The Jeff Show: Kansas City - Best of the Midwest Part 1

The beginning of this year was a first in a long time for me. I went nowhere even remotely warm. I never set foot on an American Airlines aircraft, and I never went more than one state away from Illinois. 

That’s right, Kansas City and Indianapolis. All on Southwest Airlines. Who knew they flew nonstop every afternoon from KCI to IND. The funny part was I got the exit row each leg and there was no one sitting next to me. See, it pays to go places where no one thinks they want to visit.

But both are great towns, and I forgot how much fun they were.

First, I have to tell you that the staff at the InterContinental in Kansas City are terrific. The hotel is located in the old Plaza/Ritz Carlton in Country Club Plaza. Surprisingly, they were just the best. Every morning when I left the hotel to drive over to the convention center, they had my car parked right in the front and all warmed up - all without having to ask them. They also had coffee ready for us every morning, and I really felt at home there. Plus, it’s in a great location - just steps from fun boutique shopping if you're into that.

The biggest restaurant I discovered in KC was Stroud's. It’s in a little strip mall just west of Country Club Plaza. I had the best pan-fried chicken. Also, they are some of the nicest staff I have met in a long time. One of the biggest surprises that comes with the meal (and the meals are huge) is homemade cinnamon buns. There was no way I could even think about eating an enormous cinnamon bun after dinner. And that’s saying something. As we got ready to leave, our waitress came to the table and gave us a cinnamon bun, butter, and knife to take back to the hotel.

The next morning, I told the front desk staff at the Country Club Plaza that I had a cinnamon bun from Stroud's in my room, and they made me bring it to them so they could heat it up. Wonderful.

Hey, how about that, I am out of space and will have to put off Indy until next month. Wow, a two-parter about the best of the Midwest.

So hold on to hear about the best of Indy next month. I plan on writing that one while I am on-site in Ames, IA. How did this happen? I used to go to more exotic places, honest.