Stuff to eat. Mostly around St. Louis.
Urban Chestnut Brewery & Bierhall
I think my feelings about The Grove are best expressed through the photo below—current me versus what I would look like if The Grove was never revitalized.
As the number of places to eat, drink, and drunkenly eat keep growing, so does the weight of the average St. Louisan. There are plenty of places to talk about, but the one I want to talk about right now is Urban Chestnut’s Grove Brewery & Bierhall. I’m admittedly not much of a beer guy, so if you’re looking for insight into UCBC’s beers, leave now. I just care about eating.
A couple months back, the two masterminds behind UCBC’s food program, Andrew Fair and Jon Huntley, did a full revamp of the bierhall’s food menu. I had never eaten there before the update, mind you, so I really don’t know much about what it used to be—more German-inspired fare, it seems. It wasn’t until I started seeing friends posting and raving about their smash burger, pommes frites (french fries, idiot), and liege waffles that I smartened up and made my way in.
For those who haven’t been (and those who were too drunk to remember), the bierhall is an enormous space that feels a bit like the Winterfell’s Great Hall if it was placed in an old paper factory. With ample seating, a big patio, and somewhere between 25-30 beers on tap at any given time, it’s a great place to spend an entire day. Which is basically what I did with my girlfriend.
I think the dining game plan is pretty simple: you’re definitely going to want to get one of twice-fried pommes frites and either the smash burger or one of their sausages. You can go simple and classic with the fries—plain with dipping sauces—but why wouldn’t you splurge on poutine or the loaded fries with bacon, sour cream, haus whiz, and green onions?
As far as sausages go, I went with the bacon and beet on this particularly occasion, but the classic Zwickel brat made at G&W is, uh, a classic. The burger is styled after your standard diner-style smash burger: two patties, American cheese, pickles, special sauce, onion, lettuce, and a soft bun.
If you’re with a group or you’re just prolific eaters, I whole heartedly recommend starting with their warm pretzels and ending with a liege waffle. Speaking of liege waffles: why doesn’t St. Louis have more options for these? They’re amazing, though I haven’t met one that was better than Blue Bottle Coffee’s.
There are healthier options, like salads and grain bowls, but frankly, I’d just rather eat a bowl of french fries covered in cheese and loose a few weeks off my life. Living to 100 is overrated.
Warm Pretzels
whipped salted butter, obatzda (German cheese dip), Bavarian mustard, radish
Smash burger
two patties, American cheese, special sauce, onion, lettuce, soft bun
Loaded Fries
Nueske’s bacon, sour cream, haus whiz, green onion
Beet & Bacon Sausage
Duroc pork shoulder, Nueske’s bacon, beet puree
Seasonal Grain Bowl
Liege Waffles
yeast waffles, sugar shell, dipping chocolate
Louie
You’re probably here for one of two reasons: you love louie and you want to bask in its glory, or someone told you louie was amazing and you don’t trust them. But you can trust me.
I’ve never believed there’s such a thing as a perfect restaurant, but damn if Louie doesn’t make me wonder if I’m wrong. Matt McGuire, a veteran of the restaurant world, is one of the most well-spoken, intelligent, generous, and focused people I’ve ever had the pleasure of knowing, and if you’ve spent any time at all talking to him, I’m sure you agree. (If you haven’t, pop over to the pizza oven & charcuterie station and say hi/bye next time you’re in). The restaurant is a reflection of him—it’s classic and modern, warm and welcoming.
I only have good things to say about Louie. I love it all. I love the staff, I love the cooks, I love the food. It works for a quick bite and a beer as well as it works for a celebratory meal. You can for something light and healthy(ish) or ruin your body with the Roman gnoccho, pastas, enormous pork chop, and cocktails. I prefer the latter.
The menu doesn’t change often, but there are usually a few nightly specials—especially on the pasta front. Matt and his executive chef, Sean Turner, have set the menu up where everything appears to be very simple, but the reality is, few things are. The simplest things are the hardest, after all.
If you stop reading right here, know that you must order the chicken and the ice cream sandwich.
Let’s walk through my favorite items on the menu. Below the write ups, you’ll find photos
Small plates
The small plates section of the menu is where i spend most of my calories, for reasons that are about to become very obvious.
White bean hummus
mint, hearth bread
Simple—but with the addition of the pop of mint and drizzle of high quality olive oil, perfection.
Charred Eggplant Dip
hearth bread, season vegetables
The perfect blend of charred eggplant and olive oil—it doesn’t taste overly smoky, nor is the eggplant flavor very strong (shout out to the eggplant haters). Don’t think of it as baba ganoush, though—it’s closer to a hummus. Also, anything served with their wood-fired hearth pita bread is going to taste good.
Broccolini
calabrian vinaigrette
Charred broccolini topped with a slightly spicy, kinda funky vinaigrette. This photo is obviously not of the finished product, but I ate it before I could take a shot last time. Whoops.
Cauliflower Fritto
mint aioli
Everyone knows that the best vegetables are fried and dipped in aioli.
Prosciutto di parma
Parmigiano Reggiano DOP Vacche Rosse
There are three things on the plate: prosciutto, cheese, and olive oil. Each is amazing on its own. combined—unbeatable. Especially when eaten on a warm piece of hearth bread. Bury me in this prosciutto.
entrees
salsiccia pizza
roasted fennel, sausage, hot cherry peppers, mozzarella
Okay, this is not a picture of their salsiccia pizza, but a special they did on their one year anniversary. Louie is really dark at night, and the spicy sausage pizza is really good, and…I just forgot to take pictures of it, repeatedly.
Filled pasta
This version: sweet potato ravioli, brown butter, almond, smoked ricotta
There’s usually at least one filled pasta special. Get it. Whether it’s sweet potato with smoked ricotta salata, summer sweet corn with tomatoes, or prosciutto en brodo, you won’t regret it. Unless you have Celiac disease.
Roman gnocco
pork ragu, bechamel, pecorino
The gnocco isn’t my favorite dish (controversial!), but it seems to be everyone else’s. One friend described it as getting a hug from your grandma. It’s heavy, it’s decadent and you’re going to eat way too much of it.
polenta & Roasted Mushrooms
If I’m going to eat until I hurt myself, I’m going with the polenta and mushrooms over the gnocco (once again, that’s just me). It’s another simple but perfect dish, except if you are lactose intolerant like this guy.
Grilled strip steak
crispy potatoes, salsa verde
It’s just a good steak, man. Those potatoes are crunchy AF.
pork chop
shishitos, chermoula
Some have said this is the best pork chop they’ve ever had, and I can’t really argue with that. Also, it’s huge.
Roast chicken
rapini, chicken jus
I’m dedicating an entire post to this chicken soon. It puts all other chickens to shame. I know chicken sounds boring, but you need to try it.
If you don’t like it, you don’t deserve to be eating here.
Dessert
ice cream sandwich
Oh, great, not only is Louie’s entire savory menu off the fucking charts, but they’ve also somehow made the greatest ice cream sandwich I’ve ever had. I don’t even take Lactaid when I eat this—it’s worth the discomfort. Frozen chocolate mousse is sandwiched between two cocoa nib macarons, served with Dragees cocoa nibs and a chocolate coulis.
SAVE ROOM FOR THIS.
brassWELL
What’s not to like about brassWELL? Gerard Craft took Brasserie’s Cinq à Sept happy hour menu and chef Joe Landis, put them in a light blue shipping container, and dropped them off at Rockwell Beer.
Now, Wednesday through Sunday, you can go to one of St. Louis’ newest breweries and drink freshly brewed beer while eating burgers, fries, and soft serve. What a life. It does get crazy crowded on the weekends, so keep that in mind—especially if you have kids in tow. Things should get a little less hectic once their huge patio is useable, but it’s winter and it’s gross out, so you’re stuck in the dining room.
