Inside quirky KC-area thrift shop with a twist: A dive bar in the back
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Gnarly Hussle is a vintage thrift shop with a dive bar in back.
- Owners opened the bar in August 2024 to diversify revenue and build community.
- Shop features '90s decor, local memorabilia and plans for events and concerts.
When you first enter Gnarly Hussle, a quirky thrift shop in Raytown, you might for a second think you’ve stepped back in time to the ‘90s.
A silver, 18-inch tube television with a DVD/VHS combo player is playing ”Married with Children.” An arcade version of the NBA Jam video game is buzzing next to a wooden armoire graced by family photos. It looks and sounds like every millennial’s childhood after-school spot.
“We wanted to make it look like a ‘90s living room, but then I just thought it was an homage to all our family and friends and where we come from, the communities that made us,” says Pat Clifton, the co-owner of Gnarly Hussle, a vintage thrift shop at 6317 Raytown Road that specializes in affordable gear.
But Gnarly Hussle also features something that sets their shop apart from the average thrift store: a dive bar in the back.
If the front of house is meant to feel like someone’s mom’s living room, the back of house feels much more like your cool uncle’s basement dwelling, complete with a massive selection of DVDs, VHS tapes and records, a vending machine that dispenses cans of beer at random, and perhaps even a whiff of the “jazz cabbage.”
When Clifton and co-owner Alex Quinn started Gnarly Hussle during the height of the pandemic, their goal was to get people back to hanging out.
“We opened it during Covid, and that was pretty influential to us,” said Quinn, who’s the more front-facing part of the team at Gnarly Hussle.
“We’re really fixated on building the community,” he said. “I grew up in sports my whole life, and we had the phrase, ‘it’s easier to build a team around a keg than it is kale.”
Although they were mostly able to keep the lights on by selling their vintage clothing stock, Clifton and Quinn said they knew they needed to come up with another revenue stream to keep things running more smoothly. So a year into the venture, they came up with the idea of opening up a bar in the back of their space.
After about a year and a half of working around the red tape, Gnarly Hustle successfully opened the bar side of their space in August 2024. Both Clifton and Quinn agree it’s been an early success. In fact, customers often attend the bar first without knowing there is a whole vintage thrift shop just through one of the side doors, they said.
‘Drink responsibly, shop recklessly’
Entering Gnarly Hussle, you’re immediately struck by the “lived-in vibe” of the clothes and the space. Between hanging racks, you’ll see a sign that says “BAR” and a nondescript purple door. Just past that door, you can enter a space that feels dramatically different.
The music is a bit louder and the lights a bit dimmer, but the vibe is one that is meant to help you relax into a different type of shopping experience. The walls are graced with various nods to pop culture from the past few decades, as well as odes to Raytown itself.
Photos of old Raytown politicians, youth sports teams and landmarks add color and give customers a sense of where they are. A small bar towards the back of the room acts as a service counter for customers and dive bar patrons alike. It’s a “pick your poison” type of entertainment spot.
“We recommend people come in and grab a drink first,” Quinn said. “A lubricated shopper tends to spend a bit more and we have a motto, ‘Drink responsibly, shop recklessly.’”
With ceilings covered in CDs, artwork and rugby jerseys, this place does its novel best to appeal to all walks of life, whether you are on the hunt for a fresh vintage jacket from the ‘80s or a can of Old Style.
Scrawled on one of the ceiling beams is a phrase, “Is this heaven? No, it’s Raytown.” According to the owners, there’s some truth in it.
“[The city of Raytown] probably removed some barriers that they didn’t have to for us to be here, they’ve been awesome to us,” Clifton said. “I know sometimes Raytown gets a bad rap within the business community, but they’ve been great with us.”
The duo has bigger plans beyond the shop and bar, too. They said they want to open up the space to more diverse types of events and entertainment, including a potential music venue to host concerts and live performances.
”We have had to stack value and give you as many excuses as possible to get you off the couch, physically get in a car, and drive somewhere,” Quinn said.
“So that’s trying to find unique ways to make the place entertaining and fun to shop at.”
Gnarly Hussle is open Wednesdays through Sundays, from 12 p.m. to 8 p.m.
This story was originally published December 16, 2025 at 6:00 AM.
