire Williams brandy, walnut liqueur, walnut bitters
Hey!
Hey!
Club | jriegerco.com/heyheyclub
Located in the basement of the J. Rieger & Co. distillery in the East Bottoms, the Hey! Hey! Club name was adapted from the iconic club that existed during Kansas City’s infamous jazz age, and as a nod to Robert Altman’s movie, Kansas City, from which the sign in their entry was once a prop. This local connection to film is the inspiration for the cocktails being shaken within. Both the beverage director, Derek Branham, and the culinary director, Charles d’Abling, and their collective teams shoot for the stars and reach them.
EAT: Fried green tomatoes with spinach cream, tomato jam, and Parmesan cheese
DRINK: Beverly Bane made with Cupreata mezcal, Manzanilla sherry, tomato, strawberry, lime, and saline
Lucky Boys | instagram.com/luckyboyskc
Justin Norcross, Dan Myers, and Keenan Nichols are the luckiest. The three partners opened Lucky Boys in Kansas City’s West Bottoms almost a decade ago, with Norcross opening Fortunati Pizza next door a few years ago. The bartenders here will happily pour you a beer, a well drink, or a shot or any combination of the three.
EAT: Sandwiches, including the Louisville Hot Chicken, Fillet-o-Fish, and cheeseburger with fries, or a pie from Fortunati Pizza
DRINK: Gin and tonic or an ice-cold beer
Top to bottom: Crab rangoon from The Mercury Room. Coconut Curry Shrimp from Mesob Restaurant & Rhum Bar. Ahi Tuna Crudo from Mineral Lounge. Aloo Kulcha from OfCourse Kitchen & Catering.
The Mercury Room | themercuryroom.com
Mercury is the only common metal that’s liquid at room temperature, which makes it the perfect name for the starry, rooftop cocktail bar in the Kansas City Crossroads with a breathtaking view of downtown.The owners of Exit Strategy, David and Noelle Manica and Christian Moscoso, are known for building beautiful bars with food and drink to match.
EAT: Crab Rangoon filled with snow crab, scallions, Thai curry aioli, and chili oil, and a half-dozen raw oysters with mignonette and lemon
DRINK: Dharma made with Thai rum, reposado tequila, purple basil, soursop, kumquat, calamansi, and cilantro
Mesob Restaurant & Rhum Bar | mesobkc.com
Although chef-owner, Cherven Desauguste, and his business partner, Mehret Tesfamariam,have closed the short-lived Northland location of their Caribbean meets Ethiopian restaurant Mesob, the Midtown location at 3601 Broadway is still open and serving up the bold flavors of the two cultures the two owners love to cook the most. Pair that food with the sophisticated characteristics of premium aged rhums, and you will feel transported.
EAT: Coconut Curry Shrimp made with black tiger shrimp,coconut curry sauce, sweet peas, cabbage, baby carrots, and potatoes served with Jasmine rice, or get the Ethiopian vegetarian platter that comes with a combination of red lentils, yellow lentils, collard greens, potato, cabbage and comes with a salad and injera.
DRINK: Enjoy a rhum flight and get three one-ounce pours from a single maker in a Rhum making part of the world
Mineral Lounge | mineralkc.com
This intimate bar is run by the management team from Tannin Wine Bar & Kitchen led by Barry Tunnell, the general manager and wine director. Located on Broadway, steps from the Kauffman Center for Performing Arts, the lounge is serving food, wine, and cocktails inspired by the Mediterranean. The meaningful small plates menu from the chef Brian Aaron includes duck confit rillette, whipped Hemme Brothers’quark cheese plate with honey, and a carrot salad.
EAT: Ahi Tuna Crudo with an arugula,caper,and olive salad and the Moroccan Carrot Salad
DRINK: Mandarin Spritz made with Il Gusto di Amalfi Mandarino, cava, Mineragua sparkling water, and thyme
Of Course Kitchen & Catering | ofcoursekc.com
Harnessing the flavors of owner and executive chef Swetha Newcomb’s southern India heritage and using them to season American ingredients continues to be her superpower, because people are still buzzing about her restaurant located in the southernmost reaches of Overland Park.
EAT: Aloo Kulcha,a potato-and-cheese-stuffed naan, with curry leaf gremolata, Szechuan peppercorns, and golden saffron crab butter
DRINK: Pear Of Hearts made with pear-infused bourbon, rye whiskey, yuzu caramel, pimentos, and cardamom bitters
Top to bottom: Barrel-Aged Old Square from Rye in Leawood. Caramel chocolate bar from Songbird. Satay from Triune. Hanger steak from Union on the Hill.
Rye in Leawood | ryekc.com
Rye in Leawood was the first location for Colby and Megan Garrelts, and from the moment it opened, the long bar that runs the length of the restaurant has been a popular hub for happy-hour hangs that turn into dinner discussions. Rye has the full package, complete with crafted cocktails and a menu filled with home-cooking goodness by the executive chef, Ryan Williams, and ending with a slice of pie made by pastry chef Keara Masson.
