Restaurant cues up line dancing and country tunes

Kiman Yin is opening a new restaurant and bar on Hull Street Road. Photos by Michael Thompson.

Kimsan Yin is opening a new restaurant and bar on Hull Street Road. Photos by Michael Thompson.

In striking out on his own, Kimsan Yin is veering away from his family’s local Japanese restaurant business to open a country western bar where line dancing is not only encouraged, but required – at least for employees.

Yin plans to open Daisy Dukes and Boots in the first quarter of 2016 at 11045 Hull Street Road in the Victorian Square shopping center. The business has leased a 6,000-square-foot space that was formerly home to a barbecue joint.

With a rustic barn feel, a Tex-Mex lunch and dinner menu and a stage for line dancing attached to the bar, Yin is creating a sort of combination of the country western theme and the sex appeal business model of restaurants like Hooters and Tilted Kilt.

The primarily female staff, who were chosen through three auditions that attracted nearly 100 applicants, will serve drinks and do choreographed line dancing.

The Daisy Dukes’ logo further connotes the model, featuring the silhouette of a voluptuous woman wearing a cowboy hat.

Daisy Dukes and Boots will open in the Victorian Square shopping center.

Daisy Dukes and Boots will open in the Victorian Square shopping center.

“I guess it kind of has that sex appeal to it,” Yin said of the logo. “Even the name can kind of entice that.”

Workers will not be required to wear the restaurant’s namesake shorts but will have to wear Daisy Dukes-branded tank tops or shirts, flannel shirts in the style of a lumberjack or cowboy, a trucker or cowboy hat, and cowboy boots.

Yin said pants choice is up to the employees.

“Whatever they feel comfortable with,” he said.

Yin, 35, is part of a family business that owns Shogun Japanese Steak and Sushi in the Woodlake Commons Shopping Center. When Daisy Dukes opens, he will split his time between the two ventures.

He said the idea for his new restaurant came about because he saw an opening in the market for a country bar.

A self-described country boy, Yin said he enjoys the nightlife and wanted to run a venture that provided some for the area. He said the closings of Mulligan’s Sports Grille and Murphy’s Law II in Midlothian left a hole to be filled.

“There are quite a few well-known bars that have closed in the last few years,” Yin said. “Now is a good time to bring a Southern-style bar to the area.”

Like chains such as Hooters, Daisy Dukes and Boots will also be a family-friendly place, Yin said.

He said the line dancing at Daisy Dukes will be similar to the kind done at Texas Roadhouse and Johnny Rockets. He hired a choreographer to help craft the routines for his staff.

Yin would not say how much it is costing to open his new restaurant. He said he is looking forward to opening a venture on his own and would like to open another Daisy Dukes closer to his hometown in Colonial Heights.

“It was time for me to branch out and start something on my own and something I can continue to grow,” he said.

Kiman Yin is opening a new restaurant and bar on Hull Street Road. Photos by Michael Thompson.

Kimsan Yin is opening a new restaurant and bar on Hull Street Road. Photos by Michael Thompson.

In striking out on his own, Kimsan Yin is veering away from his family’s local Japanese restaurant business to open a country western bar where line dancing is not only encouraged, but required – at least for employees.

Yin plans to open Daisy Dukes and Boots in the first quarter of 2016 at 11045 Hull Street Road in the Victorian Square shopping center. The business has leased a 6,000-square-foot space that was formerly home to a barbecue joint.

With a rustic barn feel, a Tex-Mex lunch and dinner menu and a stage for line dancing attached to the bar, Yin is creating a sort of combination of the country western theme and the sex appeal business model of restaurants like Hooters and Tilted Kilt.

The primarily female staff, who were chosen through three auditions that attracted nearly 100 applicants, will serve drinks and do choreographed line dancing.

The Daisy Dukes’ logo further connotes the model, featuring the silhouette of a voluptuous woman wearing a cowboy hat.

Daisy Dukes and Boots will open in the Victorian Square shopping center.

Daisy Dukes and Boots will open in the Victorian Square shopping center.

“I guess it kind of has that sex appeal to it,” Yin said of the logo. “Even the name can kind of entice that.”

Workers will not be required to wear the restaurant’s namesake shorts but will have to wear Daisy Dukes-branded tank tops or shirts, flannel shirts in the style of a lumberjack or cowboy, a trucker or cowboy hat, and cowboy boots.

Yin said pants choice is up to the employees.

“Whatever they feel comfortable with,” he said.

Yin, 35, is part of a family business that owns Shogun Japanese Steak and Sushi in the Woodlake Commons Shopping Center. When Daisy Dukes opens, he will split his time between the two ventures.

He said the idea for his new restaurant came about because he saw an opening in the market for a country bar.

A self-described country boy, Yin said he enjoys the nightlife and wanted to run a venture that provided some for the area. He said the closings of Mulligan’s Sports Grille and Murphy’s Law II in Midlothian left a hole to be filled.

“There are quite a few well-known bars that have closed in the last few years,” Yin said. “Now is a good time to bring a Southern-style bar to the area.”

Like chains such as Hooters, Daisy Dukes and Boots will also be a family-friendly place, Yin said.

He said the line dancing at Daisy Dukes will be similar to the kind done at Texas Roadhouse and Johnny Rockets. He hired a choreographer to help craft the routines for his staff.

Yin would not say how much it is costing to open his new restaurant. He said he is looking forward to opening a venture on his own and would like to open another Daisy Dukes closer to his hometown in Colonial Heights.

“It was time for me to branch out and start something on my own and something I can continue to grow,” he said.

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Ron Virgin
Ron Virgin
8 years ago

Good luck, Yin. I hope I’m wrong, but I have a feeling this won’t end well.

John Kuhn
John Kuhn
8 years ago
Reply to  Ron Virgin

Lmfao, why do you say that Ron?