The Ship

A group of us found ourselves in the west bottoms looking for somewhere to eat. My friend's uncle was once in the navy so The Ship seemed like the perfect destination. We weren't wrong. The dining area is a claustrophobic little place, much like a submarine interior, but in an intimate way, as though the seas above were nothing but calm. The menu is small but mighty, full of interesting selections and also vegetarian friendly. The same is true for the drink menu. The servers were super friendly, in a boldly unflinching manner. I'm guessing they don't easily suffer fools but thankfully we didn't test that theory. We had a great dining experience and will happily return, especially to check out the lounge area for some live music and delicious cocktails.

My husband and I had the pleasure of visiting The Ship for our date night, and I'd like to share our experience.First and foremost, the French fries and Apple Cinnamon Bread Pudding were outstanding! These two items truly stood out for us.However, we did notice a few aspects that could benefit from improvement. Upon entering, we found the ambiance to be a bit overwhelming, with an odor reminiscent of a musty attic, which affected our overall experience. Additionally, we encountered some difficulties with communication, as the phone was not answered during our attempts to reach out. We also noticed that daily dessert options were not available, contrary to what the menu suggested.Overall, it was a unique experience, and while we appreciated the highlights, it may not be a place we revisit. However, others might find it to their liking!

My brother and I came here for the live music as all of the live music I could find on a Thursday evening was lacking except for The Ship. Overall, the music was ten plus stars but when we added in a dinner, the experience was very disappointing.The facility is rather eccentric and eclectic with its ship theme but it's pretty cool. Very dive bar vibes in a "dicey" area of the City, The Ship has multiple areas and bars. Our female server was excellent and kept on top of keeping us happy. My mixed drink was weak, but the specialty beer made just for The Ship was decent. Where things went downhill was the food. Today, they could've put one ingredient on the menu and everything else was a side. Salt! The fried pickles were plentiful with a good ranch dip, but seriously over-salted to the point where they were not enjoyable and more than half were tossed. Same with the fries but with whatever seasoning was on them. The gumbo I had was mostly a bland salted roux with a few slivers of meat and the side of shrimp I ordered was overcooked. Garlic bread was nothing great. My brother's Reuben also unfortunately half tossed as it was just not that good although told to us that they cure their own meat for it. The Mac and cheese side was rather good surprisingly. The plan was to get some of the awesome sounding dessert, but after this poor meal, we weren't taking the chance to waste any more money.So, if not for the awesome music of Lucas Parker and Friends, The Ship was just about sunk for us. The staff and quirkiness helped keep it afloat for one star, and another for the music. About $75 for two people, a cocktail, beer, tea, two sides and two mains. Not worth it tonight.

Such a fun atmosphere and consistently great food! Service is a bit hit or miss; not overly kind or helpful, but the food makes up for that easily.

Excellent Reuben sandwich, tasted as if smoked. Blvd Nutcracker Ale was on tap, so good. Excellent service. Love this place visited on a Saturday around 3 pm when the other West Bottom restaurants weren't open. Can't help but love this

This is a super fun and one of the most unique venues in KC. It's large with different rooms for dinner, drinks, and live music. And the ambiance is on point with the nautical theme. We started with some drinks and dinner. I went with one of their drink specials, the Dragonfruit margarita-Silver Tequila, fresh lime, agave, and dragonfruit. It was really sweet and summery. This would be fantastic on a hot summer evening on their patio. My partner ordered a fig Manhattan and thought it was good. I ordered the Cubano: shaved ham, salami, roasted pork loin, swiss cheese, pickles, mayo and mustard, pressed french roll. This version reminded me of a Cuban that the foundry had before they closed. It was one of my favorites and I'm so glad I ordered this one. I love the addition of the salami and I appreciate the pressed French roll. I'd definitely order it again. I upgraded my side to the smoked Mac and cheese: creamy classic mac and cheese, hickory smoked Kansas City style. This was some of the best Mac and cheese that I've had in KC. I would totally order it by itself as an entree. My partner tried the KC Reuben: hickory smoked pastrami, swiss cheese, sauerkraut, kc special thousand island, marbled rye. He said it had good flavor but the meat was a little on the fatty side. But he still ate it and said it was overall good. He also tried the coleslaw. He said it was alright. It had celery and red peppers so it was a little non traditional and it was chopped pretty large. We also ordered a cup of the chicken and sausage gumbo. It also had a good flavor and we'd definitely order it again. After dinner we made our way over to the music venue side. They do have a few tables throughout but you'd need to arrive early to snag one because they fill up fast. They also have bars in a few different locations so you can easily grab a drink. The dance floor in the middle is fun. It quickly filled up with people and there were even some dance offs. Definitely check out this spot and grab food, drinks, and listen to some music.

Loved the venue, the staff and was excited to see the offerings on the menu. Unfortunately the food was a little disappointing. My wife had red beans and chicken. Red beans were very under seasoned and bland, but the chicken breast was on point. I had a shrimp poboy with gumbo and was disappointed to receive a huge sandwich with five little shrimp which didn't cover half of the sandwich, especially for the price. With a little more shrimp , it could have been good. The gumbo was watery and underseasoned. I didn't see where a roux (that was stated in the menu) was even present. Being from southern Louisiana, I was hoping for a little more. We will return, but will probably choose different option from the menu.

I can't believe it took me so long to come here. It's a large venue space and I enjoyed it. The food is good,The drinks are good, service is great, and the music is even better! I highly recommend

Our server was nice and friendly. The food was pretty good. My red beans and rice were kinda bland. My husband enjoyed his shrimp po boy.The one negative thing was someone in our party walked into an area where there was a bar and an employee came up to her and said what are you doing here and she said I'm just looking. He said "get out" very rudely. She saw when she walked out of the doors which were propped open that there were 2 little signs that said "ship crew only". So while it's understandable that she wasn't supposed to be there - the way she was spoken to was completely rude and unnecessary.

Let me tell you about "The Ship". The original "Ship" was a lounge that operated from about 1935 until 1995. The original location's real estate was scraped to make way for Ilus Davis Park. The owners dismantled the bar, took all of the furnishings and bric-à-brac, and put them in storage. In 2004, the current owners obtained these artifacts, and recreated The Ship in its current space.The area surrounding The Ship is in transition. It looks like it was a warehouse district, and the buildings are being repurposed or redeveloped. The bartender told me that it isn't unheard of for someone on a controlled substance to lash out and break a car window. Beyond that, the area is safer than it appears at first glance.The bar can be described as being separated into two spaces, each with its own stage. On slow nights, they operate one room. This venue hosts live music. If you check out their website (www.theshipkc*com), you'll see that the genre of music varies from night to night. There might be a cover to pay for the entertainment.Basic drink prices are really reasonable. I spent an evening, had more than a few beers and mixed drinks, and my tab was less than $30.00 before gratuity. Cover charge for the band was $10.00.I was staying near KCLive. The Ship was out of the way, compared to a lot of options. But my visit was worth the time and effort to get there.