Wichita recommendations?

[kenrbnsn]

I will be in Wichita, KS for the National Square Dance Convention during the last week of June and I'm looking to recommendations for good local restaurants. I will have 3 evenings (Monday, Tuesday, Sunday) free to try the restaurants. Price range: moderate to expensive (no chains please). All types of foods. I will have a car. I will be staying east of downtown.

Thanks in advance.

Ken

Baltimore, MD / Hillsborough, NJ

[jgm]

I've lived in Wichita since 1981 and will be happy to help you. In fact, if you'll PM me I'll provide you with my cell number so that if you have any questions or problems while here, I can help you out.

"East of downtown" makes me think you're staying in the Old Town area. Here's the Old Town list copied from a website and my comments (? = I don't go there, I don't know much about it.):

Beacon Restaurant 316.263.3397 OK for breakfast but nothing special

Caffe Moderne 316.260.1199 www.caffemoderne.com Excellent sandwiches, but service can be slow.

Dunn Bros Coffee 316.267.0057 www.dunnbros.com Gourmet coffee, artisan gelato, specialty sandwiches. Somewhat better than Starbuck's

EggCetera 316.558.5700 www.eggceterawichita.com OK but nothing special

Emerson Biggins 316.303.9800 www.emerson-biggins.com ?

Hana Cafe 316.267.3766 Sushi, Teriyaki, Japanese & Korean Cuisine OK, but Mama San's at 13th and West Street is better for Japanese food

Heroes Sports Bar & Grill 316.264.HERO www.heroeswichita.com All America Sports Bar-Food, Fun, & Sports Wireless Internet available. ?

Imbiss Grille 316.263.9062 www.imbissgrille.com Specializing in authentic German cuisine. My husband, who spent time in Germany, liked it; I could take it or leave it

Larkspur Restaurant & Grill 316.262.5275 www.larkspuronline.com Exquisite continental cuisine, banquet facilities and catering Good food, entrees are about $15 - $25. I like the food, but it's not terribly unique.

Martini Steakhouse 316.263.9711 www.oldtownmartini.com Fine casual dining. ?

Oeno Wine & Tapas Bar 316.440.5000 www.oenowine.com Sophisticated, elegant, tasteful... This might be a place to try. I haven't been there, but the guy who owns it, also owns Sabor and Uptown Bistro. It's on my list.

Old Chicago 316.264.2057 www.oldchicago.com Chain

Old Mill Tasty Shop 316.264.6500 Original Old Town soda fountain. Charming, good food, and it really is an original soda fountain from early/mid 20th century. Lunch and Saturday breakfast only.

Pump House 316.265.6080 Old Town's neighborhood bar and grill - huge patio ?

River City Brewery & Loft 150 316.263.2739 www.rivercitybrewingco.com

brewery I really would like to like this place, but the food is hopelessly mediocre. It was excellent after it first opened, but that was a long time ago. Beer's not bad.

Sabor 316.201.4880 www.saborwichita.com Tango with your tastebuds! Excellent. Highly recommended. I get cravings for the chicken sancocho soup, especially in winter.

Torre's Pizzeria 316.262.3663 Pizzeria ?

Uptown Bistro 316.262.3232 www.uptownbistrowichita.com

Offering a unique variety of Mediterranean, European and Middle Eastern-style dishes & an impressive wine selection. Generally, I really like to eat at UB, but my last meal there wasn't very good. I'm hoping it was a fluke.

Whiskey Creek Steakhouse 316.265.0707 www.whiskeycreek.com

Whiskey Creek serves choice Midwestern grain Beef cooked over an open wood fire with our own unique blend of spices. ?

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For hamburgers, I recommend TJ's, on Douglas in the block east of Seneca; it's in Delano, right across the river from downtown. Excellent burgers!

LaGalette, down the block, is great for lunch.

If you can give me an idea of a type of food you'd like to try, I can tell you where to find it. Wichita just doesn't have high-end food like you'd find in NYC, Chicago, or even KC. But you can still get a good meal here, depending on what you want.

Chester's Chop House, in the NE part of the city, is trying to develop a reputation for having high-end food, but I'm told it's mainly the prices that are high-end, and the food is not better than anywhere else. There's a place on Rock Road called Cibola that's supposed to be really good, but we haven't eaten there. At 21st and Rock is Olive Tree (not to be confused with Olive Garden), a long-time mainstay in Wichita. I haven't eaten there in quite a few years.

If you want steak, quite honestly the best steak in town is at Texas Roadhouse, which is a chain, on West Kellog. It's so noisy you can't hear yourself think, but the steak is always good.

Local flavor: NuWay, which serves a "loose meat" hamburger. Some people hate them. Others have them flown, frozen, to wherever they live. Try the garlic salad.

Artichoke, which is a bar at Broadway and Murdock. The #8 is excellent, and some say its the best sandwich on the planet. Onion roll (grilled), turkey, swiss, bacon, cream cheese, and lettuce & tomato, with Italian dressing and Parmesan.

Mama San's, for Japanese (mentioned above), at 13th and West Street.

Saigon, on north Broadway, for Vietnamese food.

DeFazio's, north of 25th on Amidon, for Italian food.

This oughta get you started. Questions?

Jenny

[Dana]

I had the pleasure of having lunch with Jenny a couple of years ago, and her patate and recs are 'spot on'. Haven't lived near Wichita for many years, but have family who live close. Cibola is terrific, as is Saigon. N&J's for middle eastern at Edgemore and Lincoln is super, too.