Vince Valenza — Blues City Deli

On this episode of The Sauce Podcast, host Lauren sits down with Vince Valenza, founder and owner of Blues City Deli, for a conversation about family, food, blues music, and the journey of building one of St. Louis’ most beloved sandwich shops.

Vince shares the story behind Blues City Deli and how what began as an idea for an Italian market evolved into a neighborhood institution known for its authentic sandwiches, welcoming atmosphere, and deep connection to music and community. Drawing inspiration from his Sicilian heritage and a lifelong love of blues, soul, and R&B, Vince explains how both food and music helped shape the identity of the deli.

He reflects on more than two decades in business, navigating industry challenges, surviving the pandemic, working alongside his children, and maintaining the consistency that has kept customers coming back year after year.

The conversation also explores the history of the historic Benton Park building that houses Blues City Deli, the return of live music through the deli’s patio concert series, the realities of running a restaurant during inflation, and what’s next for the future of the business.

Along the way, Vince shares stories about family, travel, favorite local restaurants, New Orleans influences, and why supporting small businesses remains more important than ever.

In this episode:

• The origins of Blues City Deli and its evolution from market to sandwich shop
• Vince’s Sicilian heritage and love of food
• How blues music inspired the deli’s name and identity
• Building a loyal customer base over 22 years
• The importance of consistency and hospitality in restaurants
• Popular menu favorites, including the Big Tommy and Sally's Spicy Italian
• Working alongside his sons and creating a family business
• The history of the Blues City Deli building in Benton Park
• Patio music series and the deli’s live music legacy
• St. Louis’ restaurant scene and supporting local businesses
• Navigating inflation, food costs, and industry challenges
• Future plans, including new smoked chicken offerings and expanded seating
• Favorite local restaurants and dining around St. Louis
• Family, travel, and life outside the restaurant

Come for the sandwiches. Stay for the stories. 🎶🥪

✨ Presented by SWADE Dispensary, with locations across Missouri. Learn more at swadecannabis.com. Our other podcast sponsors are 4 Hands Brewing Co. and LHM.

🎧 Watch on YouTube or listen on Spotify and all major platforms.

📅 New episodes drop every Tuesday.

Come for the conversation. Stay for the culture. 🌿

 ✨ Presented by SWADE Dispensary, with 12 locations across Missouri. Learn more at swadecannabis.com. Our other podcast sponsors are 4 Hands Brewing Co. and LHM.

🎧 Watch on YouTube or listen on Spotify and all major platforms.
 📅 New episodes drop every Tuesday.

Transcript

SPEAKER_03 0:00

I had a quadruple bypass in 2024. So on my way back from the hospital, I told my my wife, I'm like, we've got to go on multiple little vacations and bring the kids, you know. Yeah. So uh that's what we did.

SPEAKER_00 0:15

Suede Dispensary, now with 12 locations across Missouri, is taking convenience to a whole new level. The cannabis brand just opened its first ever 24-hour drive through storefront in Overland, meaning you can order online and pick up anytime, day or night. Whether you're planning ahead or making a late night run, Suede is ready when you are with quick pickup, expanded delivery, and a seamless experience. Hello, welcome to the Sauce Podcast. I'm your host, Lauren, and I am here with the owner of Blue City Deli over in Benton Park. This is Vince Balenza. And Vince, uh Blue City Deli is just such a hot spot over there and for the city as a whole. Can you kind of uh just tell us about your business?

SPEAKER_03 1:03

Well, we've been around 22 years and it's just chugging right along. We've been uh serving a lot of people and enjoying ourselves ever since day one.

SPEAKER_00 1:14

What do you think makes it so popular?

SPEAKER_03 1:17

Well, the food, hopefully. That's the main thing. And uh hopefully the friendliness and the consistency of the product, and and uh we uh have a great front-of-the-house team that tries to make people feel at home. So yeah, it's it's fantastic.

SPEAKER_00 1:35

I know when we did that article, um, the the landmark article a few months ago, I mean it just blew up. People love that spot. Right. Um so but I know you didn't necessarily intend to open as just a sandwich shop um your original vision. So kind of walk us through how that evolved.

SPEAKER_03 1:52

Oh, yeah. It was we didn't know for sure. We knew we were gonna have some sandwiches, and we knew we didn't know, we thought we would offer some product like a almost like a market type thing, and um sort of like an Italian market. Um like meat by the pound and you know salami prosciutto, different cheeses, and it didn't take long for the the community to just say, This is what you're gonna do. You're gonna be a sandwich shop. So it just evolved pretty quickly.

unknown 2:24

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 2:25

And what did you do before this?

