The 28 year old local burger joint is justifiably famous for its pork tenderloins. The large pork tenderloin we tried was the best that I've had all year. The side dishes aren't fresh made, but the fried mushrooms were good and the onion rings were very good. My cheeseburger was just ordinary.

We stayed in Kansas City, going on to the Rosedale neighborhood to visit the Rosedale Arch which is dedicated to the Rosedale residents who served in the 42nd Rainbow Division during WW1. The nearby Rainbow Boulevard is named for the division.

The street leading to the Arch was closed, but it was just a short walk up to the Arch which is inspired by the Arc de Triomphe. The 34.5' tall Arch was designed by Rosedale resident, John LeRoy Marshall. It was completed in 1923 and dedicated in 1924. In 1993 a small marker which doesn't fit in with style of the arch was placed beneath it honoring the Rosedale residents who died in World War I, World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War.

The best thing at the arch may be the view of the downtown Kansas City, Missouri skyline.

From Rosedale, we drove northwest to Leavenworth, Kansas to see the new exhibits at the C W Parker Carousel Museum. The second floor of the museum is now open and in addition to carrousel horses, includes a small exhibit based on the side show attractions and games which were featured in the traveling amusement shows.

Our last stop of the day was at the Red Fortune Chinese Restaurant in Bonner Springs, Kansas. This was my first meal at the restaurant which L has visited several times before. The service was very good and the staff couldn't have been friendlier. 

I liked my scallops szechuan style (scallops sautéed with water chestnuts, mushrooms and vegetables in garlic sauce), but enjoyed L's crispy shrimp (deep fried shrimp in a light batter, served with special sauce on the side) even more. The sauce (which I think was plum) made all the difference in the crispy shrimp.

They also did a good job on the large order of crab Rangoon.

Rosedale Arch
 
 
 
 
 

C W Parker Carousel Museum
 

Red Fortune Chinese Restaurant

Our appetizer of Garlic Bread Bruschetta served with goat cheese, caramelized onions, sun dried tomato kalamata tapenade and pesto was very generous and L liked it a lot. I was quite pleased with the spinach salad, grilled salmon, and particularly the red onion & swiss chard.

Added a new review of the Peanut Bar & Grill on 127th Street in Overland Park, Kansas

We had four items and 3 of them were very good. The large peppery chicken wings that the Peanut s famous for were as good as always. So were the onion rings. The chicken sandwich with marinated chicken breast, Swiss & cream cheeses, red onion and grilled red bell peppers on a hamburger was surprisingly good. 

The only disappointment were the ordinary, frozen French fries, but they were better on previous visits..

We started our visit with a tour of the church sanctuary. The modest church building is only 7 years old. There are relatively few icons at the point, but the building lines are clean and it will only grow more ornate with time.

Downstairs, meals were offered for $12: Russian, Greek and Lebanese Plates. Actually they were each the same with just one item changed. We had the Greek (with spanakopita) and Lebanese (with kibby). My favorite item was the kibby, which was a kind of meat loaf with a layer of pine nuts.

The best parts of the festival were the nice people and the pastries. After consulting with the young ladies, we bought a Slavic nut roll (similar to povitica), Syrian baklava, makarouns, butterhorns and and a couple of packages of tiropita (Greek cheese triangles) to be baked later. Every item was spectacular and I wish we had purchased more. the Syrian baklava with its pistachios really stood out.

The tiropita with its layers of buttered phyllo and cheese egg filling baked up very well at home.

For super,  nd I finally visited Taste in Overland Park for supper. I enjoyed both lunches I have had there, but this was a chance to finally try the dinner menu.

We started with the chef's selection of 6 cheeses with aged balsamic reduction and berry compote for $9. I had the herb crusted rack of lamb with roasted corn polenta, sautéed spinach and mushrooms with thyme sauce for $29. L had the  grilled salmon with garlic shipped potatoes, frilled asparagus and a citrus butter sauce for $17.

We enjoyed every dish and the prices were quite reasonable, but I would have liked a little more of the polenta and spinach.

For dessert, we split the warm apple crumb tart served in a cast iron skillet with fresh whipped cream ad cinnamon ice cream for $7. Very rich, but very good - plenty for two people to share.

The more that I try Taste, the more that I want to return!

Taste

A cup of chili was only $2.50 and fairly good after the generous addition of Louisiana Gold hot sauce. L enjoyed The Gobbler (Callahan's trademark smoked turkey, bacon and Swiss sandwich on grilled sourdough bread), which came with choice of side for $7.55.

My almond chicken salad (grilled chicken on a bed of fresh greens and tomatoes, topped with toasted almonds, parmesan cheese & scallions) was large and looked wonderful fro $8.50, but was disappointing. The chicken was dry and didn't have much flavor.

This time, L had the grilled Italian sausage sandwich which came with one side for $6.99.

I had the beef and veggie kabobs for $11.79. The salad I had with it was a little to heavy to raw peppers for my taste.

Both were tasty and nice alternatives to the somewhat pricey (for the style of restaurant) steaks.

Service is still erratic. The waitress asked if L wanted more iced tea, but then didn't bring it. And one of the dishes served to the people at the adjacent table was missing several key ingredients.

Added a new review of Nu Grille Cafe in Fort Scott, Kansas.

I had 3 pieces of fried chicken with the choice of two sides for $8. I enjoyed the chicken and the home style fried potatoes with onion. My waitress was young and has only worked at the Stonewall Inn for 2 months, but still provided excellent service.

The sandwiches each came with a choice of side, and we had garlic fries and sweet potato fries. Both were above average.
 

Hayward's is an old Overland Park BBQ restaurant that has its fans, but isn't a "name" among Kansas City BBQ places. The recent closing of the nearby KC Masterpiece restaurant should have left Hayward's with twice the business, but there were few customers for this Sunday dinner.

We tied ribs, chicken, sausage and burnt ends. The sausage was my favorite meat tried, but nothing special. The chicken had little flavor.

I wouldn't say not to go to Hayward's, but can't think of a reason to select it over other Johnson County BBQ restaurants.