Café Sebastienne

Best brunch! Awesome artistic atmosphere and Great place to chat with family or friends. The food is good and drinks served with a heavy hand! Best part is viewing the art after you eat or while waiting.

I ate lunch here in February 2016. Restaurant was virtually empty. Despite this, they sat me in the worst table in the place – right outside they swinging door to the kitchen. Every time the door opened we heard kitchen noise. I would understand if the place was full but don’t understand if it is empty. I won’t be back. They must not want me back anyway.

Went to Café Sebastienne last Saturday to celebrate my Mom’s 66^th birthday and was sadly disappointed. I’ve been there in the past and been impressed by the inventive menu and top notch service, but alas, that was not our experience this time. The food was just OK but nothing amazing. I had the spaghetti squash and my mom had a spinach salad. Both were fine but I didn’t feel worth the high end price. The service wasn’t particularly attentive, I had to repeatedly flag down our server to make simple requests like a dessert menu. She didn’t bring sugar for the coffee and I never got the chance to request it. Overall I was left underwhelmed and will look elsewhere for special occasion meals, which makes me sad because the ambiance IS AMAZING.

My daughter took me to Brunch for my birthday. We had scones, I had a traditional breakfast of biscuits gravy bacon potatoes and scrambled eggs. Every item was perfect. My daughter had Arancini and loved it. We were surrounded by paintings and it was a lovely atmosphere. Excellent service! Plus an art gallery to browse after!

I just had a spectacular meal. Tomato and basil salad, perfectly cooked strip steak, crème anglais bread pudding to die for, excellent iced tea. Unobtrusive, friendly and perfectly paced service. Great setting as always. I love this place and eat here whenever I’m in town.

My friend and I were going to eat at Rozzelle Court, but the museum was closed yesterday for classes. I remembered that the Kemper Art Gallery had a nice café, so we tried it for lunch. What a great place to enjoy really good food.
We chose to eat inside rather than out on the patio. Our table was next to the window so we could enjoy the ambiance and still have a quiet conversation. With all the hard surfaces, it can sometimes get a little noisy. One thing about eating inside; the tables are squished together and the floor makes it very hard to scoot the chairs close to the table.
We both had the Fish Tacos with avocado sauce, Rancho Gordo Vallarta beans, and pico de gallo. Coffee with the assorted cookie plate finished our meal. Service was very good.
A great place for a special meal.

A-​OK is right.
1) Ambience was very eclectic and it was fun to be surrounded by a montage of paintings resembling those of the greats:) The ‘scene’ was cute little old ladies dressed up in their Sunday best.
2) Host was very gracious and helpful (even telling us about the museum and showing us to the restrooms)
3) Service was acceptable but not out of this world. Had to track down the waiter on a few occasions, empty water glasses, waiting forever for the check, etc.
4) Food was decent but I thought overpriced for what it was. I had the trout — absolutely nothing wrong with the fish itself, thought the preparation was overhanded (salty & heavy). My mother, who was visiting from out of town, loved her shrimp salad and said it was the best meal she had in Kansas City. So perhaps I just ordered incorrectly.

I’m usually very skeptical of any museum café or restaurant. The food is often lackluster, and the dining environment is usually very cafeteria like. Café Sebastienne is not either of these things. The food is very good, though it was only lunch and we only did one course each. I had the Rainbow Trout with BBQ Butter and Sweet Corn-​Zucchini Succotash. The trout was very nicely cooked, crispy skin and rather large filets as well. The BBQ butter came across as much more of a chile butter with a little bit of spice, but not overwhelming at all. The succotash was very fresh, nicely cooked without being mushy or too crunchy. My friend had the Portobello-​Spinach Clafouti with Sautéed Spinach and an Heirloom Tomato Vinaigrette. She wasn’t as food of hers as I was of mine, but said it was still good. I tried it several times and would have been just as happy with it. The reinterpretation of the French dessert/​pastry into a savory dish was a nice change, and I thought the vinaigrette was very good. The spinach was well sautéed. I offered to trade, but she declined.
The environment of the Café is delightful with its wall to wall artwork and tall glass walls. The indoor courtyard area seems like it could get quite loud if full and has a more traditional museum dining feel. I recommend inside the restaurant itself.
The wine list is small but reasonably priced, and I was immediately able to find something I enjoyed.
I’d like to return for dinner.
Definitely recommended, especially since it’s a two for one going here and the museum at the same time.

