Stuff to eat. Mostly around St. Louis.
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.
Nathaniel Reid Bakery
I went to France for 2 weeks in 2006, which makes me uniquely qualified to discuss lespâtisseries viennoises, entremets, and baguettes. I see myself as a cross between Mary Berry and Pierre Hermé. When I heard Nathaniel Reid Bakery opened in Kirkwood, I wanted to make sure he knew who he was dealing with. I showed up looking Parisian as hell in my black and white striped shirt, tight black pants, and smug attitude. I peppered the staff with important questions, like where is your beurre from and do you have free samples. I don't want to brag, but they know me there now.
I've gone to Nathaniel Reid Bakery (NRB) close to 10 times now, I think. "Stop eating so much sugar and butter," my doctor would say if I had health insurance. But I do this for you people. I needed to try as much as I could so I could soundly recommend items. My altruistic, selfless nature never ceases to impress me.
When you walk in, before you even look at the display case, head to the far wall, a Willy Wonka-esque treasure trove of chocolates, nougats, caramels, meringues, chocolate pearls. The last two are perfect for prettying up that pathetic attempt at a cake you just made for your kid/spouse. My two favorite jarred goodies: the Spiced Caramel Spread and the strawberry-poppy flower jam. I'd never had poppy flower before (I hoped it would give some sort of opium buzz, but all I got was hyperglycemia), which I found out taste just like cotton candy. And I secretly love cotton candy.
If you'll kindly turn your head to the right, you'll see the display case. This is what you came here for. Colors. Glazes. Shapes. Ooh. NRB typically has 6 to 8 types of macarons in their case, each with a pronounced flavor but a texture that's fairly different than La Patisserie Chouquette's. I don't know if one is more French than the other because I didn't eat any macarons in France during that trip a decade ago. I would happily eat both, Nathaniel's in my left hand, Chouquette's in my right.
The viennoiserie options vary depending on the time of day, what's in season, etc. What I'm trying to say is that you might see a picture of an apple pastry today, but next week, when you go, it'll be pear. And you'll inevitably tweet at me about it, whining. You snooze, you lose.
If you're a NRB rookie, grab an assortment of breakfast pastries. Below, you'll see their pecan cinnamon roll, a croissant, and the love of my life: their twice baked almond-chocolate croissant. The croissant, decked out with dark chocolate, is sliced open and slathered with almond paste, topped with more chocolate, then baked until extra crispy. I like to bite into it while staring directly into Nathaniel's eyes and tell him "good bake" a la Paul Hollywood.
I've been watching a lot of Great British Bake Off lately.
NRB has delicious sandwiches (and salads, but salads are too healthy) available for lunch, with my favorite being the roast beef. It's a simple sandwich, the kind I'd buy on my morning stroll back when I was living in France for those two weeks, made with tender roast beef, slivers of red onion, a slice of cheese, and horseradish aioli. Though, to be honest, it's the bread that wins me over: brioche (aka butter) bread with a sprinkling of shaved parmesan on top. Molto Bene! as the French say.
Where NRB really shines is with their entremets, also known as "them fancy cakes" if you're from St. Charles. Reid's creations are incredible, undoubtedly some of the most delicious entremets I've ever had. And the detail work that goes into ever component is mind-boggling. Here's the recipe for the Amber cake below. Are you going to attempt that at home? I didn't think so.
He's so good, in fact, that the Nathaniel Reid you see in the picture below isn't even him. That's 6 feet of spun sugar. He's that good.
Almost all of the entremets are available as full sized cakes, or in miniature form. The Amber is all about pecans and caramel. For something more tropical, the tangerine-colored Polynesia is a banana-passion fruit cream and coconut mousse cake. Not pictured, because I ate it without thinking, is the Sambava, a mix of chocolate, hazelnut and vanilla. My current favorite, being that I'm addicted to pistachio, is the Jarmo pistachio cake with a berry gelée and pistachio cream.
Before we go, I have to give special kudos to Señor Reid, for he has done the impossible. He has taken up the challenge of improving the much maligned, oft ignored fruit cake and turning it into something people actually want to eat. I guess opening a bakery and having a baby in the last 4 or so months wasn't hard enough.
