Clayton’s new Restaurant at Seven Gables Inn revamps the boutique hotel’s menu

When developer Restoration St. Louis bought the Seven Gables Inn in August, the new owners set about revamping the 32-room boutique hotel’s food and beverage offerings. Just over a month later, they launched The Restaurant at Seven Gables Inn, which replaces the hotel’s Irish bar, Molly Darcy’s.

The Irish iconography has been dispensed with, but the new restaurant does retain some echoes of its predecessor. Notably, the tiled floor remains intact around the bar area. However, the space has been spruced up with a fresh coat of paint and the addition of leather upholstery, new furniture, lighting fixtures, and a marble-top bar. As a result, the restaurant feels smart but approachable. They have installed a 70-inch TV on the wall by the bar, so you can keep up with the Blues and Cardinals while you eat. If you prefer not to, there are also plenty of tables without a view of the screen.

The menu holds on to some customer favorites from the Molly Darcy’s era, but bolsters those with a more well-rounded selection of appetizers, soups, salads, sandwiches, and entrées. “It used to be more of a lunch menu, a pub menu,” says Mike Russell, senior vice president of food and beverage for Seven Gables Inn. “People loved things like the pot pie, so we kept it. The locals liked that, so why mess with it? But they weren’t even doing dinner entrées before. I think that’s where they were missing the boat.”

Those entrées are available from 4–10 p.m. daily, and include a pan-seared slab of Atlantic salmon in a whiskey glaze ($21). The fluffy potatoes served alongside are whipped with lemon juice, which complements the salmon well. The dish is finished with a robust side of caramelized Brussels sprouts, chopped prosciutto, and carrots.

“Our thought is to let these dishes be flavor forward, and not to hide them with too much sauce, with simple presentations,” says Harry Lunt, the hotel’s senior vice president of sales and marketing. That approach is exemplified by the filet mignon ($29), which is the new menu’s headline dish: a piece of Braveheart beef from Davenport, Iowa, grilled however you like, with smashed potatoes and fresh vegetables. A soup or salad is included with every entrée.

The salmon and filet mignon are at the top of the price range, but the menu accommodates most budgets. There are plenty of dishes around the $10 mark, give or take a couple of dollars. The pot pie ($10) is warming winter fare, featuring poached chicken breast and mixed vegetables in a creamy broth. Break through the flaky pastry crust and scoop out spoonfuls of broth with chunks of pastry. There are also sandwiches like the peppered tenderloin, served on a brioche-style bun with crisped onions ($13), and the shrimp po’ boy, including deep-fried shrimp with lettuce, tomato and a Cajun remoulade ($12).

The portions here are generous, so two people can comfortably have a drink at the bar and share an appetizer or a salad. Perhaps the most interesting of these is the tuna tartare with avocado marinated in a soy glaze, served with ginger, wasabi, and crispy wontons ($14).

The loaded sidewinder fries ($10) live up to the name, with fried jalapeños, sour cream, bacon, and a cheddar sauce. If you like your fries with added refinement, go for the truffle fries with shaved Parmesan ($9). Seven Gable Inn’s salads are no afterthought: Keep it healthy with the spinach salad with grilled shrimp and strawberries or the house salad, with dried cherries, red onion, diced tomatoes, and goat cheese with mixed greens.

Another addition is dessert, with house-made chocolate chip cookies, tiramisu, or cheesecake. The tiramisu is rich, light, and large enough to share.

A good way to try this place out is to stop in for the daily special lunch deal. Between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m., you’ll pay only $9 or $10 for half of a salad or sandwich with a cup of soup, or a half-sandwich and half-salad together. In general, the prices are very fair for a Clayton restaurant, and especially considering the Seven Gables Inn itself is a 92-year-old Tudor Revival structure, listed on the National Registry of Historical Places since 1985. If none of that matters to you, it’s simply good food.

The Restaurant at Seven Gables Inn is off to a promising start, but work is still underway on realizing the new owners’ ambitions for the place. Eventually, “The Restaurant” will be given a new name. Extra streetside seating is set to be added, and a new awning will soon be installed. The hotel’s courtyard is also due to be renovated, and has the potential to be a unique setting for outdoor dining next year. Most important, Russell and Lunt say the menu will continue to evolve, with more dishes to be added and other innovations in the works.