So what’s The Russell like?

Do you ever sit and think about that first human who was given fire by Prometheus?

They were probably first like, “Holy shit that’s a Titan, please don’t eat me.” But then they were like, “Oh, that’s nice and warm. I wonder what would happen if I threw food in this…”

And thus, modern cooking was invented. All it took was a Titan submitting himself to eternal torture at the claws of a giant eagle. I think we all would consider that a fair bargain

Why, you might be asking, is All the Yums writing about this? Well we’ll tell you. It’s an attempt to segue (yes that’s how you spell it) us into The Russell and their lovely, open, hot fire flame cooking (a penny to whoever knows that reference. No, it can’t be you Erika).

Welcome to The Russell. It’s like a modern version of a lovely cottage in a hip re-telling of The Hobbit.

First thing you’ll notice when walking in is that it smells like a campfire started by a bunch of foodies. They use open flame grills to make a lot of their food and it smells great. It might not be for everyone but there’s something super nostalgic for me with that smell. I like. We almost immediately noticed the fresh flowers everywhere – you can almost play I Spy with the greenery in the pic above. Wasn’t that like, the best book ever growing up?

Next thing is this place feels like a modernized Gryffindor commonroom. It’s dark and moody but at the same time very bright and open. Hard to describe. I tried. Where’s my blue ribbon?

Now to the important stuff. What did we order for Brunch? BTW they only have brunch on Saturdays currently. Just a good to know.

I started off with some black coffee. They carry Thou Mayest here. I like their coffee but I’ve never managed to go there. So no attempt at snark here. #SnarkTBD

I like the simple mug but part of me wished they had a mismatched assortment of age-worn mugs. There’s just something about drinking coffee out of an old Waffle House mug that speaks to my soul. That, and the words “covered” and “smothered”. That’s who All the Yums truly is. A covered and smothered shell of a man that cries softly into a half empty breakfast diner mug anytime he see’s a movie where a dog dies.

Mrs. All the Yums rocked a water because hydration is super important kids. #H2WOAH

After you order your food, they give you an old license plate as a seat marker. Our plates registration had lapsed, but we’ll let it slide.

For food, I went with a full order (they have a half as well) of Biscuits and Gravy mainly because the Mrs. got mad at me that I never take her out on hot dates anymore … which led to us drinking/eating at several places last night. I’m not a young man anymore so I was feeling it and needed something to make it all feel alright.

It was super good. You get two MASSIVE biscuits covered in a deeply rich pork gravy. The pork had that taste like it was from a real butcher shop. You know what I’m talking about? It’s that Local Pig/Anton’s taste. Game-y, but in a good way. The scrambled eggs were folded and fluffy and great. Loved it.

Mrs. All the Yums went with Eggs Benedict as that’s all she ever orders because she’s planning on writing a blog definitively ranking all of Kansas City’s best and brightest bennys. So hold on to your butts for that one.

Her Benny was super good. Eggs were the perfect amount of runny, the potatoes were tender and seasoned great, but the real star? The real star was the spinach. It was buttery and extremely savory. The first bite was the best. The last bite may have been a bit too rich, but we definitely recommend.

And the bathrooms?

The bathrooms!

Easily one of the top 3 we’ve graced in KC.

The Russell kept the theme going strong and they were nice and private and just very different. We liked them. When you use them, know I was there giving a thumbs up. Also, if you sit very quietly, you can hear Moaning Myrtle.

We only managed to get a shot of the sink though as all of my photos turned out super super blurry since it was very dim and I’m not an award winning photographer, OK?!?!

THE RUSSELL, if you’re reading this, please send us photos for your bathrooms and we’ll update the blog! For now, we’ll leave it as a nice surprise for you to enjoy when you come here.

In conclusion, this was a great place and I think it will do the area that it’s in a world of good. We’ll be back to check out lunch soon – the salads look incredible.

It tasted great, it looked great and it seems to be run by great people (we met and talked about cameras with one of the owners – he was super nice). We would rate it…

Taste: 9/10

Environment: 9/10

Bathrooms: 10/10

Verdict? Travel here post-haste.

The Russell

Address: 3141 Main St, Kansas City, MO 64111