Burst Pipe at the Shaved Duck Temporarily Closes Restaurant

Earlier this month, the Shaved Duck got the kind of publicity that can drive a huge bump in foot traffic: The website Mashed declared it the best of all the "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives" in Missouri.  From there came an onslaught of stories suggesting the Tower Grove East barbecue spot was, in fact, Guy Fieri's Show Me State favorite.

But the restaurant's ability to cash in on its viral glory came to a screeching halt earlier this week. On Tuesday afternoon, at the tail end of the brutal cold snap that gripped St. Louis over Christmas, General Manager Katie Gwaltney keyed in to the Shaved Duck to find a flood.

"When I walked up to the door, I could already hear the water running," she says. Inside, she says, "it was raining from the ceiling." Water covered the entire bar room and dining room. Part of the ceiling in the bar area had collapsed.

Suffice it to say, the damage caused by a broken pipe means the restaurant is now closed indefinitely. Gwaltney says the place will reopen — but at this point, it's impossible to say when. "Because of all the pipes bursting right now, we haven't been able to get someone to come out." They're hopeful that someone is coming by today.

In the meantime, the restaurant's 15 employees are out of a job — on a week they would normally expect to see healthy tips and lots of hours.

"This is the worst time this could happen," Gwaltney says, noting that January is traditionally extremely slow in the restaurant industry. Late December, especially a mild week like this one has become, is the last chance to make bank before business craters.

Hoping to help the staff get through what could be some very lean weeks,  Gwaltney has put up a GoFundMe campaign. She's urging people to donate. "We don't know if it's going to be a week or a month," she says. "We don't want anyone on the staff to worry about eating, or gas in the car."

Despite all the uncertainty, Gwaltney is sure about one thing. "We are going to reopen," she says.

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