OK, can you top this? Jazzoo swings for the Gold for the fourth time as the single most enjoyable charitable event in Kansas City. The food, the music, the crowd, the fun . . . and all for the zoo educational fund. Forks and Corks, organized by Harvesters, stabs the Silver again where over 40 restaurants dole out delicacies and wine to enthusiastic patrons. Children's Mercy Hospital Golf Classic, first teeing off in 1980 and raising nearly $10 million in its history, eagles for the Bronze.
Missouri Repertory Theatre has garnered wide acclaim, and the Gold, by attracting exceptional talent; creating lively, diverse, and enjoyable art; and providing compelling theatre and now musicals, too, such as Guys and Dolls. And is it Christmas without the Carol? Applauding for the Silver, readers voted Starlight Theatre a victory, where the beautiful landscaping and improved sound all contribute to the pleasure of such shows as Thoroughly Modern Millie and Starlight Express. The Bronze goes to the New Theatre Restaurant in Overland Park where they've manage to package good food, good shows and good times.
Well, not all of us can vote for this category, but those who did, cast venerable Mission Hills Country Club for the Gold, last seen with a Silver two years ago. This club, established in 1914, edged out Hillcrest Country Club which, for the second year, earned the Silver, which it tied with the Kansas City Country Club. Leawood's Hallbrook Country Club, built in 1988, swung into the Bronze award, ranked, like the others, for its golf course, pools, clubhouse and amenities so vital to the well-heeled.
Pack the car, the kids maybe, and head for the closer and closer hinterlands. The most chosen destination for the Gold: just north of town you'll find the popular Weston, Missouri, off Highway 45. This Lewis and Clark discovery has homes remaining from the 1800s, lots of antique shops, a state park, restaurants, and a steady calendar to entice you. Roll back to Parkville, Missouri for the Silver, where scenic restaurants, quaint shops, Park University, and a fabulous riverside park await you. Lawrence, Kansas now almost seems like a ‘burb, but it's a whole different place with a different climate, which must be why Ingram's readers, Jayhawk or not, voted this town of 85,000 the Bronze.
Wow! Zooming to the Gold for the first time with just one full season under its (fan) belt, the Kansas Speedway flags in. It's maybe even more popular than they said it would be--that combination of speed, heat, and jazzed up cars just can't be beat. Flashy in its own way, Starlight Theatre twinkles for the Silver where consistent performances create enjoyable evenings all summer long. In fitting tribute to its many statues and fountains, the Country Club Plaza, oldest shopping center in the country which attracts 10 million tourists a year, takes the Bronze for its 180 stores, its movies, restaurants, and sidewalk entertainment.
A perennial winner, The Plaza Art Fair is juried to be the Gold when one of the best shows of the country sets up camp each fall. Next, and up a notch for the Silver, is the 27th annual Renaissance Festival, beginning August 30 this year and running until Columbus Day. It's just '15 minutes and 500 years from Kansas City' where turkey legs, winsome wenches, and live shows all vie for your attention. The Bronze belongs to the Brookside Art Fair which has grown up nicely, this year having over 1,000 applications from exhibiting artists.
For the second year running, The National Golf Club, in Parkville, wins the honored Gold for its Tom Watson signature course, challenging the best while the rest of us console ourselves in the clubhouse. Iron Horse Golf Club takes back an award for the Silver and the Bronze is par for Loch Lloyd Country Club in Cass County with its 18 hole course and 110 acre lake nestled inside a gated community.
Happy hours, legalities aside, should mean excellent food and drinks, cheap; add some music and happy crowds. Having all this and thus winning the Gold is McCormick & Schmicks whose 5 p.m. deals start all over again at 9 p.m. for cheering bar sitters. The Kona Grill, still new on the Plaza, succeeds for the Silver as it every week day serves up specials on sushi, pizza, pasta, and other appetizers from 3-7 p.m. The Bronze goes to La Bodega, for its weekday afternoons ‘til 6 p.m. tapas, beers, sangria, and wines by the glass all half price at this slightly funky Southwest Boulevard joint.
Of the 15 jazz and blues clubs and coffee houses listed in the KC Jazz Directory, Ingram's readers gave the Gold to The Grand Emporium, where since 1985, it's been KC's premier live music venue featuring both national and regional blues, reggae, rock, zydeco, jazz and swing seven nights a week. It has also been twice honored as the 'Best Blues Club in America' by the Blues Foundation. The Silver was captured by the The Phoenix Piano Bar & Grill with clubs both on 8th Street downtown and at Ameristar Casino. The Bronze was a tie between Jardines, tucked into an old brick building a block from the Plaza where jazz reigns five nights a week, and the Majestic Steakhouse where if you love steak and jazz, you can be happy seven nights a week.
Best in this category might mean it makes you feel the best as it jockeys for your money. Winning the Gold for the second year is the Ameristar Casino where 15 restaurants, a huge Grand Pavilion for headline entertainment, hotel, and 18 movies all add to the huge array of slots, tables, and wheels. Harrah's Casino, a $168 million entertainment facility offering two casinos with nearly 2,000 slot machines and 100 table games, hotel and four restaurants wins for the Silver. You can put money on the Bronze for The Isle of Capri Casino, another player's paradise just minutes away from downtown on Front Street.
The Gold and the Silver go once again, in order, to the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art and the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art. The Nelson is now admission free and the new award-winning parking garage is open so art lovers of all ages are happy, including those who visited Eternal Egypt: Masterworks of Ancient Art from The British Museum, the largest special exhibition in the last 25 years. The Kemper continues its fine quest of showing Kansas Citians the best of modern art. A new entry on the list this year, for the Bronze, is the H&R Block Art Space where students of the Kansas City Art Institute exhibit their work at 1643 E. 43rd Street.
The Midland Theatre, on the National Registry of Historic Places, wrests the Gold away from its competitors due to its 1920's glamour and great shows, but probably not its spacious seating. Starlight Theatre, the largest outdoor theatre of its kind with 8,000 seats, wins the Silver as it presents national touring Broadway shows and popular musicians as well. And The Lyric Opera, sophisticated venue for the symphony and the opera, sings loudly for the Bronze.
More than 15 million spectators have watched their Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium, clearly the reason for its Gold recognition. Since the first game there in 1972, this nearly 80,000 seat stadium was a bargain at $53 million--and now new stadiums, at much higher price tags, are following its design lead. Right next door, Kauffman Stadium wins the Silver for being one of the most fan-friendly baseball stadiums in professional sports. It sports a huge right field water fountain, fireworks, a 30-by-40 foot video display board that was the largest in the United States when installed in 1990, and over half the 40,000 seats are on the lower level. The Bronze winner: the brand new Community America Ballpark in Kansas City, Kansas, is the home of the T-Bones where the old is new again, including tickets priced under $10, an 18-foot wall in left field is only 300' from home plate, there's seating on the berm or at picnic tables, and free parking, too. For what more could a fan wish?