I wasn’t as impressed as I wanted to be — went for dinner this past weekend — I had the lobster bisque, rib eye steak & shared a dessert trio. The soup was great, steak was OK, and one of the desserts on the trio was meh. I would love to go back and try brunch because I’ve heard such great things about it, but there are so many good places to go for dinner in KC that I probably won’t be back here for it. :(

Food: A+. I had one of the best ribeye steaks there and the risotto was just as good
Waiter: A. Helpful and knowledgeable, just as you want your waiter to be. The wait staff seemed to be seasoned professional servers and not students working through school
Hostess: C-​. I asked not to sit at the first table and of course was seated at the first table. Another table was open in the heart of the restaurant. I asked to sit there and was told the manager saved it for someone else. Our dinner lasted about an hour. That table sat empty for 55 minutes. I was really disappointed in that.
Environment: A. The artwork is fun. Sitting farther back is a must. Do not sit at the entrance.

My favorite restaurant! Enjoy the museum while you’re there. A hidden jewel right in the middle of KC that will surprise and amaze. Great food and great atmosphere. Nice for a date or a business lunch. Very upscale but casual at he same time. Not open every day — I feel lucky when they are!

Sometimes when you stuff a restaurant into a museum it has a food-​court quality to it. That’s definitely NOT the case with Café Sebastienne. This is a delicious, medium-​high end restaurant that focuses on local ingredients year round.
We kicked off KC Restaurant Week with a lunch here, and it was a sunny, uncharacteristically warm January afternoon. The restaurant has an indoor sun room that is always the right temperature, according to our hostess. It’s like being on a patio but inside.
The food was fantastic. I had braised pork with tomatoes over a bed of polenta and a side of brussel sprouts. I wasn’t messing around, I literally ate all of it.
My guest had a beet-​centric Moroccan tangine. While I love that they work to incorporate local ingredients year round, this left a lot to be desired. It was beet city, because in KC this time of year there isn’t much else.
I love that you can stroll through the Kemper Museum before and after eating, and this is definitely a destination restaurant in it’s own right. I think next time around I will be aiming to try their brunch over a weekend.

The first thing I pay attention to is the service– it was excellent! The server knew his product and was attentive. He helped me pick out a wine which I ended up really really enjoying. (Sauvignon Blanc «Walnut Block» New Zealand)
My boyfriend had the ribeye and it was cooked to perfection! It had a tasty glaze and a side of roasted potatoes and green beans. We are serious about ribeye steaks and this was great, at such a reasonable price.
I had the swordfish… This was the BEST fish dish I have EVER had. The fish itself was seasoned just right and had been grilled but was still juicy as can be on the inside. It sat on a bed of creamy polenta and had a smokey tomato sauce. The tomato sauce and polenta complimented each other AND the fish perfectly.
Great dining experience! A little pricey for a spur of the moment choice but SO worth it. I understand the menu changes every week but I’m sure you won’t be disappointed!

Brunch was fabulous! A salad of mixed greens, mushrooms, cheese, and perfectly cooked beef tenderloin for me. We also tried the brioche French toast, pigs in a blanket, and an omelet. All the food was well prepared and delicious. Service was excellent in the outer dining area, surrounded by art with lots of natural light. We can’t wait to come back!

Excellent brunch. Nice and lite. For the 2 of us to dine for less than $ 20…makes me soooo HAPPY. :-) BEAUTIFUL atmosphere and the food was amazing. I ordered the french toast and my fiancé had the omelette. Not a very extensive menu for brunch… but still something for everyone.
A definite stop while in KC!

Definitely worth crossing the street if you are visiting the Nelson Atkins. We had a fabulous lunch! Best Reuben ever! Served with also the best German potato salad. I was very impressed! My mom had the chicken tarragon salad and really like it and my aunt, the lamb sausage which she also liked.
I’m going back next time I’m in town!

While recently visitng KC we decided to go to the museums on Sunday and check out the Brunch at the Kemper. It was absolutely delicious and we really enjoyed the whole experience.
We were a little early for our reservation, but that was no problem and they sat us right away.
The atmosphere was great. Casual, but really nice. Not Stuffy. We split a half order of the french toast to start. Then we split two of the entrees, both were really good. I definitely recommend the Eggs Bene which is served over crab cakes instead of english muffins. It was really delicious and the coffee was good.
Our server was attentive, but not bothersome. We were able to enjoy a nice brunch and have a great conversation.
Anyone visiting the Kemper should take the time and enjoy the brunch!

I give out rare 5-​star reviews… so read up!
First of all, the extras of unique ambiance (in a museum) and great service are here. There was no question about those things.
So what about the food?
I had fish tacos for lunch, which is a beloved food quest for me. These were delicious is every way. Blackened chucks of fish. Char marked tortillas. Guac that was heavely. Beans as a side that were not just an afterthought (I would have liked a BOWL of them).
The menus change here often. Do not despair. They cook food here from scratch, so it’s all good.
The icing on the cake, even when you don’t have cake, is the value. This place might be the best value for a chef-​prepared menu in a swanky place in Kansas City.