The menu has its staples—beef burger, fries, chicken sandwich, veggie burger, beer brat—but you can expect specials and variations weekly, depending on what Joe is feeling. Scroll down for a menu breakdown.
Joe Landis
burger lover, chef
Double Brasswell burger
onions, American cheese, pickles, dijonnaise
This is why you’re here. Brasserie’s famous burger, offered as a single, double, or bigger, if you’re an animal. It’s the perfect diner burger, and I love it.
The fries are the same ones you know and love from Brasserie and Taste, and they have a pump filled with aioli.
Fried chicken sandwich
arugula, Crystal aioli
Veggie burger
arugula, Crystal aioli
Beer brat
sauerkraut, whole grain mustard
corndog
corn, dog
This is on the kids menu, but I refused to be shamed for eating it. It gives Peacemaker a run for its corndog money.
soft serve
Flavors change weekly, but I’ve never met a soft serve I didn’t like.
Beignets
Brasserie’s brunch beignets made their way to Brasswell, too. They’re served with whatever dipping sauce Joe feels like making—this lemon curd will be hard to top, though.
Omakase V: Nick Bognar & Chris Bork
This is another one of those posts that really isn’t doing you any good.
I mean, what’s the point in me telling you there was a two night pop up where Nick Bognar of Nippon Tei combined forces with Chris Bork, formerly of VISTA (RIP)? Only 30 or so tickets were sold, so more than likely, you weren’t one of those people. That sucks, man. I think you really would have liked it.
When I posted about it on Instagram and Twitter, a bunch of you messaged me specifically about how you missed Bork, how his food was sooo good, etc. Let me tell you something: no one loves what Bork is doing more than me. He understands, respects, and plays with Asian ingredients and dishes in a way I only dream I could. If I were an obscenely wealthy man, I would quit working and pay him handsomely to teach me everything he knows. And to cook most of my meals. Also, give me hair styling tips. He is my food crush.
That’s not to say Nick Bognar isn’t also one of my favorites, because he is. He’s figuring out how to combine his Thai heritage with his love for Japanese cooking, and when he perfects that, St. Louis won’t know what hit them. The Isaan Hamachi you see below will be his signature dish—as soon as that hits his menu, consider it a must-order. In fact, ask him for the next time you're in. Let’s peer pressure him into feeding us that good stuff.
Anyway, the dinner was the best I’ve had so far in 2019. You should message Bork and Bognar (doesn’t that sound like an Eastern European version of Simon and Garfunkel?) and tell them that you demand more collaboration dinners.
OMakase V
Design work by ForTheWhen
tskune
marinated quail egg, tare, yuzu gel
Kanpachi
Isaan Hamachi
Thai koshi, coconut naam pla, candied garlic, shallots
Foie Gras Torchon
Kumquat, mushroom chip, dashi, pickled shiitake
Shima Aji
Madai Ceviche
Seabream, leche de tigre, lime zest, radish, basil oil
Khao Soi Soup Dumpling
curry leaf nage, cilantro, lime zest
Zuke honmaguro akami nigiri
Laab Tartare
lamb tartare, laab spices, candied pine nuts, rice crackers, thai basil
Fillet of Beef
shrimp head red curry, raw Hokkaido scallop, scallop jerky, black garlic butter
Chutoro
Santa barbara Uni
Coconut & Kaffir Panna Cotta
Kaffir lime, ginger snap soil, basil, coconut vinegar gel, plum
The Olive Blvd. Eating Guide
Eating on Olive Boulevard
Some say that the county is a depressing wasteland full of chain restaurants, McMansions, and white women who inexplicably voted for Donald Trump. Those people are...not really wrong. But as a county resident, I can tell you that there are a fair number of 'hidden gem' restaurants, especially on Olive Blvd. and Manchester. Here's my guide to eating on Olive, driving West to East, starting right along the Chesterfield/Creve Coeur border.
Seoul Taco
Start your journey down Olive with a visit to St. Louis' most delicious Korean-Mexican fusion. It's just like the one in the Loop, but substitute college students for high schoolers and the elderly. If you're looking to treat yo self/eat your feelings, I recommend the gogi fries with spicy pork. Chesterfield now sucks 3% less.
Red Hots Albasha
This is a confusing restaurant. For something like 30 years, it was a Classic Red Hots, serving typical Chicago foods like hot dogs and Italian beef. It still does that, but it's also an Arab restaurant, serving dishes like shish kebabs, schwarma, and kefta. Don't let the untouched 90s interior scare you off—the Arab food (especially the kibbeh) is solid. I can't speak for the Colossal Dog.
Red Hots Albasha: Hummus & Kibbeh
Kim cheese
Another Korean-Mexican fusion spot with the bonus of a drive-thru window. Dishes range from healthy, like their bibimbap bowls, to gluttonous, with their football sized extra-large burritos. Stick with the spicy pork or bulgogi beef.
Addie’s Thai House
Some nights you're just too lazy to drive out to Fork & Stix for your curry fix. Addie's isn't on the same level, but pretty much anything cooked with coconut milk and curry paste is going to be tasty.
Kim Cheese Bulgogi Bowl
Kim’s Bakery
Kim's is St. Louis' only Korean bakery and goddamn is it tasty. Aside from their cakes and a few other more ornate desserts, everything is individually packaged and set out on a shelf so you can just grab and go. Anything made with their buttery, pillowy dough is worth buying. And the hilariously named "fistball," which is like breadpudding and a baseball had a baby.
Pita Plus
I have had the same conversation with the owner of Pita Plus since I was in high school. "Hello, what you want? Falafel very good. Israeli salad. Hummus. You like? Okay. Pita, white or wheat? You want burreka? Made fresh. Here. Very good. Spinach, good for you." Do what he says. Get the falafel (I've found none better in St. Louis), and treat yourself to a flakey burreka too. You're worth it.
Pita Plus Falafel Platter
Joo Joo Korean
For traditional Korean food, you don't have a ton of options. Basically here, Joo Joo Korean, and Asian Kitchen Korean Cuisine. Both are on Olive. Both are sparsely decorated. Both have a staff that doesn't really care about your wants and needs. Joo Joo is bigger and a little nicer, plus it has a shrine to former Cardinal pitcher Seung-hwan Oh. Bonus: it has karaoke rooms.
Wudon K-BBQ
With the demise of Seoul Q (I'm still broken up about this), I worried it would be years before St. Louis got another contemporary K-BBQ spot, but then Wudon came out of nowhere. I didn't have high hopes because every other restaurant that's opened in that spot has been garbage, but this is one of those rare occasions where I was wrong. It's good, especially if you've got no self control.
Joo Joo black bean noodles
Asia Market
Not a restaurant, but a small wonderland of...stuff. The shop is like a tiny Seafood City, minus the seafood, but it's solid if you're in a pinch for Asian ingredients and don't feel like driving into UCity. A third of the shop seems to change with the seasons; sometimes it's full of winter coats, sometimes it's full of pans, and sometimes it's just empty.
Gobblestop Smokehouse
If you like smoked poultry, this is the place for you, since that's pretty much all they have. Get a plate of turkey ribs for yourself and some chicken wings for the table. Service can be confusingly slow (isn't the turkey already smoked? what's taking so long to get it from the kitchen to my mouth?), but that's the punishment you get for trying to be healthy.
Dave & Tony’s
Often overlooked, Dave & Tony's has all your typical American restaurant favorites, like hot dogs, nachos, beer, and, most importantly, tasty burgers for a reasonable price. Most things are made in-house using high quality ingredients. A good lunch choice.
Ani’s Hyderbadi House
I have been going to Ani's for years and still have no idea what the hell is going on in this restaurant. The TV is usually blaring Indian films or soap operas, the menu has 10,000 things on it without any descriptions, they straight up don't make huge chunks of said menu, and yet I return. Why? Because the food is good.
