Shula's 347 Grill Eighty-Sixes St. Louis Franchise

Jennifer Silverberg

Shula's 347 Grill as it appeared this summer.

​Shula's 347 Grill (411 North Eighth Street; 314-241-7267) closed unexpectedly on Thursday, December 15. The restaurant, part of the chain of steak houses and higher-end, sports-themed restaurants owned by NFL Hall of Fame head coach Don Shula, opened in May in the Roberts Tower downtown.

Tim Bryant of the Post-Dispatch was the first to notice the closure, and a lawyer for the Shula's chain told him that the company revoked the St. Louis franchise because the franchisee failed to pay employees.

Meanwhile, the lead story in the current edition of the St. Louis Business Journal (by former Riverfront Times intern-turned-ace reporter Amir Kurtovic), reveals that the business empire of brothers Steven and Michael Roberts is "mired in liens."

The restaurant's phone number remains connected, but Gut Check's calls to find out what, if any, future plans for the space there might be have gone unanswered so far.