Harvest, a pioneer among local farm-to-table restaurants in St. Louis, is closing. The fine dining establishment, which opened in 1996, will shutter for good after dinner service this Sunday, June 15. Chef Nick Miller has owned Harvest for four years, having purchased it in 2010 from restaurateur Steve Gontram, who departed to open Five Star Burgers.
“Over the last couple years, I’ve given it pretty much everything I have, and it hasn’t been able to support our family,” Miller said. Slow numbers in December put him on alert, he explained, and while he hoped to push through it, the poor sales continued in May, normally a good month due to graduations. With expectations of a slow summer ahead since the restaurant does not have a patio for outdoor dining, he decided it was time to call it quits.
Miller’s immediate plans are to “sit back and reevaulate what I want to do and then plan the next venture,” he said. “I love food way too much to get out of (the culinary scene).” Miller, a 2001 graduate of the California Culinary Academy, has worked in restaurants since he was 16. He and his wife are St. Louis natives, and he said they plan to remain in town.
Supporters of Harvest still have an opportunity to dine at the restaurant before doors are locked. A few reservations remain for this weekend, during which Miller and his culinary crew plan to “bust out some of the old classics we’ve done and been mentioned for over the years.” Look for bacon-wrapped meatloaf, hanger steak and bread pudding.
This article appears in June 2014.