![\"Let's](\"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1792855747_60_letsdish-16x9-new-01.png\" "\\"\\"")
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Editor\u2019s note: The following is from the Let\u2019s Dish newsletter from KC Food Insider Katelyn Umholtz, published weekly on Wednesdays. Let\u2019s Dish also publishes on Fridays from restaurant reporter Jenna Thompson. You can sign up here to get them delivered to your inbox.<\/p>\n
Welcome back to Let\u2019s Dish \u2014 an inside look at food and drink in Kansas City. I\u2019m Katelyn Umholtz, The Star\u2019s Food Insider.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s a new restaurant coming to the Crossroads that, through random chance, put my food and drink interests into one tiny space. That upcoming restaurant is The Shuckers Union, and its menu will feature oysters and sparkling wine. More on that below.<\/p>\n
On the other end of the food-social class spectrum, let\u2019s talk sandwiches. And deep-fried tacos. And hangover-curing pho. And other comfort foods that this Italian beef obsessive eats when he\u2019s not opening his first restaurant.<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s dig in.<\/p>\n
Oysters + Bubbles in KC<\/p>\n
A raw bar, a variety of sparkling wines and martinis? Sounds like a party to me.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s what Brandon Hayden wants The Shuckers Union to be \u2014 a stop before a show, a nightcap after dinner, or whatever reason you may have to celebrate with oysters from New England and sparkling wine from Italy.<\/p>\n
Shuckers Union oysters Courtesy of Shuckers Union <\/p>\n
Menu details aren\u2019t final yet, but expect oysters from \u201ceverywhere.\u201d Some from standard locales like Maine and Washington, but also bivalves from Alaska, small oysters from the Gulf Coast and even Baja California. There will also be non-oyster dishes, like shrimp cocktail, hot and cold lobster rolls and hot dogs.<\/p>\n
Midwesterners get a little skittish when it comes to oysters, but Hayden (who jokingly called himself an \u201coyster evangelist\u201d) has been behind a raw bar or two before, and he\u2019s passionate about bringing the bivalves to more Kansas Citians.<\/p>\n
Ethan Wheeler\u2019s favorite bites Ethan Wheeler is a co-founder of Saul\u2019s Italian Beef and serves Morty\u2019s Chicago-style hot dogs. Courtesy of Ethan Wheeler <\/p>\n
While working at highly-acclaimed restaurants in Kansas City (specifically, Extra Virgin and Farina), Ethan Wheeler became an Italian beef obsessive.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s probably confusing. Some of Kansas City\u2019s best Mediterranean and Italian restaurants are not known for serving this messy Chicago sandwich. But behind the scenes, this chef was trying to perfect the sandwich and make a business out of it with his business partner, Michael Iammarino.<\/p>\n
That business became Saul\u2019s Italian Beef, and through an acquisition, they also took over Morty\u2019s, which sells Chicago-style hot dogs out of a mobile food trailer. You can find their Chicago foods there, where the KCK food cart is usually parked, but soon enough, you\u2019ll find it in its own brick-and-mortar space.<\/p>\n
Where does an Italian beef fanatic like Ethan Wheeler eat? Our latest On the Menu features some truly great comfort bites and sips.<\/p>\n
403 Club: Cheap beer and pinball? Say no more. Wheeler doesn\u2019t go out much, but when he does, it\u2019s for $2 tall boys. \u201cIt\u2019s the cheapest tall boys anywhere in Missouri, Kansas and probably in the world.\u201dIn-A-Tub: Another place Wheeler loves because of its price point, In-A-Tub is also essential to the identity of the Northland. The classic order is the powdered cheese-covered, deep-fried tacos, and it\u2019s also Wheeler\u2019s go-to. \u201cIt\u2019s greasy, and it\u2019s amazing.\u201d In-A-Tub, 4000 North Oak Trafficway, is famous for its deep-fried tacos topped with a powdered cheese. Tammy Ljungblad tljungblad@kcstar.com <\/p>\n
You can get more recommendations from Wheeler. Want your recommendations featured here? Drop me a line!<\/p>\n
\u00c0 la carte<\/p>\n
\u2734\ufe0f A beloved Kansas City LGBTQ+ bar known as the first restaurant to be nationally recognized as a Safe Place is closing its doors next month.<\/p>\n
\u2734\ufe0f The couple behind a well-known custard shop is bringing more frozen dessert to the West Bottoms \u2014 specifically, New Zealand-style ice cream.<\/p>\n
\u2734\ufe0f Following The Star investigation into its perpetually empty shelves, a grocery store has closed for good.<\/p>\n
Eat like a food reporter<\/p>\n
How does a Kansas City food reporter eat each week? Well! Here are the food and drinks I\u2019ve enjoyed recently:<\/p>\n
Sublime at La Fetta: How a sandwich wins me over is dependent on 1) the bread and 2) the ingredients that either shine or die at the tongue. At La Fetta\u2019s newest location, the Sublime sandwich\u2019s many components harmoniously dance together \u2014 particularly the hot soppressata, pesto and burrata \u2014 to make for a spicy and nutty bite of a sandwich.<\/p>\n
Duck confit pasta at Westport Cafe Katelyn Umholtz\/The Star <\/p>\n
Duck confit pasta at Westport Cafe: I had the dreamiest, creamy pasta at Westport Cafe, complete with tender bucatini, foie gras sauce, a rich and shredded duck confit and a whole cluster of maitake mushrooms. Paired with their actually significant happy hour menu, it was one of the most divine dinners I\u2019ve had in Kansas City.<\/p>\n
Hungry for more?<\/p>\n
Happy eating! We\u2019ll see you next week.<\/p>\n
![\"Profile](\"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/KatelynUmholtz-Profile.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
Katelyn Umholtz<\/p>\n
The Kansas City Star<\/p>\n
Katelyn Umholtz is The Star\u2019s Food Insider and covers Kansas City\u2019s restaurant scene and food and beverage news. She comes to Kansas City from Boston, where she was an award-winning food and restaurant reporter for Boston.com and the Boston Globe Media Partners. She has worked in newsrooms across the country for nearly a decade as an education journalist, breaking news reporter and editor. Katelyn is a graduate of the University of Georgia, where she studied journalism.\u00a0\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Editor\u2019s note: The following is from the Let\u2019s Dish newsletter from KC Food Insider Katelyn Umholtz, published weekly on Wednesdays. Let\u2019s Dish also publishes on Fridays from restaurant reporter Jenna Thompson. You can sign up here to get them delivered to your inbox. Welcome back to Let\u2019s Dish \u2014 an inside look at food and<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":61845,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[5022,5020,5018,5021,5019],"class_list":["post-69228","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-kansas","tag-kansas","tag-kansas-dining","tag-kansas-food","tag-kansas-grocery-stores","tag-kansas-restaurants"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/vive.im\/@dc\/117526155989793821","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69228","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=69228"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69228\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/61845"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=69228"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=69228"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=69228"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}