What to explore in Waldo: a fun bike trail, stylish salons and eclectic bites

The Waldo neighborhood of Kansas City is known primarily as a quiet, residential area — but there’s plenty to do there if you know where to look.

Waldo centers on Wornall Road, extending from Gregory Boulevard down to 91st Street. It’s bounded by the Kansas state line to the west and Holmes Street to the east.

From a secret burger joint to a store that only sells soap, here are some cool spots to check out in Waldo.

What to eat and drink in Waldo

Waldo is home to a number of local foodie institutions, including cuisine from all over the world.

Residents love the Indian fare at Taj Mahal, the meatballs at Jovito’s, scrumptious stir fry and noodle dishes at Waldo Thai and slices at the ever-popular Waldo Pizza, all located along Wornall Road.

In fair weather, sit at a picnic table outside the street-facing counter of Taco Cacao for homemade tacos or grab a cone from city favorite Betty Rae’s Ice Cream.

At the corner of Wornall Road and West 85th Street sits Second Best Coffee, a roaster frequented by its Waldo neighbors.

Marco Polo Selections is another favorite: The wine shop and tasting room offers imported wines from small vineyards in Croatia, Georgia, Armenia, Romania, Turkey and elsewhere.

Finally, stop in Dodson’s Bar & Commons to find a pint-sized burger spot tucked away inside. With only five menu items, Cosmo Burger’s popularity has outgrown its tiny digs: another location recently opened in the Lenexa Public Market.

What to do in Waldo

Avid thrifters will enjoy digging through secondhand clothing and homegoods at City Thrift Waldo and Red Racks Thrift Store, located just a few blocks away from each other. You can then freshen up your look with a trip to one of the neighborhood’s popular salons, including Moonshot Hair Co, Lumine Salon Waldo and him.her.them Hair Studio.

Finally, stop by the Soap Refill Station at the intersection of Wornall Road and 75th Street for any type of bath, body and home cleaning products you could want.

The shop puts an emphasis on the interactive, from slice-your-own bar soaps to a fully stocked essential oil bar where a friendly expert can mix you a custom clay mask, moisturizer or face cleanser complete with your favorite scents. Soaps from laundry detergent to dish soap to shampoo are sold by weight — and if you forget to bring your own container, the shop has plenty of donated ones on-site for customers to use for free.

How to get involved in Waldo

Enthusiastic Waldo residents love to take to the streets to celebrate local businesses and artists at community events like Waldo Week in the late winter, Spring Fling in May and the even larger Fall Festival, which blocks off part of a major road for a “block party” atmosphere featuring live music, local vendors and activities for kids.

Anyone can stop by these events for free, but there are plenty of opportunities to get involved as well. If you’re interested in being a vendor or volunteering at one of these lively events, you can sign up on the Waldo neighborhood website here. Residents should also be sure to join the highly active Waldo Neighborhood Facebook group.

What makes Waldo so special?

Waldo residents love their neighborhood for its diversity, friendliness and the abundance of small, local businesses that call its streets home.

“It’s a very welcoming neighborhood to everyone,” said Chelsea Kapka, the executive director of the Waldo Area Business Association. “It has a small community feeling.”

Kapka’s favorite spots include the Trolley Track Trail, which connects the neighborhood to Johnson County to the west and the rest of the city to the north. The trail is the site of an annual four-mile road race known as the Trolley Run.

Kapka described Waldo as “eclectic,” “diverse” and even “weird”— in a good way. From its local art to its community events, she is proud to call this friendly neighborhood home.

Did you know?

The streets of Waldo are traversed by an unusual feature: a dry cement culvert known in city plans as the “Waldo channel.” This reinforced aqueduct is intended to move stormwater safely through the neighborhood as vehicles and residents move around above it.

“These structures were built by crews in Public Works in the 1990’s when the stormwater section was in that department,” city spokesperson Heather Frierson told The Star. Today, stormwater is handled by KC Water instead.

If you’re interested in seeing the culvert for yourself, there’s nothing stopping you — pedestrians can see it from residential roads including Jarboe Street, Belleview Avenue and Madison Avenue. The channel is fenced off, so even residents can’t get down in it to explore — but a few have bridges over it connecting their yards to their neighbors’.

Want to tell us what makes your Kansas City neighborhood great? Reach out to the Service Journalism team at kcq@kcstar.com.