urbanSTL

Anyone notice the new sign at Three Monkeys?

Like the return of neon signs in the city, hopefully this establishment survives and thrives.

Love the sign and the bldg looks damn good. Cant wait to try it out.

Yep. They done this one up right.

the neighborhood smells great now, with the hardwood smoke coming from three monkeys smoker.

I have tried to go there for dinner twice and not been able to get a table. The place is really nice inside, but too small for the crowd it is drawing! One problem is that they have several bar tables that could accommodate diners, but the stools they purchased for them are too short for even a tall man (I am 6'1") to sit and eat comfortably. They also seem to be on some kind of group dinner circuit because I regularly see a gigantic stretch-limo suburban type thing idling (yes idling for hours ) outside? Last time I was in there there was a big group of senior citizens wearing santa hats taking up most of the back corner. Anyway, I am still excited to get the ribs, and the street does smell fantastic, I just wish I could get a table.

I had the breakfast brunch there yesterday. I thought it was pricy($14) at first, but found out my bloody mary came with the meal so it wasn't so bad. The waffles weren't the greatest, but I enjoyed everything else. The custom made omelettes are great, I'd suggest getting the pork.

Somewhere between the old-fashioned corner tavern and the newfangled concept of a gastropub lies Three Monkeys.



The new spot at Morganford Road and Juniata Avenue is loaded with character, with a forest of dark paneling on the walls and columns, along with exposed brick, leaded glass and many of the other architectural charms of an old-line city neighborhood.



Two of the partners are neighborhood entrepreneurs: Chris Vanhoogstraat, owner of nearby Stella Blues restaurant; and Stephanie Demma, manager of Stella Blues.



On the food side, it's generally a ribs, pizza, pasta and bar-food joint, with a few stabs at midprice steaks.

Bonwich!



-RBB

Thanks, Freddie. Your check will be in the usual place.

There is some sort of a day spa going in across the street from 3 Monkeys. Application for license posted out front.

A South City Day Spa….Wouldn't Elaine Viets have had a heyday with that one.

I feel silly for bringing this up, but what is this street's name exactly? Is it Morganford or Morgan Ford?



The street signs sometimes differ from one intersection to the next. I always assumed it was Morganford and someone just got the signs wrong, but when I picked up the TGS/Grand Oak Hill newsletter at Stella Blues a few weeks ago, I noticed every reference in the newsletter referred to the road as "Morgan Ford". So, which is it? I guess either spelling works as long as you can find your way around or receive mail if you live on the street, but it seems like there should be some consistency here.

I"m fairly certain it's "Morgan Ford." The street signs at principal intersections are printed that way. It's only the smaller intersections that they're bunched together.



The street was named for J.P. Morgan and Henry Ford, which I always found ironic as it ran through a very blue collar area of town.

I'm pretty sure it's "Marginfurd"



-RBB

Whoa.



Turns out I am completely wrong. According to the Public Library, it's "Morganford," and has nothing to do with the turn of the twentieth century millionaires.

Now that I think about it, I noticed the street signs on traffic signal crossbars at major intersections read "Morgan Ford", while the name is bunched together on street signs at minor intersections. I guess the record may never be set straight, so to speak.



I don't want to go off on a tangent, but "Kingshighway Blvd." and "Forest Park Parkway" really bug me as well. Kingshighway does resemble the true definition of a boulevard through north St. Louis and near the Barnes-Jewish hospital campus where a median is present, but otherwise the name seems redundant.



And, for Forest Park Parkway, I know it's called Forest Park Avenue past a certain point. It seems like Forest Parkway would make more sense, or just make the entire stretch Forest Park Avenue for simplicity's sake. (Of course, it wasn't that long ago when the section through University City at Washington University was called Millbrook Boulevard, so who needs consistency?) I do think I need that Streets of St. Louis book, though.

Growing up, we usually just called it "Forest Parkway."



The Venerable Commonspace has previously weighed in on the Morgan Ford/Morganford debate. I'm sure I've recently seen something else on it (perhaps even on this board) but I can't locate it just now.[/url]

Where the hell did I get that JP Morgan/Henry Ford theory? I know I didn't make it up! I swear!

According to the Street dept. it's Morgan Ford Rd.



According to everyone else in South city.

I thought Morganford has something to do with "fording" a river or stream, as in the name of the road came from Morgan's Ford. Don't know where I heard that though and don't know what river they are talking about--Des Peres? doubtful, you could ford that with a pair of flip flops.

"MORGANFORD ROAD (N-S). Received its name because it led to a ford of the River des Peres operated by a man named Morgan. Until 1881, it was known as Russell Lane between Arsenal Street and Beck Avenue where it passed through the James Russell tract. (Morganford) (Oak Hill)"



Source:



http://www.slpl.lib.mo.us/libsrc/m-street.htm

I'm waiting for bonwich to jump in with an Olive Blvd, Olive St Rd comment...

James Morgan.