In Partnership with AdventHealth Shawnee Mission, KC Chefs Create Heart-Healthy Dishes Honoring American Heart Month

MERRIAM, Kan. – Back by popular demand, Kansas City diners can enjoy dining out and eating heart-healthy at participating metro restaurants throughout the month of February. AdventHealth Shawnee Mission is sponsoring its sixth-annual Heart Month Restaurant Partnership in honor of American Heart Month, featuring chef-created heart-healthy meals at 12 metro eateries. 

Throughout the month of February, local restaurants Grand Street Café (Plaza and Lenexa), Hereford House (Shawnee, Leawood, Zona Rosa, Independence), The Jacobson, Story, Tavern at Mission Farms, Tavern in the Village and Vitality Bowls (Overland Park and Leawood) have created unique dishes that are heart-healthy – low in fat, sodium and other ingredients that may increase the risk of heart disease. For each heart-healthy dish enjoyed by diners in February, restaurant partners will donate 10 percent of proceeds to the AdventHealth Heart & Vascular Center to support various cardiac programs throughout the community.

“We are excited to enter our sixth-year partnering with this group of amazing Kansas City-area restaurants to help us raise awareness of heart disease and encourage heart-healthy habits during American Heart Month,” said Executive Director of AdventHealth Shawnee Mission Heart & Vascular Services Vickie Franck. “Our partner chefs did a tremendous job developing Heart Month specials that are not only heart-healthy, but incredibly delicious, which we hope will show the community that eating healthy can be tasty.” 

The heart-healthy dishes being featured by AdventHealth’s restaurant partners throughout February include:

• Soy Marinated Tuna charred with za’atar spice and sesame seeds, wild rice, broccoli, avocado, peppadews and cucumber salad with ponzu sauce (Grand Street Café, Lenexa and Plaza)
• Roasted Glazed Cedar Plank Salmon served with roasted root vegetable hash and wilted greens (The Jacobson, Kansas City, MO)
• Campo Lindo Pan-Roasted Chicken Breast served with wild rice, leeks and mushrooms (story., Prairie Village)
• Super Food Bowl with quinoa, kale, spinach, edamame, black beans, pico de gallo, pepitas and a splash of chili lime dressing (Tavern at Mission Farms, Leawood)
• Grilled Honey Glazed Salmon with sesame cucumber salad, red onion, brown rice and finished with chili oil (Tavern in the Village, Prairie Village)
• Heart Bowl, pitaya blended with almond milk, chia seeds, banana, strawberries and raspberries, topped with hemp/flax seed, granola, banana, blueberries, almonds and honey (Vitality Bowls, Leawood and Overland Park)
• Grilled Mediterranean Steak Salad featuring charcoal grilled 7 oz top sirloin, mixed greens, grilled asparagus, grilled onion, grilled zucchini, grilled red peppers and grilled tomatoes in a sun-dried tomato vinaigrette (Hereford House, Shawnee, Leawood, Zona Rosa and Independence)

Story restaurant, located in Prairie Village, has participated in AdventHealth’s Heart Month Restaurant Partnership since its inception in 2014 and continues to use creativity in their heart-healthy dish each year.

“This partnership is more than just offering a special for the month—it’s about creating awareness for diners that healthy meal options can be extremely delicious and encouraging customers to try something new and different,” said Story Founder Susan Thorne-Thomsen. “We’re proud to continue our partnership with AdventHealth Shawnee Mission and this exclusive group of restaurant partners during American Heart Month to raise awareness for this good cause.”

AdventHealth’s Heart Month Restaurant Partnership aims to raise awareness of cardiovascular disease, the leading global cause of death. AdventHealth is home to Kansas City’s first Accredited Chest Pain Center and offers sophisticated medical technology for cardiac and vascular care.

As part of its ongoing efforts to raise awareness of the risk factors for cardiovascular disease, AdventHealth is the Presenting Medical Sponsor for the American Heart Association’s Go Red For Women year-long educational programming, including the luncheon in April.

“One of the first and most impactful ways to fight heart disease is by following a healthy diet,” said Dr. Heath Wilt, cardiologist at AdventHealth Shawnee Mission. “We consider a healthy diet to include a variety of food groups with limited processed foods. Trying new meals that include lots of vegetables and fruits is suggested and can make a big difference in overall heart health.” 

For more information about AdventHealth’s six-annual Heart Month Restaurant Partnership, visit AdventHealthKC.com/HeartMonth. Participating diners are encouraged to help spread the heart-healthy message by posting to social media using the hashtag #HeartMonthKC.

About AdventHealth Shawnee Mission

With a sacred mission of Extending the Healing Ministry of Christ, AdventHealth is a connected system of care for every stage of life and health. A focus on whole-person health and commitment to caring for the body, mind and spirit unify the system's nearly 50 hospital campuses and hundreds of care sites in diverse markets throughout almost a dozen states. AdventHealth in Kansas City includes AdventHealth Shawnee Mission in Merriam, KS; Advent Health Lenexa; AdventHealth South Overland Park, AdventHealth Centra Care and AdventHealth Medical Group. AdventHealth Shawnee Mission is the only certified member of MD Anderson Cancer Network®, a program of MD Anderson Cancer Center, in Kansas City. Visit AdventHealthKC.com for more information.