pastaria is temporarily closed in an effort to combat the spread of coronavirus. photo by jonathan gayman

Some St. Louis-area restaurants temporarily close to stave off COVID-19

Editor’s Note: This article will be updated as more restaurants announce complete temporary shutdowns in an effort to slow the spread of the coronavirus. For more information about how other area food and beverage establishments are adapting their businesses to the challenges of COVID-19, including curbside carryout and delivery services, join our public Facebook Group.

All St. Louis-area food and beverage establishments are encouraged to share their responses to coronavirus on our public Facebook Group. If your restaurant is also temporarily halting all services and should be added to this list, please email pr@saucemagazine.com

Niche Food Group co-owner Gerard Craft has announced that he will close NFG restaurants except Cinder House for the foreseeable future. This includes Sardella, Pastaria, Brasserie, Taste and Brasswell inside Rockwell Beer Co.

Savage Restaurant chef-owner Logan Ely has closed his Fox Park restaurant until early April. The restaurant will reach out to current reservation holders to reschedule.

Rise Coffee is also temporarily closing its doors beginning Tuesday, March 17.

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A Message from Our Team: It is with heavy hearts that we have decided to temporarily close the cafe, starting Tuesday, March 17. This decision was made with much discernment and consideration for our team, our community, and the viability of our business moving forward. Rise Coffee was created with the mission of placing people at the center of all that we do; and for us, that includes an effort to support our community in social distancing during this critical period of time. We will never know if we overreacted, but we will surely know if we didn’t do enough. We deeply appreciate your support during this challenging time. And we hope that each of you will continue to do what you can to stay physically, mentally, and emotionally well. We look forward to seeing you as soon as we return. And for the opportunity to continue building this magical place in our city.
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Restauranteur Aaron Teitlebaum announced that he will close Herbie’s in Clayton and both Kingside Diner locations.

Updated Monday, March 16 at 4:10 p.m.

SqWires owner Bethany Budde-Cohen will close for at least two weeks.

Bengelina Hospitality co-owner Ben Poremba has closed all his restaurants (Olio, Elaia, Nixta and The Benevolent King); his specialty shop, AO&Co. will offer online ordering for prepared meals that can be picked up curbside.

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Dear Friends, I'm following up on a post I wrote a couple of days ago in which I pleaded for guidance and transparency. In that post I asked three simple questions: Is it safe to keep our restaurants open? The answer is no. Effective immediately, Bengelina family of restaurants will be closed. We're keeping our market (AO&Co.) open and we plan to have prepared meals ready for pick up (curbside delivery is available). Online ordering will be live at 5pm today. Visit Bengelina.com/online-store What resources can we rely on to mitigate our and our employees loss of income? I want to illustrate to you what this means, not out of self-pity or need for empathy. But rather to implore our leaders into acting effectively and quickly. We're laying off 100 people. Loyal, hardworking, committed individuals who need to provide for their families. Small businesses don't have the kind of funds to continue to operate and wait for some future tax credit. Small businesses need immediate relief in order to continue to support their employees and their families. How can we contribute to our community's efforts? We're in the process of working with local charities to determine how we can best use our skills and resources to assist those who are have greater needs. We urge you to your time and resources to do the same. Thank you for your continued support and we hope to serve you again soon. Ben Poremba
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The HandleBar owner Tatyana Telnikova announced she will close her Grove bar after service Monday, March 16.

Newcomers Little Fox and Takashima Records have also temporarily closed doors in Fox Park and The Grove, respectively.

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Updated Monday, March 16 at 6 p.m.

Southwest Diner co-owners Jonathan Jones and Anna Sidel announced they would close their popular breakfast and lunch spot.

Ted and Jamie Kilgore and Ted Charack closed their cocktail bars, Planter's House and Small Change.

The Grove bar Parlor has also closed up shop until further notice.

Felix's Pizza Pub in Dogtown has canceled its St. Patrick's Day plans and is selling its remaining pizza and wings today, March 16, before closing doors until further notice. All the proceeds from sales tonight will go to Felix's employees.

Florissant staple Hendel's Restaurant will temporarily close doors, too.

Popular breakfast and lunch spots Cafe Osage and The Mud House have also announced they will be temporarily closed.

Updated Tuesday, March 13 at 2:15 p.m. 

Frozen cocktail bar Narwhal's is suspending business until further notice, as is Cherokee Street spot The Fortune Teller Bar.

Maplewood bar The Crow's Nest will also close doors.

Fiddlehead Fern and Blue Strawberry are also closed until further notice.

Updated March 19 at 3 p.m. 

Boogaloo temporarily closed doors March 18. 

Lucas Park Grille will close until April.

The Civil Life Brewing Co. is closing its taproom and is considering adding carryout service.

Brennan's will reopen in its new location on Euclid Avenue.

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It is sad to say but we have closed alongside other St. Louis area restaurants and bars. This last week, we raised our glasses and said goodbye to the original Brennan’s location at 4659 Maryland Ave after 17 years. Through the years our little wine and cigar shop turned into a neighborhood bar that grew to be some kind of fun house (with ping pong, lounge areas, private cigar club & the BHIVE office and event space). We had plans to ride it out til May, and celebrate the last days of this location before moving to a new spot in the CWE this summer, but it’s important we all value the greater health of many over the drinks and good times of a few. Cheers to everyone who has been with us for this unbelievable ride. We hope you stay tuned for new beginnings. Photo 1: @babyzachribs All the rest: @rjhartbeck
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Vegan eatery Utah Station announced it would be closed until further notice.

Yellowbelly announced it would shutter temporarily and encouraged people to order takeout and pickup from its sister restaurant, Retreat Gastropub.