I'm pleased to say that I enjoyed his fruit cake, which he tells me took nearly 7 years to perfect, immensely. It doesn't feel like you're eating a spiced brick, thanks in part to a proprietary technique he developed. He soaks and candies all the the fruits and nuts himself. It's a labor of love and you can taste it.
I know it's hard to believe, but your friends and family will actually thank you for bringing it to their [Insert Holiday] party.
Eating Around D.C.
Regrets. Late night orders of McDonald's delivery in Singapore. That yellow crewneck sweater I wore senior year of high school. Getting so drunk in Korea that I was too hungover to visit the DMZ.
Picking Boston over D.C. for college. I don't know what I was thinking, choosing the suburbs of Medford/Somerville over Georgetown or Foggy Bottom. I never grew to love the angry Bostonians, the horrible drivers, or the consistently late, terribly run T.
My first visit to D.C. was in 2009, when my brother was a freshman in college there, and I've found myself visiting annually since then. Even with the horrendous traffic and bullshitting lobbyists, I've found myself growing fonder and fonder of it. It feels alive, and it feels like it's moving in a positive direction—particularly when it comes to food.
I don't know if it's a new generation of D.C. chefs rising up or investors drawing talent from other cities, but their restaurant scene in the last 5 or so years has become amazing. Last year, I hit up two of my favorite restaurants, Little Serow and Rose's Luxury, and this year I did even better (including Tail Up Goat, The Partisan, Maketto, and Pineapple and Pearls), though not every meal deserves its own post.
For breakfast, sister restaurants A Baked Joint and Baked and Wired served me well. The latter, in Georgetown, is known for its cupcakes—and they have a lot of them—but I couldn't resist the huge, golden caramelized onion and goat cheese biscuits. At A Baked Joint, it was matcha lattes and sriracha peanut butter toast.
Another morning was at Slipstream, where my brother's girlfriend insisted that we order chai lattes and various toasts (#BasicBitches).
Across from Dean & Deluca in Georgetown is Olivia Macaron, where I indulged in a pistachio macaron (I always need to try the classic), a Fruity Pebbles mac, a s'mores mac, and a Cinnamon Toast Crunch, which was easily my favorite. This was immediately following that giant biscuit, so I did my best to walk it off before we hopped in the car and drove to Union Market, maybe my favorite place to hang in D.C.
Union Market is packed full with food stalls ranging from arepas to bagels to local cheeses to rare spices. And it's only about 10 minutes from where my brother lives! I couldn't resist Neopol Smokery, getting a smoked whitefish sandwich my first visit, then the smoked salmon BLT and smoked mussels when I returned. Plus some Thai iced tea ice cream. And a donut. Oh, some chocolate bars too. And also a couple Korean tacos.
Besides being close to Union Market, my brother's also within walking distance of Shake Shack, so I had to sneak over there. Cheese fries, I can't quit you!
Living Room Coffee & Kitchen
For a guy who talks a lot about not going to restaurants for breakfast/brunch, I sure am posting a lot about breakfast these days. I'm in Maplewood regularly these days, and yet, somehow, I hadn't been to Living Room. I met the owner, Nate Larson, a year ago at a Bolyard's Burger Battle, and was all, "Yeah, I'll come in next week!" But I forgot. And I just kept not going—then it got to a point where I felt like I'd not gone for so long that I couldn't go. Like I'd walk in and Nate would ask what took me so long and I'd try to come up with an excuse and it'd just get too weird. Neurotic like Larry David.
Troika Brodsky, my former camp counselor and current head of the St. Louis Brewer's Guild, changed all that when he invited me there for coffee. It's all been downhill since then—in the past 3 weeks, I've basically moved Whiskey & Soba into Living Room.
There are two reasons I've found myself enjoying Living Room more than a lot of the other coffee shops in town:
1. The food & drinks are above average.
2. It's totally unpretentious. Whether I'm working or just meeting someone for coffee, the staff are friendly, it's never overcrowded, the music is at the right volume, and it just feels homey. Like you're in someone's...Living Room?
