The beer hall (family friendly!) and rec deck (21+) are two fun places in one location to kill a couple of hours (like if someone invited you to a 1:30 pm wedding and the reception wasn't until that evening...).

The beer hall has all of Boulevard's beers on tap as well as experimental beers that aren't available anywhere else. German beerhall style seating with board games and a limited food menu (think charcuterie, dips, pretzels, etc).

The rec deck two floors up is 21+ and has more of a bar atmosphere. It offers great views of the Kansas City skyline along with deck shuffleboard, tabletop shuffleboard, and foosball.

For tours of the brewery, reservations are required- click on the link below to book.

It's the site of our first date, so stop by to see where the magic began on your Lauren and Brad reality tour. The atmosphere is great and the beer is just ok, but the vibe on a sunny Saturday afternoon is electric!

Casual Animal is three doors down from the Monarch Room (our reception venue) so this would be the perfect place to grab a drink or two before the reception (note: they don't serve food but there are occasionally food trucks).

Do you like whiskey? Do you like cocktails? Do you like fun? If you said yes to any of those questions, then you'll love Tom's Town. The local distillery has more than just whiskey, but the Tom's Town Royal Gold bourbon is a must try. Get an old fashioned here. Limited food selection available.

A jazz club that seemingly never sleeps, the Green Lady has great music and is a throwback to the 20's. A Kansas City staple.

McLain's has several locations in the metro but the best location is the one walking distance from Brad and Lauren's house in Waldo (and right down the street from St. E's where the ceremony will be). This counter-service coffee shop/bakery has been a Waldo staple since 1945.

Lauren's order: Girl Breakfast and an iced Market Latte

Brad's order: Pepperjack Burrito and a black coffee

Fun fact: McLain's is making our wedding cake!

Earl's Premier is an oyster bar tucked away in the Brookside neighborhood. It's our favorite restaurant in Kansas City and we find any excuse to plan a date night here. Reservations fill up quickly so we recommend booking a table a few weeks out. A frozen gin and tonic & fries are Lauren's go-to's, a whiskey cocktail & mussels for Brad, and always a dozen oysters on the half shell to share.

Food hall meets bar (but family friendly during the day), Parlor has six food stalls, all featuring different cuisines. Brad and Lauren recommend the Cluck Fries with the Cluck Yeah sauce from Mother Clucker! Bonus: it's less than a 5 minute walk to our reception venue.

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One of Brad's favorites for the best fast service BBQ in KC. Get the burnt ends on bun, and a beer will cost you less than $3.

Joe's is a KC staple that you can still visit its original location at the gas station in Kansas City, KS! Get the Z-Man and you won't be disappointed (Lauren recommends the Portabella Z-Man as a throwback to her vegetarian days, Brad recommends literally anything else).

If you don't know what a BBQ joint is, you will when you walk into LC's. The best BBQ joint in KC, everything is great, and the short wait is worth it. You will smell like BBQ for the rest of the day after you leave, but is that a bad thing?

One of the newest BBQ restaurants in KC, Meat Mitch has award-winning food for those looking to get out of downtown a bit. Brad recommends the loaded brisket chili and the competition burnt ends!

Get a reservation, because wait times are at least 45 minutes on average for dinner. Try one of the competition dinner plates or the Mr. Burns sandwich. You will not leave hungry!

You could spend an entire day at the National World War I museum and still not get through everything but for a history buff, this is a must see when in Kansas City. Museums are also a great place to spend a few hours if you're looking for a cool spot to escape the summer heat (as Midwesterners, we would be remiss to not tell you "it's not the heat, it's the humidity" though).

Catching the Chiefs vs Bengals game on Sunday following the wedding would be the perfect way to round out a Kansas City weekend. Lauren would like to point out that Taylor Swift will be on a tour hiatus during this time so you might get lucky and see her at the game! Her lesser known boyfriend is also known to make appearances.

The Nelson-Atkins Museum is located close to the Country Club Plaza and walking distance from both hotels with room blocks. It's internationally recognized as one of the best art museums in the US with a collection boasting over 40,000 works including paintings by Monet and Van Gough. The lawn of the Nelson is also home to the famous Kansas City Shuttlecocks which is a popular wedding party photo destination (so be on the lookout for familiar faces if you're there between the wedding and reception!).

Did you know Lauren has a presidential library passport? She's been to six of the libraries so far and is looking for ways to convince Brad to visit the rest (ie is there a MLB stadium in the same city?). Brad would like to note that this is strictly Lauren's recommendation.

The best baseball is about four hours east of Kansas City, down I-70. Ask for Fredbird and tell him Brad sent you.