Fern Bar

Fern Bar is a locally owned, agave- and sugarcane-forward craft cocktail bar in Kansas City’s Crossroads Arts District, opened by veteran bartender Bryan Arri in January 2024 after roughly five years operating as a pop-up. The name pays homage to the inclusive, singles-friendly “fern bars” popular from the late 1960s through the 1980s — Arri’s stated intent being “an inclusive, welcoming place.”¹²³

Description

Fern Bar is a Crossroads cocktail bar that organizes its entire program around sugarcane- and agave-based spirits — rums, tequilas, and mezcals — alongside more obscure categories such as Japanese shōchū, northern-Mexican bacanora and sotol, and French-Caribbean rhum agricole. Most cocktails carry at least five ingredients and fall in the roughly $13–15 range.¹²

Despite the name, the bar is not a literal reference to the plant. Owner Bryan Arri invokes the mid-century-through-1980s “fern bar” as a cultural touchstone for an inclusive, approachable social space: “To me, a fern bar represents an inclusive, welcoming place.”¹ The concept began as a pop-up and grew into a permanent brick-and-mortar location.³⁴

Ownership and history

Fern Bar is owned and operated by Bryan Arri, a career hospitality professional with over a decade specifically in beverage. Before launching Fern Bar, Arri worked at several of Kansas City’s most respected cocktail and dining rooms, including Manifesto, The Monarch Bar, Corvino Supper Club & Tasting Room, and Rye.¹² He ran Fern Bar as a pop-up for roughly five years before opening the permanent space.³

The bar opened at 2041 Broadway Blvd in the Crossroads Arts District in January 2024, though some coverage frames the launch around late 2023 / New Year’s, reflecting a December 2023 target that slipped into a January 2024 opening.³⁴¹ Arri credits the bar’s welcoming ethos to his late grandfather Tom and the maxim “life’s just a party, and I’m there.”¹

[!note] On the seed “Sugarcane” note The audit note linked the owner to a venue called “Sugarcane.” Available press identifies Arri’s prior venues as Manifesto, The Monarch Bar, Corvino, and Rye, and describes Fern Bar’s concept as sugarcane- and agave-spirit-forward. No separate Kansas City bar named “Sugarcane” was confirmed in sourcing; the reference is most likely to Fern Bar’s sugarcane-spirits concept rather than a distinct business.

Links

• Website: https://fernbarkc.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fernbarkc/
• Phone: (816) 375-7474 (per fernbarkc.com, accessed 2026-07-24; prior listing value (816) 541-2888 superseded)

See also

• crossroads-arts-district
• Registry

Menu

Last verified: 2026-07-24 · Source: fernbarkc.com official “Current Menu” page⁵ · URL(s): https://fernbarkc.com/kansas-city-fern-bar-menu · Confidence: High (full official capture of the published Current Menu — Cocktails, Beer, Wine, Happy Hour; no food menu is published)

Agave- and sugarcane-forward craft cocktail bar. Crossroads Arts District, 2041 Broadway Blvd. Hours per official site: Tue–Thu 4pm–12am; Fri–Sat 4pm–1am; Sun 5pm–11pm (closed Mon).⁵

Classic Cocktails

• Oaxaca Old Fashioned — Banhez mezcal, Tapatío reposado, Lunazul reposado, agave, mole bitters — $14⁵
• Fern Bar Margarita — Libélula joven, Tapatío blanco, Nobleton’s curaçao, agave gomme, lime — $14⁵
• Fern Bar Daiquiri — Fern Bar rhum, lime, cane sugar — $14⁵
• Paloma — Libélula reposado, Arette reposado, Jarritos grapefruit, grapefruit oleo, lime — $14⁵
• Piña Colada — house rum blend, Clément coconut, coconut cream, pineapple, lime — $14⁵
• Mojito — house rum blend, mint, lime, fresh cane juice — $14⁵
• Mezcal Espresso Martini — Prolijo mezcal, Cimarron reposado, Sotol Por Siempre, Cantera Negra coffee, oleo cold brew, piloncillo, cocoa bitters — $14⁵

Non-Alcoholic

• Panoma — N/A version of the draft Paloma, made with BARE Tequila reposado — $12⁵
• N/A Margarita — non-alcoholic tequila, salted orange juice, lime, agave — $12⁵
• Agua Fresca — ask for this week’s offering — $8 (+$5 add well booze)⁵
• Bartender’s Choice NA — built to your flavor profile — $12⁵

Beer

• Una Familia Lager — $6 · Garage Beer Lime — $6 · Estrella Jalisco — $6 · Tank (Boulevard Tank 7) — $7⁵

Wine (bottles)

• Lunaria Pinot Grigio — $35 · Zoe Red 2023 — $35 · La Cacciatora Lambrusco — $35 · Sunspell Cabernet — $35 · Kumusa Chenin Blanc — $35 · Portium Cava — $35⁵

Happy Hour

• Beer + Shot — Estrella Jalisco + blanco tequila — $11⁵
• Margarita — blanco tequila, Nobleton’s curaçao, lime, agave — $12⁵
• Strawberry Rhubarb Daiquiri — Fern Bar blanc rum, lime, sugar — $12⁵
• Bartender’s Choice — your bartender chooses — $11⁵

Food: no food menu is published on the official site (the site does list a catering page). Historic in-house food partner Tacos Valentina¹ —

Current menu + reservations: fernbarkc.com

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Sources

• Status verified active 2026-06-23 via Yelp — Fern Bar (listing live, updated May 2026, current hours; bar manager Diana Condori named a 2026 James Beard Award semifinalist) (accessed 2026-06-23).

Footnotes

1. “Life’s a Party: Bryan Arri’s sugarcane and agave-forward Fern Bar lands in the Crossroads,” The Pitch KC. https://www.thepitchkc.com/lifes-a-party-bryan-arris-sugarcane-and-agave-forward-fern-bar-lands-in-the-crossroads/ (owner Bryan Arri; prior venues; “inclusive, welcoming place” quote; independently owned; spirits and pricing). ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷

2. “In Your Cocktail: Fern Bar,” IN Kansas City Magazine. https://www.inkansascity.com/eat-drink/bars/in-your-cocktail-fern-bar/ (concept, spirits, owner background). ↩ ↩² ↩³

3. Fern Bar KC — official website, About page. https://fernbarkc.com/kansas-city-fern-bar-about (address 2041 Broadway Blvd; “five years of pop-ups & preparation”; opened January 2024; sugarcane/agave concept). ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴

4. “No ferns at the new Fern Bar in Kansas City. But it serves the cocktails and vibes,” via AOL/Yahoo syndication of Kansas City Star coverage. https://www.aol.com/no-ferns-fern-bar-kansas-145213917.html (opening timing, concept). ↩ ↩²

5. Fern Bar KC — official “Current Menu” page, https://fernbarkc.com/kansas-city-fern-bar-menu (accessed 2026-07-24) — full published menu with prices (Classic Cocktails $14; N/A $8–12; beer $6–7; wine bottles $35; happy hour $11–12); no food menu published. Site header/footer same day: phone (816) 375-7474, email bryan@fernbarkc.com; hours Tue–Thu 4pm–12am, Fri–Sat 4pm–1am, Sun 5pm–11pm; homepage banners “Fern Bar Up For Best New U.S. Cocktail Bar” (Tales of the Cocktail 2025 regional honoree) and Bartender Magazine “Featured Bar April 2025”; $9/month VIP program. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴ ↩¹⁵ ↩¹⁶ ↩¹⁷ ↩¹⁸ ↩¹⁹