Restaurant will leave popular Kansas City spot — but it’s not ending for good
It’s not a “goodbye,” more of a “see you in Independence.”
Once owner Chris Riggins sells his assets and the right to operate in his midtown spot, Brewer’s Kitchen & Corner will move out of its 3107 Gillham Road digs.
He’ll operate the beloved brand inside 3 Trails Brewing at 111 N. Main St. on Independence Square, where he’ll continue to serve his beer-infused burgers, loaded fries and other menu favorites.
Riggins is purchasing 3 Trails Brewing from co-owners Jesse Rose, Brian Clark and Matt Medley.
He’s looking forward to combining his restaurant with a brewery — Brewer’s Kitchen already offers beer from several local breweries and cooks its food with beer.
“I’ve seen unbelievable price increases in all aspects,” he said. “I’ve always wanted to own a brewery so that I could control my food cost and control the beer cost.”
To be honest, Riggins said, when he set out to buy 3 Trails, he never expected to have to move Brewer’s Kitchen.
But after meeting with the state liquor board, they informed him of a condition in the Missouri law preventing companies from owning both breweries and restaurants unless they are within direct line of sight.
That meant he could not buy 3 Trails in Independence while still owning Brewer’s Kitchen in midtown.
“The law was put in place to protect small businesses from Anheuser-Busch back in the day,” he said. “So if Anheuser-Busch could open a restaurant, every restaurant … would be run out of town because they could charge the cheapest beer in town.”
So Riggins had to face the bittersweet reality: Brewer’s Kitchen would need to move.
“I’m sitting here selling a restaurant that is in a good location that has never been bad to me, that is primed for the World Cup to be here next year,” he said. “(It) does bring me some sadness.”
The timeline of the transition is still up in the air, but he’ll be in his current space for at least the rest of the month. He’s meeting with new operators who would buy his assets and take over the remainder of his 10-year lease, which is more than halfway over.
He’s not sure what will go into the Gillham Road space, but it won’t be called Brewer’s Kitchen.
“I think it’s hard to say that it will be a similar concept, because if the right person with the right idea comes, we’re always happy to take a risk on a good idea,” he said.
Once he takes over 3 Trails, he’ll close it for a brief time for renovations. It’ll still be called 3 Trails but will have all the Brewer’s Kitchen offerings.
Riggins has already been partnering with 3 Trails for the past year, offering handhelds and burritos in the space under the Brewer’s Wraphouse brand. Those items will still be available at 3 Trails.
“The previous owners did a lot to the brand and they really put a lot of effort into it, so I’m just excited to carry that torch now,” he said.
Riggins opened Brewer’s Kitchen in 2019, moving into the former KimChee Korean restaurant.
In November, Riggins shared with The Star his frustrations about the way crime was being handled in the area after his restaurant was broken into.