Openings & Closings

Wine shop’s closure left gap in Kansas City suburb. Here’s what’s looking to fill it

Parkville Wine House is a wine bar with a kitchen serving shareable plates like charcuterie and flatbreads.
Parkville Wine House is a wine bar with a kitchen serving shareable plates like charcuterie and flatbreads.

For about 20 years, the heart of Parkville’s wine scene was Wines by Jennifer, a wine shop serving flights and charcuterie in a historic house on Main Street. It closed earlier this year when its owners moved.

But as of last month, a new wine hub has materialized: Parkville Wine House, located in a 120-year-old house just a few doors down, at 305 Main St.

Owner Steve Hultgren is in the insurance business and also spent about eight years working at Wines by Jennifer.

“We knew there was a demand for a wine bar in Parkville — for both residents and for people in other parts of Kansas City and the larger region who see Parkville as a destination,” Hultgren said. “So we decided we’d go ahead and try to fill that demand.”

Parkville Wine House is now open at 305 Main St. in downtown Parkville.
Parkville Wine House is now open at 305 Main St. in downtown Parkville. Parkville Wine House

The house, which was previously divided up into apartments, has been remodeled into an open-space wine bar, with multiple rooms and seating areas.

Parkville Wine House serves wines by the glass and the bottle, as well as wine flights and cocktails.

“There’s a big taste for domestic wine in Parkville, so about 60% of our inventory is from California, Oregon and Washington,” Hultgren said. “The rest is international — Italy, France, some Spanish, some South American, some Australian and New Zealand.”

A small kitchen serves up charcuterie boards, flatbreads (chicken pesto, a “Midwest Cuban” made with chicken instead of pork), and small, snackable plates like edamame, mixed nuts and a goat cheese spread.

“We’re not a dinner destination — more like the first stop on the way out to dinner,” Hultgren said.

Hours for now are 4 to 9 p.m. Wednesday (when certain bottles are on special for $20); noon to 9 p.m. Thursday to Saturday; and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday.

“Parkville tends to kind of shut down on Sundays, so we’re trying to give people a place to go,” Hultgren said.

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David Hudnall
The Kansas City Star
David Hudnall is a columnist for The Star’s Opinion section. He is a Kansas City native and a graduate of the University of Missouri. He was previously the editor of The Pitch and Phoenix New Times.
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