This week in 417 foodie news: A restaurant decimated by June storms prepares to reopen, area Boys & Girls Clubs receive funding from Taco Bell, and two businesses part ways.
Restaurant devastated by storm plans soft reopening
After a summer of repairs and renovations, Vine Pairings, 3830C S. Lone Pine Ave., is back. The restaurant will host its soft reopening from 6 to 8 p.m. on Sept. 24. Then, Vine Pairings' temporary hours will be 4 to 8 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturdays. The restaurant will be open for drinks only until the food trailer is completely repaired.
A stormy June brought severe weather to southwest Missouri and did not spare Vine Pairings, which sits along Galloway Creek. Flash flooding on June 7 and 8 destroyed inventory and an outdoor deck, damaged the interior
and exterior of the space, washed away seating and totaled the business's food truck, according to a GoFundMe entry. Since June 9, the restaurant has been working to re-open.
Owners Denise Allsop, Russ Walden and Austin Allsop opened Vine Pairings in the Galloway Creek neighborhood in June 2024.
The restaurant occupies the space that previously housed Creek Side Pub, a bistro/bar with a limited food menu, which operated from at least 2010 until it closed in June 2018, according to Springfield Business Journal reporting. Local restaurateur family the Jalilis considered opening a small bar concept there in 2019, SBJ reported, which never came to fruition.
Area Boys & Girls Clubs receive community grants
The Boys & Girls Club of Springfield and The Boys & Girls Club of the Ozarks/Branson received a total of $136,790 from the Taco Bell Foundation, according to a news release. The Community Grant funds were contributed by K-MAC Enterprises, a Taco Bell franchisee, and were raised by asking customers to round up their orders.
“We’re proud to continue partnering with the Taco Bell Foundation to support organizations that are making a difference in the lives of young people across Missouri,” said Tina Reagan, CEO of K-MAC Enterprises, in the news release. “Our customers and restaurant team members play an important role in the effort, and we’re grateful for their continued generosity and commitment to giving back through the Round Up program in our restaurants.”
The Boys & Girls Club of Springfield received $66,575 to support its "Future Ready" program, and The Boys & Girls Club of the Ozarks/Branson received $70,215 to support its "Club to Career Workforce Development" program. Both programs allow young people to gain work experience and prepare for their futures, according to the news release.
Food truck, dry bar part ways at downtown venue
After a month of joint operation, Yallternative Eats is no longer operating out of 314 S. Patton Ave., according to a Sept. 10 post. On Sept. 6, Vine and Vibes owner Victor McNeary announced he will be bringing "Vine & Bites ECT" into the dry event space for meals and catering.
"We’re re-entering the work force to no fault of our own and still operating the food truck," Yallternative Eats owners Devan and Bryson Head told the News-Leader on Sept. 17. "What we thought was going to be a generational breakthrough and a good example to our 3 young children turned out to be the biggest nightmare of a lifetime."
Prior to the split, the Heads, filed a lawsuit against McNeary on Sept. 3. They allege in court records that McNeary did not notify the Heads about utility bills or violations of leasing provisions; verbally abused the Heads' employees; obstructed their ability to market on the property; redirected customers; and took the Heads' property.
On Sept. 6, the Heads alleged in a Facebook post that they had video evidence customers had been turned away by McNeary. McNeary posted the next day on the social media network in response to the allegations, requesting that the Heads release the video they referenced.
McNeary has not responded to a request for comment as of publication.
To see where Yallternative Eats is operating, visit their Facebook page. For information on when Vine and Vibes is operating, visit the Facebook page.
The Heads and McNeary partnered to open a restaurant and dry bar in June 2026, according to previous News-Leader reporting.
This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Galloway restaurant to host soft opening after summer of renovations
