Mission Taco Joint to Open Kirkwood Spot in 2020 Featuring Arcade, Test Kitchen

Kirkwood fans of Mission Taco Joint (multiple locations) are in luck: Come early 2020, the St. Louis-based West Coast-style street food chain will open a location at 105 East Jefferson Street, according to a press release.

Located in the former Kirkwood Station Brewing Company space, the restaurant will mark the largest footprint yet for Mission, which operates six other locations in the St. Louis area and Kansas City.

The 12,000-square-foot space will allow Mission to grow its concept as well, offering a main dining room and bar area to seat 132 plus a 60-person private event space, a new and visible tortilla production line and a separate arcade space. The arcade, the first of its kind for Mission, will feature sixteen vintage arcade games, six pinball machines and four Skee-Ball games, as well as a quick-service test kitchen for new grab-and-go menu items and a bar dedicated to serving experimental cocktails.

"We are going to be able to have some fun with the space, especially on the arcade side," Mission co-owner Adam Tilford said in the release. "While our normal menu of Mission Taco Joint favorites will be available in the main dining room, the test kitchen in the Mission Arcade will be a place for our team to experiment with dishes that could potentially roll-out to our other locations."
Chef and co-owner Jason Tilford elaborates, explaining that the test kitchen menu will rotate often, affording regulars the chance to always try something new and exciting.

"The test kitchen menu will change frequently and will focus on masa-centric items such as empanadas, tamales, sopes, Mexico City-style quesadillas — dishes that can be portable and easy to eat while playing games," the chef said in the release. "We will be exploring that same philosophy with the small bar with seating for eight in the arcade space as well. We will have signature drinks like our Mission Margarita and Paloma, but we will also feature new creations from our beverage team led by beverage director Kyle Harlan."

Guests can expect to see a front-facing patio during warmer months. Space Architecture + Design will be managing the renovation and build-out. More as we learn it.

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