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Red Kitchen KC — full name Red Kitchen: Cien Por Ciento Mexicana (“100% Mexican”) — is an owner-operated Mexican restaurant at 7926 Santa Fe Drive in downtown Overland Park, opened February 2024 by chef Alejandra de la Fuente. It grew out of her Red Kitchen Tamales pop-up and Lenexa Public Market stall (begun ~2017), which Food & Wine named the source of the best burritos in Kansas in 2018. Born in Mexico City and raised in Guadalajara, de la Fuente left a career as a Spanish-language interpreter and bank employee to cook full-time, building a strictly regional-Mexican (no Tex-Mex) breakfast-and-lunch concept.

Description

Red Kitchen KC serves a strictly regional Mexican menu — owner-chef Alejandra de la Fuente describes the concept as “100% Mexican food — there is nothing in here that is Tex-Mex oriented,” a stance reflected in the restaurant’s full name, Cien Por Ciento Mexicana (“one hundred percent Mexican”).12 The roughly 26-seat space runs a breakfast-and-lunch service (open daily, closing at 2 p.m.), built around the breakfast burritos and tamales that made the original stall’s reputation, alongside chilaquiles, huevos rancheros, tacos, tortas on telera bread, soups, agua fresca, and Mexican-style shakes.234 Dietary options (vegetarian, gluten-free, keto) are offered for dine-in or grab-and-go, and a value lunch combo marketed as the “Godínez menu” targets nearby office workers.2

The restaurant sources locally where it can, partnering with Maps Coffee & Chocolate (Lenexa) for coffee and Caramelo (Lawrence) for tortilla chips.2 It sits on the west side of Santa Fe Drive in downtown Overland Park near The Peanut and The General Store + Co., in a space previously occupied by the catering company The Table.2 See overland-park-ks.

Ownership and history

PeriodOperator / milestone
~2017Alejandra de la Fuente — then working as a Spanish-language interpreter / bank employee — begins selling tamales as Red Kitchen Tamales, eventually a pop-up and stall at Lenexa Public Market154
2018Food & Wine names her breakfast burritos the best in Kansas (recognition tied to the Lenexa stall), sharply raising her profile; she leaves her bank job to cook full-time54
Nov 2023Announces departure from Lenexa Public Market to open a stand-alone restaurant at 7926 Santa Fe Dr.; last day at Lenexa was Dec 26, 202336
Feb 2024Red Kitchen: Cien Por Ciento Mexicana opens in downtown Overland Park125
PresentOpen and operating under de la Fuente’s sole, owner-operator ownership17

Red Kitchen is independently and locally owned — repeatedly described in press and on its own listings as “Latina owned, woman owned.”7 No corporate parent, franchise, or outside-chain relationship is indicated. De la Fuente was born in Mexico City and grew up in Guadalajara before immigrating to the Kansas City metro; she is the chef and owner-operator.15

AUDIT NOTE: The seed described the owner as “Indigenous/Mexican-owned.” Research confirms Mexican immigrant, Latina/woman-owned, but found no source describing de la Fuente or the business as Indigenous-owned. The Indigenous descriptor is unverified and has been omitted from the body; flagged below.

Last verified: 2026-06-20 · Source: Johnson County Post, AOL/KC press, Kansas City Magazine (Toast official-ordering page returned HTTP 403 and could not be read this pass) · URL(s): https://johnsoncountypost.com/2024/02/14/red-kitchen-overland-park-open-226068/, https://www.aol.com/no-tex-mex-authentic-mexican-213833198.html, https://kansascitymag.com/kc-mexican-food-vendor-is-opening-a-restaurant/ · Confidence: Medium (corroborated across KC press; not re-confirmed against the live official menu — the menu was described as “in an experimental stage” at opening, so specific items may have shifted)

Strictly regional Mexican, breakfast and lunch only (no Tex-Mex). The kitchen is built around the breakfast burritos and tamales that earned the original Lenexa stall Food & Wine’s “best burrito in Kansas” recognition (2018).8910

Signatures

  • Breakfast burrito — the dish that made the name; eggs, potato, cheese and tomatillo (salsa verde) sauce, with chorizo, sausage or bacon available as add-ons. Food & Wine called these the best burritos in Kansas (2018, recognition tied to the Lenexa stall).810
  • Tamales — de la Fuente’s original specialty (the business began as Red Kitchen Tamales); offered to-go, noted on Saturdays.810

