By Pete Dulin
Pairing different styles of beer with food is fun and easy with a little practice. From IPAs to saisons, beers from local breweries are available in Kansas City restaurants and pair well with dishes for complementary or contrasting flavor.
At The Farmhouse, the Hatfield burger is made with local, grass-finished ground beef, topped with extra cheese and bacon and served with house fries. Enjoy it with Dunkel, a dark, medium-bodied Munich-style lager from Kansas City Bier Company. Slightly sweet malt flavor and mild hops cuts through the rich, juicy beef, tangy cheese and salty-sweet bacon.
Belgian IPA, a highly hopped West Coast-style brewed by Mickey's Hideaway with prominent hops aroma, is a natural partner with beer-battered fish and chips. For dessert, drink Oatmeal Stout with the ice cream sandwich, a combination of homemade peanut butter ice cream, oatmeal stout chocolate brownie, and hot fudge.
Cinder Block’s Northtown Native, a California common similar to lager, is light with a crisp finish. It’s perfect for savoring with steamed mussels in mildly spicy green curry or washing down fried calamari with mango-chile mojo and lime aioli at Jax Fish House.
Summer heat and humidity equates to lighter eating and imbibing. Crane Brewing’s Grapefruit Gose, a tart citrusy beer, complements Le Fou Frog’s briny raw oysters or tuna tartare with wasabi cream.
Try a light KC Pils from Boulevard with Rye’s hearty, homestyle fixings like the pulled pork sandwich with slaw and fries or famous fried chicken. Boulevard’s Tank 7, a farmhouse saison with floral aroma, is versatile enough to pair with Bluestem bar menu items such as whipped ricotta with peas, fava beans, lemon and herbs; the charcuterie board, or hanger steak with chimichurri and fries.
Martin City Brewing Company’s Hard Way IPA is an East Coast-style IPA with prominent citrus flavor and aroma and toasted malt balanced by hops. Enjoy a pint at Charlie Hooper’s with shrimp and lobster mac-and-cheese, Buffalo chicken wings, or BLT with smoked Gouda and sriracha aioli on triple-stacked farm-to-market sourdough.
Tapcade in the Crossroads rotates taps but regularly offers locally brewed beers on draft. Torn Label’s Hang’em High IPA with piney hops and smooth malt holds up to the poutine, New Mexican burrito with Hatch green chilies, and even spinach-artichoke quesadilla.
Unsure about your beer-and-food pairing palate? Ask a server for tried-and-true recommendations before exploring the possibilities of flavor one pint at a time.
Brittany Howard: What Now Tour
The Truman
Silversun Pickups
The Midland Theatre
Alvvays
The Truman
The Cancelled Podcast Tour with Tana Mongeau and Brooke Schofield
The Midland Theatre
Miller Lite Presents Downtown Hoedown featuring Brett Young
Kansas City Power & Light District
Palace
The Truman
Liquid Stranger: Wakaan Expansion Tour
The Midland Theatre
The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus
The Truman
Bianca Del Rio: Dead Inside Comedy Tour
The Midland Theatre
Black Veil Brides: Bleeders Tour 2024
The Truman
Wage War & Nothing More
The Midland Theatre
Greta Van Fleet
T-Mobile Center
slowdive
The Truman
Tori Kelly: purple skies tour
The Midland Theatre
Mosaic Presents: Lost Kings
Mosaic Ultra Lounge
Tech N9ne with The KC Symphony
The Midland Theatre
foorum Nexus
Kansas City Convention Center
foorum Nexus
Kansas City Convention Center
Portugal. The Man: The Knik Country Tour
The Truman
foorum Nexus
Kansas City Convention Center
Sam Barber: Till I Return Tour
The Truman
Hermanos Gutiérrez
The Truman
The Postal Service & Death Cab for Cutie
T-Mobile Center
Donny Benét
The Truman
NF
T-Mobile Center
Gavin DeGraw
The Truman
Gary Clark Jr.
The Midland Theatre
Local Natives
The Truman
Kumar Sanu & Sadhna Sargam
The Midland Theatre
Marca MP: Simplemente Marca Tour
The Midland Theatre
Outdoor Concert Series
City of Lenexa, Kansas
Real Estate: Infinite Jangle Tour
The Truman
Jammin’ on the Green: A Summer Concert Series
Shawnee Town 1929
Pepe Aguilar
T-Mobile Center
Outdoor Concert Series
City of Lenexa, Kansas
Brit Floyd: Pulse Tour
The Midland Theatre
Outdoor Concert Series
City of Lenexa, Kansas
Lionel Richie
T-Mobile Center
Miller Lite Hot Country Nights: Treaty Oak Revival
Kansas City Power & Light District
Tim McGraw
T-Mobile Center
Outdoor Concert Series
City of Lenexa, Kansas
Goose
The Midland Theatre
Chris Stapleton
T-Mobile Center
Miller Lite Hot Country Nights: Niko Moon
Kansas City Power & Light District
Outdoor Concert Series
City of Lenexa, Kansas
Miller Lite Hot Country Nights: Warren Zeiders
Kansas City Power & Light District
Miller Lite Hot Country Nights: Pecos & the Rooftops
Kansas City Power & Light District
Kenny Chesney : Sun Goes Down Tour with Zach Brown Band
Arrowhead Events
Miller Lite Hot Country Nights: Mitchell Tenpenny
Kansas City Power & Light District
Bowling for Soup: Sick 50 Tour
The Truman
Miller Lite Hot Country Nights: Randall King
Kansas City Power & Light District
Olivia Rodrigo
T-Mobile Center
The Last Dinner Party
The Truman
Charley Crockett
The Midland Theatre
Morgan Wallen : One Night At A Time
Arrowhead Events
Miller Lite Hot Country Nights: Alexandra Kay
Kansas City Power & Light District
Morgan Wallen : One Night At A Time
Arrowhead Events
Peso Pluma
T-Mobile Center
Miller Lite Hot Country Nights: Conner Smith
Kansas City Power & Light District
blink-182
T-Mobile Center
Luke Bryan
T-Mobile Center
Zach Bryan
T-Mobile Center
Zach Bryan
T-Mobile Center
Miller Lite Hot Country Nights: Travis Denning
Kansas City Power & Light District
Dierks Bentley
T-Mobile Center
Franco Escamilla
The Midland Theatre
Hank Williams Jr.
T-Mobile Center
Sublime with Rome Farewell Tour
Kansas City Power & Light District
Chromeo & The Midnight: Chrome Nights North American Tour
The Midland Theatre
The Dead South
The Midland Theatre
Sammy Rae & The Friends
The Midland Theatre
Creed
T-Mobile Center