Hog Island to Parkville: Justus Drugstore owners docking new seafood concept in historic Parkville

The Parker Hollow builds on Chef Jonathan Justus’ mission to put small town Missouri on the menu

PARKVILLE, Mo. — A bright yellow, nearly 150-year-old former Italian restaurant could become Kansas City’s go-to seafood destination with help from the world-renowned hometown culinary team behind Justus Drugstore and Black Dirt.

Camille Eklof and Chef Jonathan Justus, The Parker Hollow; courtesy photo

Chef Jonathan Justus and his wife Camille Eklof were widely known for their Smithville eatery — a “nose-to-tail, root-to-stem” restaurant featured in national publications and crafted within Justus’ grandfather’s former drugstore. 

But for the past few years they had more low-key careers — hosting intimate pop-up dinners in their Clay County home, and with Justus working as a chef consultant.

All along they were dreaming of a new space of their own.

While plans for one Kansas City spot dragged on, a new proposal at a downtown Parkville site came together so rapidly the chef said he hasn’t even had time to be excited.

Seafood-centric The Parker Hollow will specialize in West Coast sustainable seafood with a raw bar. The duo hopes to open it in September in the former Frank’s Italian restaurant in the heart of downtown Parkville.

One vendor expected to be featured: San Francisco-based Hog Island Oyster Co., which sources from a network of independent boats and shellfish beds from Santa Barbara to Alaska. Menu items could include Santa Barbara sea urchin, Monterey Abalone, mussels, oysters and clams, and percebes.

“The water is super clean, super nutrient rich with a cleaner taste and finish,”Justus said. “You tend to see the same seafood items on menus. I’m hoping people will be open to trying things they aren’t familiar with. This is going to be a menu that will change constantly depending on what we can get.”

The menu also will feature sustainable shrimp from the Gulf, along with East Coast fish, and dining options that are “land-based for seafood lovers’ friends,” Justus said, teasing such additions as Wagyu burgers.

The former Frank’s Italian restaurant dated to 1931. When the last owner retired in December, Parkville developer and Northland resident Brian Mertz snapped up the two-story building (circa 1880).

Mertz is shoring up floors with steel beams and adding a new interior staircase, as well as 12-foot wide retractable windows facing south and east on the second floor. The bathrooms will be remodeled, and mechanical and plumbing upgraded. The bright butterscotch yellow facade could also change colors.

Once complete, The Parker Hollow’s downstairs will have a bar and a four-seat counter looking into the open kitchen. The main dining room will be on the second floor, seating about 20 people and overlooking downtown Parkville and Park University. Patio and balcony seating is expected with total seating for about 45.

“I’m just a local person interested in saving Parkville,” said Mertz, developer of the massive $300 million mixed-use development Creekside and other Parkville properties. “I had a lot of inquiries on the space and met with a lot of people. I liked (Jonathan’s) concept the most and I didn’t feel like it competed with the current businesses there.”

For a name, Justus researched historical ties and came upon nearby Parker Hollow. 

The chef notably started his career at top restaurants in such major markets as San Francisco and Paris. But the couple gained national renown by opening Justus Drugstore on Smithville’s Main Street in 2007. 

The restaurant focused on “nose-to-tail, root-to-stem, foraged and fermented ingredients,” seasonal and so local it didn’t offer seafood.

Justus Drugstore was featured in such national publications as Food & Wine magazine, Bon Appetit, Travel & Leisure, and The New York Times Magazine.   

The couple closed it temporarily in 2018 to open Black Dirt restaurant in the South Plaza.

But they got an offer for the Smithville building that was too good to pass up, so it never reopened. Black Dirt closed shortly before the pandemic.

In 2024, Justus was consulting chef with Gizmos Tavern in his hometown of Smithville (in the former Humphrey’s Bar & Grill). The menu includes Reubens with housemade Thousand Island dressing, fried chicken sandwiches with Asian slaw, and braised short ribs.

“The drugstore was pretty fabulous. I don’t like places that are trying to look like something they are not,” he said. “I like spaces that have a history. Parkville is a true small town. A lot closer to the city so a broader audience. There is a huge need for good seafood in the Northland, and we’re looking forward to being part of the Parkville community.”

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Startland News contributor Joyce Smith covered local restaurants and retail for nearly 40 years with The Kansas City Star. Click here to follow her on Bluesky, here for X (formerly Twitter), here for Facebook, here for Instagram, and by following #joyceinkc on Threads.