SPEAKER_03 2:27

Oh, a variety of things. Um, I worked, um, I was a laborer for years, and uh uh my my heritage, uh Sicilian heritage, you know, we did a lot of food. Yeah. A lot of food. So um I was interested in it and um toyed around with opening like an Italian type cafe type thing. And then a friend of mine had a place up in North County called Fratelli's. They're and they're now in St. Charles. And back in the day, it was in probably 1985. He said, Why don't you come here and maybe help us out, you know? And then right as soon as that happened, that was it. I fell in love with it.

SPEAKER_00 3:10

So that's really cool. Yeah. Now I just feel like it's so tough for restaurants right now, you know, and it's getting harder. But you guys just seem to be uh chugging along over there. So what is setting you apart from all of these restaurants that are having to close their doors?

SPEAKER_03 3:27

You hate to hear that people shutting down. It's very sad. And you know, it's been it's been a blessing for us to still be here, especially maneuvering during COVID and whatnot. Uh we just try to be consistent and uh don't take try to take on too much at once and uh try to offer a good line of core products and maybe have a little innovation in there in between. And um uh so the people know what they're getting when they come in the door.

SPEAKER_00 3:54

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 3:55

So but we have have some surprises once in a while.

SPEAKER_00 3:58

Yeah. Okay. Well, let's talk about your core menu. Like what are the most popular items there?

SPEAKER_03 4:03

Every uh you break it down, we have like Delicious Italian and the on in that area, the Italian sandwiches, we have about uh four or five different ones. Um the muffalata is sort of what we built our reputation on, even though we don't sell a lot of those, um, but consistently every day we sell some. And um so that one I have to say it is because there's not a whole lot of places in St. Louis serving muffalettas. Okay. And um we've brought in some new stuff. Uh the Sally Spicy Italian is just really taken off. It has uh prosciutto and capacola, fresh mozzarella, it's got balsamic glaze and extra virgin olive oil and all the good stuff.

SPEAKER_00 4:47

Is that what you brought me for lunch? Yes. Okay, I'm very excited to try it.

SPEAKER_03 4:50

Yeah, and there's a little spiciness, but there's also a little sweet from the glaze. Okay. So um that's real popular. Um roast beefs, we do all in-house. And there, there's a few. The one I like the most is the Big Tommy, and it's real simple. It's the hot roast beef on garlic cheesebread with grilled sweet peppers and onions.

SPEAKER_00 5:11

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 5:12

And I add, I like a little spicy, so I'll add jardinero.

SPEAKER_00 5:15

Yeah, I used to live in Soulard and I would come and get that one pretty often. So it's been a while since I've been back there. I'm like not getting to my old haunts like I used to. Right. I need to get back in the city.

SPEAKER_03 5:25

Come on down. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 5:26

Okay. Now, is there like a moment that sticks out for you as like this is why I do what I do?

SPEAKER_03 5:34

Every day I walk in the door. I know it's sort of a cliche sound. It's just it's very relaxing in there, and it feels it's like a home away from home. And um, I love what I'm doing. I'm gonna be 72 this year, and uh I don't plan on stopping anytime soon, but I'm preparing for that with the family's gonna keep it going. Um my three sons are working there currently.

SPEAKER_01 5:59

Okay.

SPEAKER_03 5:59

At one point, I also have two daughters, and they were there for a while, but um we plan on keeping it going.

SPEAKER_00 6:06

Good. Now, okay, I have to say I talk to a lot of restaurant owners, and I don't hear the word relaxing used to describe a restaurant very often. So what's up with that?

SPEAKER_03 6:16

Relaxing?

SPEAKER_00 6:17

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 6:18

It is. I mean, it has its moments, it's part of the job, you know, and you have to be able to maneuver. But I I think with having uh the boys working there, uh plus a solid team.

SPEAKER_01 6:30

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 6:30

Um we never have those crazy moments, you know, things get nutty, but everybody has their strengths and weaknesses, which really helps. It's not all on, you know, say my shoulders.

SPEAKER_01 6:42

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 6:43

Um, so we all have our strengths and weaknesses, and we sort of meld together as a team. And like I said, our team uh is is really solid and couldn't do that without them either for sure.

