One might automatically assume that Rock & Brews, a restaurant co-founded by KISS front men Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley that opens today at 17258 Chesterfield Airport Road (the former Estancia space in Chesterfield Commons), would likely be as outré as their onstage personas—or at least their makeup.
But after a sneak peek last week, our first impression was that the St. Louis outpost was more toned down than expected—and dare we say, tasteful. Instead of bits and pieces of rock memorabilia crammed onto every available wall, Simmons and Stanley opted for a less-is-more approach, blowing the requisite concert posters and album covers up to beyond poster size, magnifying their impact.
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The “Great Wall of Rock,” for example, could have been a busy, patchwork quilt of tired 8-by-10-inch photos. Far more impressive are the two rows of bigger-than-life, black-and-white head shots along the lipstick-red wall (pictured below), an up close and personal detail that rock aficionados of all ages will appreciate.
The main dining room is anchored by a large island bar with 42 tap handles. Above the bar is a grid of stage trusses and LED lights meant to replicate a concert experience, a family concert experience, according to Stanley, who will host the grand opening celebration with Simmons on January 11.
The wide-open floor plan offers the flexibility to combine long runs of tables, so the 8,600-square-foot space can easily accommodate large parties or impromptu groups from nearby sports complexes.
Rock & Brews is a combination of corporate and franchise units. St. Louis is the 18th store in the chain and the first in Missouri. More significant is how fast the concept has grown and how well received it has been. Kyle O’Neal, area manager for Kirk Williams (a franchisee for three of the units), notes that “Overland Park was our fourth store, and St. Louis is the 18th, but all of the in-between happened in a 32-month period.”
Rock & Brews was mentioned in Restaurant Business’ Future 50 for the second consecutive year, and it placed on the Next 20 and Breakout Brands lists in Nation’s Restaurant News, another major industry publication. Stanley was also on the September cover of Food & Beverage magazine.
Rock & Brews earned those accolades by doing several things differently:
Multi-purpose Conservatory: The restaurant seats a total of 340 people, 220 inside and another 120 in an all-season glass conservatory (pictured above) that wraps two sides of the building.
The versatile space is climate-controlled and boasts eight half-size garage doors that roll up for true al fresco dining. One side of the L-shaped space features soft seating and a fire pit; the other, picnic tables and a kid’s play area.
It also happens to be 100 percent dog-friendly. “In other markets, there’s always at least one dog on the patio from open to close,” says marketing and events coordinator Stephanie Green, who hints that the six-item dog menu (all served in dog bowls) might be an enticement. “Pets are an important part of a family,” Green says. “Why not include them, too?”
Separate Bar For Local Draft Beers: St. Louis is the first Rock & Brews location to dedicate a bar exclusively to local craft beers. The 30-seat room (that doubles as the restaurant’s waiting area) has 16 taps where guests can order a pint or sample 3-ounce pours.
Music System: The music library and videos are provided by Orange Door Entertainment, an interactive music system. Guests download the app to see the current playlist and can either pick a song from the queue or from the 40,000-song library, “and it plays next or close to next,” says Green, noting that the song is accompanied by its music video if there is one. (And we thought free jukeboxes were cool.) Also worth noting: The restaurant’s 40 speakers prevent music hot spots. “We don’t have to crank up the music for it to be heard,” says O’Neal.
Scratch Kitchen: Almost every menu item is made in house, “and the one microwave is only used to melt butter,” notes O’Neal. The kitchen sources local products when available (like Griesedieck Bros. ale, used for the beer-battered Alaskan cod) and buys the biggest chicken wing available for what has become its most popular item—Sweet & Spicy Asian Wings (pictured at right), hand-breaded to order, sauced, and garnished with cilantro. Spicy items, like the aforementioned wings, are depicted by a flaming guitar (and really spicy items by a double-flaming guitar).
The menu is broken into predictable rock-themed categories (Opening Acts, VIP Salads, Classic Hits, Encores), as well as several items that reinforce the theme, such as the Strawberry Fields salad (pictured above) and the Spicy Maui Wowie pizza (pictured below).
Other options include fall-off-the-bone baby back ribs (pictured above), shellacked in a Kansas City-style barbecue sauce, and the Gastropub burger (pictured below) served with fries.
One sharable item is a deconstructed bruschetta (pictured below), garlic cheese bread fanned around a bouillon cup of tomato-basil relish.
There are two private rooms, one with seating for 20 to 50 people that becomes semi-private when a row of windows (pictured above) are pulled down.
The other is a smaller, mural-covered room that seats eight to 16 people that gets way cooler when the doors are closed (pictured above and below).
A selfie with Gene and Paul, anyone? Go ahead… Stick out your tongue.
