Nobody puts Kansas City in a corner. It’s 2024, and thanks to the miracle of modern transportation, we can eat fresh oysters far from the ocean. Here’s a handful of restaurants that serve oysters in Kansas City.
Earl’s Premier
Earl’s Premier serves a small menu of American food in east Brookside, but oysters are its bread and butter. The head honchos say they’re tight with oyster farmers from both coasts, and frequent shipments help them serve fresh oysters daily in the middle of the country.
Earl’s serves its oysters raw with house-made cocktail sauce, cava mignonette, horseradish ice, and lemon. You can also order oyster shooters with michelada, saké Bloody Mary, or Earl’s Martini.
Farina
Spend your next happy hour in the Crossroads at Farina. In addition to wine, cocktails, and a stacked Italian menu, Farina has an oyster bar with oysters from either coast at four bucks a pop.
Aqua Penny’s
Aqua Penny’s is steps away from its Thai food-serving sibling, Bamboo Penny’s, in Leawood’s Park Place.
The raw bar serves Boston teardrops and Rappahannock river pearls for $3 each—$2 during happy hour—and oysters from either coast at market price. The appetizer menu offers crispy jumbo oysters (with red chili remoulade and tartar sauce), Rockefeller baked oysters topped with cheese and spices, and Burnt End Oysters, which are wrapped in bacon and flavored with spicy BBQ sauce.
Ocean Prime
For a metropolitan meal, head to Ocean Prime just off the Plaza. The menu is huge—shoot, the sides section is 15 items long—but at the very top is oysters on the half shell. For a limited time, they’re serving oysters topped with frozen champagne.
A big menu means there’s something for the oyster avoiders, too. Think lobster bisque, white truffle caviar deviled eggs, lamb chops, and filet mignon.
Jarocho
Find another respectable oyster menu at Jarocho, a Mexican seafood restaurant in south Kansas City and KCK. In addition to fresh oysters on the half shell, Jarocho serves chili butter oysters and stuffed oysters, both grilled. Its 20-item specialty menu includes grilled live lobster, shrimp or steak quesadillas, and fire grilled trout.
Pierpont’s at Union Station
Get a little fancy and head to Pierpoint’s, a gem in the gem that is Union Station. Its menu has dishes from sky, land, and the sea—and that includes baked and raw oysters on the half shell. The baked oysters are made with herbed breadcrumbs and yuzu butter, which is made with butter and a Japanese citrus fruit.