Kansas City, Missouri

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Lately, Kansas City is known for Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs. KC is also known for its sweet style of barbecue. But what else is Kansas City about? What is there to do in Kansas City? What’s it like?

My daughter and I tagged along with my wife, who went for a work conference, to find out what KC was really like. And one thing stood out – the pride that folks have in their city. On every corner, it seemed, was a store selling locally made or designed Kansas City-themed gear, or a mural devoted to the city, or a fan sporting Chiefs gear.

When we went: March 2024

Where we stayed: The Loew Motel

What we did: Visited museums; tried some restaurants and coffee shops; walked downtown; checked out an alpaca farm; hit up some local shops; swam in the hotel pool; people-watched fans who were in town for the Big 12 Tournament; rode the light rail; checked out Union Station

How we got there: Southwest flight from Phoenix to Kansas City, using Southwest Rapid Rewards points

How we got around: Rental car from the airport; light rail

Places we visited – things to do with kids in Kansas City, Missouri

• City Market. 7.5/10 – an average farmer’s market
• Arabia Steamboat Museum – 7/10 – adjacent to City Market, this museum is a perfect spot for market shoppers needing a break from the heat. It has a free section and a gift shop, as well as a paid tour – but the large sternwheel in the front, while neat to look at, was not compelling enough to pay for a tour.
• Union Station – 8.5/10 – a classic American train station. A great spot for walking and learning the history of KC’s railroads. The station is also home to a science center, a few restaurants and coffee shops, a small Rally House shop, and more.
• Science City at Union Station – 8/10 – this was a great way to kill a couple hours with my daughter. Pretty standard science museum.
• Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art – 9.5/10 – I’m no art expert, but this seemed like a typical art museum. The differentiator was its size and vast exhibits, and its cost – free. Not free, but encouraged to donate – just free. Yet it was clearly well-maintained and staffed. Plentiful easy parking via garage, also.
• Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art – 8/10 – this was an average-sized museum, and some of the exhibits were closed, but the open exhibits were great. This museum is technically free, but they ask for a donation at admission.
• KC Streetcar (light rail/tram) – 8/10 – discussed in more detail below, but the KC Streetcar was free entertainment for our six-year-old. We rode it several times to get to other places, but also just for fun.
• YaYa’s Alpaca Farm (Garden City) – 9.5/10 – this was by far the highlight of our trip. Located in the perhaps misnamed Garden “City,” Yaya’s Alpaca Farm is out in rural Missouri farm land, yet is only about a 45-minute drive from downtown KC. Everything about this entire operation is highly impressive. Karl, aka “YaYa,” and his wife, Kathy, clearly know and care for their animals – not only each animal as an individual, but the animal as a species and what is needed for their well being. The experience they delivered was so exceptional that I felt we significantly underpaid at $12/adult and $10/child.
  
  Sure, the tour was only about an hour, but the experience was easily worth at least double what they’re charging! On the day of our tour, it was quite windy – and so, knowing their clientele – young children and their parents – they arranged for the kids (and parents) to feed the alpacas, but knew no one would want to be outside for very long. As such, they filled a good bit of the time with stories of their journey and education regarding the alpaca, and it was extremely interesting. They also brought a few alpacas inside the barn/shop where we were sitting, and after feeding them outside they showed us how to make some alpaca products and let the kids try their hand.
  
  Karl and Kathy absolutely knew how to entertain a crowd, just by telling their story. And they’re so humble that you’d never know they have provided tours to thousands and thousands of people from all over the world unless you happened to see it on their website. If you do one thing while you are in the area, sign up for a tour at YaYa’s Alpaca Farm!

• Kansas City Zoo and Aquarium- 9/10 – the zoo was larger than expected, and had a wonderful penguin exhibit. The aquarium was not overly impressive, but admission is included with the zoo so it was worth stopping by to check out. The zoo is very reasonably priced at $19 for a standard ticket (but there are always add-ons).
• Kansas City Plaza – we didn’t make it here, but it looks worth visiting!
• TWA Museum – another place we didn’t get to that also looks worthwhile
• Big 12 Tournament (in March) – this is an easy “to do” list item if you’re a college hoops fan. We arrived in KC on the last couple days of the tournament, and fans were everywhere!

