MAX Bus Pub Crawl

From TheKCGuy

The MAX Bus Pub Crawl is a work in progress. It was an idea I originally came up with in 2005 when Kansas City first got the MAX Bus. I never executed the plan, but now that there is so much additional growth in the downtown area between the Crossroads and the Power and Light districts, it seems like it's a good time again to try to put together the plan.

I intend to do this one of these days and fill in the gaps here. But, in the meantime, here's a rough outline of the plan:

Contents 1 The Tour Begins 2 Stop 1 3 UMKC Stop 4 Plaza Stop 5 Art Museums - Optional 6 43rd and Main 7 39th and Main 8 Armour 9 Linwood 10 Union Hill/31st 11 Crown Center 12 Union Station 13 Crossroads 14 Convention Center - No Stop 15 13th and Wyandotte 16 City Center 17 Arena 18 Government District 19 Oak at 11th - No Stop 20 Federal Courthouse - No Stop 21 City Market 22 3rd and Grand - Terminus 23 Extra Notes

The Tour Begins

The tour starts at the southernmost point on the MAX bus lines, at 74th Terrace and Broadway. There are a handful of watering holes in the 75th and Wornall area to get started.

• Bobby Baker's
• Tanner's
• Kennedy's
• Lew's
• 75th Street Brewery

Stop 1

I think the next reasonable stop is at 63rd and Brookside, but I can never recall if the bus really stops here. It ought to. I guess at this point, you can hit

• Brooksider
• Jalapenos
• Charlie Hooper's

UMKC Stop

From there it's on to 51st and Brookside. Neither of these are really bars, and they're almost a whole block walk. I wonder if this should be an optional stop.

• Muddy's Coffeehouse
• Pizza 51

Plaza Stop

The MAX bus stops once in the Plaza at JC Nichols Parkway and Ward Parkway, right in front of Fred P. Otts. I recommend slipping in to P. Otts for a bottle of beer, but for heaven's sake don't eat anything. Or, try

• Jack Stack
• P. F. Chang's
• Blonde
• George Brett's

Art Museums - Optional

The next stop that the bus makes is at 45th and Main. I don't recommend getting off here, but if you must, you can probably find a beer in the Mariott.

43rd and Main

When the bus stops at 43rd and Main, hop off and walk a half block west to the Levee.

39th and Main

From the stop at 39th and Main, you have two options. You can walk a half block North to the Grand Emporium or you can walk a half block South to the Embassy or Harlings.

Armour

At armour, hop off and slip into Davey's Uptown Ramblers' Club for a quick beer.

Linwood

At the stop at Linwood and Main, there's not much. If you're a diehard, or you're getting hungry, stop into Gate's for a beer or a burnt ends sandwich. Don't eat too much; you've got a long way to go.

Union Hill/31st

The stop at 31st and Main is pretty empty. I guess you could walk a handful of blocks East to Martini Corner, but I don't recommend it. If you want to experience that district, you're better off spending a full evening there. Besides, you could probably handle a break by now. You're going to need your stamina.

Crown Center

The MAX Bus stops at Crown Center. I recommend you head one block South to Morton's for a cocktail. Otherwise, you could slip into the Westin for a drink in their bar. If you do that, you might as well walk across the skywalk thing to Union Station, the next bus stop.

Union Station

At the Union Station stop, head into the station for a drink either at the Union Cafe or at Pierpont's. Then, it's back to the bus as we head Downtown!

Crossroads

The stop at 20th and Main seems like it should offer more options. I think the only reasonable one is the Hereford House, but surely I can find something better near this corner.

Convention Center - No Stop

There's a stop at the top of the hill by the Convention Center on Wyandotte. I don't think there's any reason to get off here.

13th and Wyandotte

Then, I think that the bus stops at 13th and Wyandotte. There's a station on the corner, but the stop isn't shown on the map. Here, you can head into the Aladdin Hotel for a drink in their retro futuristic lounge. I guess you could alternatively walk to the Drum Room at 13th and Baltimore here, if you wanted a real bar, or maybe a bite to eat by now.

City Center

The next stop is at 12th and Main. I highly recommend that you hit 12 Baltimore for a beer or cocktail and possibly a bite to eat. They have a tolerable bar menu.

Arena

At 12th and Grand is the Sprint Center stop. The only thing that's open around here right now is McFadden's in the Power and Light District. It's about a two block to the South of the stop. This may be a good place to end the tour if you're getting drunk and tired of it, especially once more establishments open up in this area. I think that you can also hit a little lounge called Azul on Grand between 11th and 12th on the West side of the street. I haven't tried it out, and I'm not sure it's the greatest of spots, though.

Government District

If you're brave enough to continue on, we only have a few more stops before we finish at the River Market area. Next is a stop at 12th and Oak. Perhaps the best thing to do here is to walk 2 blocks to 13th and McGee for the 13th Street Bar and Grill.

Oak at 11th - No Stop

I don't think the stop at 11th and Oak offers anything. It's right by the federal courthouse.

Federal Courthouse - No Stop

Nothing at 9th and Grand? I can't recall where the bus stops here, or at 8th and Grand.

City Market

At 5th and Grand should be your last reasonable stop. You can head over to Harry's Country Club or hit any of a few locations around the City Market area. For instance:

• That brewery. What's it called?
• The place across the street from the Brewery
• Minsky's

3rd and Grand - Terminus

The final stop that the bus makes is at the park and ride at 3rd and Grand. I don't recommend you go to this last stop since there's nothing here, but if you insist on going the whole distance, it's only a 2 block walk back to the City Market area to grab a beer and wrap up the tour.

Extra Notes

After I started writing this, I discovered that I'm not the only one that thinks that the MAX bus is designed around the South KC drinking spots. Here are two other gangs who have tried this adventure:

• To the MAX! from the Pitch
• some guy's 21st birthday party
• www.kcmax.info