Bogart’s Smokehouse and Southern to close for the winter, reopen in spring

Today, Wednesday, Sept. 23, the Pappy’s Smokehouse family of stores announced that two of its restaurants, Bogart’s Smokehouse and Southern, will be closing temporarily. Bogart’s will suspend service on Saturday, Oct. 3, while Southern will remain open until the following day, Sunday, Oct. 4. Both will stay closed through the fall and winter and reopen sometime in the spring. 

“Considering we’re going into our slower season - it slows down a bit in the fall - the way we’re sitting right now, if we look at the numbers, we’re operating with less than ideal sales,” explained Pappy’s co-founder and restaurant group partner John Matthews. He said that they aim to retain the locations and reopen once downtown attractions like Busch Stadium and the Fox Theatre (hopefully) go live when it gets warm again. At the moment, he said, people aren’t going downtown to dine as much as they used to. 

Reopening won’t just be dependent on the weather and foot traffic, but the city guidelines related to COVID. “Southern would have to be able to reopen the dining room at 75% or 100%,” Matthews said.  

The group’s West County restaurant, Dalie’s Smokehouse, will remain open, and according to Matthews, it’s been thriving due, in part, to a takeout window; a new St. Peters location of Pappy’s is still slated to open sometime next month.  

But even through a temporary closure, Bogart’s won’t be entirely gone, Matthews assured customers. Ribs and pit beans will be available via Market Wagon, and the brand’s rubs and sauces will also be available to purchase online. For Thanksgiving and Christmas, Bogart’s is planning on doing hams and turkeys for pickup on location.