Loose Park, one of Kansas City’s finest parks, is located at 55th and Wornall and easily accessible by bike. Riding from the Brookside Shops is less than two miles to Loose Park and should take you approximately 5 minutes. Grab a sandwich at Goodcents and have a picnic at the park this summer!

When a consumable item becomes a household staple, we tend to buy it in bulk to have an adequate supply to use throughout the week, so we don’t have to make multiple trips to the store, or deal with a lot of unnecessary packaging that comes with individual servings.  At my house, beer is one of these things; I like to have some on hand more often than not, and since moving to Brookside, I haven’t enjoyed loading up the glass bottles that pile up after a few weekends (the city I moved from collected glass in the same bin along with all my other recyclables).

Happily, there is a great solution available to my kind here in Brookside: the 75th Street Brewery Growler!  I learned about the growler last year from my friend who kept one in DC (he had his filled at the local Whole Foods), and really wanted to try it out.  After moving to Brookside, I was thrilled to learn there was a brewery within biking distance that offered them.

So a couple Fridays ago, I hopped on my bike and rode the 12 blocks or so down to the brewery, and asked for a couple at the bar.  I opted for a bottle of the Possum Trot Brown Ale, and a bottle of Irish Red, and within a few minutes the friendly bartender brought out my two freshly-filled 1/2 gallon growlers, and the bill was something like $25.  I did feel a little odd walking out with two big jugs of beer, and a little more odd bungee’ing them to my milk-crate, but it was worth it.

I brought the growlers back to share with some friends at a group dinner, and they livened the table considerably.  It was nice for to see the table not littered with individual bottles during and after the meal, nice to be able to ask for and give refills on the spot, without going back to the fridge, and nice to just enjoy some quality brews with friends.   The growlers simplified our meal and were part of a good time in Brookside.

Time will tell whether I’ll revert to six pack bottles or cans, but at this point, I’m planning on sticking with the growlers.  To summarize:

Advantages of the 75th Street Brewery Growler:

• decently priced
• fillable with a variety of very good quality beer
• eliminates need for beer bottle recycling (you just rinse and take them back to the brewery when you’re ready for a refill)
• allows you to pour as large or small a serving as you want
• supports a good local business
• fun

Disadvantages:

• other foxes might try to steal your growler out of jealousy!

a bit 'heady' after the bike ride, but still tasty!

The Crestwood Shops. Located on 55th St. between Brookside Blvd. and Oak St., the Crestwood Shops have been a part of the Brookside area and the greater Country Club District since 1922.  This makes them one of the area’s oldest neighborhood shopping centers.  From restaurants to clothing store and antique stores, and even a florists, the Crestwood Shops are full of local small business charm.  They are also conveniently located in between two of Brookside’s most bikeable stretches; the Trolley Track Trail and Oak St.

With these nice days we have been having jumping on your bike has never been more desirable. So hope on your bike over to Crestwood. You can grab a coffee at Aixois, flowers at Crestwood Flowers, and maybe an antique or two.

What a great week for biking!  Beautiful weather and plenty of fun activities being put on by Bike Walk KC.

There’s plenty of activities going on–see the full round-up here.

The University of Missouri- Kansas City touches the northern border of the Brookside area.  This university provides a lot of good for the Kansas City area and continually strives to improve itself.

It is easily accessible from either the Trolley Track or beautiful Oak Street.  No matter where you live in the Brookside area it is just a short bike ride away. It is also really close to the Country Club Plaza and the Crestwood Shops, making it a great place to take a night class or two.  Directly west of campus is a Fox favorite, Pizza 51.  Grab a slice or bring a whole pie back to the house (if you and your bike can carry it!)

Did I mention UMKC has one of the coolest mascots around?  So hop and your bike and go Roos !

The Plaza! Brookside's northern border is generally thought to be the world famous Country Club Plaza, America's first shopping center designed with the automobile in mind. With the Plaza's increasing popularity to both Kansas Citians and the surrounding suburbs, parking can be frustrating at times.

Traveling by bike completely eliminates that issue making the Plaza experience all the more enjoyable. Biking from the Brookside Shops, travel time to the Plaza is about 15 minutes and parking takes zero minutes.

While the Plaza was once designed to accommodate the car, if you live in the Brookside area the fox thinks biking provides a far more pleasurable experience.