Once a month at this KC diner, soul food meets live soul music for ‘a good time’
On a recent First Friday at Niecie’s Restaurant, the dining room filled early and stayed full, with about 40 diners packed into booths and tables for dinner, dessert and live music delivered by the owner.
Niecie’s, 6441 Troost Ave., was founded in 1985 by Denise Ward and her husband, Perry. The restaurant originally operated near 59th Street and Prospect Avenue before moving in 2009 to its current location. Ward said it remains a family-run business, with relatives working alongside longtime staff.
The restaurant has an old-school diner feel, with booths lining the enclosed area and smaller tables scattered through the center. A banner on the back wall reads, “Celebrating 40 delicious years,” a reminder of the restaurant’s long roots in Kansas City.
By early evening, the room included regular customers and first-time visitors who said they had heard about Niecie’s reputation for Southern-style soul food. Some guests had traveled from Arkansas, Illinois, California and Colorado.
Around 7 p.m., Ward began her First Friday performance. There was no stage. She stood in the middle of the restaurant floor, moving between tables and booths, stopping to greet guests as she sang. She wore a bedazzled denim outfit and matching boots that glittered as she walked.
“Mainly, it’s something that I like to do, not only for the customers, but kind of for myself, to release my stress,” Ward said. “And if I can make somebody else happy in doing so and have a good time, good free, clean entertainment, why not?”
Though the restaurant has been around for decades, the music is a newer addition. Ward said she started hosting “dinner and a show” nights about three years ago, shortly after the pandemic, as the restaurant looked for something new to offer customers.
Ward described herself as “a ‘50s baby” and said her music reflects what she grew up hearing, including rhythm and blues and country western tied to her Southern influences.
“We played a lot of rhythm and blues, or country western, being from the South,” she said. “So music’s been a part of me all my life that I can remember.”
Ward said she has performed in different settings over the years, including clubs, karaoke nights and singing with a band in the 1980s. She also said she worked as a DJ in the 1990s. The First Friday performances, she said, allow her to sing while keeping the focus on food and hospitality.
“I want them first to have a good time, to come in here and have a good meal, because that’s what Niecie’s is about,” Ward said. “And to leave feeling pretty good about themselves and what’s going on.”
Throughout the evening, plates of fried chicken, catfish and comfort sides moved through the room, reflecting the restaurant’s core menu. Ward said the food is rooted in the dishes she grew up eating and in the traditions her family has carried forward.
The performance follows a loose structure. Ward said she works from a playlist and adds songs over time. Requests are part of the night, she said, and she will take them even when she does not fully know a song.
“If I don’t know it, I’ll still sing it,” Ward said. “I’ll ad-lib, add on and take away whatever I have to do it.”
That flexibility carried through the evening. Ward shifted between genres as she moved through the dining room, pausing to talk with diners. Later, she opened the microphone to others, turning part of the night into an open-mic, karaoke-style moment that included duets with customers who wanted to participate.
“If they can sing and want to, I do welcome them to sing,” Ward said. “Some of them are good, some of them not so good, but we always have fun with it.”
‘The music was a plus’
For some diners, the performance was an unexpected addition to the meal. Berneithia Sibert, visiting Niecie’s for the first time as part of a birthday celebration, said her group arrived without knowing a show was scheduled.
“No, we didn’t even know they had music,” Sibert said. “We just came here for a nice birthday meal and to celebrate. And the music was a plus.”
Sibert said the group ordered “chicken and waffles, catfish, short ribs, southern fried chicken, macaroni and cheese, greens, beans.”
Asked how they were enjoying the performance, she said, “It’s wonderful. It was a surprise, and I was very happy we came.”
As Ward moved through the room, she sang “Happy Birthday” for Sibert and her family, drawing cheers from nearby tables.
Sibert said one selection stood out during the night.
“’Last Two Dollars’ is my new favorite old-school song,” she said. “So when she sang it, I felt like it was a godsend.”
‘Up close and personal’
ReKeysha Belcher-Abdullah, who attended with Sibert’s group, said she recommended Niecie’s because it has been part of her life for years.
“Because I’ve been eating here all my life,” Belcher-Abdullah said. “This is some of the best soul food and I would have to put it toward the top because everywhere else is not as good as hers.”
She described the atmosphere in the dining room as Ward performed as a “vibe” and always looks for locations like that to enjoy. Belcher-Abdullah said she planned to bring more family members.
“I’m going to tell my mom and my aunts know about the music so we can all come together,” she said.
Other diners described Niecie’s as a stop that came through reputation and online reviews, even for those in town for unrelated events. Raul Torres, visiting from Colorado, said he and his group came to the restaurant after attending a concert.
“We came to see New Edition,” Torres said. “We just came for the concert, but we’ve heard of this place, so we decided to come for the food and for the entertainment.”
He said they searched online and chose Niecie’s based on what they found.
“So we actually looked it up, and it had amazing reviews,” Torres said. “And it also said something about the entertainment.”
Torres said he ordered fried chicken with mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese, and cabbage and described the meal as “amazing.”
Asked whether there are many similar soul food options in Colorado, Torres said, “No, no. I wish we had more places like this.”
Ward said the performances create a different kind of connection between the business owner and customers, without a barrier between performer and diners.
“I think because it’s something different,” she said. “Everybody’s not doing it, especially coming from the owner. I mean, how many of them, it’s up close and personal.”
As the night concluded, guests approached Ward to greet her, take photos and speak briefly before heading out. Ward said she looks forward to First Fridays for the chance to sing and interact with diners in the restaurant she and her husband built.
“I absolutely look forward to it,” Ward said. “Singing and having a good time.”
