The owner of one of the region’s most popular restaurants, Billy G’s in Kirkwood, is spinning off a new concept. Billy Gianino, Jr. plans to open Billy G’s Finer Diner in the former Balaban’s space (1772 Clarkson) in Chesterfield by year’s end. Here’s what to expect.
The Concept
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When Bill Gianino, Sr., the scion behind the Gianino Family of Restaurants, died in 2020, there was a new restaurant and a new concept “planned but currently on hold” because of the pandemic. The idea: to create a diner-style breakfast spot that also offered dinner service and a bar.
“There aren’t a lot of independent restaurants in the Chesterfield area,” Gianino, Jr. says, “and not a lot of breakfast spots.” While heaping praise on Shack, First Watch, and Original Pancake House, the Gianinos planned for their restaurant to open at 7 a.m., serve meals throughout the day, and close at 9 p.m. seven days a week. “The pandemic changed a lot of diners’ habits,” Gianino, Jr. says. “We took notice of that.”
The name came about serendipitously. Gianino, Sr. had scrawled the words ‘Finer Diner’ on a piece of paper, which wasn’t discovered until after he passed away. “And so it was,” says his son. “Billy G’s Finer Diner.”
The Atmosphere
Designer Lori Olsen says to expect “a ’70s-era, Quenton Tarantino-Palm Springs kind of vibe, as opposed to a traditional, ’60s-era Johnny Rockets vibe.” Asked to elaborate, Olsen would only bait the hook and promise “design surprises,” as evidenced in her other restaurant projects, such as the terraced patio at Billy G’s, the ubiquitous curves at Blondie’s, and the myriad nooks, crannies, and private seating areas on the patio at Rosalita’s in Des Peres.
Following the model of Billy G’s in Kirkwood, the 6,500-square-foot interior is fairly open, after the interior walls were removed. A sweeping, curved bar anchors the room, however, graciously shrinking the space.
On the back side of the building, a long run of stairs and railings is being replaced by a single-level, 88-seat patio that’s partly covered and partly uncovered, with table umbrellas. The entire patio is shielded from the din of traffic along Clarkson Road.
Over the years, Olsen has designed nine projects for the Gianino Family of Restaurants. Part of RDG Planning & Design in Maplewood, she currently has close to a dozen local hospitality projects in the works. Her architect partner for this project is Dadoworks (Juniper and Alpha Brewing). Atomic Dust (Cinder House, Yellowbelly, City Foundry STL) will handle the branding and marketing.
The Menu
For breakfast, Billy G’s Finer Diner will serve the staples, “some in noteworthy ways,” Gianino, Jr. hints. Popular staples from Billy G’s menu will drift in at midday, supplemented by cakes, pies, milkshakes, and floats. At night, the offerings will be less structured, from “dinner diner food” to more of Billy G’s favorites, presented chalkboard-style.
“We want the freedom to serve what the customers want, which might mean Chicken Spiedini one night and our Jameson Pork Chop Steak the next,” Gianino, Jr. says.
Billy G’s pizza on house-made dough will be a mainstay, as it is in Kirkwood. “The house salad with my dad’s dressing, trashed [double fried] wings—all the favorites will make an appearance,” Gianino, Jr. says.
Playing to the popularity of “brinner” (breakfast for dinner), the breakfast menu will be served all day long. “I loved it when I was a kid,” Gianino, Jr. says. “Still do to this day.”
Since boozy—and brewsy—cocktails have become popular at some breakfast-themed restaurant chains (such as Snooze A.M. Eatery), the restaurant will be equipped with a full bar, offering brunch-style cocktails, as well as a separate coffee bar, where a dedicated barista will craft cappuccinos and coffee-based cocktails.
“This won’t be a New Jersey diner. It’ll be unique—call it a St. Louis–style diner,” Gianino, Jr. says. “We’ll serve the kind of food that I like to eat at all different times of the day. I’m pretty sure I’m not alone here.”