Oishi Sushi
Good sushi is hard to come by in St. Louis, period. I've been going to Oishi since my high school days—the family the owns it also has United Provisions, Global Foods, and The King & I—because the fish is always fresh and they have one of the best pad thai's in town. Also, no rolls are lit on fire or served in a sexy tinfoil canoe, which is always a positive.
Gioia’s Deli
Say no to Potbelly's and Jimmy John's and yes to hot salami. Tell your office to have them cater your next event. Take a nap under your desk afterwards.
5 Star Burger
The same 5 Star Burger that you know and love from Kirkwood (RIP) and Clayton. Burgers. Fries. Beer.
Nudo House
Nudo House is Qui Tran's all-encompassing quick service Asian restaurant. The ramen bowls are the star (especially the shockingly good Shroomed Out vegetarian bowl), but the restaurants menu offers pho, banh mi sandwiches, soft serve ice cream, and tons of specials.
Bagel Factory
Everyone knows that St. Louis has garbage bagels. At the top of garbage bagel mountain sits Bagel Factory, though I wouldn't go out of your way to get them (maybe just pop by if you’re on your way to Nudo).
Seoul Garden
The well-respected St. Ann Korean BBQ restaurant has opened a second location right by AMC Creve Coeur theatre. It's good.
Sugarfire
The OG Sugarfire location. Expect a line, but don’t worry, it moves quickly.
Pho Long
Not my favorite pho in town, but certainly not a bad bowl. If you work or live nearby and are craving spring rolls and some hot soup, it's worth a visit.
Tai Ke
Hell yeah, Tai Ke. My favorite casual Chinese/Taiwanese restaurant in town. There's a good reason that it's hard to get a seat in here for lunch and dinner: the flavors are bright, full of lots of fresh herbs, there are daily specials, and the menu ranges from small, wonderfully unhealthy street snacks to shareable entrees. The Three Cup chicken is my go-to.
Tai Ke Chili Chicken Stir Fry
Asian Kitchen Korean
You know when you go to a Korean restaurant and they give you those little plates of snacks called banchan? Asian Kitchen gives you somewhere around 350 different ones. I can guarantee you will not leave hungry. It's a little rougher around the edges than Joo Joo, but I'd argue the food is better, overall.
Royal Chinese BBQ
Go for the roasted meats, skip everything else.
Royal Chinese BBQ
Tang Palace
Formerly known as Jia Xiang, it's a small spot across the street from LuLu's Seafood. The kind of place where you look at what the old ladies next to you are eating and just say, "I want that."
Cate Zone
The sexy newcomer to UCity's Chinese restaurants. A good deal of Szechuan dishes, but much more refined than what you'd find at Famous Szechuan Pavilion back in the day (not to mention much cleaner). Go with a group so you can try more things; a lot of menu items are too big for one person.
Frank & Helen’s
Are these pizzas underrated? I don't know. No one talks about Frank and Helen's. I think they're pretty good. They've been open for like 60 years, so they must be doing something right.
Wonton King
Weekend dim sum. 'Nuff said.
STL Soup Dumplings
Everyone liked Private Kitchen's soup dumplings, so they decided to open a soup dumpling shop next door. The menu is extremely limited, so if you don't like soup dumplings, don't go.
Private Kitchen
The most high-end Chinese restaurant in St. Louis. Reservations are required, and you need to pre-order your meal (see their Facebook page). Food and service are both casual, though, so don't come thinking you're in for a romantic evening
Squirrel fish at Private Kitchen
Mad Crab
Get your hands dirty and eat a mountain of crabs, crawfish, shrimp, or pretty much any other type of seafood. You pick the sauce, you pick the heat level, then you go to town.
Olive Supermarket & Seafood City
Two of the best and largest Asian markets in town. Both have similar offerings, though Olive Supermarket has the advantage of selling some freshly made pastries, too.
Your Favorite Restaurants & Dishes: St. Louis, 2018
Inspired by a Twitter post I saw about Chicago restaurants, I decided to ask: “Out of all the restaurants in St. Louis, what would be your top 5 food items (and where)?”
The response was overwhelming, and I ended up with 712 individual dish responses (because some people can’t count to five). Answers were all over the board, though a few dishes reigned supreme. The top list are the most named restaurants and the second list are the most named individual dishes. Places like Union Loafers received votes for everything from their pizza rossa to their soups to the sandwiches, while places like Fork & Stix pretty much only received votes for a single dish (explaining how they are not in the favorite restaurants list, but are at the top of the dish list).
Without further adieu, here are the restaurants you named the most.
Your favorite restaurants
1. Union Loafers
top dish: little gem salad
2. Mac’s Local Eats
top dish: burger (duh)
3. Pastaria
top dish: Salume Beddu nduja pizza
4. Louie
top dish: gnocco
5. Mai lee
top dish: pho
6. Grace
top dish: fried chicken
7. Nudo House
top dish: o’miso spicy/shroomed out [tie]
8. Balkan Treat Box
top dish: pide
9. Salt & Smoke
top dish: white cheddar cracker mac
10. Gioia’s
top dish: hot salami
Your favorite dishes
Quotes from voters
1. Khao Soi
Fork & STix
“First, I love the color of the khao soi. It's like a dreamcicle almost. But it's the balance: Heat, curry, coconut, lime. The noodles are the perfect size and doneness, crunchy wontons break up the texture. Broth to noodle ratio is dead on. It's a perfectly balanced bowl of noodles. It’s my happy place”
2. Little Gem Salad
Union Loafers
“Loafers sprinkles some sort of magic dust on top because it's the only salad I've ever genuinely craved. And it appears I'm not alone.”
“I never imagined I’d live in a world where I’d pick a salad over a sandwich 9 times out of 10, but the little gem with bacon is the greatest salad on earth.
3. Pho
mai Lee
“If I’m not feeling good or I’m having a crappy day, there are two things that I know will make me feel better: a bowl of Mai Lee’s pho and a hug from Qui Tran.”
4. Egg Salad
Olio
“I would never have thought to treat chicken eggs like salmon roe. Fluffed up, it is a perfect base for the flavors of its condiments, particularly the anchovies.”
5. White Cheddar Cracker Mac
Salt + Smoke
“Cracker mac was the side that made my wife and I choose S&S to cater our wedding. The buttery cheesy sauce and the light crunch of the crackers makes it the perfect comfort food.”
“I never understood the hype around mac ’n’ cheese because it’s literally cheese on pasta, but then I had Salt + Smoke’s mac ’n’ cheese and I realized it’s so much more than that. So much more. It’s everything you want in your mouth at the same exact time.”
6. Classic Burger
Mac’s Local Eats
“The burger at Mac's is the complete deal. Starting with the lightest, fluffiest bun that's toasted not in butter, but lard. The combination makes them the perfect vehicle for the main event: the patties. Taking dry aged ground beef and smashing the hell out of it may seem sacrilegious, but doing so actually allows the Maillard reaction to do its best work, and creates the most unctuous burger patty you've ever had, with the crispiest edges ever. And that's it. Simplicity reigns supreme with this burger.”
7. Pide
Balkan Treat box
“There is nothing else like a pide from Balkan. I dream about it. I’ll drive to the moon to get one”
“When I tried the Balkan pide filled with Stellar Hog brisket, I couldn’t believe what I was tasting. I fell in love, and every single thing I’ve had from BTB since has been incredible.”
8. Hot Salami
Gioia’s
“If there is a St Louis sandwich, it would have to be the Hot Salami from Gioia’s. It’s where I take out-of-towners when I want to show off.”
“My perfect Saturday involves eating a hot salami sandwich on garlic cheese bread, taking a nap, then eating the other half and crashing on the couch.”
9. Fried Chicken
Grace Meat + Three
“I want to hug Ricky all the time because of his fried chicken.”
“I never saw myself as the kind of guy who could eat a bucket of chicken, but when it comes to Grace’s fried chicken, I just can’t stop. Especially the hot chicken.”
