Fried chicken is flocking to St. Louis, and two big restaurant names have just thrown their knives into the ring. Chef Rick Lewis announced today that he is leaving Quincy Street Bistro to open a chicken shack called Southern with Pappy’s Smokehouse owner Mike Emerson, as reported by St. Louis Magazine.
Emerson and Lewis hope to open Southern, which will be located at 3108 Olive St., next door to Pappy’s in Midtown, in mid-April. Lewis described the fast-casual concept as a mixture of popular Nashville hot chicken spot Hattie B’s and Southern/Cajun-focused Cochon in New Orleans. Southern will serve hot chicken as well as sandwiches made with house charcuterie and other classic Southern fare.
The two men have been friends since Lewis took the helm at Quincy Street in 2012. Lewis’ elevated comfort food at Quincy Street received local and national acclaim; in 2014 he was a semifinalist for a James Beard Foundation Award in the Rising Star category. The friendship grew to a business partnership recently when Lewis, looking to start another project, sat down with Emerson, who sought to add another restaurant to his fold. Emerson also co-owns popular barbecue spots Bogart’s and newer Adam’s Smokehouse, which Sauce reviewed in July 2014.
“We started our business based on comfort food, and this guy takes comfort food to another level,” remarked Emerson about Lewis’ talent as a chef. “In the barbecue business, you start with the best product, and when I get to start with one of the best chefs in town, that doesn’t hurt either. It’s like signing Derek Jeter.”
Emerson said he wasn’t worried about the growing roster of fried chicken restaurants opening in St. Louis, and that he looked forward to Lewis’ unique contribution to the genre. “It’s always been one of my favorites,” said Emerson of fried chicken. “We’re in love with anything along the comfort food line. I’m not going to stop just because places keep popping up.”
At Quincy Street, Lewis said chef Chris Tirone (a member of the Sauce Ones to Watch class of 2011) will take the helm as executive chef, a role he has unofficially filled since hip surgery limited Lewis’ role in the kitchen for several months last year. “I’m not trying to tear something I built apart,” Lewis said.
Despite his new project, expect to see Lewis frequently Quincy Street often – his in-laws own the joint. “I’m always going to be up in that place,” he said. “There’s no doubt about that.”
This article appears in Guide to Beer 2015.