Breakfast (weekend / all-day options)

  • Chilaquiles — tortilla chips simmered in sauce; previously weekend-only, now offered daily.89
  • Huevos rancheros — ranch-style eggs.9
  • Huevos divorciados — eggs with two contrasting salsas (weekend breakfast menu).8
  • Molletes — open-faced bolillo with beans, cheese and toppings.9

Lunch

  • Tacos de guisado — stewed-filling tacos served with rice and choice of fillings.8
  • Tortas — sandwiches pressed a la plancha on soft, buttered, crusty telera bread with assorted fillings plus avocado, tomato and onion.8
  • “Godínez menu” (office-worker lunch combo) — soup, entrée, rice, beans, corn tortillas, dessert and agua fresca; $15.99.8
  • Platters — meats with beans and rice.10
  • Soups — added at the brick-and-mortar (not offered at the Lenexa stall).10

Sweets & drinks

  • Tres leches doughnuts and bolillo con cajeta (roll with dulce de leche).9
  • Agua fresca — rotating fruity Mexican beverage.810
  • Mexican-style shakes and coffee (sourced from Maps Coffee & Chocolate, Lenexa).810

Vegetarian, gluten-free and keto options are offered for dine-in or grab-and-go.10

See also

Sources

Footnotes

  1. el restaurante, “Creator of Food & Wine’s ‘Best Burritos’ Launches Restaurant.” https://elrestaurante.com/blogs/industry-news/creator-of-food-wine%E2%80%99s-%E2%80%9Cbest-burritos%E2%80%9D-launches-restaurant/ ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5

  2. Johnson County Post, “Former Lenexa eatery now serving Mexican cuisine in Overland Park” (Feb 14, 2024). https://johnsoncountypost.com/2024/02/14/red-kitchen-overland-park-open-226068/ ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6

  3. Johnson County Post, “Red Kitchen leaving Lenexa Public Market to start own Overland Park eatery” (Nov 14, 2023). https://johnsoncountypost.com/2023/11/14/red-kitchen-lenexa-overland-park-220407/ ↩ ↩2

  4. Feast Magazine, “Today’s Takeout: Breakfast Burritos from Red Kitchen Tamales.” https://www.feastmagazine.com/kansas-city/article_4155b2d0-f2bb-11ea-a811-cb3c6b441060.html ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  5. Kansas City Magazine, “Nationally Recognized KC Mexican Street Food Vendor Is Opening A Restaurant.” https://kansascitymag.com/kc-mexican-food-vendor-is-opening-a-restaurant/ ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  6. Shawnee Mission Post, “Red Kitchen leaving Lenexa Public Market for Overland Park” (Nov 14, 2023). https://shawneemissionpost.com/2023/11/14/red-kitchen-lenexa-overland-park-218950/ ↩

  7. Visit Overland Park, “Red Kitchen: Cien por Ciento Mexicana” directory listing. https://www.visitoverlandpark.com/directory/red-kitchen-cien-por-ciento-mexicana/ ↩ ↩2

  8. Johnson County Post, “Former Lenexa eatery now serving Mexican cuisine in Overland Park” (Feb 14, 2024) — menu detail: breakfast burrito fillings, chilaquiles, tacos de guisado, tortas on telera, $15.99 “Godínez” lunch combo, agua fresca, coffee from Maps. https://johnsoncountypost.com/2024/02/14/red-kitchen-overland-park-open-226068/ ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10

  9. AOL / KC press, “No Tex-Mex here. Authentic Mexican breakfast, lunch restaurant opens in Johnson County” — menu detail: chilaquiles, huevos rancheros, huevos divorciados, molletes, tres leches doughnuts, bolillo con cajeta, tamales, agua fresca. https://www.aol.com/no-tex-mex-authentic-mexican-213833198.html ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5

  10. Kansas City Magazine, “Nationally Recognized KC Mexican Street Food Vendor Is Opening A Restaurant” — menu detail: breakfast burritos (Food & Wine recognition), tamales as the chef’s specialty, soups, Mexican-style shakes, meat/beans/rice platters, agua fresca, keto/vegetarian/gluten-free options. https://kansascitymag.com/kc-mexican-food-vendor-is-opening-a-restaurant/ ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8

More from the Registry

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See also

  • Registry
  • overland-park-ks
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On the record — ks.city/registry/red-kitchen-kc · record updated 2026-07-17