4 ½ stars. We had an incredible meal here. We were off to a great start even before the food came, though, because the hostess was super nice and accommodating, and our waiter, I believe his name was Charles, was excellent.
I’d been here before and while I liked the food, it was nothing extremely memorable. Today it was. We were seated in the dining room with all the paintings on the wall. I didn’t even know that room existed. Always before, I’d sat in the dining room with the glass ceiling. Both rooms are equally lovely.
The menu is a bit overwhelming, with several terms & foods I was unfamiliar with, but the waiter was extremely knowledgable and explained everything really well. He had several other tables but he never seemed rushed.
My friend had the pork chop and deemed it excellent. I had the Trio, which consisted of quinoa salad (I could have eaten a pound of that delicious stuff!), vegetable beef soup (sounded boring but it wasn’t, although it was a touch too salty,) and a ½ salmon sandwich, perfectly flavored with tomatoes & olives, and served on this insanely yummy bread– it was like a sweet challah.
After such amazing food, we knew we had to test out dessert, and even though it took ages for them to arrive, they were divine too. We had the plum crisp & the flourless chocolate cake. We oohed and aahed over every bite.
I recommend Café Sebastienne highly, and can’t wait to go back!!!

Café Sebastienne used to be my favorite place for brunch in KC. I took my better half here 4 years ago on our first anniversary, and the amazing food and service made the move to KC from San Diego very easy. I would have given this place 5+ stars then…
I just went there again today, and unfortunately my experience was quite the opposite. I had heard from other Unilocalers and friends that the service had declined. I was determined to go to my favorite brunch spot again, though, and so there we went:
We had made a reservation, and were seated immediately, so that was a good start. The inside of the restaurant is really nice, with lots of modern art displayed in a modern-​looking courtyard. Patrons can explore the museum (all free) while waiting for a table, so that does make for a nice experience.
The first thing I noticed was how cold it was inside. I had come in shorts a nice shirt, since it’s over 90 degrees outside, but I felt like I’d need a parka long underwear during the brunch today because of how cold it was!
Once our party arrived, things really went downhill. Our server attended to 3 other tables around us, and completely ignored us. After about 15 minutes, we asked him to come over, and we ordered drinks. Another 20 minutes, and he came with cold coffee and the rest of our drinks. The plus point was that he did bring extra olives for the bloody Mary order we had, but we send the coffee back. Another 10 minutes, then the coffee.
We then made our orders. I noticed that the other tables had gotten some raisin bread brought to their tables. Another 10 minutes went by, when I snagged the waiter and asked if we could have bread or if it was a separate order? 10 minutes later, there came the bread.
About a half an hour later, our meals came. The servers brought each meal to the incorrect patron. We asked for some hot sauce — 10 minutes later, it came. The restaurant was only at half capacity, so it wasn’t like they were serving a full crowd.
The food is usually amazing here. We love the Café Benny, which is their take on a crabcake benedict. It’s normally done very well with excellent potatoes on the side. We also love the Kobe beef hash, also delicious. This time, though, we were so disappointed in the food quality: the crabcakes were about ½ the size of how they were when we visited about 8 months ago. The beef hash was undercooked and was mostly potato with very little meat. We were so sad to see the food we had been salivating for excitedly be under sub par. And this is for a $ 15 and $ 18 entrée for each of these!
The coup de grace was settling the bill. The waiter had to ask us three times how to split the bill amongst the three couples, as he couldn’t figure it out. Then, he added a 20% automatic gratuity to the bill! The audacity! I crossed off the amount and gave him 15% (although he should have gotten ZERO!). I brought our poor service and food quality to the attention of the manager, who basically brushed me off. She was not apologetic in the least. I get it, your restaurant is a hipster modern art-​type of place, but you as the manager need to work on your customer service skills and bring up the service. Shame on you!
So here’s the overall:
1. Décor — excellent, but bring your parka!
2. Service — terrible, with an automatic 20% gratuity
3. Food — the quality has declined significantly, with stingy portions that were undercooked
4. Customer Service — rude
You get two stars, Café Sebastienne, and have been replaced by Rye in Leawood as my favorite brunch place in KC. I recommend that restaurant instead — their service is prompt and friendly, and their food is amazing. Don’t waste your time here anymore :(.

I love this place. I love the setting. There are two sections. In one section, it is covered wall to wall with paintings so you feel like you are dining inside a museum (which, in fact, you are). The other section feels like an outside patio with natural light streaming in the glass ceiling. So nice to be able to sit «outside» in the middle of winter.
I’m not a picky eater, but I also don’t have a really refined palate. I may order an item that has several ingredients and even if I don’t like one of the ingredients, it’s always a delicious taste explosion in my mouth. I follow this restaurant on facebook and their daily lunch announcements makes my mouth water.