Lill's on 17th - Support Your Local Restaurants

Recently, we've dined a couple times at Lill's on 17th Street*. It's a tiny place, with eight tables attended to by a wonderful staff in a funky little building just west of the Blue Bird Bistro. The food has been superb. The wine list is thoughtful and inexpensive - though it could use a couple high-end, well-chosen beers to complete its appeal.

So far, I've seen the filet, the special chicken enchiladas, the special beef stew, and the salmon salad for entrees. Each of them was perfectly prepared and truly world-class. But, the star of the show for me is their tapas. The stuffed mushrooms were bleu-cheese and bacon wonders. The potatoes in garlic aioli, though, were possibly the best potatoes of any sort that this Irishman has ever tasted.

The only down note to my experiences there has been the lack of company. Both nights, there were several empty tables, which, in a restaurant with only 8 tables, is frightening. How long can we expect to have wonderful, quirky, one-of-a-kind restaurants in Kansas City if we pack into national chains like McCormick and Schmick's but ignore our home-grown gems?

*Formerly known as Lillie's, until some insane jackass from the similarly-named styrofoam corporate coffee shop at the Marriott whined to some lawyer who deserves our sympathy for being stuck doing crap work for insane jackasses. New Years' resolution - never set foot in the Marriott coffee shop again.

**We've been waited upon by the charming and award-winning artist Bryn Hughes both times we've been there. She and some friends have opened a gallery at 923 W. 17th Street called "The Syringe". Support your local artists, too!