FOOD words by EMILY & STEWART LANE | photos by ANNA PETROW
Sunday in the Park with the Lanes. Emily Lane: On March 11 at 11:49 a.m., Stewart and I welcomed our second child into the world. It felt fitting to be celebrating this new life as things were finally starting to warm outside. There were buds on our favorite magnolia tree and life felt hopeful. As any good researcher would do, I promptly did a Google search to see if anything significant in history had happened on March 11, and I wasn’t thrilled with what I discovered. The first hit, “March 11, 2020 marked the day the WHO declared COVID-19 a global pandemic.” Our pandemic baby was quite literally born on the anniversary of this strange mutation to our current reality. However, it also gave me time to reflect on how far we’ve come in this year, that we’ve learned to adapt and find new ways to enjoy life, and that most certainly includes our love for food. So as the days continue to warm and we move into the summer months, we hope you’ll follow our lead, get outside for a picnic, and enjoy some of the delicious (and portable) foods from two of our local favorites: André’s Confiserie Suisse and Caffetteria Modern Café & Marketplace. Stewart Lane: I have always loved a picnic. Eating my dad’s classic macaroni salad and deli sandwiches under the shade of a giant tree in Loose Park was one of the most special memories of my youth. The air is warm and the shade keeps you cool, as a gentle breeze passes over your blanket loaded with treats. It’s a tradition I intend carry on with my family, and Jo Marie Scaglia, the brilliant culinary mind behind Caffetteria Modern Café & Marketplace in The Shops of Prairie Village, makes creating the perfect picnic lunch simple and delicious. EL: In addition to Caffetteria, Scaglia is also the name behind The Mixx, another Kansas City mainstay, which would make for great picnic fare, as well. We are impressed with how well she adapted her model at Caffetteria for the pandemic, offering a huge selection of grab-and-go items in tandem with her creative and diverse menu. SL: Caffetteria offers an impressive variety of homestyle comfort foods with a healthy slant and plenty of charm. The rotisserie slowly rotates seasoned birds to golden brown perfection, creating juicy and flavorful chicken that is then used in their signature chicken-salad sandwich with tart granny smith apples, dried cranberries, arugula, and a house-made aioli on seeded grain bread. A classic roast-turkey sandwich is anything but boring: the pastry crackles, the turkey is tender and moist, the peppery arugula, and creamy avocado are balanced by the acid of the tomatoes and slices of Monterey Jack cheese. We couldn’t stop eating a plate piled high with homemade potato chips and a green goddess dip that is creamy, savory, and irresistible. A departure from traditional picnic fair is the one of Scaglia’s newest creations, the Polynesian Poke Bowl, with fresh yellowfin tuna resting on a bed of spicy greens with chilled rice noodles, avocado, marinated seaweed salad, julienned carrots, pickled ginger, and sweet, fresh cucumbers topped with black sesame seeds and a ponzu vinaigrette. Served with a
16 | TODAY KANSAS CITY | SUMMER 2021
