Photo by Kevin A. Roberts
In a surprise Facebook announcement last Saturday night, Brad Beracha, speaking for BaiKu Sushi Lounge, announced the restaurant in Grand Center had closed. The first media mention was by The Carney Show’s John Carney, on his weekly “Restaurant Tuesdays” segment on KTRS, 550 AM.
The post read, in part: “Today we close the book on BaiKu Sushi Lounge. The location was not ideal but the sushi was awesome.” And so was the sake. In an adjunct to his favorable review of the restaurant, SLM’s Dave Lowry said BaiKu’s was “among the best selections of sake to be found in any St. Louis restaurant. There isn’t a sake on your list that doesn’t tempt. And impress.”
BaiKu boasted a trio of worthy sushi chefs (exec chef Eliott Harris, Kenji Nemoto, and Kory Kim) and might have also been the hippest sushi joint in town, which makes sense. Harris was also the exec at the former Miso on Meramec, which Beracha also owned. It could be argued that the legendary Miso was the first hip sushi joint in town. Patrons never knew what to expect when they descended the stairs, but it was bound to be memorable. Harris went on to create Chop Shop STL, a sushi-based food truck, and was the founding sushi chef consultant at Central Table Food Hall. Harris’ sushi skills were formidable, and in the Facebook post, Beracha thanked him for his loyalty, dedication, “and for continuing to crush the sushi game.”
Courtesy BaiKu Sushi Lounge
Brad Beracha
After Miso, Beracha gained notoriety at the former ARAKA in Clayton, one of the city’s swankiest restaurants at the time (with restrooms to match). Currently, Beracha is president of B-Creative Concepts, a restaurant consulting firm. Two of his projects are BaiKu and Triumph Grill, which adjoins it. (Steve Smith, CEO at Lawrence Group, owns both restaurants. Hotel Ignacio is owned by St. Louis University.)
Beracha told SLM today that he thought BaiKu’s sushi had been the best in the city for years, “but was underappreciated based on its location.” The restaurant shared lobby space with the hotel (a plus) but lacked a dedicated bar (a minus).
Regardless, Beracha admitted that "he didn’t know how much more he and Frank [his longtime GM, Frank Romano] could have done to make BaiKu more viable. He added that going forward, the plan may be to "re-concept both restaurants to better complement the hotel," and "freshen the spaces and the offerings" in order to move forward.
Courtesy BaiKu Sushi Lounge
Eliott Harris
Harris echoed several of Beracha’s thoughts. “The location was not ideal, for sure, but the winter theater season helped. Summer was a harder sell. We all feel we took [BaiKu] as far as it could be taken.” The 47-year-old chef said that after 30 years in the business, 10 of them with Miso, Chop Shop, and BaiKu, he wants to “take a break, travel, refocus, rebalance, gather inspiration,” and most importantly, spend some time with family. After that, he alluded to doing more restaurant projects on his own terms, like private catering and pop-ups. He’s also got his eye on the cannabis industry. “It will surely affect the restaurant industry in the next several years,” he says, “but no one knows exactly how.”
The ever-optimistic Beracha concluded his Facebook post by saying, “Stay tuned for what is to come. My wheels are always turning.”
