Earlier this month, we published The Pitch’s annual Best of Kansas City issue. You can take a peek at the results of the readers’ poll here. The issue also included a list, compiled and written by our editorial staff, of some local people, places, and things that we thought clearly won 2025. We’ll be publishing these items online throughout November.

Kansas City craves caffeine and yearns for third spaces. At least that’s one takeaway from our non-stop coffee shop culture. New spots with distinct identities opened in the last year, such as Good Karma Coffee, Origin Coi Nguon Coffeehouse, Pitchside Coffee, Cortadito, Penrose Espresso Bar, Le Champion, and even coffee/matcha carts. We also saw the expansion of established spots like Café Corazón, Sweet Tee’s, and Grand Coffee.

Not only did

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