Here's purplehaze's quick and dirty on my baller hometown:
Poyntz has the nicest collection of resteraunts:
-Harry's (classic americano)
-4 Olive's (wine / fine dining)
-Bourbon & Baker (whiskey / great food / bakery)
-Dela Voce (italian / cocktails)
-Hibachi Hut (cajun)
Aggieville has the bars
-Auntie Mae's (parlor, basement bar, strong drinks, good vibes)
-Aggie Station (best food in the ville imo)
-So Long Saloon (best burgers, black bean dip)
-Taco Lucha (margs / tacos) (get the pineapple beer aka a "nancy" at lucha or so long)
-Rock-a-belly (sandwiches, good tap, summer beers)
-Keltic Star (guiness, cider, fish n chips)
-Aggie Lounge (dive bar, busch light, pickled eggs)
-Kites, Rusty's, Tanner's, Johnny Kaws, Tubby's, are all sports bars and I don't really think they have much that separates them.
-Radina's and Bluestem are great coffee shops
Bottom line is that Aggieville is your game-day headquarters before heading to the game. It's a long walk from the stadium, but a beautiful walk through campus if you're up to it. There are also shuttles that go from Aggieville to the game and back, but they don't start until 2 hr before kickoff I believe.
Other MHK places:
-Discovery Center (natural history museum about surrounding area)
-Tuttle Creek (large lake out of town)
-Sunset Zoo (newly upgraded, very nice zoo)
-Colbert Hills (pro level public golf course)
-Konza Prairie (largest un-plowed tallgrass prairie in the world... beautiful)
-Tallgrass Brewery (awesome craft brewery, check for tours)
Sak, as a 60-ish parent, season-ticket holder and a local resident of over 20 years, I vote for Purple Haze's list. I think Auntie Mae's may not be to the taste of everyone in your family. For an Aggieville eatery, I would go with So Long Saloon. So Long has excellent variety in the menu; the burgers are excellent and the black bean/raspberry dip is heavenly and worth a trip. The drawback to So Long is that it is fairly small, so hitting it at peak meal times makes it tough to get a seat. Get there early! It can also be noisy, but that is par for the course for almost anywhere in Aggieville. Radina's and Bluestem are great coffee/sandwich shops that will give a non-bar environment. Keltic Star is very nice, quieter than most, and has an authentic Irish menu. Variety Donuts has a vintage environment, great donuts, and local personality. Harry's (downtown on Poyntz--
http://www.harrysmanhattan.com/ ) is a lovely restaurant for an authentic local meal if you will be here before or after game day.
Call Hall ice cream is awesome. If you visit the Dairy Bar in Call Hall
http://www.asi.k-state.edu/services-and-sales/call-hall-dairy-bar.html, you'll find sandwiches, ice cream, and other products produced at the university. The Student Union has a bowling alley that is fun for a family activity.
Personally, I would avoid Bushwacker's, Aggie Lounge and Bobby T's. I think they are more the 18-22 year old crowd. Doughboys Pizza is out of business, so you can't eat there! I loved their pizza, but they are no longer open.
Radina's has a new Bakeshop at 3rd and Ft. Riley Blvd that is getting rave reviews. The Chef Cafe on 4th between Poyntz and Houston St. is extremely popular for breakfast and lunch. I wouldn't go to Pizza Ranch for this trip; it is OK, but nothing to write home about and definitely not a uniquely Manhattan experience. Freddy's Frozen Custar d & Cox Brothers BBQ (both on McCall Road) and Vista Burger (Tuttle Creek Blvd) all have good food. Freddy's has hamburgers & hot dogs as well as the rich ice cream.
I don't think there will be many empty seats in the stadium. Even though it is a Thursday night and very inconvenient for out of town season ticket holders, there will be people in all the seats and the environment will be electric. Welcome to Manhattan and to K-State; I hope you and your family have an excellent visit to the Little Apple!
