As I write this, I am humming Fats Domino’s hit Going to Kansas City. We flew in three days ago and so far I am impressed. The new airport is spectacular and everywhere we go the people are so incredibly friendly. At the car rental booth where they conduct the final inspection of paperwork and identification, the employee asked me to wait a few minutes so that she could write a list of places not to miss while in town. Talk about friendly service!
There’s so much to see and we have packed in a lot. We started with the iconic Union train station which is the second largest train station in the country. During WWII, it was the busiest in the nation. It fell into disrepair and was abandoned for 13 years. Fortunately, the states of Kansas and Missouri split the $250,000,000 cost and restored the building. It’s so beautiful. Each of the chandeliers, original, is solid iron and weighs 3,500 pounds.
Next, we took a fun trolley bus ride around the city. The tour was 90 minutes long and the guide gave us a fantastic overview of Kansas City. We saw everything from the WWI Memorial to the Federal Reserve Building to Country Club Plaza (filled with beautiful Spanish-style architecture) and the original TWA headquarters built by Howard Hugh’s. The city was known as the City of Fountains and now I know why. With over 200 fountains, only Rome surpasses Kansas in the number of fountains.
My husband is friends with the famous crime writer James Ellroy who lived in Kansas City for a few years. He recommended that we go to Winstead’s for lunch. Wow! His recommendation was so appreciated. This diner has been around since 1940 and is famous for its cherry limeade drinks and steak burgers. Our lunch did not disappoint. The prices are insanely reasonable, too.
We then visited the Arabia Steamboat Museum which is such a powerful story. The artifacts recovered by five local men in 1988 are jaw dropping.
We ended our day with a visit to Tom’s Town Distillery – named after the infamous Tom Pendergast. The place has a wonderful bar and restaurant, too. The place is located in the oldest part of town and the interior has the atmosphere of a speakeasy. The staff is utterly charming. We loved our tour – especially the flight of spirits towards the end of the tour.
No visit to Kansas City is complete without some KC BBQ and Jack Stack’s delivered. The restaurant is famous for its beef and pork burnt ends as well as its cheesy corn and baked beans oozing with brisket and sweetness. The portions are so enormous that I had to pass on the restaurant’s famous carrot cake.
NO time for boredom today 
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