After being asked what his dream endeavor would be years ago, Shaun Musil shared that he wanted to own a business, specifically one similar to the existing Paisley Pear.

Shortly after, the previous owner reached out and offered to sell making Shaun’s dream a reality.

Since 2017, Shaun and Heather Musil have been bringing unique dining experiences to Downtown Hays at the Paisley Pear. With options including their whiskey flights and wine slushies, the pair have created an environment for fun, which was always the goal.

Finding new ideas through experience, the pair enjoy traveling to different bars outside of the state to see what new ideas they can bring back to Hays.

Supporting local businesses is at the core of the Paisley Pear values. Their menu includes items from all across Kansas; candles, cheesecakes and produce all from within the region. “Not everything we sell is local, but I’d say about 99% of what we offer is, it’s a big goal for us to support our town and region,” Shaun shared.

The Pear has collaborated with Breathe Coffee House, offering an espresso cold brew martini utilizing their Common Ground house brew. Helping individuals with intellectual disabilities, the Musil’s also work with WeCan, offering hands-on learning for life skills within a business.

“We love to sell our city, local businesses and restaurants, anything to show our support,” Shaun shared.

Both Shaun and Heather grew up in the Goodland area, moving to Hays in 1995 where Shaun began working for Coca Cola and Heather began her career as a teacher.

Though he loved working with Coca Cola, Shaun knew he wanted to start his own business.

With the Paisley Pear, Shaun and Heather were able to make that happen.

Throughout their menu, they kept some of the original items as they had become well known throughout the community.

“The options were unique and special to this place, and as time has progressed we’ve created new items, our staff collaborates and even our customers will suggest ideas so we have local input,” Heather added.

Adding to the experience, the Paisley Pear provides entertainment with live, local musicians.

“I don’t think we’ve ever turned anyone down,” Shaun shared. “We like to have all sorts of music, it brings in different clientele and it’s just fun for everyone.”

Reaching outside the state, customers will stop in at the Pear as they pass through town. One regular patron from Texas stopped by one night as a band was playing.

“I remember, it was really funny, he pulled out his phone and showed me his calendar and said ‘I’m going to be in town on this day, can you schedule them to play again for me?’, he just loved it so much,” Heather shared.

For the Musil’s it’s all about fun- creating an environment for their customers unlike anything else in Hays.

“We are ever-evolving, it really comes down to what the customer wants, we get a lot of feedback and we make adjustments or additions to our menu based on their input,” Heather added.

Creating relationships with their customers, the pair have even named a group of Saturday morning regulars “the Paisley Pear ladies”.

“We love to just talk with them and we look forward to seeing them when they come in,” Shaun said.

Over the years, they have grown their staff from eight to twenty, teaching their employees that no matter what, there is always time to show a smile and greet a guest.

Their priority above all else is ensuring their customers leave happy, adding a positive atmosphere to the downtown community. Perhaps the best way to set this example came during the winter dust storm that left Hays without power.

“We had just gotten home, it was a crazy day and we had no power so we decided to go to the Pear and have dinner there,” Heather said. “When we saw we had power, my husband decided it would be a good idea to open the store up just in case anyone needed a place to eat.”

With nearly every business in town shut down, the Pear was packed full with guests even standing as they waited to eat. The family had no plans of opening that night, so as Heather cooked, Shaun and the kids helped wait tables and dish out food. One customer was even gracious enough to help take orders.

“We worked for hours, we were just exhausted,” Heather said. “It was fun, looking back on it now what a night, but at the time it was one of the worst nights of my life because we were just drained,” Shaun chimed in with a laugh.

The Musils love nothing more than serving their community, and the community has shown their gratitude.

“Our reviews, we just get great feedback on our wait staff and people love the homey feel of the Pear,” Shaun said.

During COVID, Shaun and Heather were inspired by other restaurants giving out discounted and free meals, so they decided to start selling dollar pizzas.

“It’s tough, the hardest part about owning a business is being profitable, so it was really great-,” Shaun paused, choking up as he thought back on that moment. “Within hours so many people donated to us and we were able to give out free meals, it was just really good, it shows the community has your back- that gets me everytime.”

As summer approaches, the pair have big plans on the horizon for the Pear. More events are coming up to look forward to including trivia nights and live music.

From bridal showers to birthdays, even just a night out, the Paisley Pear offers an extensive, creative menu of drink and dining options they are happy to serve with a smile.

“We like to have fun, not everything we do works but we want to keep giving people those new options.”always knew he wanted to start his own business.

With the Paisley Pear, Shaun and Heather were able to make that happen.

Throughout their menu, they kept some of the original items as they had become well known throughout the community.

“The options were unique and special to this place, and as time has progressed we’ve created new items, our staff collaborates and even our customers will suggest ideas so we have local input,” Heather added.

Adding to the experience, the Paisley Pear provides entertainment with live, local musicians.

“I don’t think we’ve ever turned anyone down,” Shaun shared. “We like to have all sorts of music, it brings in different clientele and it’s just fun for everyone.”

Reaching outside the state, customers will stop in at the Pear as they pass through town. One regular patron from Texas stopped by one night as a band was playing.

“I remember, it was really funny, he pulled out his phone and showed me his calendar and said ‘I’m going to be in town on this day, can you schedule them to play again for me?’, he just loved it so much,” Heather shared.

For the Musil’s it’s all about fun- creating an environment for their customers unlike anything else in Hays.

“We are ever-evolving, it really comes down to what the customer wants, we get a lot of feedback and we make adjustments or additions to our menu based on their input,” Heather added.

Creating relationships with their customers, the pair have even named a group of Saturday morning regulars “the Paisley Pear ladies”.

“We love to just talk with them and we look forward to seeing them when they come in,” Shaun said.

Over the years, they have grown their staff from eight to twenty, teaching their employees that no matter what, there is always time to show a smile and greet a guest.

Their priority above all else is ensuring their customers leave happy, adding a positive atmosphere to the downtown community. Perhaps the best way to set this example came during the winter dust storm that left Hays without power. “We had just gotten home,

“We had just gotten home, it was a crazy day and we had no power so we decided to go to the Pear and have dinner there,” Heather said. “When we saw we had power, my husband decided it would be a good idea to open the store up just in case anyone needed a place to eat.”

With nearly every business in town shut down, the Pear was packed full with guests even standing as they waited to eat. The family had no plans of opening that night, so as Heather cooked, Shaun and the kids helped wait tables and dish out food. One customer was even gracious enough to help take orders.

“We worked for hours, we were just exhausted,” Heather said. “It was fun, looking back on it now what a night, but at the time it was one of the worst nights of my life because we were just drained,” Shaun chimed in with a laugh.

The Musils love nothing more than serving their community, and the community has shown their gratitude.

“Our reviews, we just get great feedback on our wait staff and people love the homey feel of the Pear,” Shaun said.

During COVID, Shaun and Heather were inspired by other restaurants giving out discounted and free meals, so they decided to start selling dollar pizzas.

“It’s tough, the hardest part about owning a business is being profitable, so it was really great-,” Shaun paused, choking up as he thought back on that moment. “Within hours so many people donated to us and we were able to give out free meals, it was just really good, it shows the community has your back- that gets me everytime.”

As summer approaches, the pair have big plans on the horizon for the Pear. More events are coming up to look forward to including trivia nights and live music.

From bridal showers to birthdays, even just a night out, the Paisley Pear offers an extensive, creative menu of drink and dining options they are happy to serve with a smile.

“We like to have fun, not everything we do works but we want to keep giving people those new options.”