An unfortunate sign of the times...
Word comes this morning that Revival's last day of business is Friday, May 22. The present owners will pass the business to another ownership group led by Tom Powers, one of the existing partners. The space will undergo a mild renovation and reopen in two weeks.
Revival opened to a critical hallelujah! on Feb 14, 2008, and was regarded as one of the most creative--yet reasonably-priced--restaurants in town. (Here's our December 2008 review.) The culinary team of Cary McDowell, Chris Bork and Carolyn Downs was as strong as any in St. Louis.
So what happened?
1. The closing of the highway did not help. Business immediately dropped by 25% and never recovered.
2. McDowell has been spending most of his time in Clarksville, Mo, working as chef/consultant for the Clarksville Station Restaurant. Personally, I do not think that was a big factor...Chris Bork and company were quite capable.
3. Most importantly, I think the situation is analagous to the one at The Shaved Duck, a critically acclaimed restaurant with creative, upscale food...but with no neighborhood support. The Duck was in the wrong neighborhood for their concept, and in Revival's case, there is no neighborhood to speak of. Both were destination restaurants, the exact type of places that's taking the biggest hit right now. Like many such restaurants, Revival was packed on weekends, but sucked wind on Monday-Wednesday nights.
Rather, it's the bar and grill-ish, inexpensive, go-every-night neighborhood places that are flourishing right now. The Duck downscaled and retooled its menu into more of a smoked-meats-and-BBQ joint. Owner Ally Nisbet took some heat for making such a change, but to his credit, the seats are now full on most weekday nights.
According to Powers, Revival's existing bar area will become the restaurant proper and the existing restaurant space will become overflow and special event space. The doors to the patio will be opened, creating a more cafe-like feel throughout.
Powers commented that although the more upscale items received the notoriety, the meatloaf and burger were the #1 and #2 sellers, respectively. Taking that cue, Chef Mike Johnson will write a new menu, adding his creative touch to a more pub-centric menu of appetizers and upscale burgers.
The tentative name is Chouteau's. Look for the opening in 10 days to 2 weeks. --George Mahe
