Two local restaurant chains close one of their Johnson County locations

Johnson County has lost two restaurants as the owners tweak their overall operations.

Salty Iguana Mexican Restaurant closed its location at 8420 W. 135th St. in Overland Park. It had operated in the Overland Pointe Markektplace for nearly a decade, taking a former Uno Pizzeria space.

“We decided not to renew our lease because it was no longer viable for our company to stay in that market,” said Bailey Chandler, spokeswoman for the company and daughter of founder Dan Chandler. “It was a very tough decision to close Overland Park. But there was no way to downsize in the location.”

Salty Iguana recently downsized its location in the Ridgeview Marketplace, 10478 S. Ridgeview Road, Olathe, after nearly a decade. A remodeling is scheduled for next spring.

To-go, catering and food truck businesses continue to grow, she said.

“The fast-casual market has dramatically changed. You don’t see restaurants opening at our size anymore,” Chandler said. “Our lease came up, and downsizing decreased our overhead so we could remain competitive. We are making decisions that will allow us to stay in the market another 27 years.”

Chandler said the Overland Park employees were offered positions in the other locations — the original location in Prairie Village (which opened in 1992), as well as locations in Independence and Lawrence.

The locations have added new menu items, including Carne Asada Fries (seasoned fries, carne asada, Iguana dip, pico de gallo, sour cream and guacamole), KC Mex & Match (customers create their own combo) and the Beyond Taco with vegan cheese.

Its new children’s menu includes a Beyond Taco, grilled chicken tenders, salad and fruit.

It redid the games on the children’s menu for the first time in more than 15 years, and now offers online to-go orders on its website.

Sheridan’s in Olathe

In other Johnson County news, Sheridan’s Frozen Custard has closed at 2055 E. Santa Fe St., Olathe, just east of Interstate 35. It opened in December 2000, according to the Kansas City Star’s archives.

Founder Jim Sheridan hopes to open one of his Unforked concepts in the spot. He has Unforked restaurants in Crown Center and Overland Park. Another Unforked is scheduled to open this winter in Woodside Village in Westwood.

Unforked’s lunch and dinner menu includes Thai peanut noodle bowls, tilapia tacos and quesadillas. For breakfast, customers can select such items as the Sunrise taco with a fried local/free range egg and spiced black beans, and fried egg BLT.