When I accepted the offer to become a contributor to KCFoodGuys.com (thanks guys!), I did not anticipate that shortly afterwards I would decide to make a major change to the way I eat.
In order to improve my health and quite frankly not have to add another ‘X’ to the labels on my clothing purchases, I’ve needed to finally make a serious commitment. I am still under 50 years old but I am beginning to see people my age and a little older experience serious health issues and in some cases people who have to make drastic changes to their diets.
I thought about backing out of the offer to review food places because the Paleo options could be limited. How can I eat the way I need to for my health while contributing to this blog as well as our Fountain City Podcast where we also discuss places to eat in KC?
Now, I am not going to use this forum for a debate about the Paleo diet or any other diet.
Do what works for you and I’ll do what works for me and we’ll both be healthy in the end. Instead, I am going to take this as a challenge to find a way to eat Paleo (as closely as possible) and share it with others who may be struggling while dining out in Kansas City.
First challenge, can you eat a Paleo diet at The Brick located at 1727 McGee? Short answer – YES! One tip I have quickly learned about eating Paleo – plan ahead. Check out the menu before you go so you plan your eating strategy. I reviewed the menu before to see what options they had or if I was going to have to be that guy who had to special order a meal and surgically pick it apart to get it to a respectable Paleo level. I don’t want to be THAT guy!
The Brick offers the “Naked Patty”. Sounds sexy, right? It’s The Brick, not Bazookas. According to the online menu, the “Naked Patty” was a basic hamburger patty, served without the bun, and along with a salad, and veggies and hummus for $5.50. If you prefer, substitute the beef patty for a veggie or turkey patty and you get the whole deal for $6.00. Aside from the hummus (not Paleo), not a bad offering at all!
When we arrived at The Brick and I confidently placed my order for a “Naked Patty”.
The waitress asked if I wanted the cottage cheese that came with the meal. Gone was the veggies and hummus, which was fine but a new challenge arose – cottage cheese.
Not Paleo . Plus dairy does a number on my guts. The fine waitress suggested I could substitute the sweet potato fries for cottage cheese. Awsome. I’m in and I am feeling good about my food choices.
When my plate arrived, it was loaded with veggie goodness and a nice looking naked hamburger patty. As mentioned, the plate comes with a salad and your choice of dressing. I asked for the balsamic vinaigrette on the side so I could attempt portion control. Instead, the dressing was on the salad already. Fortunately, they were sparing with the dressing so I wasn’t too concerned.
The hamburger also came with the standard toppings of lettuce, red onions and a nice full length pickle slice. All the vegetables were fresh and crispy. I have learned to love sweet potato fries because they give me the “french fries” experience without the starchy potatoes.
The Brick’s sweet potato fries were delicious and crispy but still soft, which is what I’ve experienced with sweet potato fries elsewhere. The hamburger is just your standard burger. It was well done and just a touch dry, but the Brick’s burger still tasted great. For the price ($5.50) I thought the Brick provided not only a generous amount of food but a healthy choice for those of us trying to do better.
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