Medicine / Pediatrics

Kansas City


Did you know Kansas City…

Kansas City is a continuously-growing metropolitan area. It is currently the 36th most populous city in the United States. Kansas City is proud of its current and historic diversity. According to the 2020 census, the racial composition of Kansas City is 59% White, 26% Black/AA, 10% Hispanic, ~8% other races, and 2.7% Asian

If you want to expand your culinary horizon: Argentine is one of the area’s oldest Hispanic neighborhoods. The city’s actually got two Little Italy neighborhoods: one in Columbus Park and one in North East KC. Strawberry Hill, a historically Croatian community, is your best bet if you’re craving povitica with a side of tamburitza music, while the food and music combo of your dreams is sure to be found at the Ethnic Enrichment Festival held each August in Swope Park. Click here to see more of the diverse events and celebrations held in KC every week.

The amazing thing about Kansas City is that, while it’s very trendy and industrial, there are rolling hills less than 30 minutes away on every side. You can live the city life if that’s your thing, or you can live out where the river bends, in any small town in the surrounding areas. If you seek peaceful, quiet country life or civilization and lively bustle, KC is the perfect place for you. Regardless of your decision, the highways in Kansas City are interconnected and easy to navigate. A majority of our residents live less than 15 minutes from all of our clinical sites.

Outdoors

Kansas City is consistently ranked in the top 10 cities in the US for Green Space! As above, there are rolling hills in every direction. Some of our favorite outdoor activities include running the trails (and walking the program dogs!), hiking and kayaking at Shawnee Mission Park, outdoor concerts, movies on the lawn, excellent firework shows, 5K’s and Half-marathons (if you’re so inclined), Beer Festivals, Worlds of Fun, Oceans of Fun, and the Kansas City Zoo!

Sports

Here, we are PROUD fans of the 2019 and 2022 Superbowl Champions, the Kansas City Chiefs! Arrowhead Stadium holds The Guinness World Record for the loudest stadium in the world, but that’s just a portion of what makes a Chiefs game-day experience arguably better than any other. Once inside Arrowhead, the fun continues. For touchdowns, the crowd gives their familiar touchdown song a unique and intimidating twist. Chiefs do make their fans happy and we still get free tickets every now and then as residents, which is always a plus.

Kansas City recently ranked the 5th best city for soccer in the US. We enthusiastically cheer on our Sporting Kansas City (Men’s) and Kansas City Current (Women’s) clubs! On top of that, Kansas City was named one of the 16 Host cities for the 2026 world cup.

Equally successful (at least back in 2015) are the Kansas City Royals! The Boys in Blue! Royals baseball games are always the best. Come and see while we attempt to recapture the former glory! The stadium atmosphere is filled with genuine excitement and camaraderie. There’s just something about a warm summer night at Kauffman Stadium, immersed in a sea of blue T-shirts, hot dog in one hand and beer in the other, cheering on a great team, while gazing at a gorgeous sunset and firework show after dark. Even if you haven’t watched baseball before, you will enjoy a night with the Royals. You may not even have to buy your ticket if you win one of the frequent Medicine or Pediatrics raffles.

Food

You know we have to start with the Barbecue. Texas, the Carolinas and Memphis may each claim that their barbecue is best, but Kansas City begs to differ. The unique KC barbecue style involves a molasses-spiked sweet tomato sauce. However, KC is home to several different styles of BBQ. One of the truly finer BBQ institutions in KC is Arthur Bryant’s on Brooklyn Avenue. Arthur Bryant’s famous customers have included former presidents Harry Truman, Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama. Regardless of where you go: Q39, Arthur Bryant’s, Joe’s BBQ, Jack Stack – just do not leave the city without trying KC barbecue.

I suppose there IS other food if you’ve already had barbecue this week… Kansas City’s selection of restaurants boasts EIGHT James Beard Award nominations in 2022. There are vegan tacos, Taiwanese street foods, farm-to-table restaurants, bakeries, creperies, frozen cocktail bars, Mediterranean tapas, microbreweries, tea shops, Vietnamese cafes, steakhouses, fresh-pressed juice bars, upscale date-night dinner spots, the options are endless!

Social Spots

When we’re not otherwise engaged with the above sports, food, and half-marathons – we love to get together and unwind. Some of our favorite spots to do so are below:

The Country Club Plaza, which opened in 1923, was the world’s first drive-in shopping center. Today, the Plaza’s popularity and reputation have been recognized around the country. The entire 15-block district, with more than 150 shops and dozens of fine restaurants, makes the Country Club Plaza Kansas City’s premier retail, dining and entertainment destination. The Plaza is kept lively with a year-round calendar of music and special events, including the famous Plaza Lights and the widely recognized Plaza Art Fair.

The Farmers’ Market– Rain or shine, the region’s largest Farmers’ Market can be found at the City Market every Saturday and Sunday year-round. More than 150 vendor stalls burst with bedding plants, fruits, vegetables, meats, herbs, fresh baked goods and other sweets, cut flowers and crafts made by local artisans.

Music – New Orleans may be the birthplace of jazz, but Kansas City put its own special spin on things when this All-American music genre headed north. The American Jazz Museum hosts music performances throughout the year, and really gets swinging with the annual 18th and Vine Jazz and Blues Festival each October. Several Jazz clubs and bars are present in downtown Kansas City. If Jazz isn’t your favorite, the Kansas City Symphony Orchestra has performances ranging from Tchaikovsky to Led Zeppelin to the Harry Potter score.

Our other favorite activities – Stopping by River Bluff Brewing for X-Treme Music Bingo on Wednesday nights, scaling our favorite walls at ROKC (Kansas City’s Premier climbing gym), grabbing garlic knots while participating in competitive Pub Trivia at Atomic Cowboy, Salsa Dancing at the recordBar, shopping for art and food at First Fridays in the Crossroads district, and crushing a round of pickleball at Chicken N Pickle.

We hope the above gives you just a taste of the fun things we love about Kansas City. If we could describe Kansas City in one short sentence: “It feels like home.”