Fatman In the mid 1970s, St. Louis television featured a commercial with two brothers selling auto parts. It started with the oldest hollering to his brother, "What's the story, Larry?" This is Larry's story. * * * * *
Nathan (Nat) Lampert was born in St. Louis in
1908. He married Adele Kaskowitz and together they had three sons –
Marvin Donald (Donnie) in 1938, Jack in 1941 and Lawrence (Larry) in
1950.
In 1946, Nathan Lampert opened Lampert Home &
Auto Supply at 1629 South Broadway. The family lived in a four-room
flat above and the boys worked in the store as soon as
they were able.
After their father retired in 1972, the Lampert brothers took the business in a new direction, specializing in high-performance parts and accessories that appealed to teenagers with automobiles. With the new direction came new advertising, which proved highly successful.
The Lampert brothers would part ways at the end of 1977, with the business bifurcating into Jack Lampert Auto Centers and Larry Lampert Auto Centers. And by the end of 1985, after AutoZone and Advance Auto Parts had come along, the Lamperts were forced to liquidate their stores when it became impossible to compete as independents. * * * * * Larry Lampert had a passion beyond auto parts.
In October of 1978, KSDK's Newsbeat program
began featuring a "Home Cookin'" segment with host John Auble. Local
celebrities presented their favorite recipes, and the notoriety he
had garnered from his TV commercials earned Lampert and his chopped
liver an appearance.
In 1979, Larry Lampert underwent intestinal bypass surgery. The man who loved to cook (and eat) then shed 130 pounds. In 1980, to celebrate his weight loss, Lampert opened a potato chip factory. The Grand Potato Chip Company was located on South Grand, just south of Juniata.
Lampert claimed his chips were superior because his potatoes were superior.
Lampert's Grand Potato Chips were sold at Dierbergs, Schnucks and Amighetti's. They were so popular that within three years Lampert was forced to close the business, as he couldn't keep up with the demand.
In April of 1985, Lampert turned from chips to
pizza. He opened Papa Nate's
Pizza at 2627 Cherokee Street in a building that had housed
one of his auto parts stores.
Named after his father, Lampert made Papa Nate's a bared-bone take-out shop rather than an eat-in restaurant.
The pizza was made from Lampert’s own recipe and incorporated traditional toppings, such as hamburger and pepperoni. The menu also featured a mixed green salad, soft drinks and pizza chips – an Italian version of bagel chips which were baked and seasoned with butter and garlic. The pizza dough was made in balls by a commissary on the Hill. When rolled out, it was closer to a thin than thick crust. Sauce was a prepared mix that Lampert had blended to his specifications and the toppings were prime grade. Lampert offered home delivery, which he guaranteed in 30 minutes. He promoted his new venture with 10-second TV commercials in which, like his auto center spots, he was the star.
By November of 1985, a second Papa Nate's location had opened at 9773 Olive at Warson, in Creve Coeur. In addition to pizza, the menu included deli subs. While the sandwiches sold well, Lampert saw his pizza business lagging.
By May of 1986, Papa Nate's Pizza had become
Papa Nate's Pizzadel, and by July it was Papa Nate's Subs & Pizza.
In June of 1986, Lampert formed Fatman's Sub Shop, branding the business with his pre-bypass persona. The first location was at 10204 Page in Overland.
By October, the original Papa Nate's on
Cherokee had closed and the Papa Nate's at Olive and Warson had been
converted to a second Fatman's location.
Lampert's signature sandwich was the Fatman's
Supreme, with ham, salami, mortadella and cheese, plus the standard
sub garnish of lettuce, tomato, onion and a dash of salad dressing.
Also popular were the meatball sandwich, the chicken parmigiana
sandwich and an Italian beef sandwich called "The Bernie," named for
one of Lampert's employees.
Fatman's took off. The following year locations opened in Rock Hill at 2813 South McKnight Road and Downtown at 215 North 9th Street. Lampert stirred up the competition by advertising on television, opening stores next door to his rivals and cutting prices on his sandwiches.
Lampert starred in 10-second TV spots, which began with the question, "What's the story Larry?"
Over the next five years, Lampert opened
additional Sub Shops throughout the St. Louis area, including in
University City at 8607 Olive and in South St. Louis at 3956 South
Broadway and 4321 Telegraph Road.
But just as his pizza business had been victimized by the national chains, Lampert's sub business would suffer the same fate.
So Lampert switched gears once again. In 1993, he began offering barbecue at his sub shop in Creve Coeur.
Before long, Fatman's Sub Shop at Olive and Warson had been converted to Fatman's B.B.Q., with a "Crispy Snoots" neon sign in the window. A second short-lived location opened at 8807 Natural Bridge.
At first, all of the grilling was done on the corner parking lot at Olive and Warson. But in 1996, the city of Creve Coeur forced Lampert to discontinue outdoor cooking, shifting grilling indoors to a small tabletop smoker.
On February 8, 1998, Lampert placed an ad in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch; Fatman's B.B.Q. was "priced for quick sale." At age 47, Larry Lampert paused his story and retired. * * * * * Lawrence Allen Lampert married Deborah Tina Lapin in February of 1972. Both had graduated from University City High School. Lampert attended Meramec Community College and Lapin the University of Missouri.
