No matter how good a beer is, sometimes it just doesn’t work out. Take Boulevard’s Zon. The Belgian-style witbier won multiple medals at the Great American Beer Festival, but it also had a way of sitting on store shelves, unloved. So last year, Boulevard announced it was pulling the plug on Zon — only to bring it back this year…
Mission Gateway developer Tom Valenti has at least 99 problems, and an upcoming election is just another one. The New York developer probably has more on the line on April 5, when Mission residents elect their City Council representatives, than the candidates themselves. Valenti, after all, has personally guaranteed at least some of the debt associated with the Mission Gateway…
Hometown: Fairway Current neighborhood: Volker What I do: As the owner of a small branding firm, I help businesses define what they’re all about, then help them share that information with their customers and communities. I also host the local chapter of CreativeMornings. If you haven’t been yet, come check it out! What’s your addiction? Yoga, hiking, food, dartboards in…
In November 2012, KC Magazine called Scott Tucker “a staunch Republican voter and a long time political activist.” It was the latest of several appearances he’d made over the years in Anthem Media Group’s local glossy, a staple of doctors’-office waiting rooms in the metro’s suburbs. The admiring mini-feature also described Tucker as a private-equity entrepreneur. It was true that…
Few jazz musicians in Kansas City have created more bands than trumpeter Stan Kessler. And those bands aren’t one-and-done ensembles. His group Sons of Brazil celebrates a quarter-century together this month. Kessler’s newest band includes a musician who was a toddler when Sons played its first gig. But each member of Stan Kessler’s Force 5 is one of the best…
The Easter Bunny hops into Kansas City a day early this year. The egg-toting rabbit is coming to Powell Gardens (1609 Northwest U.S. Highway 50, Kingsville, 816-697-2600), which is hosting “Breakfast With the Easter Bunny” from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday, March 26. Prices range from $19 for adults to $11 for children ages 4 and younger. Chris Cakes…
Sure, Imperial Drifter makes high-quality grooming products for men: juniper-mint pomade, old-fashioned German safety razors, beard oil that smells like rosemary and sweet orange. But after 10 years in the body-care industry, founder Benjamin Aaron also has bigger — and more important — goals than ensuring that your hair game is on point. For every product sold, Imperial Drifter (imperialdrifter.com)…
Morgan Cooper is Barrel Maker. You’ll recognize his moniker likely from his work with local hip-hop artists Stik Figa, Mac Lethal, Milkdrop and Approach. He’s a videographer with a sharp eye and an instinct for visuals. He’s also a rapper in two groups: One called Lionmaker, as a duo with Lawrence producer Lion, and another called Blk Flanl with Kansas…
Little Green Cars It’s been three long years since Little Green Cars released its swell debut album, Absolute Zero. Time, it seems, has brought a certain solemnity to the Dublin band, and its follow-up, Ephemera, contains very little of the sunny positivity from its introduction. Lead singers Stevie Appleby and Faye O’Rourke shoulder the burden beautifully, and Ephemera’s songs are…
Note: The current version of this story updates a previous headline to reflect Town & Country’s proximity to St. Louis. Missouri Rep. Sue Allen, a Republican from Town & Country, introduced a House Joint Resolution that seeks to put the fate of the earnings tax in Kansas City and St. Louis to a statewide vote. House Joint Resolution 104 is…
A reliable source tells The Pitch that five newsroom personnel were laid off at the Kansas City Star on Monday. Among the five was Greg Hack, an assistant business editor at the Star. Also departing: • Brian Burnes, reporter covering eastern Jackson County. • Alan Bavely, healthcare reporter. • Jim Fussell, features writer. • Mary Schulte, online photo editor. The Pitch reached out…
Mumford & Sons will take to the road this April to continue the support for their third studio album, Wilder Mind, which they released last May. The tour, An Arrow Through the Heartland, stays true to its name and will hit dates in the American South and Midwest, including stops in Houston, Dallas, and Madison. The tour launches on April…
Barb Shelly, one of the leading voices in local news, will leave the Kansas City Star, she confirmed on social media Friday morning. Shelly, a graduate of Penn State University, has worked in several different capacities at the Star since 1984. She has been on the Star editorial board since 2004. KCUR reported Thursday that the deadline for newsroom employees to accept…
Blvd Tavern’s private dining room gets special treatment this weekend. There will be no large parties or celebrations — at least not until all the pedestals and delicate ceramic pieces have been cleared from the room. On Wednesday, the 50th Anniversary Conference of the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA) kicked off in Kansas City, introducing a…
Kansas City feels like a landlocked nation fending off the culture wars instigated by people who hold political power in Kansas and Missouri. On the eastern front, a bill making its way through the Missouri General Assembly purports to bolster religious freedom in the Show-Me State, but in reality invites unchecked discrimination. Senate Joint Resolution 39 passed the Missouri Senate…
There can only be one top overall seed going into March Madness, and that distinction in this year’s festivities belongs to the Kansas Jayhawks, who ended the year with the No. 1 ranking in the country. They’ll have their sights set on capturing the school’s fourth national championship in its storied history. Kansas Jayhawks tickets at Razorgator have been a force…
Back in September, classic rockers The Who were forced to postpone dates on their “The Who Hits 50!” Tour. Although it may have felt like a long wait for fans, the band have hit the road again. The massive tour was originally postponed to allow lead singer Roger Daltrey time to recover from a bout with viral meningitis, and on…
St. Patrick’s Day in Kansas City is a jungle. So follow us into the heart of the jungle that is the Power & Light District’s Live Block for a free show with X Ambassadors on Thursday, March 17. Expect a crowded, drunken good time and hits “Renegades,” “Unsteady” and, of course, “Jungle.” The show starts at 5 p.m., but arrive…
The constant whoosh inside the 14-foot-wide wind tunnel at iFly makes conversation impossible. High-efficiency axial fans create a column of air powerful enough to suspend most humans in midair — and loud enough to suggest a plane taking off at your elbow, or a train bearing down on you. All of your senses are immediately overwhelmed by the stunning ferocity…
Lots of collaboration news from Boulevard this week. When the Chipotle Cultivate Festival returns to Penn Valley Park on July 23, Chipotle Mexican Lager — a collaboration among Boulevard, Arizona Wilderness and Cigar City Brewing — will make its KC debut. You’ll be able to get it only at the one-day festival, as was the case with last year’s Cultivate…
Barkley associate content director Carolyn Cohen is blogging the SXSW Interactive festival for The Pitch. As SXSW wrapped up, I attended a few final sessions, learned about content and innovation and talked to other folks from those disciplines. Here’s my roundup. 1. Community Manager Meet Up I kicked off Tuesday morning with one of SXSW’s many meet ups. This group…
Sitting in a dimly lighted corner of Westport’s new Doughnut Lounge, I stared in awe at the shards of frosting that had flaked off my glazed doughnut when I took my first bite. Unlike most doughnuts, which seem to be coated in something resembling wet tissue paper, this sugary shell had substance. I picked up a chunk the size of…
Twitter handle: @aaronsloup Hometown: McPherson, Kansas. Home of the Bullpups! Current neighborhood: Olathe What I do: Lead strategy, product, partnerships, among other things for Gameday — reinvent what it means to be a fan on game day. For readers who don’t know the Gameday app, tell us why they should download it: For fans, Gameday is the quickest way to…
Part of America’s flag-waving rhetoric includes the well-churned hype that small business is the country’s backbone, the “job-creating engine” of the whole economy. Both political parties recite this applause line, then routinely promise to lighten the regulatory burden on small-business owners — especially around election time. Back in 2004, then–Missouri Rep. Brian Baker took the usual talk a step further….
