On November 21, Nhat Nguyen and Remy Javed opened Mortar & Pestle (4611 Macklind) in Southhampton.
The restaurant builds on their heritage and their catering venture, Khana, where they tested Vietnamese and Pakistani dishes at restaurants and pop-ups across town.
Nguyen says the restaurant’s name reflects both cultures’ reliance on freshly ground spices—cumin, cardamom, coriander, turmeric—adding that the literal act of using a mortar and pestle felt like “the perfect symbol” for Nguyen and Javed’s partnership.
To avoid the pitfalls of his earlier restaurant, The Copper Pig, they launched with a smaller menu and limited dinner hours from Thursday through Saturday. “The secret is keeping the menu concise and consistent,” he explains.
Here’s what to know before you go.
The Concept
In 2015, Nguyen opened The Copper Pig, bringing a distinctly international flavor rooted in his travels around the globe to the Southampton neighborhood. He closed the business five years later—but, in December 2024, when the Copper Pig space became available, Nguyen and Javed felt confident enough to launch a new concept.
“We’re taking the flavors from the food of our home countries and putting a twist on it by combining them with American cuisine we have grown up with. The next level that we add to those three is with food experiences we have had on our travels,” Javed says.
“St. Louis is our home, so we wanted to open a restaurant that is a second home for everyone to come and enjoy,” she adds. “Whatever the reason or occasion, it checks the boxes.”
The Menu
Many of Khana’s popular dishes will reappear, including marinated steak sliders with chimichurri aioli. New creations include makhani rigatoni topped with burrata herb cheese, as well as steamed Nepalese momos with spiced ground chicken and tomato chutney.
“Some dishes will stay true to one culture, some will cross over, and some may just be Asian-inspired in general,” Nguyen says. “Like Crying Tiger Beef over garlic noodles.
The Vol-Au-Vent Duo is a nod to the influence of French cuisine on Vietnamese culinary history—with a Pakistani twist—featuring flaky puff-pastry cups filled with chicken korma and spinach-paneer curry.
“I call Nhat the Picasso of the menu, because it’s all of these things that he loves to eat and his way of adding dimension and uniqueness to each dish,” says Javed, who also pays tribute to essential dishes from her upbringing in creative new ways. A beef and lamb kabob entrée, for instance, features tender meat seasoned with a Middle Eastern and Pakistani spice blend, paired with homestyle dal, cumin rice, and Nguyen’s smoked turkey collard greens.
Beverages will lean on balance: Half of the former beer taps will be used for beer, and the rest will offer cocktails and wines alongside a concise wine list and batched and crafted cocktails. Nguyen adds, “We want the drinks to be as memorable as our food. We have guests that are thrilled to see Purple Rain on the menu again or fans of the Vietnamese espresso martini. We want everyone to be able to enjoy our beverage menu whether it’s an N/A beverage, cocktail, wine, or beer.”
The Atmosphere
The dining room will seat 40–45 guests. While many design elements from The Copper Pig remain—warm woods, windows that open onto the street, and pendant lights that glow like fireflies—the updated layout will feature different table heights and cushioned chairs for a more lounge-like, comfortable feel. The rugged, repurposed wood used for the base of the bar will remain, serving as the perfect foil for the copper cladding wrapped over the bartop.
“It was already gorgeous thanks to Nhat’s design when we got together to do the concept, but Nhat wanted to enhance it so that it represents us,” Javed says. “So far, some guests have told us that they love that it has a bit of a feminine touch to it now.”
The 2,100-square-foot space features accents such as decorative mirrors from Lima and fabric napkins featuring colorful Pakistani prints. A new lounge area enables guests to sit and enjoy drinks by the window. “We wanted to create an inviting and cozy place for the neighborhood,” she adds. “It’s definitely a his and her space. The bar is all Nhat, and the dining area is all me.”
The Backstory
Nguyen, who once owned the South Grand bar Urban and the Riverfront Times named “Best Bartender” in 2009, opened The Copper Pig in 2015. The restaurant earned a following for inventive global dishes including fried planks of red beets (a.k.a. “beet fries”) served with whipped goat cheese, Chao Tom (shrimp meatballs on sugarcane skewers), and tempura avocado tacos with sweet chili coleslaw.
Nguyen closed The Copper Pig in 2021 because of staffing struggles. (“It wasn’t from lack of business,” he said at the time. “It was just getting so much harder to run the business.”) Soon after, he and Javed launched Khana (“food” in Urdu), an in-house catering operation that temporarily took over the foodservice at 33 Wine Shop & Bar in Lafayette Square (a contract that ended a year ago) and Vino STL, which closed in August.
The duo credits Khana as the proving ground for Mortar & Pestle. Nguyen says it was Javed who helped spark his return to the kitchen. ”Nhat has a creative side that takes food to a crazy level. There are many times that I’ve said no to his ideas, only to find that people love it,” Javed says. “He has even made me go way outside of my comfort zone with food, and I admit he is right, which is so hard for me to say to him.”
Javed previously owned a coffee shop in Webster Groves called Café Nura, which was later renamed Abode Coffee House. She brings nearly 30 years of hospitality experience to the table. The duo met while working together at a restaurant many years ago and bonded over their passion for food.
“We are basically two people who just love great cuisine. We’ve grown up watching our parents and grandparents cook,” Javed says. “I remember watching my grandmother using the mortar and pestle to grind spices. We want to carry on our traditions while introducing newer flavors from all around the world.”
Another reason that Remy got back into the business was her daughter, Aisha, who’s been a big support. “She loved when I had the café,” Remy reflects, “and it was a highlight for customers seeing this little girl ringing people at the register and taking orders.”
Now, as a young adult, she’s back covering the hostess stand and assisting with some managerial duties. “I also want Aisha to remember that there is a place that serves the food we grew up on together to others and that she is part of that. People in the industry are forced to be away from their families—their kids, in particular. Sometimes, the kids don’t understand, and it’s important that they do.”
Together, the trio believes they’ve built not only a new restaurant but also a unique experience for the neighborhood to enjoy. The redesigned space has also increased bookings for private catered events, allowing the duo to customize menu items to different palates.
“Nhat lives in South City and loves the neighborhood,” Javed says. “He speaks volumes of the neighbors and how they’ve always been very supportive, welcoming, and loyal. St. Louis is a great city, and we are both really excited to bring another restaurant option to the table.”
Mortar & Pestle
📍 4611 Macklind, Southampton
📞 314-610-2563
⏰ 5–11 p.m. Thu–Sat
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