With all of these awesome retail wins, is anyone hoping for what other chains are still out there? (St. Louis: buy, live)

[jason87x]

Yep. So we won IKEA (in part possibly because SLCounty fought too much about it...). We've of course had TJ's for awhile, same with Natural Grocers. I've actually been into that Von Maur for once, and it's pretty neat. Sprouts. Fresh Market. REI. Freeb!rds. Ross.

But there are still a few places that would make this more awesome. Any opinions on these, and does anyone have rumors of possible expansions?

- In-n-out : not the best burger, but I do like their prices and that I can skip the bun and fries with no questions asked.

- Whataburger : Has a rather impressive menu that includes tons of breakfast items, all available 24/7.

- Jamba Juice : I hear this is big in California?

- White Castle: It seems St Louis has several chains that used to be in KC, but haven't been for a few years. Is St. Louis just being greedy or something?

- Vans: I had no clue Vans had their own dedicated store, until I saw them at like every Dallas area mall. The merch here looks a lot better than the Vans stuff in Kohl's. I'm not a skater by any bit but I buy a lot of my clothes from skater stores because they actually fit me and hold together far better than other brands I've purchased tons from (Express, I'm talking about you...).

- Neiman Marcus: this looks far better than Hall's. Maybe they could open up in Hall's Plaza location, lol. Of course going into NM is rather overwhelming, not only because few (in KC anyway) can afford $700 jeans, but all the snooty people actually wearing this stuff. Are there enough rich people in JoCo and Plaza/Brookside areas to support one such location?

- Bloomingdales: I hear this is high end similar to NM. Same questions though, enough rich people?

I also wish Dunkin would open more of these locations they've been promising for awhile!!

I should stop posting threads like this, I now feel way too materialistic, when I don't even spend that much money anymore. Of course stores like IKEA and Sprouts are known for saving money, so having them is a plus.

[MoNative34]

White Castle did have locations in the KC area, but they didn't survive.

[RjRobb2]

Dunkin' Donuts just opened a new location yesterday at N. Oak and 95th street in the Northland.

[aragx6]

White Castle is weird in the fast food world because it's not a franchise. All of their current stores are corporate owned, so they don'y really expand the way a McDonald's or even a Jack n the Box does.

My guess on Bloomingdales is that Halls successfully has that high-end department store covered. And I don't know that I'd say Neiman Marcus is nicer than Halls. I've been in Nieman's and they're super nice, but the Plaza Halls is still the most beautiful department store I've ever been in. Of course my dad always called it "Needless Mark-ups" :P

I've never been to Jamba Juice but they do have quite a few locations in Chicago, so expansion here wouldn't be out of the question I imagine.

In N Out burger has a ton of brand recognition but hasn't yet done major expansions out of the west coast. I believe they've got (or will soon have?) some stores in Texas though. Maybe in a few more years?

[Okey Dokie]

Originally Posted by RjRobb2

Dunkin' Donuts just opened a new location yesterday at N. Oak and 95th street in the Northland.

Dang...you beat me to it. I wonder if it will affect that 95th & N. Oak Quik Trip any.

RE: White Castle....why would you need it as long as Town Topic and Hayes' are still around???

I'd love to see Whataburger. They're in Oklahoma City so maybe they would move north.

Even though it's similar to Chipotle, I'd also like to see Qdoba come to town.

[RadioSilence]

Qdoba operated near K.U. Med for a while, but that location closed several years ago.

Whataburger irritates me because it is a major sponsor of Big 12 sports, and I see the commercials all the time during basketball season. Yet we have no locations in Kansas or Missouri.

My youngest brother lives in California, and regarding In-N-Out burger, he says "I wouldn't drive out of my way to eat there." But I have a cousin who thinks it is the best ever. And yes, In-N-Out is expanding to Dallas and Austin, I believe.

[RjRobb2]

Qdoba was in Zona Rosa but quickly folded. With Freebirds moving into the market, I doubt there is room. Qdoba has nothing on those two places.

[xenokc]

Originally Posted by RjRobb2

Dunkin' Donuts just opened a new location yesterday at N. Oak and 95th street in the Northland.

Never understood fascination with DD - dry and no depth... I'll take Lamars.

KC recently got Freebirds, which is just in CA/TX. Never had it but sounds doable. Westport location opening end of Oct.

[aragx6]

The OP location of Freebirds has terrible Yelp reviews thus far -- not sure if it's opening pains or a flawed concept as a whole. I'll probably give the Westport location a try at some point.

[luzianne]

Originally Posted by aragx6

In N Out burger has a ton of brand recognition but hasn't yet done major expansions out of the west coast. I believe they've got (or will soon have?) some stores in Texas though. Maybe in a few more years?

Wasn't there an In and Out in Roeland Park for a short time? I thought there was, right on Roe, about where Taco Bell is now. It wasn't open very long and then it closed. I think it was in the late 80s or maybe early 90s. Maybe it was something else but I think it was In and Out. It was pretty good, whatever it was.