Let's talk about some of my favorite stuff so far, beginning with the sproda. It's espresso and Fitz's root beer. I posted this on Instagram thinking this was an uncommon sight, but apparently coffee shops across the country make'em. I'm into it. The sweet vanilla flavor of the root beer combined with the slightly chocolatey and bitter espresso ends up tasting like a pretty delicious iced coffee, sans milk.
The Dirty Chai uses locally produced Retrailer Tea chai, and it comes in an almost comically large mug. I also got the chance to try a tester of their upcoming espresso and fermented ginger beer drink (no creative name yet), and that is like drinking a lightning bolt. Seriously, you will wake up once you down this. I shared one with Sherrie from With Food and Love—she agreed.
Food wise, everything is made in house, with a menu ranging from pastries to breakfast plates to sandwiches. Don't get the cheesy scone. You're going to regret it. It's about the size of a baseball and it seems to be made out of flour, butter, cheddar, more butter and parmesan. You will inhale it. It's a gourmet Red Lobster cheddar biscuit. You're going to want more than one.
For the Jews out there, if they have their macaroons (not to be confused with macarons), get one. They're just like the ones you eat around Passover that come in a cardboard tube, except they don't taste like a cardboard tube. They taste like coconut and sweetened condensed milk.
I keep bouncing back and forth between two sandwiches: the Workday sandwich—soft boiled egg topped with some very tasty peppered bacon, white cheddar, and dressed greens, all smushed in a soft baguette, and the smoked egg sandwich. Medium boiled eggs are smoked next door at Bolyard's, then topped with pickled red onion, gruyere, roasted garlic aioli, dijon, and arugula on a slightly sweet focaccia. Maybe one day I'll convince Nate to put the smoked eggs on the Workday sandwich, and then I'll find true inner peace.
The last recommendation I have: get some Bitt's Cold Press bottles to go. I don't know what Nate and his crew do to get such a rich and chocolatey flavor, but it helps get my engine running when I wake up.
Chouquette's Canelé
You're looking at that picture and thinking about canelés, thinking to yourself that this post seems familiar. It should. Since I started Whiskey And Soba, I have pushed hard for you to go try La Patisserie Chouquette's canelés and I see no reason to stop pushing now. For over two years, these have remained my favorite French pastry in a shop full of remarkable French pastries. But why? you wonder to yourself. How could this oversized thimble be his favorite in a shop full of cakes and eclairs and macarons?
The exterior, crunchy, caramelized—but not burnt—thanks to the beeswax brushed copper molds Chouquette uses. Cracked open, they're a pale yellow, the filling soft and custardy. Slightly sweet, with hints of rum and vanilla. Or, on occasion, lemon and thyme. They're basically tiny cakes made of crepe batter (though I'm sure the French would take exception with that statement).
So many pastries scream their flavors; there's no ignoring the butter of a croissant or the black sesame filling of a Paris-Brest. The canelé is the subtle, seductive mistress of Bordeaux. Perhaps that's why I like them so much—I don't have much of a sweet tooth. The only dessert I have ever truly loved, I think, is tiramisu. Yet I cannot go into Chouquette without getting one of these. In an ideal world, I would eat one of these every day with my breakfast, but unfortunately, I don't live close enough to do that.
The next time I leave Union Loafers and walk over to Chouquette, I better not see any canelés left. I am requiring that you buy one with every purchase you make there—you should leave with a Darkness in one hand and a canelé in the other.
You can thank me in the comments below when you see how right I am.
La Patisserie Chouquette
With the holidays just around the corner, you've got a lot of entertaining, gift buying, and, more importantly, gift receiving ahead of you. Impress your friends and family with a box of goodies from La Patisserie Chouquette, my go-to for all things sugary and delicious. I took it upon myself to go and try all their winter offerings so I could tell you what you need to be getting (or asking for). I'm sorry in advance for making you hungry.
The Darkness
You claim you love chocolate, but there's only one way to prove it: The Darkness croissant. If you can consume this monument to decadence, this vortex of dark Dominican chocolate, then I'll believe you. Simone spent years (decades?) perfecting this recipe and the result is, uh, perfection. Fellas, think of this as a "forgiveness grenade." Next time you do something wrong, swing by Chouquette, get one of these, and consider yourself out of the doghouse.
