THE ART of DINING
THE STORY BEHIND THE PLATE
The menu at Oil on Linen embodies Chef Ted Habiger's exploration of the aesthetics, influences, and origins of each dish. In harmony with the museum's exhibition calendar, it evolves to create connections to the art on display. Currently featured at lunch is the Three Sisters Rice Bowl, a dish inspired by current exhibitions featuring Indigenous artists Andrea Carlson: Shimmer on Horizons (Aug. 29 - Feb.15) and Raven Halfmoon: Ride or Die (Nov. 19 - April 19.
THE DINNER SESSION
This season, our menu at Oil on Linen responds to Raven Halfmoon’s Ride or Die, the new exhibition on view at Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art.
Halfmoon’s monumental ceramic figures, rooted in Caddo pottery traditions, reflect endurance, identity, and the connection between land and craft. Her work invites us to reflect on what is carried forward, reshaped, and shared across generations. It reminds us that tradition, like a meal, is made stronger when it is shared.
In that spirit, our kitchen leans on the ingredients that have sustained this land for generations. We choose to shape the menu with hominy, beans, bison, and wild herbs in ways that feel both rooted and new. Much like Halfmoon’s sculptures, each dish builds on what came before, honoring tradition while carrying it forward with our own distinct voice.
With gratitude, we recognize the people and farms who brought this menu to life. Linda Hezel of Prairie Birthday Farm inspired our tablescapes and shared fruits, herbs, and vegetables grown with care. Jean-Louis Horliever of TerraVox harvested and pressed the North American red grape variety Starkstar at its peak, delivering it in a five-gallon bucket safely buckled into his front seat. Crum’s Heirlooms contributed ground cornmeal, hominy, chestnuts, and other heirloom varieties. Thane and Edith Palmberg provided their nettles and potatoes. Rancho Gordo Heirloom Beans remind us of the care and craft that connect every ingredient to the land.
CHEF OWNER, TED HABIGER
A three-time James Beard Foundation Outstanding Chef Award nominee, Habiger is a chef, restaurateur, sommelier, and entrepreneur with a decades-long commitment to local farmers and sustainable practices. Highlights of his career include leading Cafe Allegro, Kansas City's first farm-to-table and top Zagat-rated restaurant (1996–2000), and serving as sous chef at Danny Meyer's Union Square Cafe in New York City (2001–2003). Habiger is the owner and chef at Room 39, which opened in 2004 and recently joined the new CPKC Stadium as a vendor for the Kansas City Current. In addition to Room 39, Habiger is the chef-partner at Ánima, an open-fire gastronomy restaurant in Mérida, Mexico, and the owner of Food Truck Central, a commissary kitchen in Kansas City that supports local food trucks and entrepreneurs.
Rachel Rossin, After GTA V, 2015, oil on canvas, 60 x 78 inches. Collection of Bill and Christy Gautreaux, Kansas City, Missouri. © Rachel Rossin, courtesy of the artist and ZieherSmith, Nashville, TN. Photo: Anna Petrow Mulvihill, 2024.
hung and PLACEd
Works by artists including Sanford Biggers, Ronald Jackson, Annie Lapin, and Joiri Minaya among others from the internationally acclaimed collection of Kansas City-based collectors Bill and Christy Gautreaux are on view in the courtyard and entrance.
Also on view in the courtyard is a durational drawing titled set in place (mis en place) by Kansas City-based artist Kevin Townsend. This drawing performance began in September and is taking place over more than 200 hours, evolving in full view of diners with each dot capturing the cafe’s dynamic energy.
Frederick James Brown’s floor-to-ceiling site-specific installation of more than 100 paintings, titled History of Art, remains on view in the café gallery as it has since 1994. In the installation, the Brown both paid homage to the artists and styles throughout history that influenced him, and contextualized his own work within that history.
The Toledo chairs designed by Jorge Pensi that were original to the courtyard when it was first enclosed have returned, soft seating has been added to encourage longer and more casual visits, and new custom-made artisanal furniture by Kansas City-based designer Matt Castilleja has been added throughout the space.
Reserve a Table
Located inside the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art, Oil on Linen is open Wednesday–Sunday from 10am-3pm. On Thursdays & Fridays, the restaurant opens for dinner featuring menus inspired by current exhibitions. Cocktails are available starting at 4:30pm. Dinner service is available from 5pm-9pm with the last seating at 7:45pm.
Available for Pre-Order when you make your reservation is the 16oz Ribeye & Bison Shirt Rib Entree for Two.