EAT: Pork Milanese served with linguine, oyster mushrooms, broccolini, brown-butter caper sauce, charred lemon, and chili oil
DRINK: Barrel-Aged Old Square made with Union Horse rye whiskey, Union Horse Rolling Standard four-grain whiskey, Rastignac VS Cognac, Dolin vermouth Rouge, Benedictine, Angostura, and Peychaud’s Bitters with a flamed orange
Songbird | corvino.com/songbird
Songbird, the cool and casual cocktail lounge by Michael and Christina Cor vino, is located inside Corvino Supper Club. It’s a good time, offering a wide range of exceptional cocktails, low-to-no-alcohol beverages, and a delicious food menu to complement it all. Table reservations are available, but most of the seating is for walk-ins.
EAT: Chicken-fried snails with black garlic and parsley and their now famous caramel chocolate bar for dessert
DRINK: Golden Hour, a low-alcohol cocktail made with the saffron-hued French liqueur, Suze, molasses, pomegranate, and bubbles
Triune
| triunekc.com
Triune is a stylish but casual, come-as-you-are spot that’s priced right for everyday dining but feels special enough for almost any occasion. Owner Steven Blakey and the executive chef, Rodolfo Rodriguez, along with the bar manager, Evelyn Brock, are making their own mark on the Westside with their international selection of small plates and craveable cocktails.
EAT: Satay made with peanut-butter marinated chicken, seven-chile mole sauce, and cilantro, or the Cubano Sliders with mojo-roasted pork and quick pickles on a house brioche roll
DRINK: Cloud Nine, a zero-alcohol cocktail made with Seedlip spice, hibiscus syrup, coconut, and mint
Union on the Hill | uniononthehill.com
It’s hard to argue with experience, and that’s something chef-owner George Atsangbe has accumulated over his 40-year career as a corporate chef at Houlihan’s and Bread and Butter Concepts restaurants before finally opening up his own place. The central location and food and beverage program here make this a natural spot to hit up for dinner on your way home from work.
EAT: Hanger Steak with rosemary steak butter and bacon jam, served with truffle Parmesan fries and garlic aioli
DRINK: Union old-fashioned made with Jefferson’s bourbon, Lapsang Souchong syrup, and old-fashioned bitters
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Verdigris | verdigrisbar.com
One of Leawood’s prettiest craft cocktail bars, Verdigris, located in the Park Place shopping center, has rolled out a thoughtfully developed food menu that’s almost as popular as its creative cocktail menu. This is a place where you can drink and dine inside at the luxurious bar or outside on the covered patio.
EAT: Arancini filled with carbonara risotto and topped with a cured egg, Parmesan cheese, and lemon pepper aioli
DRINK: Kantu cocktail made with Peruvian agave, pisco, dragon fruit, acidified blood orange, and salt
Vita’s Place | vitasplace.com
Ryan and Jenny Sciara’s cozy wine bar in the Crestwood Shops is the perfect bookend for their wine shop, Underdog Wine Co. This convivial neighborhood spot is the place to settle in for a fantastic glass of wine or a wine-inspired cocktail and some meaningful small plates and dessert.
EAT: Serrano ham, Piparra peppers, Espelette peppers, and pistachios served with focaccia and a slice of Burnt Basque cheesecake for dessert
DRINK: La Dolce Vita made with Licor 43, Combier orange liqueur, apricot nectar, Prosecco float, and Luxardo cherry
Waldo Thai | waldothai.com
When Teddy and Pam Liberda’s restaurant empire grew to three different concepts—Muni, Buc Tui BBQ and Waldo Thai—they used it as an opportunity to turn Waldo Thai into a small-plates hot spot. All of your favorite dishes are now served in smaller, easily sharable plates and combination platters, along with fun, flavorful cocktails. Look for the Lanna section of the menu, showcasing the cuisine of northern Thailand, where Pam grew up.
EAT: Thum Kanoon made with jackfruit, pork, curry paste, cherry tomatoes, makrut lime leaf, fried garlic, and fried pork skin
DRINK: Sake Sai Moo cocktail with brandy, Makrut lime and lemongrass syrup, white wine, and sparkling sake
Westport Cafe | westportcafeandbar.com
This modern Parisian bistro located in the heart of Westport has continued to evolve in the most interesting ways since Kevin Mouhot, Romain Monnoyeur, and Nicolas Mermet put their stamp on the place, expanding the food and drink menu beyond just the usual French bistro classics.
EAT: Lamb kefta with tahini sauce, pickled onions, olives, and dates
DRINK: Missing Link made with Old Tom gin, Salers, Lillet, and pickled blackberries
to
Kantu cocktail from Verdigris. La Dolce Vita cocktail from Vita’s Place. Thum Kanoon from Waldo Thai. Lamp kefta from Westport Cafe.