Places to eat – Kansas City restaurants

• Chipotle (Power and Light District) – 4/10. The place was trashed out, and the food was just okay. We only went here because it was a quick bite after traveling all day.
• Slap’s Barbecue (KC KS) – 7.5/10 – we went with high expectations (thanks to r/KansasCity), but were quite disappointed with the average barbecue. Classic BBQ joint vibes, though.
• Pickleman’s – 7.5/10 – a decent sandwich shop. It wasn’t busy at all, but it took a while to get our food, which was standard sandwiches.
• Tiki Taco – 7.5/10 – an okay taco shop close to the museums.
• The Farmhouse – 8/10 – nice vibes in this little breakfast joint, and decent food.
• Pigwich – 7/10 – average quality sandwiches in a touristy area, as expected
• Manny’s Mexican Restaurant – 6.5/10 – I may have high standards for Mexican food, but the food quality at this highly-rated restaurant was not comparable to the good Mexican spots in the Phoenix area – some of it tasted like it was pre-made.
• True Food Kitchen – 8.5/10 – a health food chain with good food and great service
• Whataburger (Raytown) – 8/10 – this was a quick stop, and I’m giving it an 8/10 due to the freshness of the food, cleanliness of the store, and complete menu when compared to Phoenix-area whataburgers.
• Meshuggah Bagels – 9/10 – really good bagels; we went here more than once.
• Hey Sugar on Strawberry Hill (KC KS) – 8.5/10 – great kid-centric neighborhood ice cream and candy shop.

Coffee shops in Kansas City

We love to try as many local coffee shops as we can when we visit places.

• PT’s Coffee (Power & Light) – 7.5/10 – the reviews set up PT’s with high expectations, but the coffee was average. It was a nice little coffee shop in a good location.
• Messenger Coffee Co – 8/10 – This coffee shop plus bakery combo was extremely busy, and as such, it took forever to get the drinks I ordered. It had a nice vibe, but I’d find it hard to have a conversation due to the noise volume. Coffee was decent, and I would return.
• Hitides Coffee – 8/10 – the cool setting, interesting vibe, and friendliness of the barista gave this place a better-than-average rating, but the quality of the coffee was average.
• Waterbird Coffee Company – 9.5/10 – one of the two best coffee spots of our trip. Not only was the coffee itself superior, but so was the customer service from the barista, who saw I was by myself and had ordered three drinks, and made me a cup carrier from a beverage carton.
• Garden House Cafe – 9.5/10 – the other best coffee spot of our trip. Coffee here was also exceptional, the vibe with the plants was fun, and there was also a neat collection of goods for sale. The customer service was great here also. Its locstion is a little out of the way on the Kansas side of the ciy, but I would certainly make the effort to return if I was ever in KC again.
• Summer Moon Coffee – 8/10 – we didn’t realize this was a chain until entering the store, when it was immediately evident from all the professionally-branded decor, and gear for sale. The coffee was standard for chain shops, but the service was great.

Kansas City shops

We went to several stores and shopping areas, including:

• Crown Center Shops – a typical aging shopping mall connected to an aging Westin hotel, which we incidentally found ourselves in after getting turned around
• Country Club Plaza – an older, outdoor shopping area with plenty of food options
• Made in KC (multiple locations) – stores offering a wide variety of Kansas City-themed apparel, mugs, decor, art, and more.
• Shop Local KC (Crown Center) – a nice shop that seemed to be targeting women with items made in KC by local small businesses, as opposed to celebrating KC like the other KC-themed shops
• Best of Kansas City (Crown Center) – this shop seemed to only care about barbecue sauce and the Chiefs. It’s KC, to be fair, though, right?
• The Local Foundery (Lee’s Summit) – we didn’t make it here, but I really wanted to go, take a look if you’re in town
• Hallmark – Crown Center – we didn’t check Hallmark out while we were there, but I’m sure it would have been neat to see.

How we got around

We flew into Kansas City via Southwest Airlines from Phoenix Sky Harbor. The best part was, the flight was free – Maggie was traveling for work, so hers was paid for – and I used Southwest Rapid Rewards points to pay for mine and our daughter’s.

We rented a car from the airport and used it a lot to explore more extended parts of the area, like the Kansas side and some of the farming communities to the south, but we also took the light rail/tram/streetcar to several of the places we checked out. The KC Streetcar, as it is officially called, runs along Main Street from City Market to Union Station with stops in the Power and Light district, business district, Kauffman Center, and more.

We were able to walk to the Kauffman Center stop from our hotel. The streetcar was also clean and not overcrowded, as they require all passengers to get off at the end of the line, which is Union Station. And the best part? The KC Streetcar is FREE to ride!