SPEAKER_00 6:55

Yeah, that's so nice you're relaxing, you know.

SPEAKER_03 6:58

Everybody sort of knows what to do, and you know, everybody is has a role and everybody does their job.

SPEAKER_00 7:03

It's really nice you get to work with your family.

SPEAKER_03 7:06

Yeah, it's been great. Um Vinny, uh my oldest son, he started we he just graduated high school, and I'm like, guess what you're gonna do, but not really I can say he didn't want to go to college at that time, and he said, I'll help you, Dad. And then the other guys, uh Joe, I think he was maybe 14, but we had him down there on the weekends, and then Johnny was like 11 or really he was out there too helping us out on the in the early, early days. Nice take this out and go take it to this person, you know.

SPEAKER_00 7:36

I love it.

SPEAKER_03 7:37

That kind of thing.

SPEAKER_00 7:38

That's really sweet.

SPEAKER_03 7:38

It's been great.

SPEAKER_00 7:39

Okay, our podcast sponsor is Fourhands Brewing Company, which is celebrating 10 years of citywide here in St. Louis. The 10th anniversary celebration will feature collaborations with fellow iconic St. Louis companies, including Sauce on the Side, High Point Drive-In, Sugar Fire Smokehouse, Gus's Pretzel Shop, Fitz's Root Beer, Blue City Deli, STL Toasted, Strange Donuts, Peacemaker, Lobster and Crab Company, Clementine's Ice Cream, Strange Donuts, and more. Now, can we talk a little bit about the history of the building? Because that's pretty old, isn't it?

SPEAKER_03 8:13

I think the building, yes. We're doing work on it this week. It's gotta keep it up.

SPEAKER_00 8:19

Okay. Yeah, yeah. It takes a lot.

SPEAKER_03 8:21

Yeah, it it was opened in um or it was built, I think, in the late 1800s.

SPEAKER_01 8:26

Okay.

SPEAKER_03 8:27

And um uh it evolved. I think there was a family I hate to say Hendels. I can't remember their name. And it was a family corner grocery store for quite a few years.

SPEAKER_01 8:40

Okay.

SPEAKER_03 8:41

The family lived above. I met one of the daughters that was still living, and um I met her back around 2004 or five when we first opened.

SPEAKER_00 8:51

Oh, really?

SPEAKER_03 8:52

And yeah, so it was that, and then it was some other things. Somebody said it might have been a church for a while, um a barber shop potentially.

SPEAKER_01 9:00

Okay.

SPEAKER_03 9:01

And then uh the group called the McNair LLC at the time, the owners that owned it when I um started the deli, um they took it over. I think they did some rehab on it, and it was sort of white boxed out when I came down looking. And um and uh they were very super people. And um they told me early on, they're like, we rented this out to you because we want you to buy the building. And I was like, Me, I'm getting too old to buy a building, you know. But we did in 2013.

SPEAKER_00 9:36

So it paid off.

SPEAKER_03 9:38

Best move I ever made.

SPEAKER_00 9:40

And you know, property's the best investment, right?

SPEAKER_03 9:42

Right. Right.

SPEAKER_00 9:43

So if you ever did want to sell, right.

SPEAKER_03 9:47

We're not looking to.

SPEAKER_00 9:48

That's good.

SPEAKER_03 9:48

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 9:49

Okay. So what do you do when you're not at the restaurant?

SPEAKER_03 9:52

Uh usually go home take a nap. We go out to other restaurants around and try to, you know, support the small businesses out there.

SPEAKER_00 10:00

Which ones?

SPEAKER_03 10:01

Oh gosh, we go all over the place. Um one place I stop in once. It's I haven't been there enough, but I stop in uh often as on the hill. I live on the hill. It's STL Toasted.

SPEAKER_00 10:12

Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 10:13

Um, Matthew Fuller is doing a great job.

SPEAKER_00 10:16

I haven't been over there yet.

SPEAKER_03 10:17

He's just getting it going, but he's he's he's very, very skilled. Okay. He makes good sandwiches and toaster avioli and stuff like that. Go to Antonino's. Uh we go just here and there and everywhere, you know. So we like to get out. We're sort of empty nesters now, so we don't have to.

SPEAKER_00 10:35

Oh, yeah. How old are those kids?

SPEAKER_03 10:38

Uh my children.

