Overland Park Restaurants

On a recent business trip to the area I got to try several new restaurants. We ate at Jack Stack Barbeque on our last night in town. It is probably because we had eaten out several times already and had a Mexican meal for lunch that we were both overfed even before we came to Jack Stack. Anyway, we started out with the Fire Kissed Wings with a special hot sauce. After that I had ordered a plate of BBQ Sliced Meats which consisted of 3 meats (pork, ham and sausage) and tried the other sauces to get a comparison of all 4. The 4 sauces are hot, original, spicy and southwestern. The original and spicy were my favorites.

Each of the meals comes with a side liked baked bean, fries, etc. I chose the salad just to try to balance out the meat.

Favorite Dish: Since this is a first time visit I won't say that I have a favorite until I visit again. This is the first time I had actually seen Lamb Ribs on a menu. I didn't try them this time, but maybe on the next business trip.

The BBQ meats available here are beef brisket, smoked pork, roasted ham, smoked turkey and polish sausage.

The ribs are pork spare ribs, pork baby back ribs, beef back ribs, crown prime beef rib and lamb ribs.

The Kansas City area probably has the most rib type restaurants per capita that I have seen in my business and personal trips.

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Garozzo's is a very popular Italian eatery with several locations through the Kansas City area. There's one in the busy College Boulevard corridor of Overland Park - that's the one that my family visits most often. It is in "Corporate Woods," a big office development just off the interchange of US 69 and I-435. The original Garozzo's is still operating in the oldest Italian neighborhood in the city, Columbus Park; but it seems that the family has been able to retain the quality and inspiration of the first location.

My mom loves Garozzo's for its Chicken Spiedini, a lightly spiced chicken breast served with pasta. I like the ravoli and tortellini - but the menu also includes several northern Italian specialties like risotto and a few fish preparations as well.

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Across the street (119th) from the Sprint Nextel headquarters, Spin offers authentic Neapolitan pizza in a urban, chic setting. It seems a long way from the box stores and strip malls that surround it! Can't wait to come back here!

It is the salt of the earth meals from the 1960's. All plates are large and tasty. Breakfat is the specialty, but you can also get the two pounder hamburger, about 3 inches thick. Prices are very reasonable.

Favorite Dish: All kinds of omlettes are filled with huge portions of meats of any kind you desire.

This is not your typical Italian style; it is US fabricated. The cheese is like soft Velveeta, but tasty and pizzas are good to better than most. Located off 119th St. in OP west of Matcalf and in a shopping center on south side.

Kansas City is known for many things...one of those is delicious BBQ. Fiorella's came widely recommended not only by USA Today, but from the locals...that is always a good thing. So one of our tasks before we left the KC area, was to try the BBQ. And that's what we did.

Favorite Dish: For an appetizer, the gang started off with the Rack of Nine Onion Rings. For lunch, LJ and I both tried the Hickory Roasted Barbecue Burnt Ends Platter (choice of two seared bite-sized chunks of beef, ham, pork or sausage, french fries and cole slaw).

I have eaten food from one of the three Jack Stack locations on many occasions as it is frequently served at catered affairs in the Kansas City area. Not until April 1 of 2003 did I manage to eat in their Overland Park restaurant.

If you're expecting a smokey, dirty barbecue joint, you're in the wrong place. Jack Stack is suburban with suburban prices. But the quality is outstanding and the setting is very nice.

My server was very polite, but stiff - not like the casual, friendly style I'm accustomed to in these parts. But maybe he was new and still not comfortable.

Jack Stack ships all over the world to its web site and catalog customers.

Favorite Dish: I have usually had brisket and sausage at catered dinners, but on my visit to the restaurant I had burnt ends - done perfectly. Charred on the outside, tender enough inside to cut with a fork. I prefer the original sauce over the spicy.

Another personal choice - I get the beans instead of fries. Not that the fries aren't quite good, just a testimony to the flavor of the beans.

Barley's likes to tell everybody they have 99 draught different beers available, and that may be true, but they are also a popular spot to dine. The varied menu includes pizzas, steaks, sandwiches, salads, ribs, etc. Chatting with a couple of regulars sitting next to me, I learned that the food is uniformly good, no matter what the choice, except for the fish. (We're in Kansas, remember.)

I liked the service, friendly, but not over-the-top fake "Hi Guys, I'll be your server tonight" type we've grown to expect; and the decor which featured ferns, but just a few, and not a single wall was covered with cheap pseudo-antiques.

As for the brews - they don't make their own here, but they feature beers from area breweries. Give those a try.

Favorite Dish: Based on one visit in which I forgot my glasses and couldn't read the menu: A very nice Manhattan (something) sandwich, kinda like a Reuben but with smoked turkey in addition to the corned beef. Very tasty, and the cole slaw was crunchy and creamy. The server recommended a Muddy Mo Stout from Kansas City's 75th Street Brewery, earning himself an extra large tip. I fell in love with this stuff, but unfortunately, it's no longer available here.