Tradition with a Twist
“JUST ONE CHANGE” LEADS TO A WHOLE-HOUSE FRESHENING
When S arah and Jonathan Yen agreed that their beloved house in Fairway, Kansas, was no longer meeting the needs of their family, they knew that they wanted their next house to be nearby. They were thrilled to find a home that was a perfect fit. But as with most new homeowners, as much as they loved the house, they could see that
words by Patricia O’Dell
photos by Aaron Leimkuehler
Above: Nest Interiors designers Katy Cassaw, left, and Kat Benson. Right: In the blue-hued living room, a gallery wall of family photos are bordered with broad white mats and crisp black frames.
Dining room chairs are upholstered in a deep sapphire velvet, while trim, cabinetry, and wainscoting are painted Benjamin Moore Tarrytown Green to complement the Porter Teleo wallcovering.
changes would be needed to make it suit their family.
“We wanted to finish the attic to create a space for our children to play and create, update the mudroom, as well as create a guest suite,” Sarah Yen says. “We are very close to our families who live out of town and wanted them to have them here a lot. We wanted to have a space where they would feel comfortable when they visit.”
The couple wanted to keep the traditional feel of the house, but they were looking for an updated aesthetic. With these priorities in mind, the family moved into the house in 2019. Sarah knew she wanted help on the project, so she contacted Nest Interiors. “We needed someone to help us with the entire scope of the remodel. I followed Nest Interiors on Instagram and liked their aesthetic. I thought Katy and Kat would be a great choice.”
After meeting in person, she knew they had found a great addition to their team. Construction started in February of 2020. “And then two weeks later the whole world shut down,” Yen says. “It made us rethink how intentional we wanted to be in the planning, and it allowed us to consider other areas we might want to change.”
Their introspection and insight led to a broader proj-
Above: The kitchen cabinets were in place when the Yens purchased the home. Nest updated it with new tile backsplashes and marble counters from Dimensional Stoneworks. Right: Classic, white-painted Chinese Chippendale chairs surround a rustic trestle table in the breakfast area.
This page: Two views of the family room. Left: A comfy sectional faces both the fireplace and the television. The midcentury-modern armchair in a bold floral packs a color punch. Below: A windowed niche frames another area for games or snacks.
ect scope. In addition to personalizing the décor, they decided to update the electrical systems, add lighting where they found they needed it, finish the basement, and add a pool. Working with Nest allowed them to expand their aesthetic as well.
“When we first bought the house I thought, ‘We have a traditional style,’ so I was planning a very traditional house. But when Katy did her first mock ups, she helped me see things differently. It was traditional, but updated. I love pattern and I love texture, and she understood that from the very beginning,” Yen says.
Instead of three to four months lead time, they were looking at six to
Above: In the primary bedroom, custom curtains are a Designers Guild fabric; bed linens are a mix of custom and West Elm. Right, top: Katy Cassaw was able to repurpose curtains from the Yens’ previous home in the guest bedroom suite. Right, middle: Gillpatrick Woodworks fashioned the vanities in the primary bath. Sarah’s includes a lower makeup vanity. Right, bottom: The commodious tub in surrounded by matching paneling. Opposite, inset: A trio of Visual Comfort pendants light the hall leading to the primary suite.
nine months or more because of the pandemic. Nest was able to use the furniture the family already had, in addition to adding new furniture, curtains, and accessories as they moved through the project.
“Fortunately, Nest had a good team on the project that would carry us through,” Yen says. “They were able to pivot with us as supply chains were massively disrupted. This is where Katy was so great. I could see that she had read us so well. The rooms were traditional and practical where they needed to be, but also very glamorous.”
In addition to Sarah and Jonathan loving the house, their kids are happy there as well. “Sometimes they tell me that they miss our last house, but they love having their own space on the third floor,” Yen says.
While no one could have predicted at the beginning of the project that the world would shut down a few weeks later, the couple sees the project as a very successful and positive one. “Nest Interiors was able to create a sanctuary for us during a time of great uncertainty,” Yen says. “I don’t feel like we compromised any design choices; this house pays homage to its traditional roots but gives it a fresh twist that is very much to my style.”
Architect Piper-Wind Architects piper-wind.com
Builder Gahagan Eddy gahagan-eddy.com
Interior Design Nest Interiors nestkc.com
with too much tech-y detail. I always tell people it’s not a techno thriller. It doesn’t get super geeky. But I do want readers to think about our overreliance on technology and start considering the potential risks of things going too far too fast.
And crime is a good lens to look at technology through. Criminals are early adopters of emerging technologies. It gives them a competitive edge. There is less regulation and oversight over new technologies, and law enforcement is always lagging behind, because they need equipment and permissions and training.
Who do you like to read?
I really enjoyed Stieg Larsson’s The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. That struck a really good balance between bringing in some of those tech-y details to give it authenticity and a contemporary feel, but not enough that it’s going to become outdated in ten years. The technology in the book is just a prop.
