Kevin A. Roberts
Kaldi's Coffee just opened its seventh St. Louis location this past weekend, and three more are slated for openings this year.
Steve Hall of Hedrich Blessing, courtesy of Studio|Durham Architects
The first of the three coffee cafes will take over a glass-fronted downtown spot at Citygarden (pictured above and at right) that was previously home to Death in the Afternoon, which closed in November. It aims to open in March—in time for opening day at Busch Stadium.
"We are proud to call St. Louis home and have looked for a downtown space for a few years to really cement that relationship," said Kaldi’s owner, Tricia Zimmer Ferguson, in a statement. "We were ecstatic to hear from the Gateway Foundation about putting a Kaldi’s into the park."
Some cosmetic changes will be made in the build-out, including a longer, coffee-focused bar. The space will also mark the return of a Citygarden sculpture: Adam and Eve by Niki de Saint Phalle. Zimmer Ferguson says the artwork will bring a "pop of color."
Expect a brunch menu and a line of drinks on tap such as cold brew coffee, nitro cold brew, sparkling teas, and a few cocktails. Frank McGinty, Kaldi's culinary and marketing director, said in a statement they plan to use the Citygarden space as a "test kitchen to introduce new food and drink items that will then roll out at [the] other cafes."
Two other Kaldi's locations will make their debut later this year: one at Washington University School of Medicine in April and one inside a mixed-use development in the Central West End, The Euclid, slated for a November opening. The Euclid will house 72 residential units as well as the first St. Louis location of Shake Shack.
The newest Kaldi's (pictured below) opened February 4 in Midtown at the corner of Laclede and Vandeventer.
Photo by Sara Kaiman
The tea-on-tap bar at the newest Kaldi's Coffee location
Photo by Sara Kaiman
Kaldi's exterior, Laclede and Vandeventer
