Rendering by Cannon Design
The District of St. Louis, the multi-purpose entertainment venue developed and managed by The Staenberg Group at the former Taubman Outlet Mall site in Chesterfield, has announced another major addition.
4 Hands Brewing Company is the anchor tenant at The Hub, the $4 million centerpiece of The District. The brewery’s culinary partner is Hi-Pointe Drive-In, which will operate a fast-casual offshoot within the space (its seventh in the metro area). Construction of The Hub is slated to be completed by this spring. The 4 Hands project will open a few months later, likely in July, according to 4 Hands owner Kevin Lemp.
The Space
4 Hands and Hi-Pointe will occupy the former outlet mall's food court, a 10,000-square-foot space that overlooks The Hub, the aptly named outdoor gathering space that features a pavilion, LED screen and stage, and turf viewing field. On each side are spaces for two restaurants, all with patios that face inward, serving to define the area and create synergy.
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Rendering by O'Toole Design
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Rendering by O'Toole Design
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Renderings by Cannon Design
A large, illuminated 4 Hands Brewing Co. roof sign, 45 feet above the ground, towers atop The Hub. In front of the building, the existing white metal and soffit will be painted a darker color and further softened with wood slats. An additional two sets of glass double doors are being installed, opening up the space when weather allows.
Renderings by Cannon Design
Inside, Cannon Design has called for the existing white drop ceiling soundboard panels to be painted black, so they’ll effectively disappear. The long run of soffit and fascia will be clad in a soothing, light-colored wood. Seating will be a combination of different height tables: traditional high-tops, low-tops, and bierhall-style tables—according to Hi-Pointe co-owner Ben Hillman.
Renderings by Cannon Design
A games arcade with a shuffleboard court occupies the west wall. Lemp and Hillman are also considering adding a large accent mural paying homage to both partners and St. Louis. “We’d both like to see that,” Lemp says. “It’s important that we both bring our flair and character here.”
The Hi-Pointe order counter occupies the back wall, similar to the arrangement at Enterprise Center. “We like the format,” Hillman says, “and are comfortable with it. The customer likes it, too. It’s quick, convenient, delicious, and family-friendly.”
Renderings by Cannon Design
Adjacent to the counter is a square 60-seat full bar that also services a private event room.
The shared space can accommodate 400 people, with 300 in the main area and another 100 in the 2,000-square-foot private event space, which can be reserved through Hi-Pointe or 4 Hands. Hillman notes that since the chef team at Hi-Pointe is so deep and talented, the guest can customize the event menu in myriad ways, “from the existing offerings to barbecue to a finer dining experience.”
LIT Cigar Lounge STL—the whiskey, beer, wine, and cigar bar that occupies part of the space now—is slated to move to a larger space within the complex on February 1.
The Menu
The food menu will be a hybrid from Hi-Pointe and sister concept Chicken Out but branded as Hi-Pointe, explains Hilman. “One advantage we have in Chesterfield is space, so we’re planning to go crazy with specials: daily, weekly, and monthly specials.
Photography by Kevin A. Roberts
Hi-Pointe's all natural, all Angus double cheeseburger and Chicken Out's brined, battered, and broasted signature sandwich
"Some of them will be incorporated with 4 Hands’ products, which we’re definitely excited to do, especially since they go far beyond beer,” adds Hillman, referring to the brewery’s lines of ancillary products, including hard seltzers, 1220 Spirits and cocktails, and Withered Oak blended whiskey, all of which will be on offer at the new facility, along with 25 draft beers, including year-round and seasonal releases.
The District
The District is a sprawling yet walkable entertainment destination that includes live music venue The Factory, an art gallery, retail concepts, sports experiences, and event spaces, such as The Reverie. Lemp says, “The Chesterfield Valley Athletic Complex is nearby. The Factory attracts a wide range of people. There’s the Main Event, which is apparently the top five unit out of 42. And next to that is the second best performing TopGolf in the country, not to mention a huge pickleball venue, The Real Dill, which will open later this year. It’s pretty hard to not get excited about us being the hub of The Hub.”
Courtesy of The Staenberg Group
"4 Hands is a staple in the St. Louis community, and we are thrilled for their expansion to The District," Staenberg Group president Michael Staenberg said in a release. “A key component to what we are hoping to create at The District, specifically as it relates to The Hub, is to pull our St. Louis favorites all together in one place.”
Having secured the anchor, The Staenberg Group is busy securing the four local restaurants that will flank The Hub. Since so many touch points are placed so close together, Lemp anticipates a lot of additional traffic brought on by cross-promotion. “Half seriously we’ve been saying that we’d like to see someone park here at 11 a.m., thinking that they might leave at 1 p.m., and end up staying until 10 at night,” Lemp says.
The Background: 4 Hands Brewing Co.
Founded by Lemp in 2011, 4 Hands Brewing in the LaSalle Park neighborhood just south of downtown St. Louis brews year-round offerings, including the popular City Wide and Single Speed, along with seasonal and limited-release beers, including the Madagascar line, which goes on sale this year on February 4.
In 2018, a sister company, 1220 Spirits, released Origin gin, the first in a line of 10 botanically driven distilled products.
Photography by Kevin A. Roberts
Kevin Lemp in 2020
During the pandemic, one pivot included “4 Hands For Hands” Cleaner, a hand sanitizer. Another was a collaboration with restaurateur Ben Poremba, Punch 5 Libations, a line of home-infused liquors.
In 2021, 4 Hands rolled out Withered Oak, a line of blended whiskies.
It also produces more than a dozen hard seltzers, as well as one nonalcoholic variety, Free Space, which will be released next week. ("It's crazy," Lemp recalls. "The seltzers didn't take off until we started using silly and whimsical names, like the snow cone–inspired Tiger's Blood and the popsicle-inspired Sparkler. Now we have 14 of them.")
In April, 4 Hands' line of canned cocktails will be rebranded and relaunched, touting its real fruit and low calories.
Last year, 4 Hands was ranked No. 1 in barrelage for craft breweries in the St. Louis market—second in the state only to Kansas City–based Boulevard Brewing.
Regarding the current expansion, Lemp says, “We’re committed to the city. We purchased our building downtown, adding 30,000 square feet of space in the process, so the brewing facility will remain downtown. From a business plan standpoint, we look at the Chesterfield property as a western bookend. The new Kirkwood location, the one we’ll share with Peacemaker [The Station], is in the middle. It’s easy for people to understand. We think it’s a good brand-building strategy. We’re so glad to be a part of it all.”
