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
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.
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.
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
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
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
Salt + Smoke's Brisket
There are a lot of things to like about Salt + Smoke, like owner Tom Schmidt's sultry voice and his Leonidas beard, dense as Germany's Black Forest, dark as night. And chef/pitmaster Haley Riley, who not only cooks meat that can't be beat, but once won a Jon Snow lookalike contest at West County mall. But what I like the most about Salt + Smoke is the brisket.
I've written about their burnt end t-ravs before, but I've never written about the brisket itself.
Brisket is my smoked meat of choice. I would pick fall-apart-tender, Texas style brisket over ribs and pulled pork any day. At the time of writing, there are three places that can quash my qraving for it in St. Louis: Salt + Smoke (obviously), Big Baby Q, and The Stellar Hog.
Before being smoked over white oak for the better part of the day, the brisket is rubbed with a simple salt and freshly ground (pre-ground stuff is for people that don't like flavor) pepper mix. Then it goes in. That's it.
The result is brisket that manages to stay together and fall apart all at the same time. It's smoky. The bark is crunchy. It's juicy, like a meat Starburst. I love it.
You can get the brisket either as a platter, which comes with two sides (I'd probably get the garlic and herb fries and white cheddar cracker mac) and a cheddar-bacon popover, or you can get it as a sandwich with burnt end mayo and tobacco onions.
When you order it, you'll get the option of lean, fatty, or burnt ends. You should order the lean—that leaves more of the good stuff for me. Oh, and I don't want to forget: Salt + Smoke has William Larue Weller bourbon in right now. Treat yo' self.
Brisket
Nathaniel Reid Bakery
Goodies Shelf at Nathaniel Reid Bakery
Entremet Case at 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.
Jams
chocolates
macarons
breakfast pastries
Chocolate Almond croissant
Roast beef sandwich
Amber
buttery shortbread, salted caramel mousse, pecan caramel
polynesia
coconut mousse, mango and banana cream, moist almond cake
jarmo
pistachio cream, pistachio cake, strawberries, raspberries
fruitcake
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.
Sugo's Lasagna
Here's something you might not know about Qui Tran (Mai Lee, Nudo): the guy is obsessed with Italian-American food. I'm a Jewish guy who finds comfort in a big bowl of bun bo hue and he's a Vietnamese guy who will talk to you about veal saltimbocca for hours if you let him. If you've followed me for awhile, you know I'm not a big Italian-American food fan. I think The Hill has far more misses than hits these days and wince every time I hear people recommending visitors go there. So, aside from Randolfi's and a few select restaurants, all my Italian picks come from Qui.
The other day he called me up and the conversation went something like:
Me: Hello?
Qui: Sugo's lasagna! That's what you gotta get next. It's freaking huge!
Me: Ok. I'll do it.
Lasagna and I have never gotten along. The only thing I liked about it as kid was when the edges would turn into crispy burnt cheese chips (one of the greatest flavors on Earth, I would argue). Besides that, I wasn't interested. Until last week, it had been probably a decade since I ordered lasagna. I had to do as Qui said. I needed to try this lasagna.
Sugo's lasagna
For $11, you get a brick of lasagna. It's a Rob Gronkowski sized portion, a 'slice' so large that mere mortals have no hopes of finishing. Michael Del Pietro, the chef and owner behind Sugo's, Babbo's, Tavolo V, and Via Vino, told me this is his grandmother's recipe that's been passed down for generations. I believe him.
There were two things I really enjoyed about this: it is well balanced and it's got a layer of burnt, crunchy cheese. The lasagnas of my youth were anything but balanced, tasting more like jars of marinara poured over dried out ground meat, pummeled with dried oregano. Sugo's does a nice job balancing the sweetness of fresh tomatoes and fresh tomato sauce with layers of ricotta, parmesan, Italian sausage, and ground beef. And, somehow, it doesn't seem so overwhelmingly heavy, even with those ingredients. Magic.
Sitting in the restaurant, eating this on a rainy spring day, I got the appeal. It's a comfort food. It tastes like something your mom or grandma might have made you, all the while pushing you to keep eating because you're a growing boy.
The best part of this lasagna came the day after. I took my leftovers and broiled them until they became a bubbly, burnt, crispy messy. It's like a bonus round of lasagna.
West County folks—if you haven't made your way over to Sugo's for a meal fit for The Mountain, you should remedy that.
Burnt Scallion Chicken Enchiladas
I'm always looking for ways to combine things I love—in this case, joining my love for enchiladas with my love for Sean Brock's grilled chicken wings with a burnt scallion BBQ sauce. The wings are a summertime staple at my house, and, if you make them, they will be at yours too. The smoky charred chicken skin topped with that BBQ sauce on steroids will shiver your timbers. Seriously, once you make this sauce, you'll want it all the time. Brock's recipe calls for his homemade Husk BBQ sauce, but save time and just use whichever BBQ sauce you have on hand (I know you have one that's been sitting in your fridge for months—use that). Funny story: a few weeks back I was making a batch of these and forgot about the scallions in the oven. I turned around and saw that, somehow, one of them had lit on fire. That was a first.
But chicken wings take time and effort, and most days of the week, you're just not going to spend the time making them. Plus, you have to worry about not giving your friends and family food poisoning due to undercooked chicken. My solution to this is to simply buy your favorite rotisserie or smoked chicken from the grocery and shred the meat off that. The smoked meat is mixed with sweet caramelized onions, always incredible roasted garlic, and then the BBQ sauce and stringy Mexican cheese.