10. Roman Gnocco
Louie
“It’s like if you never had met your grandma and you went to your fiancée’s for Christmas and her NoNna came and gave you a big long hug with a huge smile on her face...and in that instant you learned what it is to have a grandma”
Honorable mentions: Pizza Rossa [Union Loafers], RIP fries [Mac’s], Nduja Pizza [Pastaria], Flying PIg [Guerrilla Street Food], Classic Pizza [Union Loafers]
Honorable Mentions: Chicago, Summer 2018
My brother moved to the west loop, which means goodbye D.C. posts, hello Chicago.
Walking around Chicago, namely the West Loop, is like seeing my Instagram feed come to life. I can’t believe the number of amazing restaurants packed into such a relatively small area; I’ve gone twice this summer and have barely left the neighborhood at all. And why should I? Roister, Bonci, The Loyalist, Au Cheval, Little Goat Diner, etc. are right there.
A few of the places I’ve eaten at in Chicago deserve full posts (Duck Duck Goat, Roister), but here’s a run down of some of the quicker bites I’ve had that are worth your time—they’re not all in the West Loop, but none are too far off.
The Bakery at Fat Rice
I could spend all day at the Fat Rice restaurants (all located inside the same building at Sacramento and Diversey). You have the main restaurant, Fat Rice, with a strong Macanese influence—that’s Macau, if you didn’t know—that combines Chinese and Portuguese food. I’ve eaten there, I loved it, but I was camera-less. If cocktails and small bites are more what you’re looking for, you’ll want a reservation at The Ladies Room. For breakfast or lunch, you’ll want The Bakery at Fat Rice.
The Bakery is a nod to the bakeries you see all over Asia these days (miss u Breadtalk), where you can grab sweet treats, like egg tarts and ube milk bars, or savory bakes, like their char siu pork pineapple bun. I thought the highly touted Chicago-style hot dog bun was totally overpowered by the spicy mustard, but maybe that was just that particular batch.
Baked goods
Ube Milk Bar
purple yam, shortbread, condensed milk jam, coconut streusel
Pineapple Bun
chinese BBQ pork, scallion
Chicago-style hot dog bun
vienna beef, Chicago-style classic fixins’
at The Bakery at Fat Rice
Green Street Meats & Sawada Coffee
If you’re from a city with good BBQ (like, uh, St. Louis) and you’re visiting Chicago, don’t bother going to Green Street Meats—unless you’re in the market for some great pastries and coffee, sold out of Sawada Coffee in the back of the restaurant. Try the Military Latte (matcha tea, vanilla syrup, cocoa powder, and a shot of espresso) or the Black Camo Latte (roasted green tea called hojicha, along with milk and espresso).
Pork belly
Elote corn
JP GRAZIANO
JP Graziano’s is a Chicago institution—they’ve been around since 1937—that gives the classic Italian sandwich shop a little umph. They’re about more than just great, primarily local ingredients: they take the classics and elevate them. Their signature sandwich, the Mr. G, is a perfect example of this. Sure, it looks like every other Italian sammy out there, but with the perfect amount of truffle mustard, spicy oil, marinated artichokes, and fresh basil, it’s not your typical deli sandwich.
Mr. G
sharp imported provolone, hot sopresatta, prosciutto di parma, volpi genoa salami, truffle mustard, balsamic vinaigrette, hot oil, marinated roman style artichokes, fresh basil, lettuce with red wine vinegar and oregano
at JP Graziano
Bombobar
Sometimes you want to just stand outside and shovel filled donuts into your face. Bombobar basically offers four things: bomboloni, gelato, Italian ice, and coffee. No further explanation is needed.
Bomboloni
salted caramel, s’mores
at Bombobar
The goddess and grocer
The Goddess and Grocer is just a solid spot to grab a bite to eat, with lots of premade options, plus a full sandwich menu with daily specials. And lots of pastries. It’s certainly not the most exciting place to eat in town, but if you’re nearby, it works.
Chicken Samosa
at The Goddess and Grocer
Cubano
at The Goddess and Grocer
3 Arts Club cafe
I didn’t know I was the kind of fancy boy that would go to 3 Arts Club Cafe, the very posh restaurant inside the middle of the biggest Restoration Hardware on earth, but apparently I am. While the prices were ridiculously high, I have to give them props: their French Dip was as delicious as it was massive.
French Dip
Parachute
While my meal at Parachute didn’t live up to the meals friends of mine have had there, I’d go back again—that’s the risk you take when you go somewhere that changes its menu on a whim. Two dishes were big winners, though: the smoked yuba (tofu skin) and the baked potato bing bread. Honestly, I’d recommend you just go early and grab a cocktail and the bread. You’ll leave happy.
smoked yuba
at Parachute
baked potato bing bread
at Parachute
Pacific Standard Time
I loved Pacific Standard Time so much. If I lived in Chicago, or if it was in St. Louis, it would absolutely be in my rotation—in an ideal world, weekly. Picking what we were going to get was nearly impossible, thanks not only to their menu descriptions, but by the smells and sights of the restaurant. Our table faced their massive wood-fired ovens, and it was just a barrage of pizzas, pita bread, and vegetables. We ultimately went with a crudo, pita with beef tartare (amazing), crispy fish sauce chicken wings, a mushroom pizza, suckling pig with stone fruit, and a sweet corn dessert. I’d eat every one of those dishes again.
Pita
at Pacific Standard Time
Fish sauce wings
at Pacific Standard Time
Frontera Grill
While I really wanted to try Rick Bayless’ Topolobampo tasting menu, I figured it was best to start off at the OG, Frontera Grill. I was a little surprised to see how small the restaurant itself was (and how badly it needed a design update), but all of the food was solid. The clear winner was the duck breast below. Get it.
Duck breast
Oaxacan mole chichilo (mulato chiles, almonds, raisins, spices), pickled chile de agua
Nick Bognar's Omakase
St. Louis, MO
Finally, quality sushi arrives in St. Louis.
I’ll dedicate a full post to Nippon Tei and Ramen Tei’s revival in the near future, but if you’re somehow unaware: Nick Bognar, the son of Nippon Tei’s owners, returned from some time working outside of St. Louis, namely at the sushi powerhouse Uchiko in Austin, to let everyone know that it is possible to get great sushi in St. Louis.
erRecently, Nick debuted his first omakase dinner—basically ‘chef’s choice’—at Ramen Tei’s 8-person bar. I managed to wrangle a seat at one of the two seatings, mostly thanks to my superior dishwashing abilities. I’ve done a handful of omakases around the world, including one at the way-too-sterile-but-Michelin-starred Shinji by Kanesaka in Singapore. Almost every one I’ve eaten has been almost eerily quiet, almost to the point of it being awkward. I can only stare at a sushi master slicing fish for so long.
Luckily, Nick’s version of the omakase matched his personality: fun, bold, and, most importantly, not strictly Japanese. Bognar’s mom is Thai, and he wove Southeast Asian flavors and techniques throughout. More modern omakases are popping up around the globe, but in a traditional Japanese one like Shinji, you’re just getting the best possible fish with the best sushi rice, and that’s about it. It has its place, but honestly, it can be a boring meal (for a hefty sum) .The hamachi crudo with naam pla, Thai kosho, and candied garlic was the opposite of boring and easily the dish of the night—a night that included A5 Wagyu, two types of uni, and otoro—with a level of complexity that you don’t often see with sashimi. This should become a permanent fixture on the Nippon Tei menu. If it’s not, feel free to harass Nick.
Nick will be hosting guest sushi chef David Yoshitomo of Omaha, Nebraska on October 22nd, and tickets are available for it at https://www.exploretock.com/yoshitomo, then Uchiko’s head sushi chef, Yoni Lang, in November (TBD). You can see the full omakase tasting below.
