119 The Restaurant
Photo by Alistair Tutton
Lifestyle
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News for Your Home and Lifestyle

Dining Delicacies
Following trends from New York and Europe, 119 The Restaurant brings the cosmopolitan ambience of wine and mozzarella bars to Kansas City residents.

Located inside Soho 119, the sophisticated new retail destination in the One Nineteen center, the restaurant features high-quality Italian antipasti ingredients. Diners can create their own customized antipasti plates by choosing from an array of exquisitely aged cheeses and pairing them with dry-aged meats and salamis, artisanal breads, olives and dried fruits. 119 The Restaurant’s menu also includes distinctive paninis, fresh salads and hot entrée specials in the evening.

Homemade gelato and sorbet and mixed berry zabaione highlight the dessert menu, while the full bar features signature 119 cocktails, a variety of wine, and Italian sodas and coffee. Five-dollar martinis are served all day on Thursdays with half-price antipasti boards beginning at 5 p.m. and live jazz during the weekend: 5-9 p.m., Thursday and 6-10 p.m., Friday.  913.498.1279 or www.soho-119.com

Moving Its Pod
Previously located in the Crossroads Arts District for 10 years, The Dolphin Gallery is now situated in the West Bottoms — its prior location will be home to the new Kemper Museum, opening this month.

The Dolphin Gallery, at 1600 Liberty St., has been a recognizable name in Kansas City’s art scene for many years, offering an array of creativity, which will continue to flourish at the new site. “We offer contemporary fine art as well as art consultation and a full frame shop,” says Emily Eddins, gallery personnel. “We’ll continue rotating exhibitions throughout the years.” Through November 8, visitors can view the “On Liberty” exhibition, showcasing multiple art forms (ceramics, photography, paintings) from a number of regional artists. 816.842.4415 or www.thedolphingallery.com

Pet Care
The name may have changed, but this 24-year resident at 73rd Street and Wornall Road still offers the same pet care it always has. No longer Hecker Animal Clinic, Kansas City Veterinary Care became the new, official name this past September. Along with the name change, the facility recently completed a four-year renovation that includes structural improvements, including the entrance, a bigger waiting room, four additional examination rooms and a consultation room. 816.333.4330 or www.kcvetcare.com

Change of Address
Looking for The Gallery at Hawthorne Plaza? New ownership took over and in March opened Park Place Gallery of Fine Art, which is now located at 11560 Ash St., in Leawood’s new Park Place Development. Park Place Gallery features a variety of artwork from numerous artists around the world. If you’d like to start collecting or just love to look at art, check out some of its one-person shows and demonstrations. With extensive resources, the gallery is able to acquire art from anywhere in the world. 913.469.8001 or www.theparkplacegallery.com

Walking the Walk
Stitt Energy Systems is celebrating 30 years as a green builder. It has offices in St. Louis and Kansas City, but its corporate office in Rogers, Ark., received a complete green makeover.

Breaking ground this past July, the LEED-registered project will include 1,000-2,800 extra square feet of space. As a green builder, other aspects of the remodel will feature parking places for employees’ hybrid cars; no-irrigation gardens; low-flow toilets, faucets and showers; day lighting; low-wattage lighting; natural ventilation; refurbished and/or post-consumer recycled content; low-VOC paint, carpet and finishes; and a design plan that also meets standards of the Americans with Disabilities Act — and that’s just to name a few.

Also, in celebration of its 30th anniversary of building energy-saving homes, you can join Stitt Energy in a half-day seminar, “Holistically Green: Designing and Building Your Energy-Efficient Home,” in Kansas City on November 15 at no charge. 800.367.7374 or www.stittenergy.com

First Unveiling in the Country
Naomi’s Hallmark, owned by Caye Crosswhite and located at Shawnee Mission Parkway and Quivira, is the first retail store in the country to feature Jim Shore’s At Home furniture and home accessory line. The new line features more than 300 pieces of home accent furniture, wall and floor decor, picture frames and lighting.

The store, which comprises half Hallmark accessories and half non-Hallmark items, is one of the largest Hallmark stores in the U.S., with about 9,000 square feet of space. Jim Shore, an award-winning artist known for combining elements of folk art and vibrant color palettes applied to traditional themes, will be at the furniture debut on November 22 from noon-4 p.m. at Naomi’s Hallmark. 913.268.3940 or www.jimshorehome.com

Merging Resources
Audioport Ltd. has been a high-end audio expert in Kansas City for 22 years. Recently, Audio Dimensions, a 25-year-old company that supplies audio, video and home automation technology in the southern Midwest, merged with Audioport Ltd., increasing the company’s reach to Oklahoma, Arkansas, Tennessee and Kansas, while meshing expertise and knowledge of two companies in the home automation industry. Audioport Ltd. will keep its name for at least one year before changing.

