A sports bar concept that used to be known for its servers wearing body paint above the waist — and pretty much only body paint above the waist — has closed its south county location.
Social Bar & Grill (4265 Reavis Barracks Road) announced the news on Facebook, saying the landlord's "refusal year after year to repair the significant building breakdowns" was to blame for the sudden closure. Just last month, the bar was seeking to hire additional staff.
"We're still looking for a new home for Social Bar & Grill so STAY TUNED," the Facebook post reads. "When we find it, we'll happily welcome you with open arms, warm smiles and delicious eats that you've come to know and love from us. For now, join us at our Soulard location, where the good vibes never end!"
A rep at the bar's Soulard sister location confirmed this morning that it remains fully open.
The Social House concept has had three locations, and counted among its owners/investors not only John Racanelli of Racanelli's Pizza but prominent criminal defense attorney Scott Rosenblum. However, its location in the Delmar Loop became mired in a costly legal battle, and even the full energies of equally prominent attorney Al Watkins were not enough to stave off a court-mediated closure after just four months of operation.
Steve Truesdell
A customer chats with a patron at the Social House II, which had a short but memorable run in the Loop.
The south county location managed to duck controversy, but perhaps that's because it was a much different version of the Social House experience — in its nearly 10 years in business, servers never employed the pasties-and-body-paint option pioneered in Soulard, an owner tells the RFT.
Unfortunately, in its telling, the bar did not manage to duck major issues with its building. As its Facebook post noted, "Despite our best efforts and substantial personal investments in repairs that the landlord refused to make year after the year, the necessary critical structural work has been continuously overlooked by the property management. By doing so, they have compromised the safety and standards we uphold for our team, our customers and our own family.
"It's not workable to have a restaurant at 85 degrees inside during summer months, week after week, because the A/C is mechanically inadequate. It's not workable to have plumbing backups and dangerous electrical breakdowns time and again. It's not workable to find black mold because of roof leaks that should have been fixed since we first moved into the place years ago. ... For these reasons and more, we've decided not to renew our lease in our current location."
You can read the full letter below:
Where will the sports bar reopen — and will the body paint ever come back? There are no clear answers just yet. But we know a good place to go in Soulard if you need some eye candy in the meantime.
Editor's note: A previous version of this story referred incorrectly to the attire of employees at the south county location. An owner says they did not wear body paint and pasties even in the bar's early days; it is not the case that that was a more recent development. We regret the error.
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