Luke Reynolds and Sam Berger, owners of Molly’s in Soulard, have announced that they will be renovating the restaurant. Plans include replacing banquette seating on the east wall in order to expand the bar and to replace the low-top tables in the bar room with high-tops.
The renovation, however, is only part of the story, explained Reynolds in a conversation with The Scoop today. “We want to garner better bar business,” said Reynolds. Plans are in the works to adjust entrées on the menu into small plates. “People aren’t buying entrees,” added Reynolds. “So instead of a $25 lamb dish, it will be like a $12 small plate, which is how people are dining these days.”
Although Molly’s in Soulard has garnered press recently due to the hiring of executive chef Bryan Flaxbeard and the debut of his new Creole menu, the owners chose to make these changes now because January is historically a slow month in the restaurant industry. “It’s either now or wait until summer,” responded Reynolds, who noted that his staff typically works 12-to 14-hour days in February and March to serve a Mardi Gras-loving crowd.
To make the changes without temporarily closing the restaurant, the Soulard bistro will not be offering dinner service beginning Monday, Jan. 10. Lunch service will continue Tuesday to Saturday, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Renovations are expected to take three to four weeks, with a target completion of mid-February.
This article appears in January 2011.