19-04-2025
Founder of popular Kansas City restaurant dies. ‘Happy-go-lucky man'
It's hard to exaggerate just how much Vic Allred's restaurant meant to him.
'It was his life,' said Buddy Lahl, a 20-year friend of Allred's and the CEO of the Missouri Restaurant Association.
In addition to founding Jazz — A Louisiana Kitchen, Allred served on the board of the Greater Kansas City and Missouri Restaurant Associations, as well as the National Restaurant Association. Then, he decided to advocate for restaurant owners on a political level and became a Missouri representative, representing District 13 from 2019 to 2021.
Allred, who was in his early 60s, died recently, leaving Lahl and others in the restaurant community heartbroken. His cause of death has not been shared publicly.
'I talked to him a few weeks ago,' Lahl said. The two were planning a trip to Washington, D.C., to attend a public affairs conference together.
Allred began Jazz in Lubbock, Texas, in 1986. He moved to Kansas City and opened a restaurant here in 1994 on 39th Street. Several more locations followed, including ones in Independence; Omaha, Nebraska; Austin, Texas; and Sparks, Nevada.
Today, Jazz remains open at the original Lubbock location, its first Kansas City metro spot at 1823 W. 39th St., and 859 Village West Parkway, No. 102 in Kansas City, Kansas. Another is open in Columbia.
Menu items include the Cajun stir fry, Cajun fried shrimp, crawfish fettuccine and Papa Vic's Pasta (bell peppers, celery, onions, mushrooms in chicken fettuccine Alfredo).
In opening Jazz, Allred envisioned a swinging Cajun bar and restaurant with live music acts multiple days a week.
Not surprising for Allred, who Lahl said loved to entertain. The customers all knew him, too, whether it was from seeing him working behind the bar or appearing in commercials with former broadcaster Bill Grigsby.
'Hey, folks, Papa Vic here to talk about what's new here at your favorite restaurant, Jazz — A Louisiana Kitchen,' Allred can be heard chirping in an old commercial, drawing out the vowel on the word 'Jazz.'
'Vic was a happy-go-lucky man,' Lahl said — much like the motto of his restaurant 'laissez les bons temps rouler' ('let the good times roll').
Allred was friendly with everyone who would walk through his doors.
'If you were ever in the restaurant and he was there, he would go over and say 'hi' … before it was over, you would be his best friend,' said Jazz's chief technical officer, Scott Medlock.
Joe Roberts worked at Jazz for several years in various capacities: assistant manager, bartender, waiter and everything in between. He helped Allred open the original Kansas City restaurant.
He remembers Allred for his jovial personality and big smile.
'He was a fun guy,' Roberts said. 'Very smart restauranteur … little bit of a genius.'
In addition to keeping the overhead costs low and energy high, Roberts said Allred was kind to his employees.
Roberts got emotional, or 'misty eyed' as he called it, talking about the moment he found out Allred had passed.
'It's the same kind of deflation you feel when you find somebody in your family passed in the night you didn't know about,' he said. 'And you were like 'Wow. Gosh, I'm never gonna see that smile again.''
Three or four years ago, Allred stopped being involved in the day-to-day operations of Jazz but kept a small share. Lahl isn't sure how much, but he called him 'a silent partner.' Allred's brother, Lee, continued to be involved in the business.
What are some of Roberts' favorite memories of Vic? Too many to tell, he said with a laugh, then added, 'But that's New Orleans.'
