KC's Bar & Grill / Johnson County Line - Bar Rescue Update - Open or Closed?

In this Bar Rescue episode, Jon Taffer visits KC’s Bar and Grill in Johnson County, Kansas.

KC’s Bar is owned by Bill Papon.

He is a former body paint shop owner bought the bar in 2002.

He turned it into a private club, exempting them from a smoking ban.

This was their big draw, making them over $41,000 a month.

After years of success, Bill had some health scares.

Elizabeth was promoted to manager.

Bill now wants to retire and sell the bar to Elizabeth.

He doesn't want to leave it to his son Ryan, who works there part time.

With this plan he has become too laid back.

He is partying and teaching staff bad practices.

Meanwhile, Elizabeth is not being supported.

This has caused the bar to lose $5000 a month.

There will not be much left for Elizabeth to take over.

Jon recons the bar with expert chef Tiffany Derry and expert mixologist Tony Devencenzi.

They see the name and exterior is too common and does not stand out or look inviting.

Jon breaks down the ownership dynamics and the staff.

Shawna is a bartender and she is smoking behind the bar and violating several health codes.

Jon’s first set of spies are non-members Angela and Paul.

They are not allowed in but are also not told how to become members to be able to come in.

Eric and Brandy are the second set of spies who are members and are let in.

They see the bartenders over-pour and then she uses her hands to scoop olives into the drink.

The drinks are awful.

They order some burgers and they see Mike cook in a bubbling fryer.

The food is so bad that Brandy cannot swallow it.

After chewing for a whole minute she is forced to spit it out.

Eric refused to eat his own as looks like it is no good too.

Shawna is called by the customer but she refuses to acknowledge them.

Liz jumps in to make their new drink orders.

Shawna flips a customer off and Bill encourages drunk customers to get more drunk.

Just as Jon wants to go in to confront the owner a racoon runs around in the bar.

Jon going into the bar is stopped at the door by a drunk Shawna.

She tells him that Bill encourages their drinking while Liz is frustrated by him.

Jon is finally let in and he talks to Bill alone, giving him feedback.

Bill is too drunk to be concerned.

Jon asks that they clean the bar and get rid of the racoon that night.

The next day, Jon has a meeting with the staff.

The staff say they have families to support.

Jon sets them straight on not drinking or smoking behind the bar.

Ryan is there and thinks the bar is a family legacy and giving it to Liz is a mistake.

This awakens Bill, who says Ryan cannot run the bar.

He apologises to staff for checking out on them.

Jon sits with Bill and Liz and they had an agreement that she pays the lease of the bar.

Over time, she will buy the business but she stopped payments and they got a promissory note.

She has 10% of the bar as shares but the certificates are not properly issued.

She would not get the business if Bill died and she could be sued.

Liz breaks down into tears as she has nothing in savings.

Jon says that he will bring in a lawyer to legitimize the partnership.

Jon goes back to the rest of the staff and introduces his experts.

Tony tests the bar staff on pouring techniques to control their over pouring.

Tiffany tells them their food did not fry well because of the dirty grease.

They spend some time cleaning before she shows them how to make mozzarella sticks and a juicy burger.

For the stress test Liz is the manager and the members have invited friends to pack the place.

Mistakes start immediately for Shawna who overpours then forgets orders.

They are concentrating on the bar.

The tables are ignored with waits of up to thirty minutes.

In the kitchen food is ready but they do not know where the food is going.

There are no runners available.

There is confusion for the food service and customers are left waitinf.

The racoon makes another appearance in a light fixture, dropping faeces on customers.

The test is shut down and customers could not leave the bar fast enough.

During feedback Liz admits there were lots of problems.

There were no systems were in place.

The next day, Jon has exterminators in to get rid of the racoon and the droppings.

Tony trains the bartenders on making cocktails with big flavours.

Tiffany trains the staff on prepping food for a buffet to cut out the confusion of running food.

Jon takes Bill, Ryan and Liz to see a lawyer who helps them to work out their agreement.

They uncover that the deal is a bad deal for Liz and they struggle to compromise.

Liz eventually backs out.

She will be given her initial $10,000 investment back with a separation agreement.

Liz tells the rest of the staff that she is leaving with plenty of tears.

Shawna breaks down in tears and Jon leaves them to discuss and pull themselves together.

Bill puts Ryan forward to run the bar and they are optimistic.

The bar is renovated over thirty-six hours.

The staff are gathered late afternoon to unveil a new bar.

The bar has been renamed to Johnson County Line.

The exterior is black and red and the new colours are mature and classy.

Inside, the colours are continued and it gives the space warmth.

There is a new buffet area.

They have been gifted ten free vacations to give away to members monthly.

There is a smoke filtration system in place and a smoking jacket for Bill.

They quickly set up and reopen for their customers.

On relaunch, customers are let in and things are going great.

Twenty new members signed up that night

The buffet table is a hit and the drinks are great.

What Happened Next at KC's Bar & Grill / Johnson County Line?

Two months later, it is revealed Ryan is on track to own the bar.

They get twenty five new members signing up each month.

Liz is working happily at another bar close by.

They didn't keep the new name.

The bar returned to being called KC’s Neighborhood Bar and Grill.

They also ditched the changes that Jon made to the dress code.

KC’s Bar is open.

They still operate as a members only bar charging a membership fee.

Reviews are mixed. Patrons complain of poor service and compliment the welcoming atmosphere.

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This post was last updated in March 2024.