SPEAKER_00 10:40

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 10:40

See, Vinny was born in 85, so he's 41, and Joey was 89, Johnny was 93, and then Christina was born in 2000, and then Grace, my babies, through 2003.

SPEAKER_00 10:54

Oh, wow. What are the girls up to?

SPEAKER_03 10:57

Christina is um working at Baso as a server. Oh, nice. And she's also going towards oh, going to nursing school. She's really close, like a semester away.

SPEAKER_00 11:12

Cool.

SPEAKER_03 11:13

And I was trying to lure her in back in the hospital.

SPEAKER_00 11:16

Uh-huh. Why are you at Basso?

SPEAKER_03 11:18

Yeah, yeah. She's she's been there for a couple years.

SPEAKER_00 11:21

Okay.

SPEAKER_03 11:21

And then um, Gracie has just got married, and then she's a nanny, and she helps do a little social media for us.

SPEAKER_00 11:29

Oh, nice. Yeah. That's important. You need someone young doing that, huh?

SPEAKER_03 11:33

Not me. That's what she's. I know, I know.

SPEAKER_00 11:35

It's tough. It is evolving.

SPEAKER_03 11:38

Yeah, so she does some little things here and there for us. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 11:40

That's nice.

SPEAKER_03 11:40

Uh-huh.

unknown 11:41

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 11:41

And you guys travel or do anything else for fun?

SPEAKER_03 11:45

Well, this year's been sort of a challenge. We had a lot of work to do on our home. And um, so we need to get we didn't get to get away, but I had a quadruple bypass in 2024. So on my way back from the hospital, I told my my wife, I'm like, we've got to go on multiple little vacations and bring the kids, you know.

SPEAKER_02 12:06

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 12:06

So uh that's what we did. So we took each family to somewhere nearby, but not too far.

SPEAKER_01 12:13

That's good.

SPEAKER_03 12:14

Like five vacations was great. You know, so they were little like extended weekends, but that's fun. Yeah, it was good.

SPEAKER_00 12:20

Okay. Now, okay, so in our landmark article, we were talking about are you bringing back live music?

SPEAKER_03 12:28

Uh a little uh a little simpler approach and it's working pretty good. Okay. We're doing a patio series.

SPEAKER_01 12:36

Okay.

SPEAKER_03 12:37

So I just booked a couple bands for the spring one, spring, not even get into summer. Okay. So we're doing spring and um a fall series. Okay. Last about four or five weeks. And it's on Saturdays, it's real short and sweet. People go out, gather in the patio, and they listen to the shows, and you know, they can sit out. It's like an hour and fifteen, hour and thirty-minute show, and it's great.

SPEAKER_01 13:00

Perfect. Okay.

SPEAKER_03 13:01

Yeah. Uh sort of acoustic. You know, sometimes they'll bring it up. Kind of chill.

SPEAKER_01 13:05

Okay.

SPEAKER_03 13:05

It's more of a chill. Yeah. They bring their lawn chairs and they just pile in there.

SPEAKER_00 13:09

That's fun.

SPEAKER_03 13:09

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 13:10

What are the hours for that?

SPEAKER_03 13:11

It's like noon to about 1 30.

SPEAKER_00 13:13

Okay. So right at lunchtime.

SPEAKER_03 13:15

Early, yeah. Okay. Yeah. It's worked good. I miss all the shows.

SPEAKER_00 13:19

Uh-huh.

SPEAKER_03 13:19

I really do. Uh, but it just things just sort of evolved. And you know, we were very fortunate to it was just like a space and time. I when I look back and I'm like, I think to myself, I can't believe these bands were here, you know, a lot of local bands and then a few touring bands, because it was a natural stopping point to do us on a Thursday and play at one of the other blues clubs in town, or two on Friday and Saturday.

SPEAKER_00 13:46

Yeah. Okay. So speaking of blues, let's talk about the name. Why'd you choose Blues City Delhi?

SPEAKER_03 13:52

Well, when I started diving into what would I do for my own place, I really have a love for the history of blues music and um RB and soul, I was sort of raised around it. And my sisters had vinyl back in the day and listened to a lot of it. We listened to a lot of music at home. And um, so I sort of fell in love with it. And I also the food side of it, there's um a huge Sicilian population in New Orleans where the muffalata comes from, and that's sort of how it got started. So I started.

SPEAKER_00 14:28

I'm going there next weekend.

