One of City Foundry’s most popular concepts is closing up shop inside the food hall: STL Toasted (3730 Foundry Way) announced that it will be leaving City Foundry STL at the end of this month. But fans of the toasted ravioli restaurant should not fret—it plans to continue operations at its current Hill location, with owners Matthew Fuller and Brittany Abernathy promising even more from the brand.
“This decision will allow us to really focus on doing more out of our brick-and-mortar without the requirements and restrictions of a food hall,” Fuller and Abernathy said in a Facebook post announcing the closure. “We’re thankful to have had this space to introduce ourselves to STL but it’s time to level up and give you even more!”
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Reached for comment, Fuller explained that consolidating operations to STL Toasted’s space on The Hill—which includes the brand’s commissary—will help them meet more requests they’ve been receiving for wholesale, special orders, and more.
“We have been getting more and more requests for wholesale and things like that, and we are gearing up to get into other spots. Nicky Slices plans on using our toasted ravioli when they open, and there is a new spot opening in the Kranzberg Arts Center called The Key that is going to be using our stuff, too,” Fuller says. “This will allow us to expand what we can do.”
Fuller also notes that they felt somewhat limited by what they could offer at City Foundry. Once they got into the Hill location and saw the potential of what they could produce, it made them want more.
“At the Foundry, we could only do toasted ravioli,” Fuller says. “On the Hill, we have been making sandwiches and porchetta and housemade roast beef. We have all sorts of plans for what we can do. We’d rather be in a place where we have control of our hours and what we put on the menu.”
One of those forthcoming dishes, salsiccia, has deep roots in the building where STL Toasted operates. “We’re bringing back some of the traditions of Mama Toscano’s,” Fuller says. “The former owner brought in his great-great-grandfather’s recipe from Italy that is over 100 years old, and we are excited to use that here. We like that we are able to honor some of the traditions but also do our own new things, too.”
The Backstory
After a serious car accident and the pandemic put Fuller’s music career on hold, he was looking for a new professional and creative path. A fan of toasted ravioli, he was surprised to discover that no one had ever opened a toasted ravioli-centric restaurant in St. Louis and asked his wife what she thought. The pair quickly decided that it was a winning idea and launched the STL Toasted brand, first as a series of pop-ups and eventually, in 2022, as a kitchen inside City Foundry’s food hall.
The brand was an instant success as diners clamored for STL Toasted’s high-quality toasted ravioli, which came in a variety of savory and sweet varieties. The popularity allowed Abernathy and Fuller to open a brick-and-mortar space on The Hill earlier this year. Now, firmly established in their new neighborhood, the husband-and-wife team are grateful to the neighborhood for being so supportive and look forward to building upon the success they’ve already achieved.
“The Hill has been great; we have so many regular customers and repeat business,” Fuller says. “Walking around the other night, it was so surreal to think that we are a part of this historic community. We can’t wait to see how it grows.”
