Franz Kafka, a major literary figure, shares his name with Apache Kafka, an open-source stream-processing platform integral to enterprise infrastructures, where monitoring its performance is crucial. Logz.io, which incorporates Apache Kafka in its core operations, has developed a sophisticated monitoring system using open-source tools to manage Kafka's performance and operational visibility. This system collects and analyzes logs and metrics, utilizing tools like Filebeat and Jolokia for log data and JMX metrics exposure, while leveraging Graphite and Grafana for data visualization and analysis. Monitoring Kafka involves measuring key performance metrics such as lag and latency, using tools like Zipkin to assess user experience, and employing Grafana templates to streamline dashboard management. The visualization of Kafka data is crucial for understanding underlying issues, with different visualizations highlighting various data aspects, and maintaining a comprehensive dashboard aids in quick incident investigation. The article emphasizes the importance of metadata in log and metric aggregation, ensuring efficient visualization and alert definitions, while also highlighting the necessity of planning capacity and implementing a robust monitoring system for Kafka's stable and dependable performance.