SPEAKER_03 14:30

Nice. So yeah, it's great. Yeah. So it just sort of, I thought it would be nice to um, I took a trip down there and uh um I love the vibe and the music, and you can hear the music everywhere, and the food's delicious, and so I thought it would be nice to sort of uh pay respect to that music style and look at the different regions and sort of um formed our first menu on the blues music highway.

SPEAKER_00 14:55

Oh, that's so fun. I love music.

SPEAKER_03 14:57

Oh, I do too. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 14:59

Any artists in particular you were inspired by?

SPEAKER_03 15:01

Oh, James Brown was a soul guy, you know and one of the greatest of all times. And um then uh back in my high school days, we were getting uh exposed to like some of the other RB guys like Sam and Dave and Carla Thomas and the Stax people and so fun. Yeah, and then later on in years I started learning about Chicago Chicago style blues uh from some friends.

SPEAKER_00 15:30

And yeah, you know, so how does that how's that different?

SPEAKER_03 15:34

Um I think of say like the Memphis, you know, the RB stuff, the stuff that was down in Tech um Memphis.

SPEAKER_00 15:44

Because that was stacks, right?

SPEAKER_03 15:45

That was stacks. Got the horn sections a lot of times, you know, that kind of thing. The wonderful horn sections. Uh can't think of some of the horn. Muscle Schules horn section, uh Tower of Power. No, they were what California, uh, Muscle Scholes, and I can't think of the other one. But anyway, really big on like a uh horns, the Memphis style.

SPEAKER_01 16:08

Okay.

SPEAKER_03 16:08

And then Chicago, um, a little more low down, blues, guitar, bass, you know, and they plugged in when they went to Chicago when the musicians moved up north.

SPEAKER_00 16:19

I see.

SPEAKER_03 16:20

Harmonica.

SPEAKER_00 16:21

Interesting.

SPEAKER_03 16:21

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 16:22

Okay. I didn't know that. Thank you for explaining this nuance.

SPEAKER_03 16:25

Well, it's just a little tidbit, but there's so many regions of blues, too. Yeah. Texas has a, you know, their own style, and it's great stuff. It really is.

SPEAKER_00 16:33

I'm with you there. At Basso on the Plaza in Westport Plaza, every glass of wine tells a story. From crisp prosecco, an elegant Francia Corta to vibrant Pinot Grigios, rich Chiantis, and a bold Barolo. Explore hand-selected Italian wines from light and refreshing to deep, full-bodied, reserve reds, including Brunello and Amarone. Whether you're celebrating or simply unwinding, there's a perfect pour waiting for you. Basso on the plaza is where Italian cuisine meets an unforgettable wine experience. Okay, well, what's next on the horizon for Blue City Deli?

SPEAKER_03 17:11

I knew you were gonna ask that question. I've been uh rehearsing it work this morning, what I was gonna say. I don't have anything to say yet, but something uh it's not another location, I will tell you that. I'm not interested in opening another location. But I'd like to expand um some um some of the offerings there. I can just tell you that. So it's exciting. We've got something uh in-house we're gonna be doing more of, and which I'm very excited about. So um our chicken, I might as well just say this, but our chicken that we currently have, we have to have that brought in. We do most of the stuff in-house, like our pork roast, uh pulled pork when we do that sandwich, uh roast beef, um pastrami. We do that all there. Now we're gonna be doing chicken, and I can't wait.

SPEAKER_00 18:06

Nice.

SPEAKER_03 18:07

Smoked. We're buying a new smoker.

SPEAKER_00 18:09

Oh, fun. Okay.

SPEAKER_03 18:10

That's a big deal for us. Yeah, you know.

SPEAKER_00 18:12

So that's starting soon.

SPEAKER_03 18:14

Yes. Um, I'm thinking maybe at the latest early July.

SPEAKER_00 18:19

Amazing. Yeah. Well, that's fun.

SPEAKER_03 18:20

It's a big ordeal, you know. It's like all the logistics behind it to make that happen because we sell a lot of chicken and we think we're gonna be selling a lot more.

SPEAKER_00 18:28

Yeah. Okay. Well, very cool. Well, can't wait to come frightful.

SPEAKER_03 18:31

That's one thing.

unknown 18:32

Okay.

SPEAKER_03 18:32

I better hold back the other things. I got all these. This is plan A, this is plan B. If plan A doesn't work, we'll go to plan B, and then we got a plan C.

SPEAKER_00 18:39

Plan C. Tell me all your secrets.

