Chef Gerard Craft

Losing your mind with Chris Cosentino

Be Sure to follow him: @gerardfcraft

Niche Food Group is based in St. Louis, Missouri and owned by executive chef Gerard Craft. As a Food & Wine Best New Chef, Food & Wine Innovator of the Year, 2015 James Beard Foundation Award-winning Best Chef: Midwest, and Inc. Magazine Star Entrepreneur, Chef Craft has been a pioneer for the Midwest dining scene.

A native of Washington, D.C., Chef Craft became addicted to the restaurant life while living in Salt Lake City as a snowboard photographer. Chef Craft went on to cook at Bistro Toujours in Park City, Utah and Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles, California as well as stage at Ryland Inn in Whitehouse Station, New Jersey before making the leap to open a restaurant of his own.

Always a believer in following intuition, Chef Craft settled on a boarded-up building in the Benton Park neighborhood of St. Louis, a city that he had never visited, to open his first restaurant, Niche, at the age of 25 in 2005.

Niche Food Group has expanded its culinary offerings, with a diverse array of restaurants spanning six locations in St. Louis and one in Nashville, Tennessee. These include Brasserie by Niche, known for its French bistro fare; Pastaria, serving up approachable Italian cuisine; and Pastaria Deli & Wine, a unique combination of deli, wine, and retail shop adjacent to Pastaria. Additionally, Bowood by Niche offers a cozy brunch and lunch spot situated within Bowood Farms Garden Center.

Operating within the City Foundry, Niche Food Group oversees multiple concepts. At the Food Hall, Kitchen Bar provides a selection of wine, beer, and cocktails, while Fordo’s Killer Pizza serves up delicious wood-fired pizzas. Right below the Food Hall, None of the Above (NOTA) offers an upscale, subterranean speakeasy experience, specializing in craft cocktails and snacks.

Looking ahead to 2024, several new concepts are on the horizon. Brass Burger will enjoy a limited-time residency inside Urban Chestnut’s Midtown Biergarten, serving laid-back burgers and shoestring fries. Porano is slated to open in Des Peres, featuring fast-casual pasta and salad bowls, alongside pizza, beer, and wine. Finally, Expat BBQ will make its debut at City Foundry, offering globally inspired barbecue cuisine in an impressive 16,000-square-foot contemporary space.

Brasserie - @brasseriestl

Bowood - @bowoodbyniche

BrassBar - @brassbarstl

Expat - @expatstl

Fordo's - @fordoskillerpizza

Kitchen Bar - @kitchenbarstl

None of the Above - @notastl

Pastaria STL @pastariastl

Pastaria TN @pastarianashville

Pastaria Deli & Wine - @pastariadeliwine

Porano - @poranostl

Niche Food Group - @nichefoodgroup