Near the corner of Washington Avenue and 6th Street, several exciting new developments are in the works for Downtown St. Louis including the National Blues Museum, Gerard Craft’s Porano Pasta & Gelato, and Sugarfire Smoke House. A second location for The Kitchen Sink might just spearhead the area’s momentum this fall: Chef-owner Anthony Ellerson Jr. hopes to open doors at his Cajun-inspired American eatery by the end of the month, and we stopped in to see what’s in store.

As reported in April, this location of Ellerson’s homegrown concept is its third iteration – a currently active location at 255 Union Blvd. opened in 2013 after relocating from its original home at 280 DeBaliviere Ave. The new Downtown location takes a decidedly stronger emphasis on nightlife than its flagship, with lounge-like sensibilities and a new late-night menu.

The restaurant and bar fill a space inside the 555 Washington building originally constructed in 1834, and guests will be able to enter from the building’s foyer or through an exterior entrance on Sixth Street. The 7,293-square-foot space seats 130 and showcases restored vintage charm from its former life as a shipping facility, accentuated by high ceilings, exposed brick and studded panels. 

To lend a modern spin, the bottom of the bar comes lined with glowing aquariums beside a few large, handcrafted booths by Mwanzi Co., which also built all the wooden tables for the dining room. While the front of the house yields roughly the same capacity as the Union Ave. location, Ellerson plans to expand production to help meet demand.

“I’m staying true to cooking everything fresh, always,” Ellerson says. “We got the right equipment for the space this time around because I’d rather sit here and twiddle my thumbs than sit on tickets.”

In the back of the house, his staff will work with 10 new stovetop burners – a vast improvement over the three in The Kitchen Sink’s current kitchen – to make popular breakfast dishes like the Crab-Cake Beanie, a fried homemade crab cake topped with flash-fried spinach, a poached egg and Creole hollandaise. Instead of just two waffle irons, the Downtown spot will rock eight new presses to whip up its popular chicken and waffles entree.

Patrons will find the full menu of fan favorites such as étouffée, shrimp and grits and brimming burgers here, with the addition of dinner specials including tabletop crawfish boils. A late-night menu will feature St. Louis-style pies every night in unique varieties such as muffaletta pizza, jerk-chicken pizza and Cajun pizza. To wash it all down, the full bar will offer 20 drafts and a range of liquor from well drinks to high-end options.

The Kitchen Sink will be open seven days a week from 9am to 2am, with the kitchen closing at 1am each night. Live entertainment including blues performances and an open-mic night are planned for several nights of the week. During its opening weekend, proceeds will benefit charity causes including Lift for Life Gym.

The Kitchen Sink, 555 Washington Ave., Downtown; St. Louis, Missouri, letseat.at/thekitchensink

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Mabel Suen

Mabel Suen is the St. Louis contributing editor for Feast.

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