MADAI
aged 4 days, shiso, lime
Hirame
aged 1 week, Thai kosho
Kinmedai
aged 4 days
Boquerones & avocado nigiri
Hamachi Crudo
Thai kosho, naam pla, candied garlic, peanuts, shallot
stuffed chicken wing
deboned, stuffed with shrimp farce, topped with black truffle
Kanpachi
aged 1.5 weeks, sour cherry ume
Shima aji
aged 1.5 weeks, negidare, ginger aroshigane
Salmon 3 ways
cooked collar, sashimi with gojiberry zu, marinated ikura
bluefin chutoro
candied garlic
72 hour short rib nigiri
King trumpet mushroom nigiri
Peruvian uni
Maitake mushroom tempura
fried, aged parmesan, black truffle
Santa barbara uni
Nodoguro
aged 4 days, candied quinoa
Bluefin otoro nigiri
a5 wagyu beef
uni butter
tamago
Nudo House
Hey people who don’t live in the county:
Wah, Nudo House is far away from you. I don’t care. You guys get to live right next to places like Grace, Loafers, Vista Ramen, and so on. I feel no pity for you. Let the county have some nice things too, you goons.
Mai Lee’s Qui Tran made the genius move to open Nudo in Creve Coeur—home to iconic restaurants like Chipotle, Jimmy John’s, and Potbelly’s. We needed him desperately.
Tran and executive chef, Marie-Anne Velasco, didn’t set out to specifically make a ramen shop; it’s a noodle (Nudo…get it?) house, offering a few ramen variations, Mai Lee’s classic pho, plus spring rolls, crab rangoon, banh mi, and more.
“But it’s hot out now! I don’t want ramen or pho!”
Once again, stop whining. Do you have any idea how hot it gets in Japan in the summer? Do you think Vietnam has a chilly winter? No. They eat ramen and pho year round because it’s delicious and they’re not babies. Hamburgers are also hot, but I don’t see you avoiding those.
All of Nudo’s ramen bases are solid—at this point, easily the best in St. Louis in my mind. The Classic Nudo and O’Miso Spicy both use the delicious, fatty pork tonkotsu broth, while the Hebrew Hammer uses a schmaltz-laden chicken broth. The biggest surprise on the whole menu is the Shroomed Out vegetarian ramen. Somehow, someway, they’ve created a vegetarian dish that almost tastes meatier than the actual meat stocks. Since you can customize anything, I typically do the Shroomed Out, make it spicy, add extra egg and pork. YOLO.
Specials change daily (so follow them on social media), but range from classics like Japanese curry to cheffy stoner food, like a ramen scotch egg or hot braised chicken with scallion waffles. Nudo also sells booze and, more importantly, two soft-serve ice creams. The flavors are always changing, but my god, they are good. If you skip out on the soft-serve, we’re not friends.
On to the dishes!
Shroomed out ramen
Vegetarian mushroom-based ramen
Classic Ramen
Pork tonkotsu
Miso Spicy Ramen
Spicy pork & miso tonkotsu
Hebrew Hammer
Chicken ramen
Pho Shizzle
Pho with all the meats.
Pho Dip
Banh mi with pho beef, dipping pho
Momofuku CCDC
Am I cool now that I’ve been to one of David Chang’s restaurants?
Unlike most of the celebrity chefs who have used their fame to churn out garbage cookbooks, open restaurants made specifically for tourists with no taste, and sell their souls to be on mid-day cooking shows, Chang has done nothing but expand his empire of boundary-pushing restaurants.
He was brought to the limelight by Anthony Bourdain and, in a lot of ways, is the man we first associated with Bourdain: a renegade chef, unafraid of saying whatever comes to his mind. Though, like Bourdain, he has become less of a chef and more of a public figure.
The guy has 19 restaurants globally (and growing by the day), most of which attract top-tier FOH/BOH talent. That’s what you need to know.
I recently had the pleasure of trying out brunch at his D.C. location, Momofuku CCDC. Let’s talk about it.
The restaurant is located in a brand new complex, and par for the course in D.C., it’s sexy. We went in planning to get fucked up on food, and by god, we did it.
Things kicked off with a creamy Maryland crab dip served with spiced chicharrones for dipping, which should be a thing everywhere. You’ve already resigned yourself to eating unhealthy when you get tortilla chips, so why not just go all the way and eat some fried pork skin?
The dip was chased with a handful of steam buns—shiitake with hoisin, scallions, and cucumber to be healthy, shrimp with spicy mayo, pickled red onion, and iceberg lettuce to be moderately healthy, and a bacon & egg bun with hollandaise and bourbon maple syrup because living a long life is overrated.
The logical next step in our descent into obesity was shrimp and grits. An oversized bowl filled with buttery, creamy grits, topped with spicy shrimp, mustard greens, and a poached egg. People around us were beginning to stare. That’s how you know you’re doing it right.
We dabbled with the thought of eating healthy and ordered the smoked Carolina trout toast, and while it was delicious, it didn’t hold a candle up to the famous Korean Fried Chicken. Four massive boneless thighs were fried until ultra-crispy, tossed in a spicy, smoky gochujang hot sauce, then served with a mix of fresh greens, pickles, and herbs.
Oh, we also did a double order of their “bacon steak”, which turned out to just be an enormous plate of crispy pork belly. The table next to us could not have judged us any harder. Even the waiter seemed concerned.
As if we weren’t already disgusting enough, we capped the meal off with crack pie (a.k.a. sugar) and soft-serve ice cream from the attached Momofuku Milk Bar.
I can’t speak for lunch or dinner at Momofuku CCDC, but I can assure you that their brunch menu is decadent and depraved—and well worth the price.
Maryland Crab Dip
Chicharron, togarashi, tobiko
Shrimp bun
Spicy mayo, pickled red onion, iceberg lettuce
Shiitake bun
Hoisin, scallion, cucumber
Bacon & Egg Bun
Hollandaise, bourbon maple syrup
Shrimp & Grits
Poached egg, chili, mustard greens
Smoked Trout toast
Dill labneh, sunny side up egg, red onion
fried chicken
Tiger salad, pickles
Soft serve swirl
Crack pie
Grace Meat & Three
Anyone who had eaten Rick Lewis’ food before Southern knew he was capable of far more than just serving up fried chicken and a few sandwiches (remember when he got a James Beard nomination for Quincy Street Bistro?), so when he announced he was going off on his own to open Grace Meat & Three, the food community exploded with glee.
Ricky hasn’t let us down. Grace is destined to become a St. Louis classic, joining the pantheon of places like Pappy’s, Crown Candy, Mai Lee, and so on. The menu has something for everyone, including vegetarians, healthy eaters, and the morbidly obese—plus a full bar.
My favorites so far: the fried chicken, obviously, the sweet and smoky pulled pork Wednesday special, the caveman-sized turkey leg, and what I would say are the best pork ribs in St. Louis (fight me).
Everything has been good, though. I can honestly say in my dozen plus visits to Grace, I haven’t been disappointed, and I don’t think you will be either. Trust your gut and trust Ricky.
Fried chicken livers
mostarda, pickled onions, herbs
Deviled eggs
country ham, everything spice, herbs
Bloody mary
turkey leg
sweet tea brine, herb sauce
Pork ribs
st. louis style Duroc pork ribs, raw sugar glaze, bread & butter pickles
Pulled pork
whiskey sauce, Alabama white BBQ sauce, crispy shallots
Assorted sides
mac & cheese, sweet potatoes, braised greens
Chicken Tenders
catfish sandwich
baby greens, green tomato relish, comeback sauce
Burger
beer cheese, onions, pickles, comeback sauce
Grilled Bologna Sandwich
pimento cheese, fried egg, mustard
Whole chicken
Roast beef
mushrooms, bone marrow gravy, crispy leeks
Peach & Chamomile Panna Cotta
St. Louis summer can be brutal. Oppressive humidity, days where it’s as hot as the desert, spiders. Sometimes I wonder why anyone decided to settle here.
