Carmen's Cafe

It was good to find this Italian restaurant as we like Alfredo sauce.
The place was lively, and the service was prompt for how busy they were.
It's dark in this restaurant, which is typical for a lot of classic Italian restaurants.
I could say this place needs some updating, but at the same time, the outdated feel also adds to its appeal.

Owner response

Very nice surprise In Kansas City found this little Italian restaurant and managed to get seats at the bar after a short wait and it was so worth it.
Let's start with everyone around me recommending the Italian butter.
It was exactly that butter with parsley and tons and tons of garlic and olive oil.
You will spoon it, dip it onto bread or like me you may just put on everything you can find or drink it straight from the bowl it came in.
The restaurant had a great selection of spirits for all kinds of drinks and an excellent wine menu and plenty of desserts to choose from.
I had the angel pomodoro pasta it was perfectly cooked.
The pomodoro was on a point plenty of fresh tomatoes and just the right serving I paired that with an excellent recommended wine I wish I had gotten the name of the wine but I will be back.
What I loved with sitting at the bar is that you are sitting in the kitchen a little kitchen that cooked some excellent food.
Just looking at the photos I took make me want to go back there and I will before I leave Kansas City this week.

Owner response

Visited here with my sisters and MIL while out visiting them in Weston, MO.
They picked this restaurant because it was in an area they wanted to bring me to so I can see this cute part of Kansas City and to see the Christmas lights.
We had reservations at 5:30pm on a Wednesday and when we pulled up to the restaurant, the parking spots were filled already.
Please arrive a bit early to find a parking spot if you go at this time or later.
It did get more crowded as the night progressed. The front of the restaurant didn't look like much and neither did the entrance, which was a door with a curtain a few feet past the door, which opened into the bar and around the corner, the restaurant. Here's a simple review of our experience: Ambience: Intimate setting with linen napkins & tablecloths, eclectic artwork a few seasonal decorations/lights and soft music.
Great vibe for gathering of friends for dinner and holiday parties. Food: Appetizers: 1- Stuffed artichoke-cooked perfectly with deliciously seasoned garlicy, buttered breadcrumbs.
We chose no meat on this one.
I highly recommend this! 2-Italian Butter: A MUST!!! One of the best garlic olive oils I've had.
It was served warm with TONS of garlic.
It was a hefty serving and it was enough for the four of us to eat it with the loaf of bread that was served with it.
We had leftovers even after eating so much during our evening. Wine: We had a bottle of Chianti which was good, but a little on the sweet side.
Be sure to taste it before buying an entire bottle Entrees: 1-Eggplant Parmigana: My MIL had this and she said it was very good.
The sauce was great and the eggplant was cooked crispy and perfect. 2-Chicken Spiedini Julian: Two of us had this and we were not disappointed.
The breaded chicken was charbroiled perfectly and the filling of artichokes and the scrumptious fettuccine Alfredo was over-the-top AMAZING! It truly was one of the best Italian dishes I've ever had.
I am still dreaming about the next time I visit to order this again