Johnson County restaurant at center of Jackson Mahomes criminal case closes for good

The restaurant where Jackson Mahomes allegedly shoved a waiter and forcibly kissed the owner earlier this year is now for lease.

Aspens Restaurant and Lounge at 6995 W. 151st St. in south Overland Park is closed until another tenant takes over, Stephanie Lopez, an administrative employee, told The Star on Tuesday.

“I’m sure the right person will come along,” Lopez said. “We just want somebody else to make it into whatever their dream restaurant is.”

Mahomes was arrested and charged in May with three felony counts of aggravated sexual battery and one misdemeanor count of battery after an alleged incident involving the restaurant’s owner, Aspen Vaughn, in February.

“It’s hard to own a company and go through everything that we’ve gone through,” Lopez said. “We were so close to making it, and then this whole thing happened.”

On Feb. 25, 23-year-old Mahomes allegedly shoved a 19-year-old waiter, whose dad called police.

But before staff told Mahomes to leave the restaurant and police arrived, he asked to meet with Vaughn privately in her office to discuss something.

“And out of nowhere, he just grabbed me by the neck and like forcefully kissed me,” Vaughn said in an earlier interview with The Star, “and then proceeded to do it two more times, where the last time I was pushing him off.”

Police seized surveillance video of the encounter, which Vaughn also gave to The Star, and began to build a case against Mahomes. Vaughn said she and her lawyer reached out to The Star to tell her story to prevent a cover-up.

Mahomes is the brother of Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes. In March, Jackson Mahomes’ attorney, Brandan Davies, provided the following statement:

“Jackson has done nothing wrong. Our investigation has revealed substantial evidence refuting the claims of Jackson’s accuser including the statements of several witnesses.”

After sharing her story, Vaughn said she endured death threats and harassment, even vandalism to her restaurant.

In a July interview, Vaughn said business at Aspens was down 75%. She believes someone cut the connections to her restaurant’s central air conditioning unit, damaged the natural gas lines and pulled a fire alarm inside, causing water damage.

“I feel like definitely, since it’s occurred, my safety is definitely at risk,” she told The Star. “I’m feeling attacked by people I’ve never met. Why do victims not come forward? It’s because this is how they get treated.”

Now, Lopez said Vaughn is ready to move on from the restaurant.

Vaughn took over the former Llwelyn’s Pub in 2021 and opened Dior Restaurant with her then-husband before getting sued by luxury brand Christian Dior Couture for trademark infringement, according to documents filed in federal court. Vaughn rebranded the restaurant in 2022.

“She is an incredible designer and decorator and she took that place … and she turned it into what it is now,” Lopez said. “It’s beautiful … It has a lot of potential.”

Parties interested in the space can contact 913-944-7638 or 913-306-2598.

The Star’s Mike Hendricks contributed to this report.