Scooter's Bar Journal » Grain Valley

Lotawana Brewing Company

scooterj — Sat, 10 Jan 2026 18:11:00 +0000

(Grain Valley, MO)

Scooter’s 1875th bar, first visited in 2026.

After I left Edge on 7 I went on a bar crawl. This was technically stop #4, but it was the first since Edge on 7 that I had not been to before. I went to Iron Kettle Tap House (formerly Iron Kettle Brewing) and Ranch House before coming here.

This brewery opened a couple of years ago but I hadn’t had a chance now to make it out here. This is an extremely cute little place with rather good beer and one of the nicest restrooms I’ve ever seen. There’s a really nice outdoor area too, but despite it being partly covered and there being a fire we decided it was just too cold.

I had the Colombian Connection Coffee Porter.

I’m going ahead and marking this as having food, because they are in the process of adding a kitchen and its opening is imminent.

This brewery is located in an odd little geographical nexus. It is within the city limits of Lake Lotawana, has a Grain Valley address due to just barely being inside the 64029 zip code, and is within yards of Blue Springs.

9420 S Shrout Rd
Grain Valley, MO 64029
US
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+18167748462
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Iron Kettle Brewing

scooterj — Sat, 12 Jun 2021 17:10:00 +0000

(Downtown, Grain Valley, MO)

Scooter’s 1460th bar, first visited in 2021.

New brewery in downtown Grain Valley that did a really nice job fixing up one of the original old downtown buildings. In addition to the indoor bar there is alley seating and a rooftop deck (which was closed the day of this visit.) In addition to their own beer they have a good selection of guest taps.

I had their Ritter Von Pilsner, Archduke Ale, Sea Merchant IPA, O’Connell’s Irish Ale, Merlin’s Magic Amber, Wild Cide”r”, and Friar Matts Golden Rule Mead

508 N Main St
Grain Valley, MO 64029
United States
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+18163550069
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Whiskey Tango

scooterj — Thu, 16 Sep 2010 17:11:00 +0000

(Grain Valley, MO)

Scooter’s 757th bar, first visited in 2010.

HUUUUGE country-western night club, with a capacity of over 3,000 people. Unfortunately I went on a night where there were only 11 people, making the cavernous space seem completely dead.

There’s a huge elevated central dance floor with a square footage that rivals or exceeds most homes. To the east is the main bar, a rectangular bar in the middle of a lounge area with bar tables, couches, and lunge chairs. East of that is the billiard area with numerous pool tables.

Along the back wall are dart boards and the claw machines that for some reason are so beloved in Eastern Jackson County bars. There’s an additional bar along the back wall. Finally, at the west end, is a restaurant area open only on certain nights of the week.

This is one of only two 3am bars in Eastern Jackson County. The other is half a mile south of here. I’ve often wondered why Grain Valley is the only city in Jackson County outside of Kansas City that has issued any 3am licenses.

$5 cover on weekends, no cover on weekdays. Drinks are surprisingly cheap.

401 E South Outer Belt Rd
Grain Valley, MO 64029
US
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(816) 847-5650
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DA’s Bar

scooterj — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 18:12:00 +0000

(Grain Valley, MO)
Formerly Pete’s Place

Scooter’s 672nd bar, first visited in 2009.

While not obvious in the photo, I arrived to a nearly full parking lot and mine was the only vehicle in the lot that was not a pickup-truck.

The interior is painted what I like to call East Berlin Gray, a medium-dark slate gray that makes the area seem darker and smaller than it actually is. This is definitely the “toughest” of the Grain Valley bars (apart from the dance club Whiskey Tango which has actually had a shooting).

My drinking companion was nervous about being here, but the rough & rowdy atmosphere wasn’t anything I hadn’t seen many times before.

Year’s ago on this site was a small white wooden shack that housed a tavern called Pete’s Place. It burned down in the 1980s and was replaced with the stark cinderblock building that sits here today.

112 SW Eagles Pkwy
Grain Valley, MO 64029
US
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(816) 847-2226

Nila’s Pizza & Pub

scooterj — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 18:11:00 +0000

(Downtown, Grain Valley, MO)

Scooter’s 671st bar, first visited in 2009.

This was a bit unexpected, I checked it out on a whim but wasn’t expecting to find an actual bar inside.

Granted, the bar area is very small, a platform next to the kitchen with seating for maybe 6-8. But it does indeed seem to be serving as a neighborhood bar.

A couple of young guys setting next to us had been there drinking since opening. They had had breakfast (an appetizer sampler), has just finished lunch when we arrived (pizza), and were planning to stick around for dinner.

A handful of video games, a dart board, and a couple of TVs give this place a slight sports bar feel but it’s first and foremost a pizza place. And the pizza is VERY good. A true cracker crust and LOADED with cheese. I’ll have to come back for more.

522 Main
Grain Valley, MO 64029
US
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(816) 847-7990
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BT’s Sports Bar & Grill

scooterj — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 18:10:00 +0000

(Bristol Park, Grain Valley, MO)

Scooter’s 670th bar, first visited in 2009.

Had it not been for the giant banner hanging from the front of the building, BT’s would never have set off my BARDAR at all. It’s in the last place anyone would expect to find a sports bar — located inside a tiny enclosed strip strip mall attached to the leasing office of a large suburban apartment complex.

BT’s is brand new — in fact it had only been open just over a week when I visited — and so obviously hadn’t had time to develop a sense of character yet. But business was brisk and it does seem to have already established a steady stream of regulars. There are several large screen TVs around the room and each table has an individual sound system that can be tuned to any of the TVs. There’s also a good variety of bar food with different daily specials. And the staff was very friendly, too.

An interesting feature — if you live in the attached Bristol Park apartment complex, you can order “room service” from BT’s.

640-B NE Yennie St.
Grain Valley, MO 64029
US
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(816) 867-1187
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