The Midwest isn’t known for its seafood. After all, the nearest coast is over 1,000 miles away from Kansas City.
Even James Beard award-winning food editor and Flatland freelance writer Jill Silva admits she once harbored hesitations about local pescatarian options.
“I had all the negative stereotypes,” Silva told KCUR’s Up To Date on Friday. And since you can't get fresh seafood here, the notions go, “why even bother writing about it?”
But the industry flies fresh products in on ice every day, Silva says, and, in some cases, fish arriving in the Midwest could be fresher than their coastal counterparts.
“If you're living on a coast, I was told, it might go from the boat and then it might sit a little bit,” she says. “Whereas, if it's going to be shipped, it goes right on ice and it gets out of there really quickly.”
Kansas City has amazing seafood, she insists, we just didn't realize it.
Ixtapa Fine Mexican Cuisine in the Northland is an amazing example, says Carlton Logan, co-administrator of the Kansas City Eats Facebook Page.
“I really enjoy the Arroz con Comorones, which is shrimp sauteed in a spicy cream, with mushrooms and onions with rice,” Logan says. “It's just very flavorful, smooth and has a kick of heat.”
Earl’s Premier in Brookside is another establishment doing something right, says Jenny Vergara, food columnist for IN Kansas City Magazine and co-host of KCUR’s Hungry for MO podcast.
“The owners are really onto something with Earl's Premiere — just a tiny spot where everybody's packed in and having a good time and eating good food,” Vergara says.
Vergara, Logan and Silva recommend below their favorite seafood restaurants in town.
Jenny Vergara:
- The Fish Market — Cajun fare. Beyond the large fiberglass shark and the human-sized crawfish sitting on the patio of this colorful, casual family-run Liberty restaurant is a Cajun-influenced menu with seafood sourced from the Gulf Coast, including catfish from Mississippi and shrimp from Louisiana.
- Bosslady’s Famous Shrimp — shrimp boils. With such a sassy name, you know the shrimp has got to be good. This Northland spot serves well-seasoned or sauced, boiled, batter-fried, and sautéed shrimp, along with a handful of crab, crawfish, salmon, chicken and steak dishes.
- Earl’s Premier — New England Lobster Roll. Owners Todd Schulte and Cory Dannehl have cracked the code. Oysters from the raw bar, served with a cava mignonette and house cocktail sauce, are the heart and soul of this menu. That and a frozen gin and tonic are the beginnings of a great meal in Brookside.
- Jarocho — ceviche. Chef Carlos Falcon and managing partner Sayaka Falcon, who are married, now have two locations dishing seafood inspired by Veracruz, Mexico. The menus are slightly different, but both feature popular dishes like chili butter oysters, sautéed baby octopus in a Thai-chili sauce, and a fried whole snapper.
- Farina — oyster bar. Farina’s oyster bar is front and center, giving guests great views of bustling Southwest Boulevard in the Crossroads. Reservations are recommended for happy hour, from 5 to 7 p.m., Tuesday through Friday.
- Lucky Boys — Fillet-O-Fish. There are a lot of fried fish sandwiches in the metro, but this West Bottoms bar serves my favorite. It’s based on a mass-produced fast food version that sells 300 million a year, but Lucky Boys’ is much, much better. That and an ice cold beer, and dinner is served.
- Lula Southern Cookhouse — Shrimp & Grits. The dishes I gravitate to here are the shrimp and grits, with a spicy green chili, Buffalo-style sauce on the shrimp and blue cheese on the grits. They run an amazing brunch on the weekends, too, and are open for lunch and dinner.
- Pierpont’s at Union Station — The Boxcar Tower. This fine-dining mainstay remains popular because of its soaring ceilings and warm decor, impressive bar program, prime steak, fresh seafood and deep wine list. Seafood entrées like smoked scallops with citrus beurre blanc or the spicy seafood cioppino are created by Executive Chef Matt Barnes.
Carlton Logan:
- Ixtapa Fine Mexican Cuisine — Arroz con Camarones. Owner Victor Esqueda loves talking about the dishes, the history and the preparation. For Arroz con Camarones, shrimp are sauteed in a spicy cream sauce with mushrooms, broccoli and onion.
- Seafood Island — shrimp boils. This Shawnee spot opened during the pandemic, when restaurants offering single-serving shrimp boils started to appear in Kansas City. They offer several combos, or you can create your own. I usually do shrimp and sausage or lobster, with — what else? — potatoes, corn and an egg.
- Mudbug Cajun Po’ Boys — Shrimp Po Boy. North of the river near Gladstone, this strip-mall shop serves nine different po’boy sandwiches. Each comes with provolone, tomato, and garlic butter-sautéed crawfish for garnish. The shrimp variety comes with polenta, lemon pepper slaw and a smoked onion aioli.
- Genghis Khan Mongolian Grill — Crispy Savory Calamari. After closing last year, this restaurant reopened with new ownership in 2024. One of my goddaughters introduced me to the calamari starter plate here. The rings are fried with a light, crispy coating and come with two sauces.
- Brady & Fox — Traditional Fish & Chips. The late chef Shaun Brady’s fish and chips with mushy peas is totally unique to Kansas City. I had the chance to meet Brady once before his recent tragic death. His food was his voice. He left an impact.
- Bogey’s Windy City Pub — Fish and Chips. This large piece of fried cod is served with fries and a slaw. Also order the Carmelized Onion Dip with house chips, thin and crisp. It’s not your mother’s French onion dip, made with a mix.
- Charlie Hooper’s — Fried Avocado Shrimp Tacos. I recently revisited this restaurant after more than a decade. The shrimp tacos, three to an order, are served with pico de gallo and queso fresco. They're topped with a beer-battered, flash-fried slice of avocado, which I love.
Jill Silva:
- Lidia’s — Polipo. This octopus salad has been a menu staple for years. The smoked cephalopod is paired with potato and frisée, also known as curly endive or chicory. The bitter, spiky salad green works perfectly as a counterbalance to the salty capers, black olives and red onions.
- Rye and Hemma Hemma — salmon toast. Avocado toast is cool, but I’ve been enamored with salmon toast. Rye’s includes avocado, plus cucumber, pickled red onion, capers and garden greens served on artisan bread. Hemma Hemma’s uses a thicker Ibis Bakery bread with an herby feta schmear, hard-boiled egg slices, capers, cucumber, lemon, and fresh, feathery dill.
- La Bodega — paella. The seafood in this classic Spanish dish is plump and glorious. It always feels like a treasure hunt to find the shrimp, scallops, mussels, clams, squid and peas in the Paella Mariscos. The Paella Valenciana, with chicken, chorizo, shrimp, clams, mussels, and string beans, is a perfect party entree.
- Martin City Brewing Company — Tuna Tartare. Seared ahi tuna is tossed in a wasabi vinaigrette with avocado, pickled cucumbers, crushed wasabi peas, spicy mango-pineapple dressing and sriracha. I had this appetizer at the Lenexa restaurant, but it is not available at all locations.
- Taco Naco KC — Baja Shrimp Chorizo Taco. Like Spanish chorizo in paella, shrimp and Mexican chorizo make for a tasty taco. This one includes Pacifico beer-battered shrimp, cheese, chipotle aioli and pico de gallo.
- Vivilore — Lemon & Herb Broiled Orange Roughy. The menu at this Independence treasure includes smoked salmon bruschetta, New England clam chowder, lobster rolls, coconut shrimp, fish and chips, Pacific Coast wild salmon, fish tacos and more. Elegant atmosphere and service is a plus!
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