Jess & Jim's lunch menu

 Jess & Jim's, the legendary and venerable steakhouse in Martin City has the cheapest lunch menu in all of KC metro for steaks and burgers. Every day of the week there is a lunch-sized steak special, either a filet or a KC Strip for either 11.95 or 10.95 respectively, and every day the hamburger/cheeseburger, which is a ridiculously huge 12 oz., fresh grilled patty. That's 3/4 lb. for the math challenged. I ordered today the bacon cheeseburger, with hand cut french fries for $6.25!! Where most places add 75¢ or $1 for bacon, the bacon cheeseburger is only 25¢ more than the plain cheeseburger without bacon, and while my arteries didn't need it, I couldn't resist adding what ended up being the 4 strips of thick-cut bacon melted under the cheese for the cost of a gumball. The hand-cut french fries come in a full separate basket, and the 3/4 lb. cheeseburger with all the trimmings filled a normal sized plate. I'd be sick into the weekend if I ate the whole thing, so as soon as it landed on the table I immediately cut it in half and brought the other half home for my voracious 17-year old, along with most of the fries. The sodas are a little pricey at $2, but they're bottomless, the waitresses kept filling it up at every turn. So all in all with tip it was still about $10, at least $3 less than almost any other good bar/grill burger anywhere else in town. Not sure how long they can keep those lunch prices with gas at $3.60/gallon, but get it while the gettin's good. 

A few side thoughts: 1) The steaks and burgers at Jess & Jim's are grilled on a flat griddle, not a charcoal or gas grill with typical grill marks, but they must use the "griddle" at a high temperature which still sears the outside and there's tons of beefy flavor. 2)One of my frugal cooking tips: when you get a TON of fries that you can't possibly eat, always take them home and throw them in a ziploc bag in the freezer, and refry them in hot oil for only a few seconds, just like Ore Idas. It's like free food. 3) Jess & Jim's offers free wireless internet access, as more and more but not enough places are doing, which allows the business lunchers to linger and do some business over a long business lunch, as I do. This 70-year old restaurant is up-to-date and doing everything right, at ridiculously cheap prices. 

Do you love pocorn?

I have my eye on a used commercial popcorn popper, real cheap, which I neither 1)have room for; 2) can financially justify-with gas at $3.60/ridiculous gallon; 3) is worth cleaning every night after using. Sure it would make fantastic theater-popcorn and my kids would love it, but...; If you have a passion for popcorn, be the devil on my shoulder to help me decide.

Welcome to my Food Blog

Hi- I decided to start a food blog since my passion is eating. All sorts of eating. I'm also a good cook, but this will be less about cooking and more about Kansas City-area places I've had a tasty meal. Nothing high-brow, few fine restaurants. I'll leave that to the very capable and talented food critics in town. 

In fact as a single father of three kids ages 6 to 17, and self-employed, you'll see here mostly my experiences for great places for lunch, good deals, and/or experiences that just trip my trigger, foodwise. Feel free to respond with comments. If you found this site, you're probably already web-savvy, and know how to look for recipes, etc., but I'll never hesitate to tell give you my favorite recipe or point you in the right direction. I'm mostly going to be just talking to myself, but I'll help anyway I can. 

Panzon's

Panzon's is a long-favorite of mine in Lenexa, KS. Besides just tasty food, they do something special that you don't see often at Gringo mexican restaurants: they have 8 or so salsas that are complimentary with chips for your table. They don't blink an eye if you ask for a bowl of ALL of them to sample, while you're waiting for a tasty lunch or dinner. The salsas range from green to red to brick red, mild to hot. Most are milder, but you can heat them up with a spoonful of the hottest one, which seems to be at its base a tastily-seasoned a puree of pickled jalapenos. The servers are also well-seasoned long-term veteran employees, and take special requests in stride. They know the menu well, which is a very diverse selection of typical and not-so typical mexican-american favorites. 

I have a hard time not ordering my favorite a la-carte dinner, which is a non-fried chili relleno stuffed with taco meat, along with a beef taco and beans. The plate comes out full and piping hot, and it hits my Mexican sweet spot every time I crave "gringo" mexican food. And after sampling all the wonderful salsas, the entree is really icing on a fine cake. 

(In the spirit of full-disclosure, I must brag that I have designed the Panzon's menu for years, but my food loyalties have nothing to do with my paid living. This blog is a labor of love, just sharing my passion here, which is food. I'd take money to design a menu for anyone, but I won't brag about it here unless I love the food.)

Also, don't miss Panzon's margaritas. From house to top-shelf, they're all great, and any of them will send you home with a smile on your face and a sated  belly.