These oysters are guaranteed to be some of the freshest you'll find in Kansas City.
The fresh herb guacamole is topped with blue crab, yuzu and serrano and is served with corn tostadas.
Earl's Premier might be a new haunt, but the interior is designed to make it feel like a beloved staple.
The inside can sit nearly 40 diners.
Oysters are shipped in from the East Coast between 24 and 48 hours of them being harvested.
Each tag details how fresh your oysters truly are.
The Frozen Gin and Tonic has already been a hit at the oyster bar.
Earl's lives in the space formerly home to Chai Shai.
While the seafood is the star of the show, the cocktail menu is not to be missed.
Old Chai Shai fans might not recognize the Brookside space at first glance.
Todd Schulte and Cory Dannehl are no strangers to the restaurant business. The seasoned veterans have spent their lives working in the food, hospitality and beverage industries, with more than four decades of combined experience.
On May 10, the pair opened the doors to Earl’s Premier, a Maine-inspired oyster bar situated in the heart of Kansas City’s Brookside neighborhood. Friends since 2005, Schulte and Dannehl have vacationed together in coastal areas for years and grew a collective fondness for the old-school oyster bars that dot the coast of Maine. In late 2021, when Chai Shai shuttered its doors after 11 years in business, the duo jumped at the opportunity to bring their love for fresh oysters to their own neighborhood.
“This seemed like a no brainer,” Dannehl says. “Brookside has great density, and we loved the bar and patio. The neighborhood was missing an old school corner bar, so we’re happy to be filling that void.”
In late December, Schulte and Dannehl had signed a lease. By mid-January, they’d begun the remodel. Devoted Chai Shai patrons might not immediately recognize the space, but the improvements have reshaped the flow of the entire restaurant for the better.
To start, they built an impressive bar that runs along the interior wall, fixed the tin ceiling tiles and punched out the ceiling towards the back of the building, creating a unique yet familiar space that can seat nearly 40 diners between the bar and dining area. The patio outside can fit an additional 30 diners, and the two have plans to cover the space to make it more accommodating to patrons during the summer and winter months.
The antiques that adorn the walls inside are tastefully nautical without being too in-your-face. The smoke-stained painting of the ocean above the bar is hung below a collection of old American flags. The front of the restaurant is overlooked by a sperm whale carved out of old boat wood. A weathered buttress the two salvaged from Portland, Maine, juts out from the wall in the dining area. This attention to detail led one opening night patron to remark that the brand-new restaurant looks as if it had remained unchanged for four decades.
While Earl’s eclectic interior might be enough to get patrons in the door, the most impressive part of the restaurant is its supply chain. Schulte and Dannehl made a trip to Maine with their wives this past March to meet with many of the oyster farmers they’d known for years.
“The day before we visited Portland, we’d eaten some West Coast oysters in Kansas City,” Schulte says. “Then we ate some fresh in Maine, and the difference was night and day.”
To ensure quality, most of their seafood arrives at their doorstep within 24 to 48 hours of being harvested. For instance, the pair is working alongside John Herrigel and the Maine Oyster Co. team to have oysters shipped to their front step four times per week, providing Kansas Citians one of the freshest raw bars in the metro area.
While this supply chain may be more expensive on the front end, the pair believe they’re able to offset some costs: By ordering them directly from the farmers in limited quantities, Earl’s is able to cut down on some of the waste generated by traditional oyster suppliers.
“Shipping these fresh four times per week isn’t cheap, but we’d be throwing away some spoiled oysters here and there, so we feel like we’re making up for this in our shipping costs,” Dannehl says.
This commitment to minimizing waste carries over to other areas of their business. The entire menu was created to cut down on food waste. The menu boasts a large concentration on shellfish and crustaceans, so the two are looking for local farmers who might be able to use these shells to grind up livestock feed or soil additives.
With Schulte overseeing and manning the kitchen, every dish is as beautiful as it is delicious. The fresh herb guacamole is topped with yuzu, serrano and a generous portion of blue crab, and the shrimp cocktail is served with housemade slow-roasted salsa. If you’re ordering oysters, don’t skimp on the mignonette sauce, and ask your server for the horseradish or hot sauce granita, a creative take on the Sicilian shaved ice.
Earl’s Premier also boasts a great lineup of daily specials, including tacos & tequila on Tuesdays, steak frites on Wednesdays, fish & chips on Thursdays and even a Rosé Sunday Brunch coming soon.
Finally, no corner bar is complete without the bar itself, and Earl’s has a lot to offer. Aside from the rotating list of draft beers, which will soon host a tap from the famed Maine Beer Co., as well as a wonderfully curated wine list, don’t sleep on its cocktail menu. The Caught in the Rain is a great option for Tiki lovers, and the Frozen Gin & Tonic has already proven to be a house favorite: In its first two days, the restaurant went through more than ten gallons of the slushie concoction, which features J. Rieger & Co. Midwestern Dry Gin.
“We love Brookside – we both live in the area – and we love the classic oyster bars you’ll find throughout much of New England, so we feel very lucky to have the opportunity to open this space to our neighbors,” Schulte says. “We’re very happy with the way the space and concept turned out, and it certainly seems like our customers are too.”
Editor's note: This post has been updated to reflect Earl's Premier’s daily specials.
Earl's Premier, 651 E. 59th St., Brookside, Kansas City, Missouri, 816.255.3600, earlspremier.com
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Patrick Mulvihill is a Webster Groves native who has lived in Kansas City since 2014. Although he's been known to enjoy the finer things, he feels most at home with a tastefully plated hot dog paired with a cold yard beer.
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These oysters are guaranteed to be some of the freshest you'll find in Kansas City.
The fresh herb guacamole is topped with blue crab, yuzu and serrano and is served with corn tostadas.
Earl's Premier might be a new haunt, but the interior is designed to make it feel like a beloved staple.
The inside can sit nearly 40 diners.
Oysters are shipped in from the East Coast between 24 and 48 hours of them being harvested.
Each tag details how fresh your oysters truly are.
The Frozen Gin and Tonic has already been a hit at the oyster bar.
Earl's lives in the space formerly home to Chai Shai.
While the seafood is the star of the show, the cocktail menu is not to be missed.
Old Chai Shai fans might not recognize the Brookside space at first glance.