After almost four years downtown, at 1115 Pine Street, Good Buddy’s Tasty Soups & Sandwiches, has closed. The announcement was made earlier this week on social media. The Facebook post read, in part, “None of us could have predicted the events that transpired since 2018.”
Unable to break a lease, the sandwich shop was open with limited hours throughout the last two years of the pandemic, hosting pop-ups such as a popular Mooby’s pop-up last year.
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Opened in 2018 by brothers Luke and Nathan Ragain and longtime friend Justin Gibson, Good Buddy’s set out to be a popular destination for the downtown lunch crowd. Before the opening, the three owners shared more than 50 years of combined experience working in local restaurants, including The Tenderloin Room, St. Louis Pizza & Wings, DB’s Sports Bar, and Hopskeller Brewing Co.
Good Buddy’s menu featured 16 classic sandwiches—some elevated or with signature twists—in addition to a selection of house-made soups, sides, and desserts.
The Bahn Mi So Tasty sandwich (pictured above), a standout on the menu, was made with Vietnamese meatballs, pickled daikon, cucumber, shredded carrot and red onion, with cilantro, fresh jalapeño, a house-made Thai sweet chili sauce, and a light Sriracha drizzle. The Chicago Beef sandwich featured “house roasted beef, shaved and swimming in a robust au jus, with a Provel cheese and a mild giardiniera.” The shop’s soups, sides, and desserts sections included a beef and barley soup with spinach and shitake mushrooms, a summer salad, and Cereal Treats (similar to Rice Krispies Treats, but with different cereals).
When reached for comment regarding the closing, co-owner Justin Gibson cited the pandemic, a lack of activity downtown, and trouble keeping staff as reasons for the closure. “Downtown, there’s not much going on—without the workforce there, we just couldn’t make ends meet,” Gibson said. “We weren’t able to keep staff on and bring in enough sales to pay the bills. The lease was up, so we decided we’re gonna move on.”
Fans of Good Buddy’s have one last opportunity to enjoy the shop’s lineup of sandwiches, salads, soups, and sides. Good Buddy’s will open with a limited “best of” menu on January 28 from 10 a.m.–6 p.m. and January 29 from 10 a.m.–3 p.m. The menu for both days will include six sandwiches (Spaghetti & Meatball Sub, Chicago Beef, Bahn Mi So Tasty , The Goodfella, B.O.B., and Sweet Meat) and four salads (Italian, Beef, Sweet Meat, Cubano), as well as Smoked Pork and Rice Soup.
“We are proud of what we accomplished at Good Buddy’s, and we do not view it as a failure,” says Gibson. “We self-funded the business on a tight budget, and we made it work. Our product was well-received, and we had a very loyal customer base. Although we carefully navigated and minimized our losses, COVID created the perfect storm and we could not overcome it in our downtown location.”
Despite the closing and the pandemic, Gibson remains optimistic. “We will be back,” he says. “Whether it’s Good Buddy’s or another concept, we are not done yet.”
A writer and creative by trade, Zach Gzehoviak spent years mixing cocktails at one of the city’s top bars. He loves Negronis made with equal parts, NBA basketball, and good conversation on a patio.
