Historic Main Street in St. Charles earns “Great Street” award, as new restaurants and bars move in
ST. LOUIS, Mo. (KMOV) - Missouri’s oldest and largest historic district is receiving new honors, as the Missouri Chapter of the American Planning Association designates Historic Main Street one of the state’s “Great Streets.”
“Somebody said the other night they were going to come out to the entertainment district and go from place to place and I said, ‘you can’t do that anymore its 15-20 minutes to get into every place, it’s that popular out here right now’”, said St. Charles Mayor Dan Borgmeyer. “There’s an upsurge going on in St. Charles right now that we’re very proud of.”
The north end of Main Street has boasted more open storefronts than other parts of the street, until now. In December, Main Street Honkey Tonk opened its doors, offering live music seven days a week along with a kitchen and nightly bar scene.
“I own a couple of these buildings and saw an opportunity of bringing some new energy to the street and thought this would be a good place to have some new restaurants,” said owner Dustin English. “I thought we could bring some new energy to the street.”
Building upon its success, English opened Margo Margo, a margarita and taco restaurant next door at the beginning of March.
“We completely gutted both spaces to make them what we envisioned and we’re completely invested in Historic Main Street,” he said. “I’m born and raised here and this is such a unique place with so much charm.”
Across the street, Marsha Timme opened Savor, a family restaurant, in February.
“When this building became available, it was like, I love this building,” Timme said. “We poured a lot of work into it and we’re working on a patio right now and hopefully, a mural that people can take pictures by on the back of the building.”
The menu features a wide selection, from locally sourced burgers to fried brussels sprouts and truffle fries.
“The gatherings that happen down here, families walking up and down the street, date night, shopping--everything you want to do you can find on Main Street,” she said. “It just made sense and it’s a form of nostalgia for my husband and I who used to run up and down Main Street when we were dating many years ago.”
Borgmeyer said the city is working closely with business owners to keep the historic district safe, after a few violent incidents broke out near some of the bars during the pandemic.
“I hate to keep repeating safe, but that’s what it’s all about,” he said. “It’s refreshing to see people come out here at night and have a good time.”
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