Special Among Several

by Chris Becicka

?Sometimes a restaurant has been here so long, is so comfortable, and so consistent that you forget to go there. The one I’m thinking about is one where, every winter, we go for Irish coffees in the smallish bar. I go to lunch there occasionally with business acquaintances, urging upon them the meatloaf and buttery hash browns—strange sounding choices perhaps for an upscale restaurant. Those who take my advice are always happy they did.

The Plaza III has been around a long time, since Christmas Day, 1963. When it became a full fledged steak house in the late 80s, I don’t recall any other steak places on the Plaza and the move seemed logical. Now of course, there are several places to get a great steak.

It’s a soothing place to eat, even if you don’t care for cowboy art. The leather booths are comfy, the tables pristine, the noise subdued. The waiters in their white shirts, black ties and white aprons are plentiful and attentive. Our waitress was pleasant and helpful; other nice men kept my water glass full—a difficult feat at many places, let me tell you. No wonder they have won Ingram’s award for best service so many times. An extensive wine list is available, and the restaurant has garnered the Wine Spectator Award of Excellence at least ten times in its recent history.

I loved the old-fashioned appetizer that came promptly—very cold and crisp radishes, celery, carrots, green onions with dressing. It’s a healthy munchy that doesn’t drive you away from the more substantial appetizers, which include everything from fresh oysters on the half shell to the famous Plaza III steak soup which I had to try, for memory’s sake. Yep, it’s the same. The only difference is now I can find its recipe on the web. The other appetizer we tried was a sheer and guilty indulgence on my part—the onion straws. I’m forced to admit I ate more than my half—these are my idea of great onion rings. Crispy, lightly coated, perfect: the little puddle of grease, all that was left on the plate, told the entire story.

We split the Plaza III garden salad, an old favorite as well. We were each given a plate and it looked like two separate orders to me. The ranch dressing was creamy and there was not too much, which I really appreciated.

Get on with it, you say. It’s a steak place. Among several now in the Plaza and Mid-Town. How was it?

In a word, excellent. As good or better than any we’ve had in Kansas City. Tender, prime meat, extra-aged and charcoal grilled perfectly. We also tried the lamb rib chops which were meltable and flavorful with a fabulous Bearnaise sauce. Oh my. To this we added the Lyonnaise potatoes which—as we were reaching our limit—tasted great the next night, fried in still more butter.

We were full, but I forced myself to try the chocolate truffle cake with whipped cream we asked for instead of ice cream. Again, perfect. We’ve also had the key lime pie, remarkably good carrot cake and the fresh berries with creme fraiche, all made there. (One has to have something more substantial with Irish coffee late at night).

We’d heard the downstairs had been redone and so we checked that out before we left. Very pretty, contemporary, relaxed. Jazz every night. No cover. Something to do in the Plaza after (or before) 10 p.m. It’s definitely worth a visit—there’s good music from the likes of Allen Munroe or the Brian Ruskin Trio, and the full menu is available there.

I can’t tell you how often the Plaza III has won best steak house, best luncheon, best restaurant in Ingram’s “Best of Business Kansas City” awards these last many years. I can tell you it deserves every one of them.