Central Standard

From the old classics to “interactive” cocktails — and don't forget mocktails — there’s a drink for everyone in KC. Whether you like your drinks fancy (made with local spirits, fresh herbs and juices and more) or something more simple (usually involving just one type of liquor), KCUR's Food Critics searched out the best cocktails in and around Kansas City in our annual look at libations. Here are their recommendations: Mary Bloch, Around the Block : Bluestem — Bloody Mary. Rye — Bloody Mary.

Some Valentine's Day tips for making a meal romantic, then KCUR's food critics search out the best cocktails in and around KC. Guests: Susan Wiegand, author, Cooking as Courtship David Hudnall, The Pitch Mary Bloch, Around the Block Jenny Vergara, Feast Magazine Pete Dulin , local food and beverage writer, author of Kansas City Beer: A History of Brewing in the Heartland

We've all had great bosses ... and not-so-great bosses. But what makes them that way? A Mizzou professor is casting aside assumptions that we've been making about management. In economics, only 30% of Ph.Ds are women. But in our area, some of the biggest names in economics are women. How two local professors have influenced national politics — and ruffled a few feathers— with their research and thought. Guests: Arthur Jago, Professor of Management, University of Missouri Donna Ginther, Professor

You've probably driven through this cute little neighborhood between Westport and the Plaza, with its bungalows with stone porches. But you may not know that this neighborhood used to be called Steptoe — and it's where freed slaves built new lives for themselves. Hear more about this historic area and the project to collect and preserve its oral history. Also: Remembering Latino civil rights leader Gilbert Guerrero. Guests: Joelouis Mattox, local historian Delia Gillis, Professor of History and

With the new administration's immigration orders and the proposed U.S.-Mexico border wall, tensions have been on the rise. To get a sense of how Kansas City's Mexican immigrant communities are feeling right now, we check in with a DACA student, the head consul of Mexico in Kansas City, and an immigration lawyer. Guests: Alfonso Navarro-Bernachi , head consul, Consulate of Mexico in Kansas City Jessica Piedra , immigration lawyer, admin of KC Metro Immigration Alliance Lisandra Garcia , DACA

There's a controversial film coming to the Kauffman Center Feb. 7 . One of the filmmakers of " Disturbing the Peace " joins us to discuss the tale of enemy combatants in the Middle East putting an end to their fight and joining together. Plus, the director of UMKC's Black Studies program has art on display at the Miller Nichols Library. Guests: Adrienne Walker Hoard , artist, director, UMKC Black Studies Marcina Hale , filmmaker, "Disturbing the Peace"

Most people are familiar with Dead Man Walking, the book and movie that's based on Sister Helen Prejean's interaction with a death row inmate. Well, there's also an opera that's inspired by her story. We talk to some people from the Lyric Opera about their upcoming performance of this contemporary American work ... and the community outreach they've planned around it. Then, an artist working as a janitor near the U.S.-Mexico border took photographs of the personal items that migrants left behind

It's no secret that Lawrence is a spot of blue in a pretty conservative state. That's true of a lot of university towns ... but should it be? A look at whether the University of Kansas is separated from the communities it's meant to serve, and how it could connect to the rest of the state. Guests: Clarence Lang, Professor and Chair, Department of African and African-American Studies at KU Stephonn Alcorn, student body president at KU Ike Uri, KU senior from Concordia, Kansas

The Kansas City chapters of the NAACP and the SCLC are under new leadership. We sit down with the new presidents of these two organizations to hear their vision for the future of KC. A recent New York Times article said: "Calling Peter Voulkos a ceramist is a bit like calling Jimi Hendrix a guitarist." We learn more about KC's rock star of clay. Guests: Rev. Rodney E. Williams, President, NAACP of Kansas City Rev. Vernon Howard, President, SCLC of Greater Kansas City Sherry Leedy, Director,

How are Russians living in our community reacting to the allegations that Russia hacked the 2016 U.S. presidential election? We explore the nuanced conflict and pride that Russians living in Kansas City feel about their homeland. Guests: Rita Reznikov ​, Ukrainian-American, owner, European Delights Michelle Smirnova ​, sociologist, University of Missouri-Kansas City Vitaly Chernetsky , professor and director, Center for Russian, East European and Eurasian Studies, Kansas University Dasha