Willie's Pub

I was attending the Madonna concert nearby and was looking for someplace to eat near the Sprint Center before the show.  I doubt I'd seek out Wilie's except in a similar circumstance.  As I've not been downtown Kansas City much at night I was not familiar with Willie's and was a bit put off by the other reviews on yelp.  But since nowhere else looked too inviting or was too crowded, I chose Willie's.  I found a table and was given a menu pretty quickly and was able to order a beer which came pretty much right away.  I ordered the French Dip sandwich.  Not the best French Dip I've ever had.  It was a decent portion of roast beef, not really generous and was average in consistency -- a bit dry and maybe overcooked -- on a roll which was unfortunately too soft and pretty flavorless.  The au jus was decent enough.  My sandwich came with Swiss cheese which was melted though the sandwich itself wasn't very warm. The French Fries were good, brown and crunchy. They tasted like re-constituted potato fries.  The service was decent even though the restaurant was crowded and the cost was average. Not necessarily a bad choice but wouldn't be my first.  Maybe a good place to hang out and drink beer and watch sports downtown.

We popped in for a drink after the Radiohead show at the Sprint Center, and this place gets points for simply being open.  It was a Sunday night so we unfortunately discovered just how many joints in KC close on that night, which is a shame.  This place was busting-at-the-seams busy, with nearly every seat taken.  We were lucky enough to grab a table and get a round from the server who looked to be working the room nearly on her own.  

Willie's is relatively small but they can pack a lot of people in there, and I could see how it would be a fun place to chill if they had the garage doors open.  It's a great location near the Power and Light district.  The exterior of Willie's is awfully drab, and inside it came off as a pretty generic sports bar, but all in all it was open and served our needs well enough.

Don't let the exterior scare you, pretty good place. Try the nachos or the cannelloni bites. If you are from out of town the boulevard wheat is fantastic try it!!!