Here’s what’s moving into former Kansas City bar: Cocktails, global entertainment, more
.JPG "Ninth & State closed at the end of 2023.")
Now-closed West Bottoms bar 9th & State had a less than three year run at the historic, somewhat mysterious two-story building at 1717 W. Ninth St.
New owners Farhan Shiekh and Shahzad Ghafoor hope their bar and entertainment concept will do the space justice.
The new spot, which will be called Laila, will offer drinks, small bites and entertainment from around the world. He likened it to the international club Raspoutine, which has spots in Paris, Los Angeles and Dubai.
“The theme of the entertainment changes to make it as such that we can move it from European to African to Asian back to the U.S.,” Ghafoor said. “A nice lounge with entertainment from different arts and cultures.”
The top floor will function as an event space, while the main level will be open to the public.
As for the menu, the two aren’t almost finished nailing down their food and cocktail offerings. Stay tuned, they said.
The business partners, both from Pakistan, hope to open the space in May. Its sophisticated style will have some subtle nods to their own culture and beyond.
The name is inspired by Middle Eastern folktale Layla and Majnun, a story similar to Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet.”
“This is what I’m trying to transport … bringing some Eastern art and culture, which has been transformed by the Western society. That is what Laila is going to be,” Shiekh said.
Before 9th & State closed, former owners Heather Hamilton and Sean Smith enjoyed researching the old building’s previous lives.
The couple purchased it in 2020 after Hamilton was diagnosed with Huntington’s disease.
Built in 1911, it was once home to Pabst Brewing. During the Prohibition, it operated as a “soda shop,” though patrons were rumored to bring their own liquor. In the 1930s, jazz club and casino the Antlers Club took over.
Some other former tenants in the new millennium: Fahrenheit Gallery, Wild West Border Deli and Bar, Soviet-themed night club Korruption, punk space Spitfire, fetish club Club XI, and underground gallery and club Negative Space.
The Star’s David Hudnall contributed to the reporting of this story.