Courtesy of Robust
Courtesy of Robust
Fifteen years after opening Robust, owners Arlene and Stanley Browne continue to evolve the Webster Groves restaurant, changing the name to Robust Bistro & Wine Bar.
“A bistro connotes casual, more low-key dining, small plates, affordable prices for both food and wine—what we’ve always been, essentially,” Stanley says. “Plus, I’m tired of people still thinking that all we serve are cheese and crackers.”
At the same time, they're introducing the trial run of a barbecue component, RBBQ, in partnership with Vito Racanelli of Big V’s Craft Barbecue, which hosted a Saturday barbecue at Missouri Beer Company until it closed last month.
"The Brownes are great people," Racanelli says. "I've known Stanley for 25 years. We used to be neighbors. In addition to the catering that we do, we look forward to providing something a little different to Robust and to Webster."
At Robust, guests will be introduced to the products at an event on September 21, followed by online pre-orders for takeout one day per month. Initial offerings will include brisket, pulled pork, and ribs. Robust will produce the sides: potato salad, coleslaw, beans, and mac and cheese.
“If it takes off, we can increase the frequency to once a week, ghost-kitchen style,” Stanley says. “We’re testing the barbecue waters here in Webster. It’s a fluid arrangement.”
Anniversary Week Events
A series of special events is also slated for the week of September 20–24, with a red carpet to welcome guests.
𝐒𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟎: Complimentary wine tasting, with food purchase. Guests can sample 15 wines from 6–8 p.m.
𝐒𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟏: Bubbles, Bourbon, Blues, and BBQ. A sparkling wine tasting (and 15 percent off bottles of bubbles), a complimentary bourbon tasting by StilL 630, live blues music, plus an introduction to Robust’s new line of barbecued meats, RBBQ.
𝐒𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟐: Two special wine flights will be featured.
𝐒𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟑-24: A prix fixe dinner menu will be offered, featuring four customer favorite throwback dishes for $60 (with wine pairings optional): sweet potato chilaquiles; 5-ounce petite beef tenderloin; sea scallops with oven dried tomatoes, prosciutto, Parmesan grits, and truffle butter; and donut bread pudding.
The History
Robust caught on quickly, proving that small plates, a wine bar, and a wine/gift shop were a fine pairing indeed. In 2008, SLM named Robust “Restaurant of the Year” and gave it an A-List nod for “Best Wine Bar.”
Courtesy of Robust
Chef Zach Dale
In 15 years, the Brownes have opened and closed sister restaurants, and a number of notable chefs have made their marks, among them Greg Maggi, Margaret Kelly, Eric Brenner, Joe Hemp V, and current chef Zach Dale, who has worked with all of them.
“Zach has been with us from the very beginning,” Arlene says, “and has worked his way up to the executive chef position. He has been a huge source of trustworthiness, quality, and leadership. You can’t have a great bistro without a great chef.”
Over the years, the restaurant also became known for its inventive promotions and marketing programs:
- In addition to a dozen available wine flights, wine list wines and wine gift boxes are offered at retail and for delivery.
- A competition to design a wine label for one of Robust’s proprietary wines
- An “Enchanted Decanted” program in which a glass of a decanted, super-premium wine was offered at a super-low price
- A three-item Secret Menu, available only via the Robust Wine Bar app, designed so Robust's repeat and loyal customers had more reason to remain so
- Paella offered on the patio once a month
- A customizable Bubbles Bar, carved out of blocks of ice
- A “name our donut holes-and-coffee-themed dessert” contest. A winner was named, and "The Copstopper" was born.
- On the fifth of each month, tableside bottles of wine are 40 percent off and take-home wine is discounted 15 percent, an ongoing promotion dubbed "Cinco de Vino."
- In 2010, Robust was one of the first local restaurants to experiment with a new marketing company called Groupon.
- In 2020, as the Brownes became more interested in health and life balance, they introduced Clean & Juicy, a line of cold-pressed juices now from Raw Juicery, alkaline waters from Big Heart Tea Co., and bone broth from Butcher & Farmer. “This was also when we started transitioning to 100 percent clean wines,” Stanley reflects. “Clean wines use fewer additives, sulfates, preservatives, and sugars commonly used to hide flaws in the winemaking process,” Browne told SLM at the time. “The result: Clean wines are not only better for the environment, but they are better for your body, too.”
Perhaps one of their most innovative concepts, however, was the 'Robust Factor,' a user-friendly method of categorizing wines by body style profile, rather than country or region. Especially for newbies, such relatable one-word descriptors as “crisp,” “mellow,” and “luscious” opened the door to unfamiliar wines from unfamiliar places.
At the time that Robust first introduced the concept, when it opened in 2007, the first iPhones were being sold, Bob Barker filmed his last episode of The Price Is Right, and Waino and Yadi were still getting to know each other.
“Fifteen years ago, when we opened in Webster, there was CJ Mugg’s on the corner, and further down the way was Big Sky Café and Highway 61 Roadhouse," Stanley reflects. "That was it.”
