More than a decade after getting its start in Kansas City, Missouri, a locally owned brewery has officially made its debut on the other side of the state line.
This week, German-style brewery KC Bier Co. officially opened its doors in Lenexa.
KC Bier Co. opened at 18030 W. 98th St.
- The brewery occupies a space at the new Vista Village development in Lenexa, just off Prairie Star Parkway and Ridgeview Road.
- There, it will operate near other incoming tenants like ice creamery Pecan Jacks and local pet retailer Callie Mae’s at the development.
- KC Bier Co.’s regular hours in Lenexa are 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday.
KC Bier Co. serves German-style brews and bites
The menu at KC Bier Co. offers a variety of German-style beers, as well as eats like schnitzel, Döner kebabs and pretzels.
Though the flagship location serves primarily as a production facility with a small tasting room, founder Steve Holle said the brewery’s large outdoor biergarten has increasingly become a draw for KCMO customers.
The new Lenexa space is, in part, a response to that demand. Though beer is still brewed on-site, the newly built two-story space serves primarily as a gathering space, with a large outdoor patio, an amphitheater, children’s play area and off-leash dog park.
From a viewing deck on the second floor, guests can also watch from above as beer is brewed inside the production space. Informational art spread throughout the space gives guests context about the brewing process, and about the wider history of German biergartens.
“I just hope people feel like this is a place they can come with their family or by themselves, and it’s a gathering place,” he said. “If you don’t know somebody, hopefully you’ll meet somebody when you come here.”
This marks KC Bier Co.’s Johnson County debut
KC Bier Co. opened its flagship location in Kansas City, Missouri’s Waldo neighborhood back in 2014.
As a German-American himself, Holle said the goal was to bring the type of “out in the open” family-friendly vibe of traditional German biergartens to the Kansas City area.
“In Germany, that’s what families do — they go to the beer garden after church on Sunday,” he said. “People can enjoy good beer and good food, and still have a very welcoming, friendly and safe environment. That’s what we hope we have here.”
The expansion of the concept into Lenexa has been five years in the making. As the Vista Village development continues to grow, Holle said he hopes the new space will be a draw for the surrounding Lenexa area and beyond it.
“We’ll hopefully have a lot of people from outside just the immediate neighborhood visit us,” he said. “With K-10, I-435, I-35, and (U.S.) 69 all being here, I think it’s a convenient place for people to get here in a short period of time.”
To see it all finally come to life, he said, has been gratifying.
“It’s turned out great,” he said. “I’m excited that this is going to be a really unique place for people to come and have a good time.”
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