Larry and Tina Lampert had two children; Jacob
(Jake) was born in 1977 and Angela (Angie) in 1979.
While Lampert had given up his barbecue business, he hadn't give up barbecue. In 2002, teaming up with Walmart and the Children’s Miracle Network, he took an old TWA shuttle bus, turned it into a food truck and, with a smoker in tow, sold barbecue for charity on Walmart parking lots. He trekked throughout the state to Troy, Wentzville, Washington and Lake of the Ozarks. One weekend, a woman bought barbecue and then returned the next day, asking Lampert to cater a wedding for 200 people. Lampert agreed, and so began a burgeoning catering business. But as his enterprise grew, Lampert's health department approved food truck became a liability. He needed a fixed base of operation and he needed help. So Lampert enlisted his daughter Angie.
Angie Lampert had graduated from the University
of Missouri in 2001 and then spent two and a half years as a manager
at Culpepper's. She also worked in sales at Morey's Seafood and US
Foods before joining forces with her father in 2005. Together, they
opened a barbecue restaurant in Clayton called Plush Pig Barbeque.
The Plush Pig was located at 7814 Forsyth, across the street from The Crossing restaurant – a barbecue joint in the heart of white-collar country, complete with complimentary roasted peanuts. Plush Pig's interior looked like somebody's backyard deck. The seating was handmade picnic tables, with two umbrella-topped patio tables in the back. The house-made barbecue sauce sat atop each table in old liquor bottles. The walls were hung with picnic baskets, tennis rackets, a headboard from a brass bed and vintage beer and soda ads.
Lampert did all his
smoking on-site, using Missouri cherry wood. His menu included
Carolina pulled pork, Texas beef brisket, sausage, ribs and chicken,
available in various dinner combinations, with fries and slaw.
Lampert served baklava for dessert, a holdover from Fatman's Subs.
In 2009, the St. Louis County health department
found asbestos in the Plush Pig's basement. Lampert was forced to abandon his Clayton
restaurant.
In March of 2010, Lampert reopened the Plush
Pig "in that nasty little strip
center at McKnight and Manchester" in Rock Hill. Again thumbing his
nose at the competition, he moved within walking distance of a
Bandana's Bar-B-Q and he returned to television, with his Plush Pig
asking "What's the story, Larry?"
The new Plush Pig restaurant had a
cafeteria-size dining room, two to three times as large as the
Clayton space. There was a bar at one end and a small stand where
diners could help themselves to chips and salsa. Contemporary
country music blared from the sound system.
Initial reviews of his barbecue were not as glowing as in Clayton, but Lampert's onion straws remained a customer favorite. They were thinly cut, lightly battered and deliciously seasoned. They arrived in a large bowl lined with paper towels and served piping hot. In 2011, the Plush Pig was again forced to close when the landlord sold the property. The building was torn down to make way for a CVS pharmacy. * * * * *
In September of 2012, Lampert returned to the
sandwich business. He opened Mister Lunch at 11658 Dorsett in Maryland Heights with daughter Angie. The lunch spot
featured basic deli sandwiches, hot dogs and a popular gyro.
But Lampert still could not compete with Subway or even a nearby QuikTrip. The area businesspeople were not flocking to his sandwich shop. So Lampert once again reverted to barbecue.
The following February, Mister Lunch reopened
as Lampert’s BBQ. It was simple barbecue with a minimum of choices,
served from behind a counter.
Lampert's BBQ was reasonably priced, with less expensive rib tips instead of ribs. Sides were included with everything. "Big Plates" of pork, brisket, turkey and sausage came with two sides and garlic bread. Sandwiches included the "Road Kill," which was pulled pork atop spicy sausage, a Carolina sandwich, with slaw mounded on pulled pork, and the gyro from the Mister Lunch menu. The Lamperts made their own rubs and sauces, including a sweet St. Louis-style sauce and a hot variant. * * * * * In 2014, Lampert was on the move again. He and Angie set up shop selling barbecue from a little shack on a parking lot at Manchester and McCausland. They were open less than two months before closing for the winter.
Lampert's Q-Shack reopened the following March, with an expanded space and a more comprehensive menu. In addition to barbecue, the menu now included burritos and tacos, all served from a little window.
The enterprise abutted OK Used Cars on one side
and offered a panoramic view of the Family Dollar on the other. A
bright yellow "BBQ" sign was affixed to the red-painted edifice, with
seating for 28 at tables on a covered deck to the side.
By the time Q-Shack reopened for "early spring" in February of 2016, the Lamperts had changed its name to The Red Shack. And on March 3, 2016, the following appeared on The Red Shack's Facebook page.
The property at Manchester and McCausland had
been sold to The Gathering Church.
But The Red Shack's story was not over. In the
spring of 2016, the Lamperts moved their restaurant to a
brick-and-mortar site at the corner of West Park and Tamm in Dogtown.
The new Red Shack was open year-round. Patrons
ordered and picked up their meals from a tall counter in an
1100-square-foot dining room outfitted with casual seating.
The Red Shack’s new space offered a new menu. Lampert dropped his classic barbecue dishes and expanded his Mexican-inspired offerings.
On May 9, 2017, Angie Lampert posted the following on The Red Shack's Facebook page.
On May 25, 2017, the following post appeared.
And that's the story, Jack.
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