Kansas City's oldest neighbourhood, layered with bar strip and food. Char Bar, Westport Cafe, Beer Kitchen and Kelly's Westport Inn anchor blocks of late-night.
Char Bar in Westport, Kansas City pairs Mitch Benjamin's award-winning smoke programme with the city's largest dog-friendly patio plus games and a fire pit.
Signature: Burnt ends, Hot chicken and waffles, Charred cauliflower
Order: Burnt ends platter and the charred cauliflower, on the patio with a Boulevard draft.
Tip: Brunch on weekends from 10:00 to 14:00. Kitchen runs until 22:00 most nights; the beer garden stays open later.
Westport Cafe in Kansas City is the casual Paris-style bistro on Westport Road, with weekend brunch from 10:30 to 16:00 and a French menu rotating through bistro classics.
Signature: Chicken hash brunch, Brioche French toast, Steak frites
Order: Chicken hash or brioche French toast at brunch, with the complimentary brunch cocktail.
Tip: Weekend brunch books up; weekday dinner is the quieter seat. Half price wine night runs midweek.
Beer Kitchen in Westport is Kansas City's original gastropub, with a 100% American beer burger stuffed with burnt ends and lathered in house-made BBQ sauce.
Signature: Beer burger with burnt ends, Boozy mac, Brussels sprouts
Order: The beer burger stuffed with burnt ends, plus a flight from the rotating draft list.
Tip: Weekend brunch 9:00 to 14:00. Kitchen runs to 22:00 weeknights, 23:00 weekends.
Westport Flea Market Bar and Grill on Westport Road in Kansas City serves a 10-ounce burger that the Food Network's Meat and Potatoes named the city's best, with a condiment bar.
Signature: 10oz burger, Onion rings, Steak fries
Order: 10-ounce burger built at the condiment bar, with a side of onion rings.
Tip: Cash and card; the bar takes walk-ins. Loud, vintage, no reservations.
Char Bar in Kansas City's Westport pairs Mitch Benjamin's award-winning smoke programme with the city's largest dog-friendly patio plus cornhole, ping-pong and a fire pit.
Signature: Burnt ends, Hot chicken, Charred cauliflower
Order: Burnt ends on the patio, with a Boulevard draft.
Tip: Weekend brunch 10:00 to 14:00. The beer garden stays open later than the kitchen.
Kelly's Westport Inn occupies one of Kansas City's oldest buildings, dated 1850 and run as an outfitting store by Albert Gallatin Boone (grandson of Daniel Boone) from 1854. The bar took its current name in 1977 and anchors the Westport strip.
Signature drink: Boulevard draft, well shots
Food: No food
Tip: Cash works fastest; the back patio is the survival seat on busy Saturdays.
Westport Cafe and Bar on Westport Road runs a craft cocktail programme out of a French-owned bistro, with the Copper Rabbit gin signature and scratch bistro snacks alongside until midnight.
Signature drink: Copper Rabbit gin cocktail, French aperitifs
Food: French bistro plates
Tip: Tuesday through Saturday after 9pm the bar side eases off the dinner rush; sit at the bar for the cocktail list.
Char Bar's beer garden in Kansas City's Westport is the largest dog-friendly patio in town, with cornhole, ping-pong, bocce, a fire pit and Boulevard on draft.
Signature drink: Boulevard drafts, KC craft beer
Food: BBQ, smoked meats
Tip: Weekend brunch 10:00 to 14:00; the garden opens earlier than the kitchen on warm days.
Westport Flea Market Bar and Grill on Westport Road serves the 10-ounce burger the Food Network's Meat and Potatoes named the city's best, with a make-your-own condiment bar.
Try: 10-ounce burger
Tip: Condiment bar adds the personal touch; pair with onion rings and a pint of Boulevard.
Westport Cafe in Kansas City runs a French-bistro weekend brunch from 10:30 to 16:00, with chicken hash, brioche French toast and a complimentary signature brunch cocktail.
Order: Chicken hash or brioche French toast with the complimentary brunch cocktail.
Tip: Bookable on Tock; the patio fills first on warm days. Half-price wine night runs mid-week.
Char Bar in Kansas City's Westport runs a barbecue brunch from 10:00 to 14:00 on weekends, with hot chicken and waffles, smoked breakfast plates and the city's largest dog patio.
Order: Hot chicken and waffles with a Boulevard mimosa.
Tip: The patio runs warmer than the dining room; cornhole and bocce are available all afternoon.
Westport Flea Market in Kansas City's Westport keeps the kitchen and bar open until midnight, serving the city's most-cited burger with a build-your-own condiment bar.
Try: 10-ounce burger
Tip: Patio runs later than kitchen; the bar takes walk-ins on Saturdays.
Char Bar in Kansas City's Westport keeps the bar open until midnight on Fri and Sat with smoked-meat snacks and Boulevard drafts. The patio is the late-night beer garden anchor.
Try: Burnt ends, charred cauliflower
Tip: Kitchen runs until 22:00; the beer garden runs later. The fire pit is the survival seat on cold nights.
Kelly's Westport Inn on Westport Road in Kansas City is one of the city's longest-running dive bars, set in an 1850 building and running until 03:00 on weekend nights.
Try: Beer and well drinks, no kitchen
Tip: No kitchen; food trucks park outside on weekend nights. The back patio is the survival seat.
Kelly's Westport Inn on Westport Road in Kansas City runs live music on weekends, anchoring one of Kansas City's oldest buildings (1850, later run by Albert Gallatin Boone as a trail outfitter from 1854) and the Westport bar strip.
Tip: Live music Fri-Sat evenings, no cover; cash works fastest.
Char Bar's roof patio in Kansas City's Westport is the city's largest dog-friendly outdoor space, with cornhole, ping-pong, bocce, a fire pit and Boulevard drafts.
Tip: The fire pit is the survival seat on cold nights; the patio runs later than the kitchen.
Buddy's Hideout on 39th Street in Kansas City's Midtown is a small, casual gay bar with a strong neighbourhood crowd, karaoke nights and a low-key vibe.
Tip: Karaoke Wednesdays; the bar fills up after the larger Missie B's lets out.
Kelly's Westport Inn on Westport Road in Kansas City is one of the city's longest-running dive bars, set in an 1850 building (later run by Albert Gallatin Boone as a trail outfitter) and the Westport bar strip's late-night anchor.
Tip: Cash works fastest; the back patio is the survival seat on busy Saturdays.
Buzzard Beach on Pennsylvania in Kansas City's Westport is the dive bar with a sand-floored patio, pool tables and cheap drinks until 03:00 nightly.
Tip: Cash works fastest; the patio sand stays around even in winter.