We’re not sure why a city synonymous with toasted ravioli hasn’t had a ravioli-themed restaurant—until now. “I know we’re not the first ones to think about it,” says co-owner Matthew Fuller. “But we’re the first ones to do it.”
Neither Fuller nor his wife and partner, Brittany Abernathy, have been in the industry before; Fuller is a musician, while Abernathy is a physical therapist. Both will work full-time at STL Toasted, an endeavor that checks all the boxes. The food is craveable, versatile, doesn’t require an expensive chef to prepare, travels well, and the margins are good.
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After the combination of a serious car accident and the pandemic sidelined Fuller’s ability to perform for a year, he thought, I better find something to do. At that point, Abernathy encouraged him to follow his dream of opening an eatery that served both sweet and savory varieties of St. Louis’ bite-size indulgence. After testing the waters with pop-up events, the duo selected City Foundry STL to kick off the concept. STL Toasted is the 17th kitchen within The Food Hall (out of 20 available).
“Looking back, we never had the means or the place to do it,” Abernathy says. “We were researching a food truck, but after we saw City Foundry, we thought, Why not here, before the other Food Hall kitchens filled up? There’s a captive audience, and we can always add a truck later.”
The menu features scratch-made dough, fillings, and sauces made on site. In some cases, flavors and sauces are incorporated into the dough itself. The Apple Pie dough is flavored with honey and cinnamon, and the Buffalo chicken (pictured above) has buffalo sauce in the dough. Each ravioli type comes with a dedicated dipping sauce.
On the inaugural menu are five savory options (Italian Beef, Spinach Artichoke, Loaded Potato, Buffalo Chicken, Three Cheese) and two dessert ravs (Apple Pie and Lemon Blueberry Gooey Butter Cake).
Abernathy says the menu will be evaluated monthly and to expect rotating specials. “The one we’re getting the most requests for so far is a Philly Cheese Steak,” she says. One experiment that required more work than expected was the s‘mores rav, which was featured at a pop-up event. “The marshmallow fluff would ooze out in the fryer, so we ended up piping it into the finished product individually. It was really good, but time-consuming.”
Another reason that City Foundry was chosen was the ease of collaboration. “There are all these people selling wonderful products literally steps from us,” Abernathy says. “I can see doing collaborations with all of them. Poptimism offers soft-serve [ice cream], for example, so I’m envisioning a little cup served with our dessert ravs.”
To-go orders will be accepted, but delivery won’t be available initially. “I’m sure we’ll get catering orders, too, but we have to see how much we’re able to produce and prepare here,” Abernathy says. “That’s where having a food truck comes in handy.”
The couple would also like to offer frozen ravs that can be prepared at home, “similar to what Crispy Edge does with their potstickers,” Fuller says.
At STL Toasted, the savory raviolis come four for $10 (with the ability to mix and match two flavors), while the dessert ravs are sold individually for $3.50 each. “They’re so big and sweet and overstuffed that you only need one,” Abernathy says. “It doesn’t get any more St. Louis than a gooey butter cake ravioli.”
