A new chicken and dive bar made itself at home in downtown Merriam.
Strip’s Chicken & Dive Bar is now open at 5831 Merriam Drive in the site of the former Blondie’s Corner Bar and Grill.
The restaurant officially opened on Sept. 19
- Owner Todd Johnson said the response from customers has been overwhelmingly positive.
- The chicken and dive bar opened after an extensive interior renovation.
- Johnson said he’s wanted to locate to Merriam for years, and now that he’s there, he loves the “vibe, the downtown.”
- “It’s been a very positive, rewarding experience,” Johnson said.
This is the first dive bar concept for Strip’s
- Johnson owns and operates a Strip’s location in Olathe and another in Waldo.
- The Merriam location stands out, though, because it is the first “dive bar” and the only Strip’s location to sell alcohol.
- Johnson said Strip’s partnered with Sandhills Brewing in Mission to get Cabeza de Vaca — a beer Johnson created as a brewery owner in the early 2000s — on tap.
- Strip’s is also launching its own hard seltzers, starting with a hibiscus mint one, Johnson Said.
Strip’s in Merriam still makes everything from scratch
- Johnson said like the Olathe and Waldo locations, the Merriam location makes everything from scratch.
- The fries and the ice cream at the are the only exceptions, he said.
- The Merriam location also launched wings recently, which are whole and smoked before frying, he said.
Go deeper: Bilski’s, family-run bar in downtown Merriam that couldn’t recover from COVID-19, closing its doors
