An old adage says bad things happen in threes. Such will be the case along Morgan Ford Road in Tower Grove South this weekend, when the three affiliated restaurants owned by Zach and Mary Rice will all close, per the couple’s announcement on social media yesterday. Black Sheep Whiskey + Wine (3153 Morganford)) will close after service on Saturday. 3 Little Monkeys (3172 Morganford) and Mama 2’s Biscuits (the limited-hours brunch concept inside Black Sheep) will follow suit on Sunday. (The final weekend hours for the restaurants are posted here.)
The announcement, posted to all three restaurants’ Facebook pages, read in part: “This is definitely the hardest post we have had to make. With the heaviest and broken of hearts we have made the impossible choice to close our beloved restaurants, Black Sheep, Three Little Monkeys & Mama 2’s Biscuits. This decision did not come lightly; it came after years, months, & days of conversation, reflection, and trying to figure out how to make this work.”
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But despite surviving “the pandemic, renovations, rebranding, reopening, creating new concepts and opening another location [Three Little Monkeys],” the numbers didn’t add up. Regarding the latter, Mary tells SLM that it came in over budget and took longer than expected to open, leaving “no financial cushion,” as the couple had intended.
Echoing a now all-too-common refrain, the couple wrote, “The costs of operations are extremely high & unforgiving, all while the economy & dining habits have changed and no longer align with what we need to open the doors every day. We wish it were different.”
The Backstory
Three Monkeys opened at the corner of Morgan Ford and Juniata, just south of Tower Grove Park, in 2007. Zach Rice began as a server there and served as general manager from 2012 to 2015. He and his wife, Mary, bought the restaurant in 2018 and did their best to keep it open during the pandemic but closed it indefinitely in August 2020.
In 2022, feeling a need for a “weeknight date night” spot along the Morgan Ford corridor, the couple opened Black Sheep Whiskey + Wine in the space. The restaurant features more than 100 whiskeys, a robust wine list, and such dishes as a biscuit-topped chicken pot pie and Bloody Mary Deviled Eggs. Under the same roof, they introduced a secondary concept, Mama 2’s Biscuits, a biscuit-themed brunch restaurant.
In July 2023, they opened 3 Little Monkeys, a whimsical, ‘80s-themed restaurant and bar, across the street. It reprised favorite menu items from Three Monkeys, including its pizza and wings, tossed in the signature sweet and spicy wing sauce. The brightly colored restaurant features neon lights, arcade games, and period artwork. At the time, Zach told SLM, “the overall experience we’re trying to re-create is when you were out as a kid to get pizza with your parents, and they gave you $2 in quarters to play video games.”
Mary Rice tells SLM that the landlord has been instrumental in helping find a new tenant for what she says are two, well maintained, turnkey properties. “Right now, our focus has been on saying goodbye,” she says. “The next steps will be in areas that both we and our landlord have no experience with, so there are more questions than answers. But we’d like to think that these properties in this location will resonate with someone.”
The couple’s social media post ended with a glimmer of hope: “This isn’t goodbye for us – but more of a see you later…”
Regarding the future, Mary says that she and Zach will take the honeymoon they never took, “and take a minute to breathe,” then likely accept one of the many jobs they’ve already been offered. “After we refocus and reset, I’m sure the ownership bug will bite us again. It’s in our blood to create and to be leaders in the hospitality industry.”
