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The American Restaurant
Rating Details »
- Price Range:
-
$$$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Attire:
- Dressy
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- No
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
8 reviews for The American Restaurant
There is only one review for The American Restaurant, which is somewhat surprising, as the only other person to review the restaurant mentioned. I will also preface this by saying that all of my visits to The American were when Celina Tio was executive chef. I had also been to 40 Sardines, and appreciate Debbie Gold's work.
Let's start from the beginning: The American Restaurant is the best restaurant in Kansas City. Service here is impeccable: extraordinarily attentive, yet not overbearing. The waitstaff is extraordinarily knowledgeable about, well, everything. The food is delightful: at least under Chef Tio, flavours played together incredibly well. And the wine list is comprehensive, to say the least.
This is not an everyday restaurant. We ended up spending just shy of 400$ for the two of us. It is, though, a restaurant to be savored.
I have mixed feelings about this restaurant. The service was fantastic but some of the food was less than stellar. The appetizers were good although the foie gras' texture was a little different than I am used to, I'm not sure why. Most of the food was good but quite frankly not worth the money. They one real complaint I have is the smoked hollandaise with the sturgeon. The smoked hollandaise was really awful. I don't know what the chef was thinking. It tasted like nothing but smoke. The fish without it was really good but the sauce just ruined it. There were a lot of little things that just didn't really go together and seemed like the chef was trying too hard to be innovative but they really didn't work. The prices are way too high for the food. I spent about $50 less about 3 weeks ago in Vegas to eat at Joel Robuchon's restaurant, L'Atelier, which was probably the finest meal that I have ever eaten. Chef Gold is definitely not Chef Robuchon.
It was very good for Kansas City but unfortunately that is the point, it is very good....for Kansas City. If it was in LA, New York, Chicago or Vegas they would not get away with charging so much for mediocre food.
drug rep dinner. stuffy staff. turnip ravioli ok. radish salad fresh and peppery-best thing all night. beef rib eye unremarkable. malted chocolate for dessert. i'm wondering if this wasn't a catered meal rather than the real-deal American restaurant?
I have conflicting feelings about this place. My wife and I ate here. It was very good. Very formal, I had to wear a jacket. Top notch service, excellent creativity in American nuvoux cuisine, yes it does have a number of awards, and the view from the large picture windows overlooking downtown was excellent, however the price was a bit ridiculous for what you get. This place serves tiny, portions. I realize that this is upscale and they do not serve hogging portions but this was so small some items were only one or two bites. I've had as good in larger portions and at better prices. For the two of us it was about $240. We purchase one glass of wine a piece. That price is just silly. So while it's great cuisine that deserves 5 stars the price and portions are so extreme it pulls it down to a 4 star for me.
I am somewhat surprised that this restaurant has not been reviewed here before. It is the only restaurant in the Kansas City area that has four stars in the Mobil Guide. It also is top rated in the AAA guide and in http://OpenTables.com. Similarly in St. Louis, there is only one restaurant with four stars in the Mobil Guide (Tony's). The nearest five star restaurants are in Chicago. The American Restaurant is not inexpensive, but it is no more expensive than BlueStem or Capital Grille, which have been review in Yelp. In fact The American Restaurant is less expensive that Morton's Steak House, located directly below The American Restaurant, and not as good as The American Restaurant (unless you get your kicks out of seeing a live lobster crawling around on the serving cart next to you at Morton's).
The American Restaurant charges for the number of courses: 3, 4, or 5. The smart move is to go for three, and save the cost of the fourth and fifth courses to spend across the street on a play at the Off Center Theatre or the American Heartland Theatre on the top floor of the Crown Center. I did that tonight, and saw the play, "Reefer Madness." It was well done, and very, very funny.
The architect who designed the American Restaurant is the same one who design the famous Windows on the World restaurant that was on the top of the World Trade Center. If you never got a chance to see that wonderful restaurant, you could go to the American Restaurant, stand by the three-story high windows, and imagine what the view would have been like, if about 100 stories higher, and on Manhattan.
NOT the best restaurant in KC. Ridiculously over-priced and lame atmosphere. The decor is exactly the same as when I was a kid and it's kinda cool, but there is never any business and that makes the place BORING. The food is only ok. Even if it were comparably priced, say to Michael Smith or Pachamama's in Lawrence, it would still not be someplace I'd frequent. Sorry. I have no idea how this place gets the accolades it does.
This very pricey, rather silly restaurant tries a bit too hard. The food is lovely, and Celina is unquestionably a great chef, but I've had as good in larger portions, from less expensive places and with less bizarrely overdone service. The complimentary bread (wheat and white-rosemary!! with goat butter OMG) is the best part, and the dessert I had (some kind of caramelized berry flambe goodness) was sensational. Dinner is prix fixe at $65 per person for the smallest (3-course) option; lunch is more flexible and cheaper.
We had an absolutely exquisite dining experience at The American. This is by far the best restaurant in Kansas City and it's definitely worth its hefty price tag for that once-in-a-while splurge. Each course was well executed and the timing of the courses was perfect--not too rushed but also not leaving you hungry, wondering when the next course would come out. We're pretty light eaters, but went for the 5-course just so we could try a couple more selections and it turned out to be way too much food for us and we'd probably do the 3-course next time. The service at The American is top notch--the waitstaff were extremely knowledgeable about the food and wine selections, and went out of their way to ensure we had an absolutely perfect dining experience. We'll definitely be back!
