“Sometimes you just get kicked in the pants.” That’s how a conversation with Mike Randolph began today regarding the imminent closing of Randolfi’s Italian Kitchen, the 2-year-old restaurant in the Delmar Loop that he owns with his wife, Liz.
On Monday, the couple announced that they plan to close the critically acclaimed restaurant on September 9. (The pair also owns Público and Half & Half, which will soon include a new location in Webster Groves, opening September 5.)
“I don’t want to sound bitter about this, because I’m not," says Randolph. "We had a great run, and I know we made a lot of people happy. It was a good restaurant, and because of the connection to my father, it was also a personal one."
Photo credit Greg Rannells
The restaurant paired a red-checkered atmosphere and vibe with Neapolitan pizza and inventive takes on fresh pasta, which Randolph thought would attract both traditional and adventuresome diners. Randolfi’s received numerous accolades over the past two years, including being named among the metro region's top restaurants on St. Louis Post-Dispatch critic Ian Froeb’s STL 100 list (#8 last year) and SLM's most recent Best Restaurants feature.
“It wasn’t that we weren’t able to make connections with diners. We just couldn’t reach a big enough base,” says Randolph, referring to the myriad other casual Italian restaurants in town. “Everyone has their favorite little Italian restaurant. We found out the hard way how hard it is to break through a decades-old pecking order. Other Italian places are busy on Tuesday night. We weren't always one of them."
Público, located near Randolfi’s, “is successful because it filled a definite void. There was—and is—nothing else like it," he says. "At Randolfi’s, we got to the top of the hill a few times, but we just couldn’t sustain it. And while I believe that the food and space conceptually made sense, we realized one day that we were in no man’s land—perceived as a special occasion restaurant but lacking that elevated check average.”
Part of the problem might have been the pizza component. Nine years ago, Randolph opened The Good Pie in midtown and eventually moved it to the Loop before closing it and opening Randolfi’s. The restaurant kept the wood-burning oven and continued to serve the Neapolitan pizzas that both Good Pie iterations did so well. Authentic Neapolitan pizza—with its paucity of toppings, blackened crust, and crunchy bubbles—has found limited appeal in St. Louis, which confounds Randolph.
“There’s a lot of wood-fired pizza in this town that does sell well,” Randolph says, “but it’s not true Neapolitan.” Neapolitan pizza is “a lifestyle that takes a special pizzaiolo to create and perfect,” he adds. At the same time, the dish tends to lower the check average in a place like Randolfi’s, especially when a table splits a pie.
And while some St. Louisans have speculated that the Loop Trolley's construction impacted the business, Randolph points to the success of Público.
Still, he's perplexed that Randolfi's predecessor and its pizza—a seemingly natural fit in the college-friendly neighborhood—didn't take off in the Loop. “What continues to baffle me is why The Good Pie, with fewer moving parts, was not successful there.”
So what's in the future for the space? Three years remain on the lease, so it’s possible that Randolph will launch another concept or host private events there. First, though, he's letting the dust settle. "I know I’m a restless person, but you won’t see a Greek restaurant here in two months, I promise,” he says.
“I’ve received heartfelt responses from chef friends who understand the difficulties of the business," he adds. "I love cooking in St. Louis. It’s a wonderful place to ply our trade, raise a family, and I will continue to do my part in making St. Louis a really great food town. But everybody has to realize that—cool concepts notwithstanding—you have to focus on what’s working. It’s the Pastarias, the Peacemakers, and the Half & Halfs that pay the bills.”
That said, the Webster Groves location of Half & Half will open next Tuesday. “Conventional wisdom says to open on a Tuesday” instead of a weekend, he says. “And contrary to popular belief, there are times when I agree with conventional wisdom.”
Randolph plans to end Randolfi's two-year run with a bang and a flurry, by inviting the restaurant’s past chefs to join him in the final night of service. Joining Randolph and current chef Tommy Andrew are Russ Bodner of Taste Bar, former bartender/sous chef Mitch Hall, Taylor Hamilton of Melo’s Pizzeria, and Ted Wilson of Union Loafers.
“We’re going out on a high note,” Randolph says. “We all want to make sure the final taste is a good one for our customers. And in a liberating sense, we’re also doing it for ourselves.”
