Do It Yourself Dining
Playing with your food is an art form at these restaurants where customers enjoy DIY dining and one-of-a-kind experiences!
Kids Make Their Own Pizza
Next Door Pizza: 3385 SW Fascination Dr., Lee's Summit, 816.763.1200, www.NextDoorPizza.com
Kids love to make pizza, but let’s face it… this is almost always a messy endeavor. At Next Door Pizza, you can have the fun and leave the mess behind! Children are provided ingredients to make their own pizzas: raw dough, sauce, cheese and toppings. Once the masterpiece is ready, it is taken to the ovens. Even the wait is fun. The game room features a train table and arcades, but more than that, the entire restaurant is a great game of “I Spy” just waiting to happen. The menu features a signature Chicago-style deep dish pizza and thin crust pizza. They also offer wings, salads and sandwiches, including some topped with American Royal award-winning sauces. The dessert menu includes cupcakes or, for the ultimate sweet tooth, fried Snickers. Kids give it two enthusiastic thumbs up!
Price Range: Typical pizzeria & deli prices with sandwiches ranging from $6 to $8 and pizza ranging from $13 to $20.
Tip: Monday is Kids Eat Free Night (up to 3 children with paying adults).
Create Your Own Stir-fry
Genghis Khan: 3906 Bell St., KCMO, 816.753.3600 or 8634 N. Boardwalk, KCMO, 816.587.8883, www.GKBBQ.com
If you love to experiment with ingredients, you’ll love Genghis Khan, Kansas City’s original Mongolian BBQ. Patrons of all ages create their own bowl of stir-fry from a buffet of more than 20 vegetables, 12 meats and seafood, noodles and 15 spices and oils. Suggested recipes are posted, and the buffet is all-you-can-eat, so you may try a variety of combinations. The final step is handing over your bowl of stir-fry where the meal is cooked right before your eyes on a sizzling hot grill in the ancient Mongolian tradition. What better way to explore new flavors and have fun with food?
Price Range: $8-15/person.
Tip: Make small portions to enjoy multiple trips through the buffet and more than one combination.
Roll Your Own Sushi
RA Sushi: 11638 Ash, Leawood, 913.850.6260, www.RASushi.com
Sushi is undeniably popular for sophisticated teens, tweens and adults. Take it up a notch with RA Sushi’s crash course in sushi, offered throughout the year including February 5 at 2:00. The class includes sushi rolling lessons, a beverage, edamame, miso soup and a card good for a complimentary lunch.
Price Range: Call for class prices. Meals range from $12 to $20/person.
Tip: You must make reservations for the class, a fun and unforgettable experience.
Celebrate Special Occasions with DIY Fondue
The Melting Pot: 450 Ward Pkwy., KCMO, 816.931.6358, www.MeltingPot.com
The Melting Pot fondue restaurant offers an interactive dining experience, perfect for date nights, celebrations and special occasions. Fondue is the process of cooking by dipping food in a heated pot of sauce, cheese, broth or oil. This is a delicious meal you’ll savor one bite at a time.
Price Range: $8/ea for chocolate fondue only; meals range from $40 to $50/person.
Tip: You may choose the entire 4-course experience or enjoy chocolate or cheese fondue only after a night on the Plaza.
DIY Shaved Ice
Kona Ice: Food truck frequently found at local parks and recs after soccer and little league games, local festivals, local theme parks and summer camps, and they offer tremendous fundraiser opportunities for PTOs, Sporting Organizations, and Local Charities. Visit http://kc.kona-ice.com/ for more information. Kona Ice, at first, appears to be an Ice Cream and Slushie Truck decked out with fun Island flair. And, it is that... but it is more. Kona Ice offers something we haven't seen at other snow cone vendors... CUSTOM snow cones! The thing that makes Kona Ice special is the Flavor Wave. Each truck offers a Flavor Wave where you'll find snow cone syrups arranged like the colors of the rainbow at a Do-It-Yourself fountain where YOU create your own custom concoction. My girls had a blast making striped snow cones in their favorite flavors and thought it was a delicious and super fun treat. They offer all the traditional fruit flavors you'd expect, and many exotic concoctions to add to the fun! You may try Tiger's Blood (no, not Charlie Sheen's recipe... actually a New Orleans style combination of strawberry and coconut), Quintin's Mix (named for the owner's son) a suicide combination of all flavors, Godzilla combining the tropical fruits, or Root Beer, Pina Colada, and more!
Price Range: $2-5 /ea, and they only accept cash.
Tip: Kona Ice is dairy-free, gluten-free and offers flavors that are sugar-free and dye-free.
Watch the Chefs at Work
Buca di Beppo: 310 W. 47th St., KCMO, 816.931.6548
Okay, so you don’t want to cook… that’s the reason you’re eating out, but you would love to see how it’s done. Buca di Beppo, a favorite Italian eatery on the Plaza, is one of the only restaurants in town to offer patrons the chance to dine in the restaurant kitchen for a behind-the-scenes view of the action. Buca’s bustling kitchen allows guests at the kitchen table a firsthand experience as chefs prepare food before the wait staff parades it by with an explanation of each menu item. This is a delight for the senses and a true treat for a family or group.
Price Range: Buca serves “family-style” portions meant for sharing. Portions for 3 range from $15 to $20/entrée; Portions for 6 range from $20 to $30/entrée.
Tip: For this experience, you must reserve the kitchen table in advance—but is it ever worth it!
DIY Cooking on the Road
Tip: On your next vacation, look for a DIY restaurant on the road. These are a few family faves:
Customized Frozen Yogurt & Ice Cream
Self-serve frozen yogurt shops and ice cream parlors are popular across the country, but Chicago customizes the experience even more at iCream (www.iCreamCafe.com), where customers create their own ice cream, frozen yogurt, pudding or shake from scratch! Mix the ingredients, including add-ins, then pour the concoction into a rapid-freezing, super sweet liquid nitrogen machine where the dessert is instantly frozen on the spot.
Make Your Own Pancakes
Kids love “Create-a-Face” pancakes at IHOP, but Pfunky Griddle (www.ThePfunkyGriddle.com) in Nashville and Slappy Cakes (www.SlappyCakes.com) in Portland, OR, have created completely interactive experiences for customers of all ages! They provide the batter, you select add-ins, then they heat up the griddle at your table where you pour and flip your very own flapjacks!
Kristina Light loves to experiment with food with her family—whether at home or at favorite restaurants.