Your books have received positive reviews and been finalists for prestigious awards. What would it take for you to become the next John Grisholm or Tom Clancy?
I’d love to figure that out. I publish through an indie publisher. Compared to being at one of the Big Five—Penguin, Random House, and the other publishing conglomerates that own the vast majority of titles in airport bookstores—there are upsides and downsides. As an indie,
you do pretty much everything yourself, but the flip side is artistic freedom and control. For me, writing is an art. I don’t set out wanting to write the highest grossing book.
Where do you see your writing going from here? Do you want to keep the Commissar and Nick Severs series going, or do you have another book in mind with a new character?
Commissar is the first in a trilogy and I’m almost finished with the second book. The characters in Commissar and Cold Trace end up being connected. Claire’s great-great grandmother in Cold Trace is Anna, the main character in Commissar. I will possibly explore a generational saga about how Anna and William eventually end up in America. Claire’s uncle in Cold Trace was a domestic terrorist in the 1960s. It’s interesting to me to look at what being a revolutionary means. Judgment-free, I’m curious about the mentality when you’re doing it and if that changes with hindsight.
You hint at that in Cold Trace, the question of where you draw the line in a revolution.
Yeah, where do you draw the line? Is it OK to draw a line? Or do we see people who draw a line as people who don’t have what it takes to bring about change?
Interview condensed and minimally edited for clarity.
FREEDOM EQUALITY CIVILITY HEALTH COURAGE
INTEGRITY OPTIMISM PROGRESS AMBITION
ACCOUNTABILITY HISTORY HAPPINESS AMERICA DEMOCRACY VISION EDUCATION
PEACE PATRIOTISM HONOR DETERMINATION
DUTY UNITY SERVICE COMMUNITY LIBERTY
FREEDOM EQUALITY CIVILITY HEALTH COURAGE
THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2025
HONORARY CHAIRS
CARLA AND DANNY O’NEILL
EVENT CO-CHAIRS
POLLY AND JEFFREY KRAMER, M.D.
BRIDGET MCCANDLESS, M.D. AND DENNIS TAYLOR
HONOREE
THE HON. KATHLEEN SEBELIUS
KEYNOTE SPEAKERS
MELISSA FITZGERALD
MARY MCCORMACK
Cast members and co-authors of What’s Next: A Backstage Pass to The West Wing
PRESENTING SPONSOR
by Jenny Vergara
Reservation for One CRU BISTRO & BOTTLES
photos by Aaron Leimkuehler
Brookside is a family-friendly neighborhood filled with picture-book pretty homes. With its own bustling business district, people in this neighborhood walk to shop its retail, grocery, and liquor stores along with a wide variety of comfortable, casual, come-as-you-are restaurants.
For years, Michael Forbes Bar & Grill was one of them, located in a primo corner spot on 63rd Street, in the heart of Brookside’s business district. But when one door closes, another always opens, especially when talking about restaurant real estate, and this coveted space in
Brookside was quickly snapped up by Avery Bailey and Hannah Koenig, a married couple who also happens to live in Brookside. They had been working at Bella Napoli when they heard the location was on the market. Looking for just the right space to make their own restaurant dreams a reality, they never imagined they would find the exact right spot in their own backyard.
Cru Bistro & Bottles is the couple’s first restaurant together, even though they have been employed in the hospitality industry for years. In fact, the couple met when they both were at República, a former Spanish tapas restaurant on the Country Club Plaza. More recently the cou-
Cru Bistro & Bottles features an entire wine wall stocked with bottles to buy.
ple has also been leading wine-tasting tours through Italy, which they plan to continue to do at Cru, expanding their trips to other popular wine growing regions, including France. Their love of wine and contacts in the wine world are also the inspiration for the name of the restaurant. Cru is a word used in French wine-making that literally means “growth,” and refers to a great or superior growing site for a vineyard.
In fact, wine is a big part of the overall business plan for the restaurant, which includes retail sales by the bottle. Bailey is clearly the “wine guy.” (He showed me a gorgeous raised-relief map of a wine region in Italy he was gifted by one of his favorite Italian winemakers that he wants to frame and hang on the wall in the restaurant.) He is focused on building not only the restaurant wine list but curating a separate bythe-bottle list that guests can view and order online to pick up at the restaurant, or they can just walk in and select a favorite bottle to take home. The wine selection right now is mostly Italian and French. Bailey is committed to carrying only small, family-run, boutique wineries, which he’ll expand into California and other winemaking regions.
Koenig was responsible for the dramatic—and much-needed— update in the look and feel of the room. It’s a pristine shade of white and features an entire wine wall stocked with bottles to buy. A breezy chandelier and a titian-hued velvet curtain add color and warmth. It all feels properly refreshed, modern and airy, now that the heavy booths are replaced with white-tablecloth seating. Up a few steps from the dining room are a completely remodeled cocktail bar and a private dining room just beyond.
