Kansas City Coffee Top 5

Kansas City loves coffee. So much so that there's an abundance of coffee shops to choose from. Too many choices can be daunting and so I've put together a top 5 list of my favorites.

1. Thou Mayest Coffee Roasters -

419 East 18th Street, Kansas City, MO 64108

Thou Mayest is located in the Crossroads district of Kansas City which is considered the arts district. Thou Mayest stands out from other coffee shops in that it has its liquor license. Because it sells coffee by day and alcohol by night, it's open longer and appeals to a larger crowd. It has a back patio and a second floor balcony, making it easier to spread out.

The 1st floor is really the place you want to be because it's decorated by the talented team of Utilitarian Workshop. It's rustic/urban hipster at its best with vintage maps on the walls, pennants and fishing gear throughout. They also sell bakery items, such as the homemade pop tarts from the husband and wife team that is Heirloom Bakery. I will come back to them in a future post.

For menu, hours and directions: www.thoumayest.com

2. Post Coffee Company -

200 Northeast Chipman Road, Lee's Summit, MO 64063

Just outside Kansas City in Lee's Summit, Post Coffee is located in the corner of an unassuming shopping center where it has wall to wall windows that give way to lots of natural light, high ceilings and clean white walls in a large open floor plan. The modern simplicity of the menu and space help it to stand out from the darker walls and wood heavy spaces of other local coffee shops.

For menu, hours and directions: www.postcoffeecompany.com

3. Quay Coffee -

412 Delaware Street, Kansas City, MO 64105

Quay Coffee is located in the River Market area which is just outside downtown Kansas City. This is also the location of the largest farmers market in Kansas City which makes it a great place to stop for coffee after getting your shopping done.

Their menu is simple and they use beans roasted by Oddly Correct (see next coffee shop on the list).

For menu, hours and directions: www.quaycoffee.com

4. Oddly Correct Coffee -

3940 Main Street, Kansas City, MO 64111

The folks at Oddly Correct take coffee seriously. You won't find a pumpkin spice latte here. It's just bare bone coffee the way it's meant to be enjoyed. It shows how much they respect the natural flavor of the beans which they roast down the street. You have to admire a company who refuses to give in to the demand of the fad of the dessert coffee.

For menu, hours and directions: www.oddlycorrect.com

5. Second Best Coffee -

328 West 85th Street, Kansas City, MO

The location of Second Best is a shopping center in the Waldo neighborhood of Kansas City which makes it a hidden gem. This is another design creation of Utilitarian Workshop and their motto is "midwestern modesty" which explains the name. Their menu is unique in that their signature items are breakfast burritos (which is my husbands favorite) and blueberry Jiffy muffins (my favorite...you read that right, Jiffy boxed muffin mix!). The husband and wife owners are avid bike enthusiasts and therefore have a bike rack available for customers to use.

For menu, hours and directions: www.secondbestcoffee.com

Spring Fever

1. Twinsies
2. Foreground, middle ground, background
3. All the redheads
4. Great minds think alike
5. After work iced coffee and park stroll
6. Earth Day
7. All the succulents
8. First day of spring
9. Sandals and snow
10. Parsley, sage, rosemary and...cilanrtro
11. Peonies in from the storm
12. Easter chicks and hens