Turducken Croissant
Thanksgiving is over, but Chouquette doesn't care. All of December is Turducken month. These football sized croissants are filled with roasted turkey, duck, and chicken mixed with Simone's famous smoked bacon and cheddar cornbread (see below), cranberry orange chutney, and a smattering of French fried onions. Each croissant comes with a side of gravy. Good luck.
Red Velvet Cheesecake
This is the classic Red Velvet cake flavor in Chouquette's soft, sensuous cheesecake. It's topped with waves of rich chocolate cream and a macaron shell garnish. Additionally, it's cut into a rectangular shape so you can easily eat it with just your hands while driving. At least I think that's why it's cut like that…
Canelé
So many Chouquetters get caught up in the glitz and glamour of the cakes, eclairs, and macarons that they end up ignoring these little brown thimbles called canelé (can-ul-ay). That's a rookie mistake. These are my favorite pastries...ever? The outside is crunchy, the inside is soft and pillowy with hints of vanilla and, if you're lucky, lemon and thyme. It's like a tiny cake made with crepe batter. The flavor is sublime.
Chouxnuts
Just after scolding you for only buying the pretty pastries, I'm telling you to buy them. Chouquette's take on the Paris-Brest, a round eclair, are their chouxnuts. Get it? It's a choux pastry but it looks like a donut. The fillings change daily and have included matcha, strawberry, apple cheesecake, bourbon pecan, and Boston cream pie, to name just a few.
Bacon Cornbread Muffin
It's a muffin made out of cornbread mixed with cheddar cheese and smoked bacon. What else do you need to know?
Tiramisu Brownie
For a good portion of my life, I didn't like any desserts except for tiramisu. No tiramisu on the menu? No dessert for Spencer. I've since branched out (obviously), but it still holds a special place in my heart. This brownie—which is almost as massive as the Turducken croissant—hits the spot.
Macarons
You knew these would be on the list, didn't you? No one in St. Louis is doing macarons better than Chouquette. Each little sugary sandwich is packed with flavor, and their fall/winter selections so far have been particularly delicious, including gingerbread, eggnog, "skinny mint", red velvet, and more.
For the full range of what Chouquette has to offer, make sure to go on a Saturday!
La Patisserie Chouquette
1626 Tower Grove Ave
St. Louis, MO 63110
314.932.7935
La Patisserie Chouquette
My favorite way to spend a Saturday is to go to La Patisserie Chouquette, buy one of everything "for later", then shamefully eat half the box in the car. After the guilt wears off, I hop back on the highway and go to Salume Beddu for lunch and do the same thing, substituting pastries for pork. I think Chouquette's creations speak for themselves, so I'm going to let them. Here's a collection of recent purchases I've made there. Chouquette, Early Spring, 2015.
Peach and raspberry coffee cake // White Forest Gateau: Cherry yogurt mousse, cherry citrus gelee and kirsch soaked joconde (almond sponge cake) and gold leaf
Tiramisu // Calling it now, the "Pastry of the Year": Canele
Lemon Thyme and Traditional Caneles
The Damiano: Tiramisu Cream Puff. Dark Cacao Barry Extra Brute Cacao Powder, Sweet Mascarpone Mousse and Espresso Meringue
Roasted Peach Frangipane
No, it's not a donut. This is their Choux-nut, a modern take on the classic Paris-Brest. This one was filled with an apple cream.
Chouquette's recent collaboration with Sump Coffee to create a striking black macaron made with Sump's coffee. The coffee is subtle but outstanding.
Food photography note: if you're an aspiring food photographer/instagrammer, Chouquette is perfect to work on technique. A few of these were shot in the shop, but most were taken home so I could play with different lighting, backgrounds, etc. The frangipanes, tiramisu, and coffee cake were all taken with a studio light (I hate the wood background, but I had already eaten everything by the time I realized that). The Sump macarons, last two canele shots, and the choux-nut were all taken with natural lighting. Working with beautiful products makes your photos instantly look better.