Koenig’s brother, JT Koenig-Riley, longtime bar manager at Tom’s Town Distilling, stepped in to create the cocktail menu and train the bar staff. Thomas Luna, an alumnus from Corvino Supper Club, is the chef de cuisine, and he and the kitchen manager, Krista Harr, are executing a delightful menu of culinary surprises coupled with some serious fine-dining technique. In the front of the house, Brooke Emerson is the head of hospitality for Cru. She comes to this party with management experience from Room 39. All and all, this is an impressive team of young professionals who know the assignment and are delivering it with warmth, skill, and passion.
Although it has been a minute since Brookside has offered a white-tablecloth dining experience, Bailey assured me that they want to be both a casual neighborhood spot that welcomes kids and a nicer date-night spot. Smart move, if they can pull it off.
However, when that house-made tomato soup is a medley of smoked San Marzano tomatoes, herbs de Provence, and coconut cream, you begin to see the genius of Cru’s menu. They are serving comforting favorites that are interesting and unexpected in the best possible way.
The menu isn't overwhelming, and the dishes seem thoughtful and deliberate, with options for all types of diners and portion sizes that were positively spot on. I am so grateful not to have to carry a to-go box out of a restaurant. I could actually finish my meal in the moment when it is freshest.
Beginning with a practically perfect old-fashioned, I ordered a glass of Gobelsburg Gruner Veltliner, served as a sensible five-ounce pour.
Enjoy Creative Classics at Kansas City’s Historic Castle
Flavor IN KC
The wine list also features a couple of dealcoholized German wines—a white and a rosé—that more than satisfy the craving for wine without the alcohol quite impressively.
The tempting appetizer menu includes baked Green Dirt Farm sheep’s-milk cheese, steak tartare, and chicken liver mousse, but ultimately the pavé potatoes came to the table as three small, perfect squares of thinly layered, baked, and compressed potato slices fried golden brown and topped witha dollop of crème fraiche, caviar, and chives. It was hot and crispy on the outside, creamy in the middle, and finished with a pleasing saline pop of caviar. Every bite was completely decadent.
I ordered the wedge salad next, ready for something refreshing. Who doesn’t love a classic wedge with blue cheese, and this is not that. It is better. This is a slightly Asian version of a wedge. It starts with the
Clockwise from top left: Bistro tables line the sidewalk. The Les Deux charcuterie plate includes a curated selection of meat, cheese, and accoutrements. The room is casual, but fresh and airy. Fish en Papillote is made with steamed grouper, carrots, and snow peas in a leek soubise and topped with trout roe.
same chunk of cold iceberg lettuce, but this is resting flat-side down atop a pool of herbaceous, buttermilk-flavored green goddess salad dressing. The wedge is painted with the same dressing, which might even have a touch of matcha in it for color and flavor. It’s sprinkled with white and black sesame seeds with a faint dusting of nori and Sichuan peppercorn powder to tingle the palate. Absolutely a most creative and delicious salad.
The timing of the meal was perfection from start to finish. As soon as the salad plate was cleared the entrées arrived. I ordered a high/low combination of the fried chicken sandwich and the fish en papillote , or fish cooked in paper, one of the most expensive entrées on the menu at $32.
Chicken thighs are the base of the fried chicken sandwich, making it thin, juicy, and oh, so flavorful. The breaded and fried boneless chicken thigh was sandwiched within a soft brioche bun and topped with chilled iceberg lettuce, tangy pickles, and the slow burn of red chili aioli. Served with thinly cut French fries, it’s crunchy, soft, tangy, and just a bit spicy.
The fish en papillote came to the table still wrapped in the paper it was cooked in, revealing just enough to peek in to discover a fist-sized piece of flakey, white grouper steamed with sweet bits of carrots and snow peas, swimming in a subtle, springtime leek soubise sauce that smelled divine. This gentle cooking method is perfect for fish, because it’s almost impossible to overcook it. The dish was finished with plump, orange pearls of trout roe and a slice of lime to add a pop of acid to this
creamy, dreamy fish dish. A pescatarian dream dish—it was soft, subtle, and drenched in flavorful sauce, with the sprinkle of trout roe serving as nature’s own salt on this dish.
Ordering dessert can feel like a splurge, but it would be a shame to pass on this list of sweet treats. There’s a little something for everyone.
The poached pears might look like the simplest thing on the menu, but the dish was the most complex. A generous mound of rich, white-chocolate mousse was sprinkled with chopped pieces of redwine poached Anjou pears redolent with a hint of vinegar. That was nicely balanced with a few drops of saline. A crunch of crushed candied honeycomb ornaments this soft, delicate dish that packed a dizzy and delightful flavor punch.
The lemon tart, made with a Biscoff cookie crust, was more familiar. Filled with a creamy blend of lemon curd and coconut milk, the coconut milk softened the tart bite of the lemon. A circular drizzle of cranberry gel added color. Three fresh cranberries rolled in sugar finished the plate.
