06/26/06

Hold the salt please

by turtlebeak

I was excited to try the food at 12 Baltimore. I grew up in Kansas City but have been in New York for the last 5 years. I loved seeing all the growth in Kansas City and was proud to return with my boyfriend to show off how great KC is along with it's restaurants. I left 12 Baltimore angry and disappointed. Our waitress was snotty, young and uneducated about the food she was serving. The live band was terrible and everyone in our party complained their food was salty WAY too salty. I could barely eat my Macaroni with Salmon, all I tasted was salt. My boyfriend ordered the tenderloin, which he described as bland and tough (not what he expected in a beef town like KC). My recommendation to 12 Baltimore is to either drop the pretension and try to focus on catering just to the party atmosphere & dropping the prices a bit or, raise the prices a few dollars and hire a real chef. On the upside, the wine was excellent and they have a great bourbon selection.

• Pros: Good drink selection
• Cons: Food that is trying to be much more than it is, salty & unskilled preparation, bad waitresses in tacky skirts

05/14/04

The casual, elegant hotel hangout is an oasis of upscale bar food and fine scotch.

by Contributor

The Scene
With its high ceiling and dark wood paneling, the bar tries to capture the elegance of the adjoining Hotel Phillips, but without being stuffy. The comfort level is modest, but the low lighting and tabletop candles add some intimacy. Floor-to-ceiling windows let in lots of warm light during happy hour and offer a nice angle on the nearby historic buildings.

The Draw
As a rare, unsleazy bar in the downtown area, 12 Baltimore offers a breather from the Bermuda Triangle of K.C. nightlife (Plaza-Westport-Midtown), which seems to suck in nearly every weekend bar-goer. Groups of after-work downtowners and young professionals fill the room on Friday and Saturday nights, but it's rarely standing-room only. A full menu offers everything from quesadillas to calamari to chicken picata. The selection of beer and mixed drinks is fairly predictable, though a number of high-end whiskeys stand out.