These are the Wichita restaurants opening in 2020, including Jersey Mike’s, Pizza Ranch
The year 2020 will be another busy time for restaurant openings in Wichita.
There’s a whole slate of them coming, including several national chains, a few locally owned relocations and expansions, and a whole lot of activity on North Greenwich.
Here’s a list of what we know about so far, but rest assured, in a few months, we’ll likely know about a whole lot more.
January
California Tortilla, 2244 N. Greenwich Road: This build-your-own burrito place is scheduled to open on Wednesday in the former Dickey’s Barbecue Pit space at the Village at Greenwich, 21st and Greenwich. It’s a new-to-the-area franchise owned by Mark Poling, a former UPS driver, and his wife, Christine. Its hours will be 10:30am to 10 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays and 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Sundays.
Sam’s Southern Eatery, 6600 W. Central: A new seafood restaurant specializing in things like catfish, shrimp, fried green tomatoes, fried pickles and Po’ Boy sandwiches is set to open on Jan. 15 in the former Marco’s Cantina spot. The full-service restaurant is part of a Shreveport, Louisiana, based chain.
Noble House Hawaiian, 3019 E. Central: Chef Akamu Noble closed his restaurant at 3238 E. Douglas in mid-December and has said he plans to reopen it in January in the spot that was most recently home to Liberty Tax Service.
Taco John’s, 656 S. West St. Wichita’s first Taco John’s should open this month in a spot attached to the new Kwik Shop at Kellogg and West, on the site where Willie C’s and Rowdy Beaver once stood. It will have a full Taco John’s menu, a drive-through window and seating inside. Taco John’s is a Wyoming-based fast taco chain that has nearly 400 restaurants in 23 states, including 18 in Kansas.
February
Crazy Horse Supper Club, 2539 W. Pawnee: Eric Peabody has been working on the revival of his grandfather’s once-popular Crazy Horse Supper Club for nearly a year, and he thinks he’ll have it ready to go in late February, he says. The restaurant first opened in 1967 and was a popular spot to grab unusual dishes like alligator tail and frog legs. Peabody has said he plans to bring back about 70 percent of the original menu.
Ricardo’s Mexican Food, 1215 W. Pawnee: The same people responsible for the Ricardo’s at 503 N. West St. are planning a restaurant for the space that Gabel’s Family Restaurant abandoned in July. The landlord of Westway Shopping Center says they’re hoping for a February opening.
March
Schlotzky’s Austin Eatery, K-96 and Greenwich: Wichita’s fifth Schlotzky’s is set to open on March 1 at Greenwich Place, the up-and-coming development that also has Dave & Buster’s and Saltgrass Steak House. But it will open with a new name — Schlotzky’s Austin Eatery — and will have an all-new look, too. In addition to opening the new restaurant, franchisees J.J. and Hortencia Ramsey are converting their existing Schlotzy’s to reflect the new look and name, too. The Greenwich Place Schlotzky’s will have a Cinnabon inside and will have a drive-through.
Chuyito’s Birrieria, 4900 E. Pawnee: The former Panda Grill Buffet building will soon be home to this Mexican restaurant, which will focus on Mexican food made with goat. The restaurant, owned by Chuyito Raymundo and his nephew, Dallas Raymundo, will be a full-service restaurant with a bar. It will be open for lunch and dinner and is expected to be ready in early March. The family also owns Birrieria Raymundo at 124 E. 21st St.
Pizza Ranch, 2121 N. Tyler: It’s taken longer than excited fans would have liked, but the Pizza Ranch restaurant that Doug Wessley announced last March should be open in the middle of March. Construction has finally started on the restaurant, which will take over the entire 7,500 square feet that Tommy’s once used and will feature a buffet offering not only pizza but also big salad bar, fried chicken and fixings, and desserts. It will also have a big arcade room.
Scooter’s Coffee, 259 S. West St: A Scooter’s Coffee kiosk is going up on the vacant lot on the northwest corner of West and Maple and should be ready to go sometime in March. It will have a single drive-through window and customers will order over a speaker. The lot previously had a building that had once held a Dog N Shake and a Long John Silver’s. It was razed in the spring.