The food and beverage program at Cru Bistro & Bottles feels fresh and exciting, especially plunked down in the middle of Brookside, with familiar dishes being reimagined in ways that hold true to their origins, yet veer off in exciting new ways. Cru has casual come-as-you-are vibes, but the wine selection, service, and dishes say date-night dining.
If this is what we have to look forward to from the next wave of restaurant hospitality talent in this city, then I am so grateful to have a front row seat. crukc.com
by Jenny Vergara
photo by Bridget Chang
In Your Cocktail
JJ’S RESTAURANT
Tounderstand the love that Kansas City has for JJ’s restaurant, you must begin at the beginning. In 1985, owner Jimmy Frantzé purchased JJ Malane’s from his former business partner, who was also the saloon’s namesake. His partner left, but the double J’s stayed, and a West Plaza fine-dining institution was born.
Like the Country Club Plaza’s architecture, JJ’s original location was a low slung, Spanish-style building. The brick building had a colorful clay tile roof, large picture windows, and maroon awnings. The bar was always jam-packed with people, and it tiered down into the
warm dining room. The original menu was relaxed and unfussy, but upscale, supported by an incredible award-winning wine list built by Frantzé and Kansas City sommelier Matt Nichols. The whole place had a very L.A. vibe, which was always part of its special sauce. Of course, everyone looked forward to seeing Frantzé working the dining room while his hospitality team made sure your dining experience was simply perfect.
By 2005, a massive office and hotel project called the West Edge broke ground across the street from JJ’s restaurant, taking up the scarce street parking and creating an eyesore in full view of the restaurant diners. It was a devastating blow to JJ’s once bustling business. Eventually, the West Edge project stalled out and stopped, and a new project, Plaza Vista, took over the site to build the new headquarters for Polsinelli law firm.
Just as the Plaza Vista project was starting to wrap up in 2013, bringing an end to the eight-year construction slump for JJ’s, a tragic explosion from a natural gas leak blew up the restaurant, killing JJ’s server Megan Cramer and injuring several other restaurant employees. JJ’s restaurant was effectively leveled in the blast. The site still sits empty 12 years later.
Yet it was the tragic ending of JJ’s first location that led to the beautiful beginning of its second one, when Frantzé and his brother, David, were presented with the suggestion to reopen JJ’s restaurant in Plaza Vista. It made good business sense, the 4,800-square-foot restaurant space is in a prime spot just off the lobby, with a cozy bar and separate dining room, along with a particularly stunning and spacious outdoor patio. A mere 18 months after the blast, JJ’s reopened in their new location with most of the original staff.
It's been 40 years since JJ’s restaurant first opened its doors, and there are some new and exciting changes afoot. Frantzé retired last year, leaving his restaurant in the trusted and capable hands of his nephew, Kevin Frantzé, who has a background in hospitality, having managed restaurants and hotels in California for many years.
“After 40 years of running one of Kansas City’s most loved independent restaurants, my Uncle Jimmy decided he wanted to step back from the day-to-day operations of the restaurant and focus on his true passion, the wine list. With my background in hospitality, returning to Kansas City to take the reins was a natural fit and dream of mine since I was a kid,” says Kevin, who now serves as JJ’s managing partner.
Then earlier this year, JJ’s had some more good news when it was
Smokey the Pear
recognized as a semifinalist for the esteemed James Beard Award in the category of Outstanding Wine and Other Beverages Program. Its extensive 40-year-old wine collection was thoughtfully curated, not once, but twice, when the collection had to be built back up after the blast in 2013. The current list represents an impressive variety of regions, styles, and vintages.
Josh Ditto, the assistant bar manager at JJ’s, acknowledges that the restaurant is most well-known for its wine, yet behind the bar he and his team have worked hard to develop a cocktail program that is just as exquisite as JJ’s wine list.
An example is Smokey the Pear, a crafted cocktail that features both smokey mezcal and reposado tequila, sweetened with barrel-aged honey and spiced pear liqueur, with lemon juice to brighten and pull the drink together. Try it at home or pull up a barstool at JJ’s and let Ditto make one for you. Cheers to 40 years of JJ’s restaurant! jjsrestaurantkc.com
Smokey the Pear
1 ounce reposado tequila
.75 ounce St. George Spiced Pear Liqueur
.25 ounce Vago mezcal
1 ounce lemon juice
.5 ounce barrel-aged honey syrup*
Put all ingredients in a cocktail shaker, shake vigorously and strain over a large ice cube block in a rocks glass. Spritz a peppercorn mezcal saline solution.** Garnish with a dehydrated pear slice.
*BARREL AGED HONEY SYRUP
2 par ts barrel-aged honey
1 par t water by weight
In a small saucepan, mix two parts of barrelaged or regular honey with one part water by weight, stir and slowly heat over a stove until the mixture is smooth.
**PEPPERCORN MEZCAL SALINE SOLUTION
80 grams hot water
20 grams kosher salt
20 grams peppercorns
10 grams mezcal
Fill a pot with hot water and mix in the kosher salt and peppercorns, stir and let that stand for 30 minutes until the salt is completely dissolved. Then add the mezcal to the saline solution, finely strain and bottle up in a spritzer.
