September 14 – 19 2024
As mentioned earlier, our drive to Kansas City would take about ten hours but would be a bit easier with three drivers as Doug would be with us all the way back to his house in Ohio. We arrived in the late afternoon, losing another hour due to a time zone change and checked into Melanie’s Place, our Airbnb for the duration of our stay.
After unpacking and enjoying an adult beverage, I ran over to 1889 Pizza Napoletana for a couple of pies to take back to the house, a pepperoni for Doug and a sausage and mushroom for Joanna and me to split. They were both good, not great, but just what we needed after a long day’s drive and ran us just $32 in total.
The next day would be a quiet one as we recovered from our long drive, and I kept trying to recuperate from the Covid. I did take my bike to a repair shop to get the saddle height adjusted, anticipating perhaps trying to get a ride in the next day. We made plans to stop by McKenzie and Dillons in the early evening to get our first glimpse of Blair, their newborn baby girl. But first, Doug not being hungry, Joanna and I decided to head out for some happy hour food at Seasons 52.
We would take advantage of happy hour pricing with our drink choices, a Grapefruit Bliss (Ketel One Botanical Grapefruit & Rosé Vodka, Betty Buzz grapefruit soda, thyme) for Joanna and a glass of Santa Julia Pinot Grigio for me. To start we split a Lump Crab Cake which was quite good and then finished up by splitting the Wood Grilled Kona Crusted Lamb Loin (broccolini, Yukon mash, and herb butter) which was absolutely delicious. I enjoyed my portion of the lamb with a glass of Screen Press Pinot Noir. All in all, the tab came to $88, a bargain considering the drinks ran us just $6 and $7 apiece.
The next day I finally tested negative and so we planned to have some fun and show Doug a bit of the city. But first, Joanna and I set out for my first bike ride since having my hip replaced in June. I’d brought my Bontrager, the mountain bike I’ve owned since 1999 as it almost always sits in the garage and deserves its day in the sun every now and then. So, off we went in search of an easy ride and had that for a bit, until we encountered some steep, very steep, hills (who knew that Kansas City had these features?) that I almost had to get off the bike and walk up. But I survived, reality letting me know just how far I’d have to go to get back into proper shape.
After getting cleaned up, we stopped by Mckenzie and Dillon’s to pick up my sister Bev and get a peak at Blair and the drove downtown for a first stop at the city’s Union Station. Opened in 1914, it replaced a small Union Depot built in 1878 and served a peak annual traffic of more than 670,000 passengers in 1945 at the end of World War II, but traffic quickly declined in the 1950s, and the station was closed in 1985.
In 1996, a public–private partnership undertook a $250 million restoration, funded in part by a sales tax levied in Kansas and Missouri counties of the Kansas City metropolitan area. By 1999, the station had reopened as a suite of attractions, including museums. In 2002, train service returned when Amtrak began public transportation services, and the station became Missouri’s second-busiest train station.
After a enjoying a coffee in the main concourse, I drove, while the others walked, across the street and up the hill to park at the National World War I Memorial and Museum complex. We’ve been here a number of times and found the museum to be a compelling visit but would forgo it this time around due to time constraints. The view from the hill is nice, particularly on a clear day when one can see downtown KC and beyond. We lingered there for a few moments and then with some time to kill before meeting Mckenzie and Dillon for dinner, we found our way to Grunauer, an Austrian restaurant we’ve had some memorable meals at for a drink in their bar.
It was a pleasant stop, a brief pause with two or our favorite people, before heading on to City Barrel Pizza where we met McKenzie, Dillon, and Blair at the patio. There, we consumed a couple of large pizzas and praiseworthy number of beers, all while little Blair slumbered peacefully in her carry all. It was a fine way to finish up our brief stay in Kansas City and get us back to the Airbnb to prepare for another long drive to Ohio the next day.
The long drive brought us to Doug’s place in Hillsboro, which I’ve covered a couple of times in past blogs (https://3jmann.com/2023/04/16/cisco-fest-2022-part-one/) and while we didn’t get to visit the dairy this time around, we still managed to have some fun.
For dinner that night we went to The Porch for another nice meal. We started with drinks, a Chardonnay for me and the Moscow Berry Mule for Joanna to accompany her soup of the day and my side Caesar Salad. Hungry after the long days drive, we ate almost all of our entrees, the Cowboy burger for her and the Chicken Pot Pie for me.
The next day we drove out into Amish and Old Order Mennonite country, stopping in at Country Crust Bakery, where I’ve been before with Doug, to stock up on baked goods and sweet things. Laden with goodies we made one more stop at another local store, J.R.’s General Store, which has an incredible selection of handmade furniture and other goods, as well as local food items.
Finished with our day out we landed at La Cascada for dinner, a local Mexican food restaurant where we quenched our thirst with a couple of very good and inexpensive margaritas’ that helped to wash down a disappointing entrée, the special that night, a variation of a regular menu item, the Cuco’s Pork Chop (A delicious pork chop grilled on the open fire and topped with onions. Served with a pulled pork enchilada, house salad and a papa rellena (stuffed potato)). While the chop was perfectly cooked, it was topped with an overabundance of a cloying and way too sweet teriyaki style sauce that nearly ruined the dish. We scraped as much of the sauce off as we could to enjoy the meat and the interesting fried stuffed potato.
Our next day’s drive to Maryland wouldn’t be too long affording us the chance to have one more meal with Doug at our go-to Hillsboro breakfast joint, the 62 Classic’s Diner. Home to large portions at low prices, we filled up on Bacon, eggs, biscuits and gravy for Joanna and a Denver Omelet for me. It was a perfect example of life in a small town in Ohio, crowded with locals, quality food at a remarkable price, and the company of a lifelong friend. Sometimes it doesn’t get any better.
Links
Melanie’s Place: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/826361124060936440?source_impression_id=p3_1731940932_P3Uya7oqt85EvnlJ
1889 Pizza Napoletana: https://1889pizza.com/
Union Station: https://unionstation.org/
World War I Museum: https://www.theworldwar.org/
Grunauer: https://grunauerkc.com/
City Barrel Pizza: https://www.citybarrelbrewing.com/
The Porch: https://www.theporchhillsboro.com/
Country Crust Bakery: https://ohio.org/things-to-do/destinations/country-crust-bakery
La Cascada: https://www.crazyburritolacascada.com/
62 Classic’s Diner: https://www.facebook.com/@classicsdiner/
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