Station No. 3 in Benton Park closing January 31

January ends with another restaurant closure. In a video post Friday night, Station No. 3 co-owner Natasha Kwan announced that the flagship restaurant, at 1956 Utah, would close at the end of business on January 31.

Photography by George Mahe

Photography by George Mahe

The satellite location in Kirkwood (10463 Manchester) remains open, as do Frida’s/Bonito Bar and Diego’s Cantina Cocina, adjacent restaurants in University City that Kwan and co-owner Rick Roloff also own.

The post noted that closing one location of Station No. 3 allows the couple to “restructure and consolidate” in order to “put our energy where it needs to be.”

In the video, Kwan said, “You know when you’re scrolling, and you see that white background with the text, and you’re like, Shit, what’s closing now? Well, this is one of those.”

Kwan noted that a common refrain in the dining industry, especially for independent local restaurants, is that it’s “really hard right now. Margins are tighter than ever, and costs are up.”

Reached today for comment, Kwan added, “We made the decision quickly, literally a few days ago. Costs continue to increase, and sales were heading in the wrong direction. The good news is it’s the perfect turnkey operation. The bones are good, we put a ton of money into it—everything is new—and the space is immaculate. We fell in love with the building and with Benton Park. It’s just not sustainable for us at the present time.”

The Backstory

Courtesy of Station No. 3

Courtesy of Station No. 3

In 2012, Kwan and Roloff opened Frida’s, which offered vegan, vegetarian, and raw cuisine. They opened Diego’s Cantina, a “husband” restaurant to Frida’s, next door in 2020.

In spring 2022, the flagship Station No. 3 opened in the former Utah Station space, a former service station. It marked the couple’s third restaurant concept, hence the name, and was billed as a “flexitarian gastropub…where vegans, vegetarians, and carnivores eat together.” 

Bonito Bar (“the bar that Frida’s needed but never had,” as Kwan describes it) followed in spring 2023. (Frida’s was named after Kwan’s cat, who was named after Mexican painter Frida Kahlo. Diego’s was named after Kahlo’s artist husband, Diego Rivera, and Bonito Bar was named after their pet parrot, Bonito.)

The sophomore location of Station No. 3 opened in Kirkwood in fall 2024.