TV Restaurants

What Happened to Kiva Lounge and Bar After Bar Rescue? (San Marcos, TX)

Closed verified

As of September 2026, Kiva Lounge and Bar has closed — confirmed via Yelp, August 2026.

Primary source
Yelp ·
Secondary source
realitytvupdates.com ·

Last verified

What the source shows: A Yelp listing for the venue, updated August 2026, shows Kiva Lounge and Bar as closed; a tracker site details the business's October 2019 closure, announced on the business's own Facebook page, after a brief rescue-era rename and reversion.

  • Season / episode Season 6, Episode 32
  • Original air date
  • Address 202 N LBJ Dr Ste A, San Marcos, TX 78666

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What happened after Bar Rescue?

Kiva Lounge and Bar was a live-music venue in San Marcos, Texas, owned by musicians Miles and Henry, who bought the business for about $150,000 without prior bar-industry experience. The "Miles from Success" episode, broadcast April 21, 2019, found the venue losing roughly $5,000 a month, with bounced checks to vendors, unsanitary food handling in the kitchen, and drink orders bartenders could not fill correctly during a recon visit by two local patrons.

During the rescue, staff were retrained on basic cocktail recipes and food safety, and the venue was renamed The Morgue, a reference to the building's earlier use, with a brightened interior and a new photo booth added for the relaunch. Owner-operator Miles led the bar during a stress test that ultimately ran short on clean glassware before the venue reopened under the new identity.

According to a Facebook post from the business itself, cited by Reality TV Updates, the owners reverted the venue to its original Kiva Lounge and Bar name not long after the rescue, explaining that "The Morgue is where bars go to die" and that they wanted to return to the concept they originally built. The same source reports that Kiva Lounge and Bar closed for good in October 2019, roughly six months after the episode aired, with the closure also announced on the business's own Facebook page. The owners later stated on social media that they rebranded the same location as a college-oriented bar called Axis later in 2019, reporting sales up sharply from the venue's Kiva-era performance, though that claim comes from the owners' own account rather than independent verification. A Yelp listing for the original address, updated in August 2026, shows Kiva Lounge and Bar listed as closed, and this review found no independently dated, verifiable source confirming what business, if any, currently operates at the location under the Axis name or otherwise.

Featured on Bar Rescue

Season / episode
Season 6, Episode 32
Original air date
Episode title
Miles from Success
What was featured
inexperienced musician-owners running an unprofitable music venue
Role
Featured restaurant
Name on the broadcast
Kiva Lounge and Bar

Frequently asked questions

Is Kiva Lounge and Bar still open in 2026?

As of September 2026, Kiva Lounge and Bar has closed — confirmed via Yelp, August 2026.

What happened to Kiva Lounge and Bar after Bar Rescue?

Kiva Lounge and Bar was a live-music venue in San Marcos, Texas, owned by musicians Miles and Henry, who bought the business for about $150,000 without prior bar-industry experience. As of September 2026, Kiva Lounge and Bar has closed — confirmed via Yelp, August 2026.

Is Kiva Lounge and Bar permanently closed?

As of September 2026, Kiva Lounge and Bar has closed — confirmed via Yelp, August 2026. We publish a closure only with a dated source behind it, and we say plainly when it has not been independently confirmed.

Where is Kiva Lounge and Bar located?

202 N LBJ Dr Ste A, San Marcos, TX 78666. That is the address on the record as of September 7, 2026.

What season and episode of Bar Rescue featured Kiva Lounge and Bar?

Season 6, Episode 32 of Bar Rescue, first aired April 21, 2019. The episode is titled “Miles from Success”.

Did the makeover last at Kiva Lounge and Bar?

The episode first aired April 21, 2019. Our most recent check was September 7, 2026 — 7 years later —: As of September 2026, Kiva Lounge and Bar has closed — confirmed via Yelp, August 2026.

What do reviews say since Bar Rescue?

A Yelp listing for the original address, updated in August 2026, shows Kiva Lounge and Bar listed as closed, and this review found no independently dated, verifiable source confirming what business, if any, currently operates at the location under the Axis name or otherwise. We summarise what dated sources report; we do not publish our own rating.

Is Kiva Lounge and Bar still using the Bar Rescue menu or branding?

The owners later stated on social media that they rebranded the same location as a college-oriented bar called Axis later in 2019, reporting sales up sharply from the venue's Kiva-era performance, though that claim comes from the owners' own account rather than independent verification. Anything newer than our last check on September 7, 2026 may not be reflected here.

Every status on this site carries a confidence label and a date, and names the source it rests on. Read the Editorial & Corrections Policy for what each label means and how quickly we act on corrections. The questions above are generated from this record's own published fields — we never publish a question we cannot answer from the data.

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Visit info

Address
202 N LBJ Dr Ste A, San Marcos, TX 78666
Venue type
bar
Official website
None found

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