Take a look inside Lexington’s first medical marijuana dispensary, opening soon
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- Speakeasy Dispensary opens Jan. 15 in Hamburg as Lexington’s first medical dispensary.
- Initial stock will include four flower strains; supplies limited and prices elevated.
- Staff will offer patients loyalty signup and senior, veteran, compassionate discounts
Lexington’s first medical marijuana dispensary is opening next week in one of the city’s busiest shopping districts, with doors open to the public at 10 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 15.
Speakeasy Dispensary, located at 1849 Alysheba Way in Hamburg, is planning to open with a limited supply of products for registered cardholders with Kentucky’s medical marijuana program. Products will be available as supplies last, and purchase limits may apply, a previous news release said.
Three years after medical marijuana was legalized in Kentucky, the dispensary’s opening marks one of the first in the state near a major population center. The Post Dispensary in Beaver Dam, near Owensboro, briefly opened Dec. 13, 2025, but it is out of stock and temporarily closed with plans to reopen this month, its website states.
Casey Flippo is the CEO of Gold Leaf Management, the Arkansas-based company managing Speakeasy Dispensary. Speaking to the Herald-Leader Thursday, Flippo outlined the kind of pricing and product availability patients can expect during the “soft opening.”
“Not because we plan on closing the doors, but because there will be a limited supply,” Flippo said of the event.
The store will open with four strains of flower product and gradually expand from there.
“Every week thereafter, we’re going to add to that product selection as more product becomes available from the wholesalers,” Flippo said.
Availability has been a major barrier to dispensaries — the customer-facing retail component of the state’s marijuana infrastructure — from getting off the ground. Kentucky’s medical cannabis law requires all products to be grown and tested here, and also bars cardholders from smoking marijuana.
Speakeasy Dispensary will scale up its offerings as more cultivators — the licensed businesses that grow marijuana — and products enter the market, Flippo said.
Marijuana pricing and product availability
Flippo said due to limited supply, patients shouldn’t be surprised if they see “slightly inflated” prices with the store’s initial opening, but that will change.
“Relative to, you know, more established cannabis markets, these prices will be slightly inflated,” Flippo told the Herald-Leader. “It’s always going to start that way, but one thing I do want to make sure that the patients understand is it’s not going to stay that way. It never stays that way. As the product availability increases, as that patient population increases, prices will organically go down.”
Flippo said pricing will largely be determined by what wholesalers charge, but to help relieve initially elevated prices, the dispensary offers several discounts.
“Everyone that comes through, they’re going to be given the opportunity to join our loyalty program, and everyone that chooses to join that loyalty program, will get 15% off that first order,” Flippo said, adding there are also discounts for seniors, veterans and compassionate care.
The shopping experience at Speakeasy Dispensary
An extensive renovation that’s taken about nine months has transformed the former Frisch’s Big Boy in Hamburg into a dispensary that feels like a classic jockey club. Patients enter and check-in at a spacious lobby that feels like a Keeneland experience.
In true speakeasy fashion, there’s a concealed door. With an electronic key swipe from a staffer, a piece of the wall opens up to reveal the sales floor.
Under Kentucky’s medical marijuana law, dispensaries are only allowed to offer pre-packaged products. Should the law change, Speakeasy Dispensary also has a separate space for a “deli-style” experience, allowing patients to smell and touch medical cannabis before they purchase it.
Product is stored in the back, pulled for orders and sent to “budtenders” who crew registers on the spacious sales floor. Sample products are on display in cases and shelves around the floor. Patients exit through a separate door, so there’s a continuous flow throughout the space.
Patients are allowed to purchase up to a 30-day supply at one time.
Eventually, after an expected initial rush, Speakeasy Dispensary will open its drive-thru and curbside service, Flippo told the Herald-Leader.
When the dispensary opens Jan. 15, staff will have a heated tent outside and admit patients in staggered groups to avoid having people wait in the cold, Flippo said. The Post Dispensary in Ohio County saw long lines when it opened in mid-December, and Speakeasy is hoping to avoid that experience next week.
Flippo said “very well-trained staff” will be available to assist patients in selecting products that are right for them and their ailments. In all, the business employs about 35 people, Flippo said.
Speakeasy Dispensary will be open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
Do you have a question about medical cannabis in Lexington or greater Kentucky for the Herald-Leader? We’d like to hear form you. Fill out our Know Your Kentucky form or email ask@herald-leader.com.
This story was originally published January 8, 2026 at 4:42 PM.