The chess-themed Kingside Diner has just inked a lease for a second location: the former Parigi space inside Clayton on the Park, which officially closed just last week. Kingside Diner owner Aaron Teitelbaum confirmed the news to SLM this morning.
The chess-themed flagship, which opened in April 2015, is located across from the World Chess Hall of Fame on Maryland Avenue in the Central West End.
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Teitelbaum, who also owns Herbie’s in Clayton, is taking a different approach than past tenants at the 100-seat space.
“With 200 leased apartments upstairs and a built-in clientele at Shaw Park right across the street, casual dining makes more sense there than high-end,” he says. “And Kingside’s prices are low—really low for downtown Clayton.”
Look for a repeat of Kingside’s proven menu (breakfast all day, plus lunch), which includes bacon-and-egg standards; healthy options, such as chef Eric Prophete’s grain bowls; and some whimsical dishes, such as the Damn Delicious (pictured above) and the “odd-sounding but delicious” peanut butter pumpkin avocado toast special. There’s even a kid’s menu “for the little pawns.”
The flagship was originally open for all three meal periods but found its sweet spot was breakfast and lunch. The CWE location is open daily from 6 a.m.–2 p.m. The Clayton outpost will follow suit, though it will add a small plates and desserts component—dubbed Kingside After Dark—on Thursday through Saturday evenings from 4 p.m.–1 a.m.
In the past, the restaurant location was subtle and nondescript, easy to miss while driving along Brentwood Boulevard. At Herbie’s, Teitelbaum doubled down on curb appeal by enhancing its two patios and adding a stainless-steel fire element. At Kingside, a 30-seat patio is planned for the north end of the property, where the entrance is now. The new entrance will be located on the more visible south corner, “just off the crosswalk, more accessible to passers-by, walkers, and kids from the pool who are just looking for a shake or an ice cream cone,” Teitelbaum says. Bolder signage is being designed to give Kingside more street presence.
Besides street parking, Teitelbaum has negotiated for designated parking spots in the covered garage and hopes to secure several 15-minute parking spots along the street. He says that retrofitting the space with “high-end diner decor” and chess-themed memorabilia is expected to take 60 days, so anticipate a January opening.
“We’ve taken a solid, proven concept and simply repeated it, which these days is smarter than embarking on a culinary ego trip,” Teitelbaum says.
“And we hope to repeat it again,” he adds, alluding to possible locations farther west.