SPEAKER_03 18:41

No, I can't.

SPEAKER_00 18:43

Okay.

SPEAKER_03 18:43

Because I'll say, they'll say he said he was gonna do that, and that never happened. But we do want to uh uh it would be nice if somehow we could have a few more seats for customers.

SPEAKER_00 18:58

Yeah. Um it is a little tight in there, huh?

SPEAKER_03 19:01

It's a little tight. Sometimes it's a sort of fun, and then sometimes it's like poor people like I get if I'm getting claustrophobic, I'm like, oh no, you know we would like to find a way of doing that. And so we're looking at some options there.

SPEAKER_01 19:14

Okay.

SPEAKER_03 19:14

To have seating at least, you know, nine, ten months out of the year, you know, with some heat and you know, that could be oh, like a patio situation. Yeah, and it's it's it's taking a lot of time to because of the cost of goods to make that happen. So we're just taking our time. So we're looking at that.

SPEAKER_00 19:32

So Okay, that's fun.

SPEAKER_03 19:34

That would be really exciting.

SPEAKER_00 19:36

Yeah, for sure. I think um there would definitely be bodies to fill the seats. Right, we would try.

SPEAKER_03 19:41

We would try.

SPEAKER_00 19:42

Okay. So now how are you rolling with like inflation? Are you having to increase your prices?

SPEAKER_03 19:47

Well, we've had to, sort of. Uh, we're getting ready to do another one, unfortunately, because of the price of a lot of different things, especially beef. But um we're maneuvering through it. Um every we look at usually a year's worth of business and then we'll tweak then rather than react. Um, we rather be sort of proactive and just keep an eye on our prices and then and then say, okay, we have to do this.

SPEAKER_00 20:15

Yeah. Gotta survive. Right. I think that people are willing to pay more. It's just how it is.

SPEAKER_03 20:20

Try to tweak it. Um, so we do it about once a year. Okay. Yeah. Very much more than that. But there's been some ups and downs, and you just sort of have to ride the wave.

SPEAKER_01 20:29

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 20:29

Like produce right now is not too bad, but tomatoes are totally out of control. Are they? But you know, a lot of people are and it is really getting up there. You just sort of roll with it. When it gets to a certain point, then you make adjustments if you have to.

SPEAKER_00 20:43

So it seems to be working.

SPEAKER_03 20:45

It's working so far. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. We're not really too worried about it. No. Although that it, you know, I I have to say, I've never seen a case of tomatoes cost what it does now.

SPEAKER_00 20:55

Really?

SPEAKER_03 20:55

So, but it's just, it is what it is.

SPEAKER_00 20:57

Yeah. So nothing's really going down in price besides weed, huh?

SPEAKER_03 21:01

That's about it. Yeah. Well, I'll tell you what, um uh produce other than tomatoes has been f really consistent.

SPEAKER_01 21:10

So at least for us it has been.

SPEAKER_03 21:13

Good to know. It goes it does, it it has this up and down effect, but it's not too, it doesn't spike too much. Okay. So it's been pretty good. Nothing's gone lower. Like if I look at all the products we've had, if you and then you look back like two, three years ago, you're like, oh, geez, you know.

SPEAKER_02 21:29

No, it's not.

SPEAKER_03 21:30

But you just gotta go with it and you just have to try to tweak your prices. And we we hate to do that, but we don't want to do shrinkflation and all that. We take, you know, okay, let's make the big Tommy instead of six ounces of meat, do it four. Medium tummy, yeah, yeah, little Tommy. So, but um it's going good though.

SPEAKER_00 21:51

Awesome. Well, is there anything else you want people to know?

SPEAKER_03 21:54

Well, no big events coming up. Um, just yeah, just keep getting out there. I really believe in supporting small business and just get out there and support small local business. There's a lot of great restaurants in St. Louis.

SPEAKER_00 22:08

So many.

SPEAKER_03 22:10

What a time, you know. Um, it's really a special time to be one of them, you know. So um yes, get out and go to your local business. Stay away from the change if you can.

SPEAKER_00 22:21

Yeah, totally.

SPEAKER_03 22:22

Nothing totally against them, but you gotta support the small business people.

SPEAKER_00 22:26

So yeah. Cool. Well, thank you for stopping by.

SPEAKER_03 22:29

Oh, it's been great. It's nice to meet you in person, and you guys keep doing what you're doing. We're loving it.