Excelsior Springs, Mo. – Wine & Shine Tasting Room, a longtime downtown Excelsior Springs gathering spot and former Broadway Bar & Grill, has begun a new event meant to create a safe gathering space called Widowed Wednesday Lunch. It is a weekly come-and-go lunch from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. designed to offer widowed individuals a place to connect without pressure or pretense.
Co-owner Misty Wright said the idea started from observing widowed customers and loved ones navigate a world without their other half. “We have several widows who come in and eat alone,” she explained. “One day I realized there were five widowed guests sitting at different tables, all in the same room, and none of them knew each other.”
After having a conversation with one customer, a retired restaurant owner who had lost his wife two years earlier and rediscovered a sense of community after a lunch visit, Wright was inspired to create a no-pressure gathering time for widows in Excelsior Springs. She hopes that this will help widowed individuals have a reason to get out of the house and help them discover other programs and businesses downtown while they’re out.
The first lunch took place October 8, with another scheduled for October 15, and every Wednesday after. Wright emphasized from the beginning that the event is not about dating. “It’s absolutely not a dating service,” she said firmly. “It’s just a safe place for people to eat, talk, and meet others who understand what they’re going through.”
Wright’s family has owned Wine & Shine and Broadway Bar & Grill at its corner for more than 15 years. Wright and her mother, Cheryl Boos, co-own the restaurant, which transitioned from the late-night Broadway scene to a relaxed daytime spot after Wright’s stepfather passed away during the pandemic.
“My mom was the strong one who started Broadway, but when she lost my stepdad, she lost her bearings,” Wright said. “We’ve slowly rebuilt. She’s doing so much better now, and Wine & Shine feels like a new beginning.”
That personal experience shapes Wright’s understanding of loss and is the purpose behind Widow Wednesdays. “I can’t pretend to know what it’s like to lose a spouse,” she said. However, after watching her mom go through the hardship and loneliness of loss, she shared that people need places to be reminded that they’re not alone.
The lunches are casual and unstructured. Guests can sit inside or outside, play a card game, and enjoy a meal among others or by themselves. Wright shared that while she doesn’t know exactly how it will grow, for now it’s open-door. People can come when they want, talk if they want, or just sit quietly and have lunch, with the goal of making them feel welcome.
Wright also plans to add an “Events Wall” inside Wine & Shine, where anyone can post information about local happenings. The goal, she said, is to help guests discover new opportunities to get out, explore, and feel included.
In a town where there doesn’t seem to be established support for widows, Wright hopes the lunches will remind people that it takes that small step of just getting out of the house to make a difference in happiness. “People need safe spots,” she said. “And sometimes, just sitting at a table with someone who understands can make the difference.”
When: Wednesdays, 11 a.m.–3 p.m.
Where: Wine & Shine, Downtown Excelsior Springs
Next Date: October 15, 2025
All are welcome. No reservations required (just don’t expect to walk into a dating service!)
If you appreciate the value our local journalism brings to the community, please consider making a recurring contribution to the Excelsior Citizen!
