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The Maine-style lobster roll with homemade chips. Look close to see the crab-themed paper liner.
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Raw barnwood ceiling planks, original 8 X 8 posts, and lights made from galvanized tubs and old steel funnels.
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New, pastel-colored Tolix-style cafe chairs paired with an old, zinc-topped table
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An old piece of scaffolding shelves Mason jar glassware and three ARCTIC coolers (a defunct St. Louis-based company) hold plenty of water, iced tea, and lemonade.
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We're calling it the "'Murica" table.
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Shrimp Poorboy with house made chips
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Raw Bar selections du jour
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A 130-year-old, granite farm trough (brought back from Michigan by owner Kevin Nashan) sees new life at Peacemaker's raw bar.
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Portraits of current fisherman line two back walls.
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White-washed wooden beams create another focal point
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Original use: beverage cooler; new use: ice bin
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The Oysterman, shot in 1934 by Missouri-born photographer Fonville Winans, who claimed that due to the lack of available film, "most of my pictures, I made with one shot."
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The Peacemaker Poorboy. Super-fresh oysters assure succulence and quality.
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Half-a-dozen oysters and a half-pound of peel & eat shrimp.
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Accoutrements
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Homemade blackberry pie, moments before service. Note the galvanized tray--its original use is the same as its current one: snow cone holder.
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Nashan's take on succotash is perked up by a harissa vinaigrette.
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Peacemaker's mantra, proudly displayed by staffer Brandon Doss
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A fine example of making new signage look old.
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St. Louis meets East Coast: a crab with fleur de lis. Attractive in daylight, we suspect the back-lit sculpture is even more dramatic at night.
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The inaugural menu
We can now confirm the initial report--that Kevin Nashan’s new Peacemaker Lobster & Crab Co. looks not a whit like the two restaurants that preceded it.
Nashan and his wrecking crew blew out several walls between the former Niche and Taste by Niche, and opened up the drop ceiling as well, creating an open, airy--and if last night’s ¾ full house was any indication--relatively quiet space.
Peacemaker is an homage to the quaint lobster and crab shacks found throughout New England and especially Maine. Appropriately, the overriding colorant is white: bright white subway tile, clapboard walls, painted-then-stripped beams, the new-old “Crab -- Lobster -- Raw Bar” insignia out front.
White brick walls are festooned with portraits of New England fisherman in action, recently commissioned--the photographer elected to work “for trade,” we were told.
Rustic brac-a-brac dots the interior landscape: an old farm trough displays fresh oysters; 5-gallon galvanized coolers hold iced tea, sweet tea, and lemonade; nearby, a former steel Coca-Cola cooler serves as an ice bin.
New galvanized tubs have been fashioned into light fixtures, but look a hundred years old thanks to lye-based “aging” chemicals, and look identical in vintage to those made from inverted oil funnels (which are, in fact, old).
Many of the tabletops are made from sealed planks of old barnwood, but one—a window-side table for eight—is of rugged zinc, a farm-kitchen relic perhaps.
Steel chairs, colored sky blue and sea foam green, match Mason jar glassware in the same colors.
Pleasant surroundings aside, it’s the simple, fresh-as-possible fare that will be most remembered here. Not surprisingly, the big seller on opening night was the lobster roll, stuffed with six ounces of fresh Maine lobster meat, served on a split, buttery, melt-in-your-mouth Companion roll that took four months to perfect, according to Nashan. The market price for that roll was $22, served with housemade chips (Nashan noted “and it really should have been $2-3 dollars more than that”).
The # 2 seller was fresh shucked oysters, the evening's varieties noted above the raw bar. One member of the local fooderati called them “maybe the best I’ve ever had in St. Louis,” which may just elevate the $12 Peacemaker (classic oyster) Poorboy to signature item status as well.
Peacemaker is a fresh and raw seafood paradise indeed--rolls, boils, oysters, soups, plus steamed crabs, mussels, and clams. Nashan's love of New Orleans shines through as well, so there's chowder and gumbo, oyster poorboys and one with fried catfish. Smoked brisket and a loaded pork link are the only non-seafood outliers. Inexpensive salads and sides, plus a selection of what we'd call "Americana desserts" (homemade pies, snow cones, soft serve ice cream) round out the menu.
In the beverage department, look for a few local draft beers, several offerings in cans, and a small but nicely curated selection of glass wines.
Expect brisk crowds, and remember that reservations are taken only for six or more. Should you encounter a long wait, consider doing so at Nashan's flagship restaurant, Sidney Street Cafe. You'll find the three minute stroll down Sidney Street delightful.
The Peacemaker Lobster & Crab Co.
1831 Sidney
314-772-8858
Mon-Thurs: 4:30 p.m. - 9:30 p.m.
Fri-Sat: 4:30 p.m. - 10:30 p.m.
Sun: 1:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.
