JIM BARCUS/The Kansas City Star Chris (left) and Andy Lewellen own Lew's Grill and Bar.

A few years back, brothers Chris and Andy Lewellen looked around Waldo and realized it needed a hangout for folks like them.

They wanted a spot where people in their 30s wouldn't feel old sitting next to a 21-year-old trying to learn the subtle differences between gin and vodka martinis. So the brothers took over the former Michael Forbes Grill location at 7539 Wornall Road and in April opened Lew's Grill and Bar.

The “Lew,” of course, comes from their surname. Both Chris, 36, and Andy, 33, are known as Lew among their circles of friends.

“Between us both, it works perfectly,” Chris Lewellen said.

The two are the sons of longtime Kansas City politico and one-time mayoral candidate Bob Lewellen. They put up a “Lewellen for Mayor” banner, articles about their dad's political career and scads of political cartoons. Their father's work in the restaurant business — he owned many in the area when the two were growing up — might have inspired them to open their own place, Chris Lewellen said. Although their father put in long hours, the brothers loved visiting the restaurants, he said. “We have many fond memories of it,” he said.

In December, Lew's hosted a party for MU basketball fans before the Illinois game, adding a special “Tigertini” to the bar's martini menu for the event. But Lew's has at least as many KU fans as Missouri patrons, so they're expecting a huge crowd when the next basketball border war erupts, Lewellen said.