On the other hand, we have some amazing summertime produce. Tomatoes, sweet corn, blackberries. I crush farmer’s markets all summer. And, when I’m feeling particularly outdoorsy, I’ll head over to Eckert’s in Belleville and pick my own.
The Eckert’s family has been growing peaches in the greater St. Louis area since 1837. They’ve got it down. They know what they’re doing. I picked one the other day that was literally the size of a softball. And by picked, I mean Chris Eckert handed it to me when we were out in the field.
“Pick Your Own Peach” season is in full swing, which is great news if you’ve got kids or you and your boo are looking for an out-of-the-box date. If you’re not so into picking fruit but you are into eating it, a day trip to the farm is still nice. They’ve got the country store, which is more like Eckert’s own Whole Foods, chock full of their amazing fruits and vegetables, local meat, wine, and a million jarred goods using their fruit. Peach butter? Strawberry salsa? HELLO.
I am not a pastry chef. In fact, I’m pretty terrible at making even the simplest of desserts. Ashley Rouch, however, is my opposite. She’s the pastry chef of Reeds American Table, and she’s created a dessert that is so good, it makes me feel guilty for all the mean things I’ve ever said about panna cotta. It’s a bit of work, but it’s going to blow you away. More photos follow the recipe.
Peach & Chamomile Panna Cotta
Peach & Chamomile Panna Cotta
YIELDS ROUGHLY 10 SMALL PANNA COTTAS
INGREDIENTS
CHAMOMILE POACHED PEACHES
2 cups white wine
2 cups sugar
¼ cup chamomile
¼ vanilla bean
1 strip lemon zest
9 small slightly unripe peaches, pitted and quartered
METHOD
Cut and make a cheesecloth sack (or buy from Amazon). Add the loose chamomile and tie shut. You don’t want to pick loose chamomile flowers from the poaching liquid, do you?
In a pot, combine the wine, 2 cups of water, sugar, chamomile, ¼ vanilla bean, and lemon zest. Bring to a boil.
Add the peaches to the pot, taking care not to crowd the pot. Reduce the heat to barely a simmer. Cut out a round piece of parchment paper (once again, Amazon to the rescue) and place it over the surface of the poaching liquid. Simmer until the peaches feel tender to the touch and are bright orange in color, about 7-10 minutes. (Remember: use slightly unripe peaches so they don’t turn to mush!)
Pour them into a container and put the container in an ice bath to cool. Store in the refrigerator for up to a week.
INGREDIENTS
CHAMOMILE HONEY PANNA COTTA
4 cups cream
40 g chamomile
2 cup milk
10.5 g powdered gelatin
½ cup honey
1 t vanilla extract
Chamomile Poached peaches
Pinch of Salt
METHOD
Grease and prepare your ramekins.
Heat the cream in a pot until simmering. Add the chamomile, turn off the heat, and let steep for 20 minutes. Strain the cream through a sieve, or cheesecloth, into a clean bowl, and set aside.
Pour the milk into a pot and sprinkle the gelatin evenly over the top, but do not stir. Let the gelatin soften until the grains look wet and like they are beginning to dissolve (see the photo of the pot below—the top has developed a skin), about 10 minutes. After the gelatin has bloomed, warm the milk and gelatin over very low heat, whisking occasionally, until the gelatin dissolves, 3-5 minutes. Be careful not to let the mixture boil. Once the gelatin is dissolved turn off the heat.
Whisk in the honey, vanilla, and salt. Add the chamomile infused cream and whisk to combine. Put in an ice bath (or your fridge) until completely cool.
Spray the bottom of your ramekins with cooking spray. Portion into your ramekins.
PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER
If you want to go for the full Reeds experience, reduce the peach poaching liquid down until it’s a thick syrup, almost like honey.
Run a pastry spatula down the sides, then turn the panna cottas over onto serving plates. Drizzle with the reduced syrup, toss some pistachios on top, then add the peaches.
This post is sponsored by Eckert’s.
Bolyard's Biscuits & Gravy
There is a shortage of good weekend breakfast options in St. Louis.
That’s started to change with restaurants like Vista, Sardella, and Reeds opening for brunch, along with breakfast-specific spots like The Clover and The Bee and Yolklore, but judging by the wait times—and constantly complaining to me, as if I have the power to make places open earlier—more are needed.
Good news for those of you who live close to Bolyard’s Meat and Provisions in Maplewood: starting on January 6th, the shop will be serving biscuits and gravy on Saturdays from 10 AM until noon. (I’m not normally the one to give you the scoop on something new, but I’ve been incessantly nagging them to add breakfast options, so I’m making an exception)
If you haven’t had their biscuits before, you haven’t really lived. We took a family vote this past Thanksgiving and it was unanimous that these are the best in town (don’t @ me), made with house rendered lard and local buttermilk. You can get them hot and ready for dinner every Tuesday night with their roasted chicken or on Thursday evening’s smoke-outs. Shop veterans also know you can buy them frozen (almost) any day.
So, combine these monster, fluffy buttermilk biscuits with a gravy made out of the shop’s moderately famous breakfast sausage, and you have yourself a dish that will warm your bitter, breakfast craving soul. Tell the family that you’re just running out to get gas and eat alone in peace.
Along with the B&G, they’ll also be offering a weekly biscuit sandwich, ranging from your basic egg/ham/cheese to more exotic creations, like a chorizo patty with cheddar and scallions, or BBQ pork with apple butter. With the culinary minds of Chris Bolyard (Sidney Street Cafe), Alex Welsch (Porter Road Butcher), and Bob Komanetsky (Completely Sauced food truck), some special breakfast sammies are inevitable.
Also, while you’re here: if you haven’t made Bolyard’s part of your lunch sandwich rotation, you’re a fool.
Biscuits & gravy
Balkan Treat Box
Balkan Treat Box is the best food truck in St. Louis. Hell, I’d even go so far as to say the food coming out of this is more flavorful and exciting than the food you find at a lot of restaurants in town.
There are really two ways you can treat a food truck: you can use it as a mobile food delivery service (scoop-and-serve; you’re bringing pre-cooked food to people) or you can use it as a mobile restaurant, which is what owners Loryn and Edo Nalic do.
What you get when you order from their truck is truly freshly made as you wait. Well, besides the airy somun bread (pita’s Bosnian cousin), which is baked fresh in the truck’s goddamn wood-fired oven just before service.
The cevapi (che-va-pee) are like mini-sausages made of a simple mix of ground beef mixed with onion and garlic, finished on the goddamn wood-fired grill—yes, they have a grill and oven inside of their truck, and yes, it’s about 1,000 degrees in there during the summer. Don’t be deceived by the simplicity; I can’t stop eating this hamburger stick sandwich, served with kajmak (kind of like a cream cheese) and ajvar (a mildly spicy roasted red pepper relish).
For the döner kebab—one of the world’s great drunk foods—Loryn makes seasoned chicken thighs with aleppo, urfa, fresh herbs, sumac, and more before stacking them into a meat mountain and letting them slowly roast on a spit until their edges are crispy. The end result, a mix of crunchy, juicy chicken on somun with cabbage salad, lettuce, tomato, and a yogurt-based doner sauce, is one of the best sandwiches in town.
Now let’s talk about my two favorite things that Balkan makes: the pide (pee-day) and the lahmacun (la-ma-june).
Imagine a Turkish man making a calzone, but getting distracted in the middle. That’s the pide. It’s like an enormous boat filled with filled with seasoned meat, Turkish cheese, kajmak, and ajvar, and it’s also one of the world’s great drunk foods.
You probably won’t finish it in one seating unless you’re sharing or an impressive eater, but if you’re sharing this, you’re dumb. Make your friend/coworker/spouse/child order their own. Take your leftovers and eat them for breakfast the next day.
Side note: Once in a blue moon, Balkan Treat Box teams up with the Stellar Hog for The Stellar Pide, where they use chef Alex Cupp’s smoked brisket. It’s one of the best things I ate in 2017.
