Nearly 13 years after announcing plans for west Wichita restaurant, owners break ground
It was January 2007 when the Hertel family first announced that they were opening a new Barn’rds restaurant near 37th and Maize Road.
Now, nearly 13 years later, it’s actually happening.
Crews have just broken ground on the new restaurant, which will sit a few lots north of the Dairy Queen, right across the street from Wichita State University’s west campus. If the weather cooperates, Troy Hertel said, it should be open by May.
The new Barn’rds will have about 3,800 square feet, he said, and will seat about 100 as opposed to the current Barn’rds at 2037 N. Woodlawn which seats 70. It also will have a patio that will seat about 20, plus a drive-through.
The menu will stay pretty loyal to the original, which you can see below, though “a few things might go away and we might add a few things,” Hertel said.
“We are excited,” Hertel said. “We’ve had so much support from the community over the years, and that’s what’s enabling us to do this new project.”
Barn’rds, which is known for its roast beef, vegetable soup and chicken salad, first opened in a barn-shaped building at 21st and Woodlawn in 1983. It’s run by founder Ken Hertel and his wife, Carol, his son, Troy, and Troy’s wife, Maria.
The delays were due to a number of different factors over the years, including family illnesses and a weak economy.
Barn’rds menu
This story was originally published October 29, 2019 at 11:48 AM.
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