Novel Restaurant — Restaurant in Kansas City

I was blessed to try Novel three years ago for my birthday, the decor in the Westside was intimate and low key, I felt nothing could compare to French cuisine and Kansas City would never serve american food with a true identity. I was wrong and I got it now. Sorry. The Novel house was welcoming and inspiring, the degustation menu stroke me like the lightning and I had a blast.

So... I could not wait enough to see the new location to open. Knowing that the expectation for this new restaurant was HIGH, I did the trip and got surprised again.

This time the bar let us have a sip of wine while our table was getting ready. And this is where the team showed its courage, bringing a pinot noir to the list from Greece or having a dapplefish caviar served to you was not an easy bet.

It is with charm and grace that we were served then led to the table. What a view to the kitchen, we observe the crew prepare and execute wonderful dishes even in growing environment. Great spot to enjoy the night and the hard work.

While we waited for the rabbit pie, we observed the tiles work supervised and directed by Peregrine Honig. There is a fox that could be coming from the "little prince novel" and moving from left to right from the bright to the dark side of life. From the observed to the subtile world the tiles evolve from white to black. The pie brought a wonderful experience and details on the crust showing little snails.

Good start, the challenge was taken seriously and our server Michelle was wonderful in detailing the recipe. Second try, the cougeres of Dapplefish caviar. Well there google helped a bit to understand how the beast looked like and why it tasted so good. The cougeres was executed in a light was, cheese touch and caviar to give it a kick.

On the side the baby bok vegetable were there to offer sesame taste and a refreshing acidity. I could not wait for the next dish and asked for the menu again to order some more.

The choice was made and the pork toast came. Beautiful presentation to set the avocado on top of a crumbed piece of pork with a side sauce of tomato ketchup that really gave it a wonderful balance. Heaven was approaching the table. The new plate was a great one and we could not stop sampling it.

A meal would not be complete without a plate of pasta and the agnolotti made of duck and served with pickled cherries were just from outer space!! Delicious as pasta can be in Italy but right here in a transplanted and still warning up kitchen. I started to look around to see how many michelin inspectors would be there to celebrate with us this wonderful cooking.

Then came the dessert and we had the raspberry chiffon cake. Not my favorite for the night but the presentation was beautiful and it had an interesting mousse to compose it.

There is an art to cuisine like to writing books. You pick a topic and you create the magic. Bring your characters and let them play their role. This novel will be a best seller, go try it and...

I recently had the opportunity to dine at Novel restaurant in Kansas City while entertaining a few business clients. Coming from California, we were looking for a place that would provide a unique dining experience, and Novel seemed like a good fit. The environment was great - modern with a touch of swank, and the open kitchen design added an interesting dynamic to the overall dining experience.

The menu is diverse and intriguing, offering a range of dishes that cater to a variety of tastes, all made with fresh ingredients. The bread service was a bit of a mixed bag. The whole wheat bread was somewhat bland and could have used a touch more salt or more time to develop. The white bread was solid, and the smoked hummus was nothing short of excellent, offering a delightful start to the meal.

The Beef Sirloin Tartare was a standout, despite being a tad too salty. The bright Asian flavors shone through, making it one of my favorite dishes on the menu. The 7 Layer Salad was reminiscent of a classic Caesar salad but elevated to a new level. The Crispy Farm Egg was another winner, with creamy and delicious grits. However, I wasn't a huge fan of the sorghum.

Unfortunately, the Fried Pork Pie didn't quite hit the mark for me. I would have preferred a crisp on the pork belly, and instead it was gummy in texture. While the hot sauce wasn't my favorite, I can see why it works for the Midwest palate with its Southern and Carolina taste. The liver mousse, however, was a delight. Overall though, I would totally rework the pork pie.

The Broken Lasagna was creamy and tasty, with the sweetbreads adding a nice touch. However, it could have used a bit more sweetbreads and a touch of salt to finish.

The Crispy Potatoes were not crispy at all, and instead floppy, which was a bit misleading. They were still yummy, but I would have preferred a thicker cut and triple cooked for that promised crispiness. The Fried Cauliflower had tasty Indian flavors. I think it would be interesting to have a crispy exterior to offset the softness in the rest of the dish. Maybe a corn flour or tempura fried exterior could add that needed texture.

The Ramen Noodles were excellent! The miso butter sauce was a wonderful touch and the balance across the dish was perfection. I was a bit surprised that the waiter didn't give us a more confident recommendation when we asked about it. Best item we had that evening.

Overall, Novel KC is a restaurant that is serious about their food but still figuring out their voice. There is a lot of room for upward growth, and I look forward to seeing how it evolves. As someone who travels and eats at a lot of establishments across various regions, I may be more critical than most. I believe that with a few adjustments, Novel KC could truly...

We recently tried Novel because we've heard good things and have not tried it yet.

Overall, it was a good experience. The breakdown is below.

Food - I had the lamb chops and lamp sausage. The chops were good, but the sausage stole the show for me. Great balance of flavors that I could've eaten more of. My wife had the pork chop. She was disappointed in the amount of fat in the chop but was pleased with the flavor. It was a very big portion as well. We shared the bread service that is served with a side of hummus and salted butter. The rye bread we had was delicious. We also shared the fried cauliflower. This was our favorite dish of the night. Not one piece remained.

Overall food experience 4

Service - We were seated in a booth adjacent to the bar, so our server was one of the bartenders. He was very friendly. After finding out it was our first visit, he quickly walked us through the menu, suggested the bread service, and left us to decide on drinks. The cocktails were unique and delicious, and our service was spectacular. After dinner, we were offered a fresh brewed cup of coffee, which they roasted in house. Great finish to dinner. The dessert looked good, but we were too stuffed.

Overall Service Experience - 5

Atmosphere - The atmosphere is intimate in a small space. The art and design are minimalist. We enjoyed the restaurant. The only minor drawback for us was the closeness of the tables. We were seated at a two person table with a wall bench for seating on one side. The table next to us was close enough that it was difficult to exit our table and not interrupt the patrons seated next to us. We were close enough too that the couple next to us heard our conversation and commented . It's not terrible, but I was a little less comfortable than I like for a higher end dinner.

Overall Atmosphere Experience - 3

I enjoyed Novel and expect to visit again. If you haven't heen here, i recommend you...