Moretina's Caddy Shack

Moretina’s Caddy Shack is a family-owned Columbus Park dive bar and pizzeria, open since 1993, famous for the late founder Joe Moretina’s Sicilian-style pizza, wings, and toasted ravioli — with a kitchen that runs to 2 a.m., it is one of Kansas City’s premier late-night Italian-American comfort-food stops.¹²³

Description

Moretina’s Caddy Shack is a longtime Columbus Park neighborhood institution combining a sports bar (20-plus big-screen HDTVs with NFL and MLB packages), a dive-bar atmosphere, and a from-scratch Italian-American kitchen.³ The house specialty is the late founder Joe Moretina’s Sicilian-style pizza — widely cited among Kansas City’s best — alongside wings, toasted ravioli (cheese ravioli with homemade marinara), sandwiches, burgers, and appetizers.¹² A signature touch is the free fresh-popped popcorn served while patrons wait.² The venue offers indoor seating plus a back patio, and a take-and-bake pizza option.³ Its late kitchen hours make it a well-known late-night eats destination, recognized in The Pitch’s Best of KC.⁴

Ownership and history

Moretina’s Caddy Shack was founded in 1993 by Joseph Charles “Joe” Moretina (Aug 15, 1954 – July 2, 2021).³⁵ Joe was born in Kansas City to Charles and Rose Moretina, one of seven siblings, and was raised in the city’s Italian community — many of the Caddy Shack’s recipes and cooking techniques came directly from his mother, Rose, anchoring the menu in family Italian-American tradition.⁵ Joe built the Caddy Shack into a town favorite known for his Sicilian-style pizza and ran it as both a bar owner and a fixture of the neighborhood until his sudden death in 2021 at age 66.⁵ The business has continued to operate under the Moretina family name since.³⁶ The specific family member(s) operating the bar after Joe’s passing are not publicly documented.

Links

• Official site: https://caddyshackkc.com/
• Menu: https://caddyshackkc.com/menu
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/Moretinas-Caddy-Shack-100043523210411/

Sources

Disputes

None known. Minor discrepancy: third-party aggregators report weekend closing times of 2–3 a.m. versus the official site’s 2:00 a.m.; official site is treated as authoritative.

Footnotes

1. IN Kansas City Magazine — Moretina’s Caddy Shack Pizza. https://www.inkansascity.com/eat-drink/dining-guide/moretinas-caddy-shack-pizza/ — asserts: Columbus Park location; family owned and operated since 1993; Sicilian-style pizza and wings as signatures. ↩ ↩²

2. Wanderlog — Moretina’s Caddy Shack, Kansas City, MO. https://wanderlog.com/place/details/2043609/moretinas-caddy-shack — asserts: kitchen open until 2 a.m. for late-night; toasted ravioli (cheese ravioli with homemade marinara), sandwiches, burgers, wings; free fresh popcorn. ↩ ↩² ↩³

3. Official site — Moretina’s Caddyshack. https://caddyshackkc.com/ — asserts: address 700 E 3rd St, Kansas City, MO; founded 1993; family-owned; hours Sun–Wed to 1:30 a.m. and Thu–Sat to 2:00 a.m.; 20 big-screen HDTVs; take-and-bake pizza. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵

4. The Pitch — Best of KC 2023, Best Late-Night Eats. https://bestofkc2023.thepitchkc.com/PitchKC/best-of-kc-2023/food/best-late-night-eats/moretinas-caddy-shack — asserts: recognized among KC’s best late-night eats. ↩

5. Northeast News — Joseph Charles Moretina obituary. https://northeastnews.net/pages/joseph-charles-moretina/ — asserts: Joe Moretina born Aug 15, 1954, died July 2, 2021; son of Charles and Rose Moretina; KC Italian family; founded the Caddy Shack; recipes from his mother Rose; known for Sicilian-style pizza. ↩ ↩² ↩³

6. Wheree — Moretina’s Caddy Shack, updated June 2026. https://moretinas-caddy-shack.wheree.com/ — asserts: business listed as currently open/active in 2026; address 700 E 3rd St; sports bar in Jackson County. ↩