PHOTO BY SARAH FENSKE

The strozzapreti at Cibare — worth a visit to south county.

It's been a busy month on the St. Louis restaurant beat. Local favorites Death in the Afternoon and Nathalie's closed their doors, while Saint Louis Bread Co. angered South Grand denizens by shuttering only after razing several historic homes to create a parking lot.

But the good news outweighed the bad. St. Louis now has its first cat cafe — the wildly popular Mauhaus in Maplewood. It also got a new restaurant featuring classic Italian dishes (Cibare), a new upscale Mexican concept from noted chef Ben Poremba (Nixta) and a new spot from James Beard Award winner Gerard Craft (Sardella). Oh, and did we mention there's a new KISS-themed restaurant in town?

Closings

Openings

See below for our complete roster of openings and closings. Did we miss something? Let us know in the comments.