Flavor IN KC
by Jenny Vergara
NORTHEAST PIZZA
NORTHEAST PIZZA HAS OPENED in Kansas City’s historic northeast neighborhood, bringing New York-style pizza slices and 16-inch specialty and build-your-own pies to the Pendleton Heights neighborhood. The new pizza shop is located across the street from PH Coffee. It’s owned by three friends with hospitality backgrounds who have ties to the neighborhood. Noah Quillec, whose family owns Café Provence, French Market, and Verbena and has lived in the neighborhood for seven years, will run the operation along with two partners—Michael DeStefano, who is the executive chef at Verbena and who bonded with Quillec over their mutual love of pizza, and Max Popoff, the founder and owner of Farewell, a local music venue, who served as the contractor for the pizzeria. The restaurant has exposed red brick walls and bright green accents. There’s a pizza counter where you can pick up slices from three or four rotating selections, in addition to whole pizzas, garlic knots, fresh salads, and for dessert, chocolate chip cookies from the French Market. Beer, wine, and soda are also available. Hours are Wednesday-Thursday 3 p.m. – 8 p.m., Friday – Saturday 3 p.m. – 9 p.m. and Sunday 3 p.m. – 8 p.m. northeastpizzakc.com
Flavor IN KC
by Jenny Vergara
In
SAAP SAAP NOODLES
SAAP SAAP NOODLES, a Laotian and Thai noodle bowl concept, is the latest restaurant to open inside Lenexa Public Market, taking over the third anchor position where the Mexican chilaquiles concept, Chilakillers, last operated. Owner Adison Sichampanakhone and his wife, Jackie, also own the Ice Cream BAE locations in the Country Club Plaza and Park Place in Leawood. Before that, they operated a Thai barbecue restaurant, Thaiger, at the Iron District in North Kansas City. Saap Saap translates to “good good” in Laotian. It will be serving noodle dishes for lunch and dinner seven days a week. The dishes are based on Sichampanakhone’s own family favorites, including Phad Thai and Lao-style pho, both which come with your choice of protein (brisket, meatballs, steak, oxtail, tendon, short rib). Also on the menu are rib-eye ramen carbonara, red curry wonton soup, and crispy pork belly noodles. To drink, you’ll find Thai tea and coffee, sodas, beer, and cocktails. Desserts will feature Ice Cream BAE mango ice cream sticky rice, coconut, and taro-flavored ice cream. lenexapublicmarket.com/fooddrink/saap-saap-noodles
A Benefit for Student Scholarships
THURSDAY, MAY 8 | 6–9 p.m.
Don’t miss the patron preview event for the End of Semester Exhibition + Sale.
Experience a progressive evening filled with curated bites and cocktails as you explore studios, meet talented students and faculty, and view and purchase student work. Be captivated as KCAI students take center stage for POPTRA, an electrifying showcase of student-designed costumes and performance art. Don’t miss this unforgettable creative performance and other dynamic campus installations – only at ARTPOP.
kcai.edu/artpop
Scan the QR Code to purchase tickets
HOnORARy CHAiRs
Jerry & Patty Reece
evenT CHAiRs
Scott Heidmann & Ken Petti
ARTPOP HOsT
Mark Allen
Rachel Black
Wolfe Brack
Stacy Bush
Maureen Carroll
Ricky Catto
Lorece Chanelle
Ellen Copaken
Mark Cowardin
John Eck
Holly Hayden
Ryan Hiser
Kimi Kitada
Ada Koch
Regina Kort
Ellie Kort
Quinn Mahle
Sara Noble
Regina Nouhan
Terri Pollack
Erin Rainer
Katrina Revenaugh
Phil Shafer
Peter Sloan
Emily Sloan
Brent Thompson
David Tran
Courtney Wasson
Paige Bennett (‘26 Ceramics)
COmmiTTee
Flavor IN KC
by Jenny Vergara
In Culinary News
WILD FLOUR BAKING CO.
THE 120-YEAR-OLD, picture-perfect, butter-yellow house on Main Street in downtown Parkville had already been renovated once, operating as a business since the 90s, but when Megan Andersen purchased the building in May of last year, she knew it would make the perfect home for her cottage-turned-commercial baking business, Wild Flour Baking Co. Andersen has been baking her whole life, first for herself, and eventually for others, beginning as a cake decorator at McLain’s Bakery in Waldo as a side hustle while pursuing a career in early childhood education. In 2022, she left her full-time job to start Wild Flour Baking Co. in her Riverside home, making custom cakes and ornately decorated sugar cookies, until she finally outgrew her home kitchen. Andersen spent 2024 working with contractors to renovate the little house, this time into her own coffee shop and bakery offering whole and by-the-slice cakes, cheesecake, cake bites, cupcakes, cookies, brownies, and more. The menu will include breakfast items like slices of seasonal quiche, muffins, and cinnamon rolls along with coffee. Andersen plans to host cake and cookie decorating classes and will make the space available for private events and parties. wildflourkc.com/bakery
Sunday October 5, 2025
KC Live! Block in the Power & Light District
Together with our Honorary Chairs Roberta Dierks & Jeffrey Gelvin and our Event Chairs Meghan & Brian Gatoff and Molly & Daniel Reardon, we invite you to enjoy an unforgettable evening. Help families right here in Kansas City who are experiencing serious illness or grief.
