Pedal’n Pi, a bicycle shop and pizza restaurant, has entered the home stretch in its journey to a new location, its owners say.
The business, which opened at 514 Bailey Road in Crystal City in 2021 and operated there until Jan. 3, is moving to 319 W. Main St. in Festus. The reopening in the new spot is imminent, said Chris Creed, who owns the business, along with his wife, Rene Creed.
“We hope to open the week of Jan. 12,” he said.
The Creeds are renting the new location, which for many years was the site of a Sinclair gas station. Shane and Erin Mercer of Festus own the property. The Mercers not only renovated the building, but expanded it from 1,000 square feet to 2,500 square feet, while adding a patio area and a drive-thru.
Initially, Creed said he underestimated the importance of adding a drive-thru.
“When this (drive-thru) first came up, when the Mercers were sharing the plans with us, I asked if we could turn the drive-thru area into showroom space for the bikes,” he said. “My wife was like, ‘No, I love the drive-thru.’ I didn’t think it was that big of a deal.
“Then, as we were going through our day-to-day work down (at the Crystal City location), I started noticing all the mothers carrying their toddlers and their pumpkin seats, trying to get their pizza to go.
“I mentioned to one of them we were going to have a drive-thru at the new place. She was like, ‘Oh, my God, you mean I don’t have to get out of my car?’ After that, I literally saw mom after mom doing that, lugging all this stuff in to get their food. So, it’s going to be a pretty big deal.”
Creed said the main reason for the move is the additional space at the new location.
“At the old spot, we had 37 seats,” he said. “Here, we’re probably going to have 50 to 60 inside seats and another 50 to 60 seats outside.”
Creed said he also likes a feature of the new building left over from its gas station days, a garage door.
“On a nice day, we can roll up the garage door,” he said. “There also will be tables on the patio when it’s warmer, springtime, or if this winter spring weather keeps happening, we’ll put them out there now.”
Creed said Pedal’n Pi will continue to offer the fare clients have come to expect.
“Pizza is the staple,” he said. “Then, we have our turkey sandwich; our wings; chicken and dumplings; all the amazing baked goods – sourdough bread and sweet treats, like our gigantic cinnamon rolls and gooey butter cake. We have salads.”
More options likely will be added to the adult beverage menu, he said.
“We will have a full liquor license here,” Creed said. “That doesn’t mean we’ll have a full bar service, but we could possibly add some limited cocktails, and we do plan to have margaritas on tap. We’ve only had beer and wine before.”
The part of the business that sells and repairs bikes will also have more space, he noted.
“The inside will have a showroom. Then, (the repair shop run by Johnny Merli), who handles the bicycle side of the operation, sales and service – he’ll be in a converted 40-foot shipping container, increasing his repair shop significantly.”
The hours of operation will remain the same, he said.
“As of right now, we’re going to keep our current hours, which are Wednesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.,” he said.
“That might change. We’ll see. We spend those other days working on our nonprofit work – working on Plattin Peak Trails. It’s not like we take three days off. We’re still working.”
The Creeds run Living Life on 2 Wheels, a nonprofit group that promotes bicycle riding for all ages, and the Plattin Peak Trails they are developing will be dedicated to cycling on a 576-acre property off Plattin Road south of Festus.
The Creeds currently operate Pedal’n Pi, along with four full-time and five part-time employees.
“We’re going to have to hire more employees, because we know we’re going to be really busy with the added space,” he said. “I’d say we’ll be adding five to 10 employees, possibly.”
He said another improvement is the business will now have its own parking lot.
“We’re still working on our parking lot design here,” Creed said. “I’m going to guess 10 to 15 spots.”
For more information, visit pedalnpi.com, go to its Facebook page or call 636-638-1080.