Finally, the lahmacun. This is almost as rare as The Stellar Pide, but I’m hoping this post and your vocal support will change things.
Loryn rolls out the somun dough until flattened, like a gigantic Bosnian tortilla, tops it with spiced ground lamb, then fires it in the oven. Once it’s cooked, it’s topped with lemon, parsley salad, cabbage, herbs, tomato, and the doner yogurt sauce, then rolled up (or not—your call…but get it rolled). I cannot accurately express to you how delicious it is, but I can tell you that when I bite into it, this is what I hear.
Hunt down Balkan Treat Box. Give them your money. Help them open a restaurant. Make St. Louis a better place. Thank you.
SOmun Bread
Cevapi
somun bread, onion, spicy pepper, cabbage salad
Chicken Doner
On the spit
Chicken Doner
Served as a sandwich
Beef pide
Lahmacun
the love of my life
Banana Nut Bread
I live in a world where food and photographs are currency. I never imagined there’d be a period in my life where I’d be exchanging cookies for baguettes and challah for hot dogs. I didn’t know that I’d be trading photos for steaks. I have somehow transported myself back to America, circa 1850. I barter and I cook in beef tallow. I have considered seeing how far I can continue trading up. Could I go from two dozen cookies to a car? Maybe. That’s best left for a separate blog.
My mom and sister are avid bakers, but they don’t get high off their own supply. Their self-control disgusts me. My dad is a “healthy eater” who often requests my mom buy huge amounts of fruit and vegetables, then doesn’t really eat them.
Leftover ripe bananas means banana bread. My mom makes it, wraps it up, then texts me that there’s banana bread for pick up. I get it, eat a piece out from the center so no one knows I did it, then deliver it to whatever restaurant I’m at that day.
I don’t know where this recipe originated—probably my grandma—but it changed over the years and has become my favorite banana bread ever. The outside gets dark and crusty, while the inside remains pillowy soft. The chopped up walnuts or pecans give it some crunch. The raisins provide little bursts of sweetness. I think I could eat an entire loaf in one sitting, if I was left unattended. I’ve heard some of the chefs say they like to toast it and spread butter on top, but that’s just gilding the lily.
YIELD: 1 LOAF | ACTIVE: 10 MINUTES | TOTAL: 1 HOUR AND 25 MINUTES
INGREDIENTS
3 large bananas, mashed
1 stick butter
1 c sugar
2 eggs
1-2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt
1.5 c AP flour
1/2 t baking soda
1 c pecans (or walnuts)
1 c raisins
1 t vanilla extract
METHOD
Preheat oven to 350F.
Put the pecans on a lightly sprayed baking sheet and toast for 5-10 minutes, until aromatic. Let cool a bit, then HULK SMASH them.
Using an electric mixer, combine the butter and sugar, then add the eggs one at a time. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix until fully incorporated. Pour the batter into a greased loaf pan and bake for 75 minutes. Check doneness with a knife—nothing should stick. If it does, continue checking every 5 minutes.
Corn Soup
There are two things you need to know about this post:
#1: Matt Wynn is a talented young chef in St. Louis. He’s worked at Hearth, Craftbar, Craftsteak, Niche, and Sardella. When he’s not cooking, he enjoys playing rugby and posting on Instagram.
#2: Every month or so, 33 Wine Bar hosts their Dorm Room Dinner series. A chef serves ~80 diners a meal prepared in a kitchen that really isn’t much of a kitchen, which is part of the fun. What can these cooks do with limited resources? It’s like Chopped, except you’re the judge, your opinion doesn’t really matter, and you’re paying for your meal.
At his recent Dorm Room Dinner, Matt whipped up a corn soup that put any I’ve made to shame. We bartered soup for photos.
Corn Soup
Chef Matt Wynn
YIELDS ROUGHLY 3 QUARTs
INGREDIENTS
15 corn cobs (slice off kernels)
4 sprigs rosemary
1 sprigs sage
15 black peppercorns
6 cloves garlic
2 onions, sliced thinly
1/2 lb Yukon Gold potatoes
Pinch of red chili flakes
1 lemon
METHOD
In a pot, add cobs, herbs (you can wrap them all together in cheesecloth), and cover with water. Cook this together for about 2 hours. You will know it’s ready when the cobs start to become fleshy and pods that uses to host the kernels start to deteriorate. Strain your soup using a fine mesh sieve.
In a separate pot, sweat your onions in olive oil. Once translucent, add in your potatoes and corn. Let that slowly cook down together. Season your veggies at this stage. You want the water to leech out from the onions and the kernels, while also allowing the potatoes to get rid of their starchy water content. Salt is a catalyst to making this happen. If you decide to use the red chili flakes, just remember that a little bit goes a very long way, especially at this stage of the soup. The capsaicin also helps leech out moisture from your veggies.
In Matt’s case, once he gets impatient enough or paranoid that this base will burn, he adds it to the strained corn stock. A more rational approach would be the phase when your onions and corn turn to mush and your potatoes get whiter.
Cook the veggies and the stock together for about an hour, stirring occasionally. If you want, add in a quart of cream. Once your potatoes get mushy, that’s your cue to take it off the heat.
Now comes the not-so-fun part: buzzing and straining. If you have access to an immersion blender, I would highly suggest buzzing your soup. This makes the next phase easier, which is blending it in a blender. You could also just blend it all in the Vitamix in batches. Buzz it and pass it though a fine mesh sieve. Salt to taste, then chill.
Once your soup is ready to serve, add a hit of lemon juice to boost the acid, but only before serving. If it lingers too long, then your soup will start to get slightly sour.
Garnish: creme fraiche, Aleppo pepper, basil oil, fresh mint, puffed grains, and if you have access to pretty edible flowers, use them! Or you can do nothing. YOLO.
Mac's Local Eats
I’ve been hesitant to share anything with you fine people about Mac’s Local Eats because, frankly, I don’t want you there.
To be clear, I’m writing this because I need you to go to support it and the bar that houses it, Tamm Avenue Grill, because I alone cannot cover their rent—but I’d really rather you stay away. I want to keep this gem hidden. I am Gollum, it is my precious. You are Frodo (or, more likely, the annoying Samwise Gamgee).
Like all human beings with fine taste and a zest for life, I am particularly fond of the ultra-smashed patty that one finds at establishments like Carl’s Drive-In and literally nowhere else. However, I am not a patient man, and with only 16 seats and a following 50 years in the making, getting a seat at Carl’s can be difficult. I am also afraid of the women who work there; I’m still recovering from the glare I received when I made the foolish mistake of asking for my check before they were ready to give it to me.
Contrary to the name of this website, I am not much of a drinker, which has kept me out of Tamm Avenue Grill for years. I was told by a chef friend that Tamm was a place for cooks to get ‘Tammered’ after their shift and, frankly, was not my kind of place. He was right.
Perhaps it was due to my notable absence in the bar, but the decision was made to remodel Tamm just under a year ago by co-owner Bob Brazell (Byrd & Barrel), and with that came the addition of a kitchen: Mac’s Local Eats.
There’s seating in the bar area, as well as a more family-friendly side room.
Mac’s is literally a hole in the wall of Tamm.
Chris “Mac” McKenzie has been known in the St. Louis food world for years thanks to his CSA, Mac’s Local Buys. If Mac signs off on something, I trust that it’s high quality.
The Mac’s menu changes a bit week to week, but two things remain constant: the smashed burgers and the fries. And, honestly, these smashed burgers are far better than one would expect or need in a Dogtown dive bar. Here comes a bold, controversial statement: I like the burgers at Mac’s more than the burgers at Carl’s.
Don’t @ me. Mac is dry-aging entire cows and making the patties out of them. Let that sink it. That is insanity.
There’s always a beef burger (obviously), pork burger, and veggie burger. I personally have not had the veggie patty yet, but all reports so far are that it gets an A+. The beef and pork are just perfection, plus they’re crispy AF.
