Freight House

The Freight House is a historic railroad building just north of Union Station in the Crossroads Arts District of Kansas City, Missouri. The renovated Freight House is now home to three award-winning restaurants: Fiorella's Jack Stack Barbecue, Grunauer (German and Austrian food) and Lidia's. The building is located immediately east of the Stuart Hall Building, and it is connected via pedestrian bridge to Union Station. The pedestrian bridge was added in 2003, and its main component is an 1892 railroad span that had been sitting unused on the river bluffs until it was moved to its new location.The Freight House was originally constructed in 1887. The building housed freight unloaded from the trains until merchants picked up the freight and transported it to the numerous warehouses nearby.RedevelopmentOver the years, the structure fell into severe disrepair until it was purchased by a group of investors in 1995. The 500ft long and 40ft wide Freight House would probably have been demolished, but the group of investors, led by Dan Clothier, envisioned developing three restaurants on the property.The first restaurant to open at the Freight House was Lidia’s Kansas City. Lidia's is an Italian restaurant that was opened by celebrity chef Lidia Bastianich in October 1998. The interior of the restaurant was designed by architect and designer David Rockwell.Fiorella's Jack Stack Barbecue was the second restaurant to open in the Freight House. It opened its third location at the west end of the building in Fall 2000, and it continues to occupy that location.