New Johnson County pizza shop, bar opens in time for big games: Pasta, cocktails, more
It’s been a hectic couple of weeks for Lindsay Rutten, general manager of Ava Rae’s Pizzeria & Pub.
Her new bar and pizzeria recently made its debut in west Olathe, and customers have been piling in.
“We’ve been really, really busy,” she said. “We’ve had people come back two to three times in one day just because they love the environment so much.”
Rutten said she’s hoping to fill a hole in the market — there aren’t too many local pizza shops nearby, though it does neighbor burger-heavy bar and grill Austins. Ava Rae’s is south of College Boulevard and just east of K-7.
One might immediately notice a few things while visiting the restaurant at 11168 Lone Elm Road. First, the sign out front depicts a girl in a chef’s hat and with a little gray pup. That’s owner Darrin Debok’s daughter, Ava, and her dog, Dexter.
“She loves it,” Rutten said of Ava, who’s a high school student. “Her friends hang out here all the time.”
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Inside are police and firefighter memorabilia — including Rutten’s brother’s old fire suit. (He nearly cried when he saw his display in the corner, Rutten said.) Ava Rae’s offers 10% off discounts to police officers, firefighters, paramedics and sheriff’s deputies.
And then, of course, there’s the bar that stretches nearly the entire length of the restaurant. Televisions line the walls.
With a lengthy drink menu and plenty of screens, Rutten expects they’ll attract plenty of March Madness traffic.
Ava Rae’s sells whole pizzas, as well as ones by the slice. A pickup area offers the slices to go.
“Pizza by the slice has been very popular for lunch, which has been nice to get those people in and out in, I would say, 10 minutes,” Rutten said.
Pie options include its supreme pizza (red sauce, shredded mozzarella, pepperoni, beef, sausage, red onion, mushrooms, green peppers and black olives), farmers market pizza (pesto, mozzarella, sun-dried tomatoes, fresh arugula and drizzled balsamic) and the Thai chicken pizza (sweet Thai sauce, red sauce, shredded mozzarella, chicken, bacon, jalapeno and cilantro).
Ava Rae’s also offers salads, pastas (the Cajun chicken pasta and chicken fettuccine Alfredo are two) and sandwiches.
Rutten said the meatball sub is especially popular.
All of the sauces at Ava Rae’s are made fresh, from scratch.
As for the drinks, Ava Rae’s sells beer and mixed drinks like the winter clementine, salted caramel martini and more.
Rutten has most enjoyed spending her days in the kitchen, using her own personal recipes to create the pizzas from scratch.
She thinks the restaurant has been so busy because it’s not the “typical bar food” one can find elsewhere in Olathe.
“I think the community, they were really excited about having something different — another option,” she said.