The Ship — Restaurant in Kansas City

I was visiting Kansas City and met up with a friend there. We wanted to eat someplace that neither of us had been to. The Ship was highly recommended by an acquaintance of hers.

The Ship is located in the West Bottoms and is an old factory that has been converted into a restaurant. It would normally be very easy to access but with the construction going on in KC it can be kind of a pain to get to so be prepared.

The interior of the place is great. They've preserved a lot of the character of the old factory while throwing in enough nautical theme to be distinct without being kitschy. The layout features some small, intimate dining spaces and some larger areas. The first room we came to, with the host desk, was in a larger room with a stage and bar. A jazz band was setting up when we arrived and started playing just before we left. Because of the eclectic layout the music from the live band did not drown out the area we were sitting at. Allowing us to hear the music without having to shout to each other to be heard which I appreciated.

The menu is heavily Louisiana influenced and was just the right size. Enough dishes to give everyone a good option but not so large as to be daunting. I had the red beans & rice with andouille and it was very well done. The andouille was grilled nicely and the red beans and rice were seasoned well. I added a bit of Louisiana hot sauce and it was perfect. My only issue was that it came with garlic bread instead of cornbread. The garlic bread was good, but some skillet style cornbread would have been a better option. My friend had the "Ship-Fil-A" sandwich and it was also put together very well. Just the right amount of spice and very fresh out of the kitchen.

Lets talk pricing. This place is A DEAL if you are looking for a place with character and good food both. The entrees were the right size for the price and big enough to fill you up without taking things home. This seems to be a lost art among restaurants now. We did not have any beverages other than water (we had come to the restaurant from a bar already) so I do not know about drink pricing but I bet it too would be reasonable.

Last thing, the staff there were amazing. We got a table right away which I think was luck because we got there a little earlier than normal dinner hours. Our waitress was a little soft spoken but kept an eye on us without being intrusive. They gave us the right amount of time to decide on things without pressing us and everything was delivered fresh and hot from the kitchen. I wish I'd gotten their name so I could give them a shout-out here but I totally forgot too.

If you're in KC, looking for someplace that is out of the way, has good food and good prices and is unique then I definitely suggest giving The Ship a try. Check out their website too, you might be able to enjoy some great music...

I regrettingly write this review. I adore the ship and it has been a place of frequency over the years for me. Unfortunately, every time I go, the service is more than poor. I continued to go because of the atmosphere & live music. I give this review a 1 star (0 star if I could) because enough is enough. I experienced "restaurant week" tonight with my best friend and the entire experience was absolutely poor for the both of us. Not only was the service horrible but the food was awful. We got a 3 course meal each. The appetizers tasted stale. My meal, the roasted veggie curry tasted literally as though the veggies were in a bbq gravy of some sort? The desserts were tolerable but something I would never eat again. Would not recommend to anyone. All meals were horrendous. The worst part of it all is that after paying a $100 bill for food I didn't eat I wasn't asked once how everything was, our waitress even saw the uneaten meals and didn't say anything! Had their been an opportunity to communicate my concerns things would have been different, which their wasn't due to the server treating us like she had no time for us. Their wasn't even a chance for the staff to make it right which was heartbreaking & frustrating. Anytime I requested something (like water) I felt as though I was a bother to the staff & a burden. I havnt and won't understand why the staff has been this way after years of visiting and after tonight, won't go or eat there ever again. Again, I respect The Ship as a local KC bar and respect the Covid revisions they've made. I'm thankful I got to visit this nostalgic place but am disappointed with lack of respect, friendly, and prompted service EVERY SINGLE time I visit & will not be back again bc of this.

What's even more sad is that reading other reviews I see that many other people over long periods of time have experienced the same thing with rude staff. A little bit of kindness goes a long way. If you don't like your job, get a...

I’ve wanted to go to the ship for a long time. Cool place. Won’t ever go back. Won’t recommend. Here’s why. Ordered food and drinks. (Rueben and Fish and Chips - food was good). Never got the drinks. Received our food (no napkins, no silverware) and kept thinking the drinks we ordered originally were coming but thought it was weird they didn’t come before the food. Had to go to the bar and order them. Had money out and two people behind the bar walked right past. Not a huge deal but not service I’d provide to someone. Never saw the waitress again until she brought the bill. Bill came. Had to have them correct it as we were charged for the drinks we never received. New bill comes. Drinks we never received were credited but now there is a beer we never ordered on the bill. New bill comes and there is a 20% gratuity added. They said it was because it was a large group. Would have been nice to know before we walked up to people we knew there. And I’m not paying 20% when I didn’t get drinks, I didn’t get a napkin to use, and no silverware, and then having the bill corrected twice. Whenever we go out, we always plan on a 20% tip. Depending on service; that tip can go up, and that tip can go down. The manager came over and was going to comp us for dinner. We didn’t want comp’d for food we ate. We had an issue with the 20% for not great service. Then she said she didn’t want us bothering the waitress with the corrections. What??? The. Bill. Was. Wrong. Twice. Manager said basically the waitress was extremely busy. Ok, manager - then you as a manager should jump in and help and not let your staff fail. Now I’m waiting for the manager/owner to post their negative comments here. PS - we’ve owned bars, so we know how it...