Audio Dimensions’ corporate office is in Oklahoma City. It added its sixth store after acquiring Underground Sound in Memphis and the seventh after attaining Audioport Ltd. in Overland Park. 913.341.2222 or www.audioport.com

Coming to Across Road
Outgrowing its Town Center Plaza location, Dean & Deluca is moving locations — actually just right across the street to the Shops at 119th Street. The opening is scheduled for this January.

The new location, with 15,000 square feet of space and a parking lot that’s 75 percent bigger, will offer an updated concept, more departments and more selections. Another perk is the drive-thru, so you can get a quick pick-me-up after the holiday season. 913.498.3131 or www.deandeluca.com

Reside in Fashion
Opening this month in Kansas City, Mo., is a new store offering one-of-a-kind residential home furnishings and complimentary design consultation. Sofas, chairs, beds, coffee and side tables, lamps, books and dining tables are just a few accessories you’ll find at Urban Dwellings Design, along with in-stock items from Mitchell Gold and Bob Williams. “I love to blend interiors to give them a fresh, beautiful yet unique lived-in presence,” says owner Jaclyn Banash. “It has always been a goal of mine to have my own business, and over the years, this is what has evolved.”

Recently obtaining an interior design degree in Southern California, Jaclyn has worked in the industry for more than eight years and has experience working in different shops similar to the one she’s opening soon, which was inspired by a combination of ‘old and new, clean and  rustic.’ Jaclyn offers more in-depth interior design at an hourly rate and incorporates green design whenever possible. 816.569.4313 or www.urbandwellingsdesign.com

Revamped Their Space to Revamp Yours
A year and a half ago, Greg and Karen Lee bought Lee’s Flooring and Paint in Harrisonville. This past March, the Lees renamed the former carpet and paint store Tallgrass Flooring & Design Center, adding much more than a new name.

With a 5,000-square-foot showroom and an approximately 6,500-square-foot warehouse, the Lees revamped the entire space, moving walls, repainting, and adding new landscaping, cabinets and flooring. Their list of services grew, too. Tallgrass Flooring & Design Center offers flooring, painting, wallcovering, window treatments, countertops, cabinet hardware and interior design services, including consultation, installation and a certified on-staff interior designer. The store is also a Mohawk ColorCenter and features numerous green products as well. 816.380.5466 or www.tallgrassflooring.com

Snuggle Up
… in a luxury comforter purchased at Scandia Down’s newly remodeled store at the Country Club Plaza. Adding on to its name, known now as Scandia Down Kansas City by Terrasi Home, the store was overhauled this past July.

The remodeling project included hardwood flooring, new paint and fixtures, and fewer walls, making room for more merchandise. Owner Ursula Terrasi brought in new accessories from London and France, “expanding lounge ware and night ware that’s exclusive to us in Kansas City,” she says.

Organic mattresses were brought into the store for customers to try, and Ursula also expanded the furniture line while making the space more of a showroom for designers, too. 816.753.4144 or www.scandiadownkc.com

What an Honor
After spending 15 years in the kitchen and bath industry and five as a member of the National Kitchen & Bath Association (NKBA), Clay Lyon, CR and owner of Lyon Construction + Design, decided to run for a spot on the NKBA board. He filled out a nomination form that asked about his accreditations, background, experience, responsibilities and positions within industry organizations, and why he wanted to serve to which he said, “to better represent the builders/remodelers segment and improve communication/ information flow between the Council and NKBA leadership, to push our agenda (along with NBKA’s) and clarify the needs of the builders/remodelers segment as it applies to NBKA’s overall strategy and interests.”

In August, Clay received a letter congratulating him on becoming one of about 20 members on the National Kitchen & Bath Association Board of Directors. He’s also a registered asbestos abatement project contractor/supervisor by the EPA and a local charter member of Disciples of Green. 913.236.5966 or www.lyondesign.biz.                                                                                                                                                        

Correction
In our September issue’s “Neighborhood Renewal” story, we mistakenly referred to John Schutt as an architect. Though he has been in the field for more than 20 years, he hasn’t yet taken the NCARB licensing exam and must be referred to as a designer. We apologize for any confusion.