1626 Tower Grove Ave
St. Louis, MO 63110
314.932.7935
Katie's Pizza & Pasta
As 2014 came to a close, I took some time and reflected on old posts I'd written and the photos that accompanied them. One that stood out as deserving of a revisit was Katie's Pizza & Pasta (KPP) in Rock Hill. I still remember that day vividly: it was my first time at the new Katie's and mere minutes after making my first major camera purchase (a Nikon 7100). I've been back numerous times since last February, but I'd yet to write another post, so this one actually consists of two different meals there within a span of a week.
KPP has gained a lot of popularity for their weekend brunch options, and from I've heard, that is well justified. When we ate there for our Saturday lunch, they served their warm bread with a housemade strawberry balsamic jelly. Really good stuff.
Their charcuterie board is a fun mix of local, imported and homemade ingredients. Both times I've had it, all the meats had come from Salume Beddu. Brilliant choice.
I like that they took a St. Louis staple and made it into something that fits their style with the Artichoke Toasted Ravioli. The ravioli have a nice creamy artichoke filling, but that pine nut pesto is what really sets the dish off. I straight up spooned that into my mouth after we finished with the ravioli.
Tart and bitter are two flavors I am not wild about, so the Radicchio Agrodolce Crostini wasn't really my thing. Other people I ate with enjoyed it, but the bitter flavor of raddichio and tartness of the agrodolce didn't do it for me.
The fried artichoke salad has become a staple for me since that first visit and my thoughts on it haven't changed: The mix of pistachio, goat cheese, spring greens and balsamic vinaigrette worked together brilliantly, but the best part of it were the little fried artichoke bombs. It's still true. Those artichokes are perfect.
*Your eyes are not deceiving you: there are anchovies (by request) on the salad below.
Before I talk about the pizza, I have to go back to my first post on KPP. I praised their dough, but as I ate there more, I realized I wasn't a huge fan. It was too bready for me. Fast forward a few months and their dough has become totally different. It's more Pastaria than A Pizza Story, which is absolutely a good thing. Look at the difference between this pizza and the two below.
After seeing KPP's Corn Pizza mentioned a number of times online, I decided I had to weigh in. I was worried about the amount of toppings listed, as well as the topping choices themselves. See for yourself: roasted corn, zucchini carpaccio, goat cheese, pecorino, honey, mint, balsamic, and serrano peppers. The mint and honey threw me off, but they were barely noticeable in the finished pizza.
I can see why people like it. It's very summery and, even with the cheese, has a light taste. And you're getting all your veggies in for the day! I would recommend asking for more serranos - the heat really helps it.
At the chef's recommendation, we also tried the wood roasted chicken pizza. They took all the best parts of a roast chicken dinner - sweet roasted garlic, caramelized shallots, flavorful roasted chicken - and toss it on a pizza with some goat cheese, gorgonzola and balsamic reduction. Pretty killer non-traditional pizza right here, folks.
It's called Katie's Pizza & Pasta, so I had to try that too. All pasta is handmade by the KPP team, which seems pretty impressive considering all of the different types available. I am admittedly not a big pasta eater, but the black spaghetti stood out immediately. Squid ink spaghetti - which has a slightly fishy, slightly salty taste - is tossed with butter and garlic, then topped with prawns, scallops, clams, ikura (salmon roe) and chili flakes.
The prawns and scallops could stand on their own as delicious entrees, something many restaurants don't care about. To make sure every aspect of the dish can stand on its own is a testament to the dedication the KPP team has to turning out high quality osteria cuisine.
Katie's Pizza & Pasta is a good example of a modern-day neighborhood restaurant. I don't get the feeling it's trying to be something it's not. The restaurant's fun decor and constantly changing artwork (made by Katie's husband, Ted Collier) give it a personality that make it memorable. Every time I've gone, regardless of the food's quality, the staff has been helpful and, beyond that, unwaveringly outgoing and friendly (especially Grace!). It's the kind of place that would feel comfortable for a romantic date, a friend's night out or just a place to grab a bite when you don't feel like cooking.
9568 Manchester Road
Rock Hill, MO 63119
314.942.6555