Taco John’s, 7107 W. 37th St.: Another Taco John’s will open in Wichita in late March or early April, this one attached to the Kwik Shop at 7107 W. 37th St.
Huddle House, Kellogg and Seneca: The strip mall that went up earlier this year on Seneca just north of Kellogg will soon be home to Wichita’s second Huddle House. (The first one opened at 21st and Amidon in December 2019.) Tariq Azmi said it should be ready to go in late March or early April.
April
Albero Bistro, K-96 and Greenwich: Another tenant that Greenwich Place will gain in 2020 is this new concept by Albero Cafe owner Hassan Ballout. It will have a slightly different approach from his Albero Cafe and will have more of an Italian restaurant feel, he said, offering more entrees and traditional Italian food like Alfredo, saltimbocca and veal. His space is in the same section of Greenwich Place that has Freezing Moo. He says it should be ready in late April or early May.
Round 1, Towne East: The big entertainment venue that’s coming to Towne East will include some concession-like dining options as well as bowling, billiards, an arcade and more. It should all be ready sometime in April, mall officials have said.
Meddy’s West, Ridge and Kellogg: Alex Harb is opening his fourth Meddys on a piece of property that sits across the street from and behind the new Cracker Barrel and cheddar’s restaurants. He recently broke ground on the new construction and hopes to have it ready by the end of April.
May:
Barn’rds, 37th and Maize Road: The new location of this longtime Wichita restaurant will sit a few lots north of the Dairy Queen, right across the street from Wichita State University’s west campus. It will serve the roast beef, vegetable soup and chicken salad that the original at 2037 N. Woodlawn has become known for during its 37 years in business, but it will have more space and more seats than the original. Owner Troy Hertel said that if construction stays on schedule, the restaurant could be open by May.
September
Chops & Eggs, west Wichita: Former Wichitan Ashraf “Jordan” Jaradat, who went to Texas and opened this restaurant specializing in all-day breakfast, said last year that he’s planning to bring the concept to Wichita with restaurants on the east side and one on the west. Though he doesn’t have an exact location yet, he said, his first one will be on the west side, likely in the New Market Square area, and should be ready by September or October, he said.
Early 2020
Jersey Mike’s, 2564 N. Greenwich, Suite 550: Wichita’s first Jersey Mike’s sub shop initially was expected to open by the end of 2019 in the busy and growing area near K-96 and Greenwich. But franchisee Chris Stong said he faced some delays getting the permits he needed. Construction has started on the space, though, which is in a strip center just north of the east Texas Roadhouse, and Stong says the restaurant will open in the first part of the year.
Old Tokyo Steakhouse, 6821 W. Taft: It’s held a couple of Japanese steakhouses over the years, and now, this building behind the west-side Kohl’s is about to get another one. Owners of Old Tokyo Steakhouse are working on a remodel of the building and are in the process of hiring staff. There’s no official word on an opening date but it should be soon.
Sometime in 2020
Church’s Chicken, Harry and Hillside: Mike Jizzini, who brought Church’s back to Wichita when he opened a restaurant at 13th and Oliver in November of 2018, said his plans to open more stores are still in the works but they’re taking longer than he expected. His next restaurant is set for the corner of Harry and Hillside but was delayed by easement issues when he was trying to combine the three small lots he intends to use for the restaurant into one. He said Wichita can expect the restaurant to open sometime later this year.
Torchy’s Tacos, 2191 N. Rock Road: The company still hasn’t confirmed its plans to come to Wichita, even though it has a lease for the former Mattress firm Space at 21st and Rock Road. But it’s expected that the chain will arrive sometime this year. Torchy’s has nearly 80 taco restaurants across the country.
Mediterranean Shawarma Restaurant, 2020 N. Woodlawn, suite 300: A sign for this new restaurant appeared in November on the former Zaytun space but owners have not responded to messages about when it will open, although it’s probably safe to assume what it will serve.
Happiness Plaza restaurant, 3555 E. Douglas: There’s been confirmation that some kind of restaurant will open in this space in 2020 but the owners haven’t revealed specifics yet and say they aren’t quite ready to. Look for more news in the next couple of months.
This story was originally published January 5, 2020 at 5:02 AM.
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