My favorites so far:
The Pimento: two beef patties. Pimento cheese. Fried green tomato. Bread and butter pickles.
The Dirty Sancho: two pork patties. Pepper jack cheese. Shaved onions. Pickled jalapenos. Chipotle-garlic aioli.
The Captain: It’s just a normal cheeseburger, except for the fact that it’s four patties tall.
The patties are only 2 oz each, so plan accordingly. If you’re feeling hungry, I’d do a double cheeseburger, then a double of of one of the specialty burgers.
You’re also going to want an order of their fries—and if you really want the full experience, you’re going to get them as ‘Rip fries’ (tossed with Red Hot Riplets seasoning) and a side of their bacon onion dip.
So there. I’ve revealed my secret to you. Mac’s Local Eats is a treasure that will forever change your burger eating in St. Louis. Now go, and make sure to report back what you think.
The Captain
City House
Here’s how I ended up at Nashville’s City House: a friend told me to go. I didn’t look at the menu. I didn’t even ask him what to get. He told me to go, I made a reservation. I didn’t even know that chef/owner Tandy Wilson was Nashville’s only James Beard winner.
For those who don’t know but plan on visiting, City House is in what appears to be an old house in the city (Germantown, to be specific) without much signage out front. Yes, we walked right past it like total Nashville n00bs. A local couple saw us looking for it and pointed us in the right direction. It was all very embarrassing.
We ordered a a couple dishes to start: tomatoes with cottage cheese and scrapple (I cannot resist ordering scrapple) with cucumbers, ranch, and cornbread croutons. For entrees, we picked the delightfully unique bowl of corn, rice, smoked catfish, fish sauce, cider vinegar, and peanuts—it seems like someone like Thai food—and a homey, comforting smoked chicken sugo with grits ‘al forno’.
While all of those were good to very good, there was one true stand out. Something I’ve been thinking about a lot lately while I eat salads and chicken breasts to help mitigate a growing belly.
The pizza. My god, friends. The pizza. Had I known how good that damn pizza was going to be, I would have taken 30 more photographs. Hell, I probably wouldn’t have even ordered the other two entrees. I’d have just ordered more pizza.
The toppings were quality, but nothing wild and crazy: belly ham, mozzarella, Grana Padano, oregano, and chilies. Nothing outside what you’d find at Pastaria or Melo’s here in St. Louis. But that crust…
For you St. Louis readers, it comes out looking similar to a Pastaria pizza, but the main difference is the how crispy it is. You get a crunch with your bite, but you still get that nice chewy dough when you finally get to the crust. It has a unique flavor profile too—I’m not sure if it’s the flour they use, how long it’s fermented, or what.
But it’s glorious.
Tomatoes
cottage cheese
Scrapple
cucumber, ranch, cornbread croutons
Catfish salad
corn, rice, smoked catfish, fish sauce, cider vinegar, peanuts
Smoked chicken sugo
grits al forno
Pizza
belly ham, mozzarella, grana padano, oregano, chilies
Pie Hard
“We wanted to dedicate our truck to the greatest hero this nation has ever known: John McClane,” chef/owner Michael Pastor tells me. “The documentary about his actions, Die Hard, has been my favorite film since the day it came out—almost exactly 9 months after I was born.”
I tried to explain to Pastor that Die Hard was fictional, to which he responded like so:
Every time his partner, Megan Keefe, myself, or the other cooks got on the truck, he’d yell “Welcome to the party, pal!” It was funny at first, but concerning after the first few times.
Anyway, he sees the Pie Hard pizza truck as a mobile tribute to McClane—it’s American-made, it’s saving people from hunger, and it’s pretty much unstoppable (it is a modified shipping container with a full-sized wood fired pizza oven in it, after all). He says the revelation came about a few years ago when he was re-watching the film doc and McClane tells the police supervisor, “No fucking shit, lady. Does it sound like I’m ordering a pizza?!”
“When he said that, I thought, whoa, John McClane likes pizza too?”
Pastor spent a year developing his recipes, especially the crust. What ultimately won out was a slow, cold fermentation process using Antimo Caputo flour from Naples, Italy—the result is a bubbly, chewy dough, in the same vein as Pastaria and Pizzeoli here in town.
The menu has classics, like The Queen (a.k.a. a margherita) and The Vladi, a vodka sauce and meatball pie dedicated to Vladi Tarsenko, but it also has a good amount of more inventive pizzas, as well.
The Veggie, for instance, has a celery root puree based, that is topped with cherry tomatoes, preserved lemon, grana padano, and an infused honey. The Al Pastor uses a Mexican mole for its sauce, plus a queso fresco mix, slivers of pickled pineapple, and shavings of pork belly. With their reasonable prices ($9-12), it’s easy to get a couple pies to share—or, in my case, a couple pies to eat on your own.
As my night on the truck came to an end, I found myself getting more and more uncomfortable with Pastor’s obsession with Bruce Willis John McClane lines. Every few pizzas, he’d blurt out, “I’m gonna fuckin’ cook you, and I’m gonna fuckin’ eat you!”
I opted to hop off the truck with my pizzas and join local legend Mike Emerson for rosé and…uh, 5 pizzas. The last thing I heard Pastor say before I was out of earshot was, “happy trails, Hans!”
Pie Hard pizza food truck gets two thumbs up from this guy.
The Cuban
mustard bechamel, white cheddar, porchetta, prosciutto, house pickles, salsa verde
Veggie Special
The Queen
classic red sauce, mozzarella, basil
The Vladi
vodka sauce, mozzarella, meatball, pickled shallot, rosemary
Grilled Mushrooms with Sesame
Most of my home cooking inspiration comes from meals I’ve had out at restaurants. That’s my favorite part of eating food made by talented chefs—that wow factor they manage to impart on simple ingredients.
Nate Hereford, chef of the now closed Niche restaurant, turned me on to Hen-of-the-woods (also known as maitake) mushrooms a few years back. Up until that point, I was barely ever eating mushrooms. Every recipe seemed to taste the same. He proved me wrong. So wrong. That mushroom, cooked in a chorizo-spiced butter, is still the greatest I’ve had.
It was a meal at Publico this fall that inspired the recipe below. Chef Brad Bardon grilled maitakes directly over the coals of the restaurant’s hearth, leaving the edges of the mushroom crispy and charred, but the inside tender. Bardon paired it with a spicy red chimichurri and creamy tortilla grits. I loved it, but wanted to make a less labor intensive version at home, because I’m lazy.
My version gets tahini instead of grits and a spicy red harissa instead of chimichurri. It’s simple as can be, but a welcome change to your standard sauteed mushroom dish.
The measurements aren’t precise on this—do what fits your tastes best. You can find Hen-of-the-woods/maitake mushrooms at most groceries these day. I typically buy mine at Whole Foods or one of the Asian groceries.
Grilled Mushrooms
harissa, tahini, sesame seeds
SERVES 4 OR 5 AS A SIDE
METHOD
If you’re using a charcoal grill, which I prefer, get your fire started. I prefer all the coals to be on one half of the grill, so that side is extremely hot. If you’re using a gas grill, pre-heat it on high.
Pull or slice the mushroom into smaller portions, keeping the base intact. You are going to be grilling these, so you want to have something large enough that it won’t fall through the grate or burn completely. If you have a full maitake in front of you, compare to my photos.
Place the maitake wedges on a baking sheet and pour olive oil all over them, then flip them and do it again. You’re going to want to use more olive oil than you think is necessary to keep them moist; they soak it up like a sponge. Season liberally with salt and pepper.
Once the grill is hot, put the mushrooms down. They only need to cook for 3-4 minutes per side. Expect flare ups because of the oil. If any threaten to char too much, move them to a less hot part of the grill.
Remove from the grill. Spoon tahini onto the plate, then put the mushrooms over. Dollop harissa on top. Drizzle with just a tiny bit of sesame oil, then finish with sesame seeds.
