Padrinos Mexican Restaurant on South Grand suffers kitchen fire

A kitchen fire early this morning, today, Wednesday, May 31, at Padrinos Mexican Restaurant at 3143 S. Grand Blvd. in Tower Grove South forced the restaurant to close for the day. Fortunately, the restaurant sustained only minor damage, and will reopen for business as usual on Thursday, June 1. 

Padrinos co-owner Christina Robles said the fire, which was caused by mechanical failure, broke out in the kitchen just before 8 a.m. on Wednesday morning. The St. Louis Fire Department were able to respond quickly, extinguishing the fire within around 10 minutes. Nobody was in the restaurant at the time of the fire, and no injuries were caused.  

As a result, damage was limited to a relatively small area of the kitchen. “At least it was localized, so we're just doing cleanup today,” Robles said. She said that some equipment needed to be replaced, but otherwise the restaurant was "operational."

Robles and her partners at Padrinos also own Sal y Limon Mexican Grille in Brentwood, which opened in January 2023 in the former Houlihan’s space. Padrinos is also a vendor at St. Louis City SC’s CityPark stadium, offering tacos and frozen margaritas on match days. 

Padrinos will reopen on Thursday morning, a relieved Robles confirmed. “We're very lucky,” she said. 

Editor's note: The story was updated on May 31, 2023, for clarification of the repairs needed before Padrinos reopens.