All attendees will enjoy:
The best of KC’s downtown dining
Open bars offering your choice of refreshment
Interactive games And MUCH MORE!
Presented by
Thank you to our early sponsors!
$10,000 Carol & Tom Barnett
$5,000 $2,500
AdventHealth | Country Club Bank
For event and sponsorship information, visit KCHospice.org/SNL
JOIN US FOR OUR ANNUAL FASHION FUNDRAISER EVENT
May 2, 2025 – 6:00 p.m
Grand Ballroom Downtown KC
Meet KC Chiefs players , KC Chiefs Ambassadors, Alex Gordon & other KC Royals Alumni, and our men & women survivors on the runway celebrating their journey and triumph over cancer.
Learn more and to purchase tickets go to BRACOUTUREKC.COM
Please come support this volunteer led organization to raise funds for cancer care for Kansas City’s uninsured.
• Become a sponsor of the event
• Donate to the event/organization
• Purchase event tickets
• Volunteer before and at the event
• Donate items for auction packages
CREATING A NETWORK FOR CANCER CARE
Funds stay local and are distributed to hospitals and organizations in the Greater Kansas City area that provide care to uninsured/underinsured men and women cancer patients with ALL types of cancers.
Create Where You Belong
My Essentials IN KC
Lisa’s essentials...
BEST BITE:
This is always changing, but right now my favorite spot is Baba’s Pantry. You just get hit with a dose of warm love as you walk through the door. My favorite thing to order is the hummus platter with pita.
LISA NGUYEN
HEAT CHAMP:
It’s not my everyday hot sauce, but Spicin Foods Da Bomb hot sauce is my favorite one to have stocked for my friends and family when they come to visit. It’s fun watching them struggle.
by Evan Pagano
AMATEUR COOK. PROFESSIONAL YOUTUBER. WORLD TRAVELER.
In 2017, Lisa Nguyen started writing herself a note every day. It read: “I, Lisa Nguyen, will become a world traveler and videographer. In return, I will create visually and audibly appealing videos. … Starting 2017, I will achieve a reputation for crafting valuable videos. By December 2018, I will be debt free, and I will make $4,000 of passive income to fund my world travels.”
Nguyen was a paralegal then, and felt complacent, unfulfilled, and daunted by the prospect of that being it. In a flurry of inspiration—spurred by therapy and a similar strategy by Bruce Lee—she started writing the notes.
Piece by piece, Nguyen built a new reality. She bought a camera and started highlighting local restaurants—first in her hometown of Wichita, and by 2021, her new home of Kansas City. Today, she’s a (debt-free) full-time food video creator with over five million YouTube subscribers. She’s tried beef tartare in Paris, pad Thai in Thailand, and showcased just about everything in Kansas City.
Most famously, she’s learned to “level up” instant ramen noodles from chefs and friends alike. Soon, she plans to open an instant ramen pop-up in KC.
“I’m thankful for my job every single day, that I could wake up and just make a cooking video and that’s my job, or travel to a different country and that’s my job,” says Nguyen. “I couldn’t be more thankful.”
A major reason for her success is acting on that moment of burning inspiration in 2017.
“You don’t really know when that moment’s going to hit again,” says Nguyen. “Your energy and your emotions work in ebbs and flows, and when you’re up, you definitely want to capitalize on that.” Follow Nguyen’s adventures at youtube.com/@LisaNguyen
CRAFTED COCKTAIL:
I’m always stalking Moon Bar KC’s Instagram page to see when their next pop-up is. You can’t go wrong with any of their cocktails.
FARMERS MARKET:
I go to the City Market farmers market almost every weekend when I’m in town. The vendors are incredibly friendly, and I’m always amazed by the variety of fresh, local goods.
TOP RAMEN:
The spicy creamy chicken ramen from KC Craft Ramen is absolute perfection. I learned how to make eight-plus different types of ramen when I was in Rajuku Ramen School, and tori paitan (creamy chicken) was by far my favorite.
photo by phon wills
NEWTON JAMES
Men’s fine clothing
7221 W 80th St. Overland Park, KS newtonjames.com
Sid Mashburn | Greyson Clothiers | Saint James | Drake’s | Seaward & Stearn | Ralph Lauren | Jack Donnelly | Sunspel
Edwin | Chrysalis | Original Madras Trading Co. | Bennett Winch | Joseph Cheaney & Sons | Sanders Shoes | Pastori
