Decades-old Johnson County restaurant to close. Building could be demolished
After serving customers in Leawood since at least the mid-1990s, Houlihan’s will close.
The Texas-based American restaurant chain announced in a media statement Tuesday that it would shut down its location at 4900 W. 119th St. on March 27.
“We extend our heartfelt gratitude to our customers for their support over the years and our wonderful staff for their hard work and dedication to this location,” the chain said in a written statement to The Star.
“We are actively working to place team members at our Houlihan’s Lee’s Summit and Overland Park locations and hope that our loyal customers will continue to visit us at those locations.”
The fate of the building itself is still up in the air, though developers have filed plans with the city of Leawood to demolish Houlihan’s and turn the space into two buildings that house four restaurants, according to city records.
Further details of the plans were not immediately available Tuesday afternoon. Plans submitted to the city must first go through the approval process.
Houlihan’s began in Kansas City on the Country Club Plaza in 1972 but was eventually sold to a string of national ownership groups.
In 2019, Houlihan’s then-ownership group HRI Holding Corporation filed for bankruptcy. Around the same time, the 16411 W. 119th St. location in Olathe closed, as did its Fairway spot at 2820 W. 53rd St.
The Fairway location will soon be home to a concept headed up to W. VinZant Restaurants called American Fire, though details about the upcoming concept are scarce.
Houlihan’s still has locations in Overland Park at 11851 W. 95th St. and in Lee’s Summit at 625 NW Murray Road.
This story was originally published February 17, 2026 at 4:45 PM.