For the tortillas, I highly, highly recommend using the TortillaLand flour tortillas. They're uncooked, so you'll find them in refrigerated area near the cheeses, and just require a quick trip to a hot pan. The flavor of both the corn and flour tortillas are top notch—better than what some of the restaurants in town are using. To say I have become obsessed with them is an understatement. For St. Louis readers, they're available at Schnucks.
These have become a freezer-staple for me—I just pop it out, microwave it, then throw it in the toaster oven for a couple minutes to crisp up the edges again. Enjoy!
tortillaland tortillas
tortillaland tortilla description
Chicken Enchiladas
burnt scallion BBQ sauce
Chicken Enchiladas with Burnt Scallion BBQ Sauce
YIELD: 8 | ACTIVE: 20 MIN | INACTIVE: 35 | TOTAL: 55 MIN
INGREDIENTS
BURNT SCALLION SAUCE
ADAPTED FROM HERITAGE BY SEAN BROCK
10 scallions, trimmed
1 T peanut oil
Kosher salt
1 bottle BBQ sauce (your choice)
1 T soy sauce
1 c cilantro leaves
FILLING
1 rotisserie chicken
Queso fresco/Chihuahua cheese
1 large onion, sliced
1 head of garlic
8 large tortillas
METHOD
BURNT SCALLION BBQ SAUCE
Turn on your broiler. Line a pan with foil, then using a brush or paper towel, coat the scallions in peanut oil. Broil until well-charred (your kitchen may get a little smoky, but it shouldn’t be too bad). Remove from oven and let cool for a couple minutes. Combine all sauce ingredients in a blender, then set aside.
FILLING
Peel the garlic cloves, then make a foil pouch. Coat cloves with olive oil, salt, and vinegar. Bake at 400F for 30-40 minutes. Once cool, mash together.
Pick the rotisserie chicken apart like a Viking warrior.
Caramelize the sliced onion. I use Kenji’s 15-minute recipe.
PUTTING IT TOGETHER
Preheat oven to 350F.
Mix the onions, chicken, and garlic in a bowl. Spread a thin layer of the BBQ sauce on the tortilla, then a spoonful of the chicken and onion mix, then as much cheese as you desire. Roll up the enchilada and place into a 9×13 baking pan. Repeat until the pan is full. Top the enchiladas with remaining sauce and cheese. Bake for 20 minutes, remove from oven and top with cilantro.
Asian Kitchen
The tables have turned—for the last few years, I've held JooJoo up as my #1 Korean restaurant in St. Louis, but it seems Asian Kitchen is making a move. The last time I was at Asian Kitchen Korean Cuisine was in late 2013 for Christmas dinner. I had just come back from Asia and, like every other Jew in America, was trying to get some Chinese food. Royal Chinese BBQ: packed. Lulu's: packed. Frustrated, hungry, and bitter, I turned around and randomly picked an empty looking restaurant that happened to be Asian Kitchen.
The restaurant was dead. There was a Thai family enjoying Korean BBQ, but no one else there. It was just that family, my family, and the server, an older Korean woman. The walls had some kind of off putting paint color on them that I can't recall—something very 70's. Robin's egg blue? Vomity yellow? I took a seat, ordered something meaty, then a wave of banchan (small plates) filled the table. It took our server 3 trips to get everything on the table. We're talking 20+ bowls of kimchis, pickled greens, sweet black beans, potato salad, seaweed. Insanity.
Between the time the banchan hit the table and our mains arrived, two memorable things happened. First, I got scolded by my new Korean mother for drinking soju out of the bottle. I hadn't kicked the bad habits I'd picked up from my Korean business partners. Secondly, an older couple came in after us and they were the rudest diners I've ever seen in person. They couldn't understand why this Chinese restaurant didn't have any of the dishes they were familiar with! The waitress tried to explain that Korean food wasn't Chinese food, but they weren't having it. They refused the banchan because it was "gross". They came over to our table to ask how to order the kung pao chicken. I kindly grabbed the woman's face and held it on my searing hot dolsot bibimbap bowl. Finally, they left and made sure to let the server know they would NEVER be back.
The food we got that night was fine. Definitely authentic, but the flavors were a little bland. Not a bad meal, but not a great meal.
I've since returned. Banchan: still excessive, still delicious. You can ask for seconds (or thirds...) of any of them, and they'll happily oblige you. We had so much kimchi last time we were there, I think I've been fermented. The interior has been redone, a big plus. But how was the food?
Motorino
Motorino Singapore
If you follow me on Twitter/Facebook/Instagram/Tinder, you know that I'm in Singapore. I've been here for just over a week and won't be back to the US until August. I've been like a kid in a candy store, hopping from hawker stall to hawker stall, restaurant to restaurant. I don't want to shock anyone with these strange Far East treats, though, so we'll start things off with something more familiar: pizza. Motorino, a New York City based Neapolitan pizza shop, has spread its wings in recent years and expanded to Singapore, Manila, and Hong Kong. After eating so much good pizza in St. Louis, I had to try it out and see how it compared.
Motorino Singapore is located in Clarke Quay, a touristy area with restaurants like "Wings", a US Air Force theme chicken restaurant, Hooters, and, in years past, a hospital themed restaurant. It's the place to go to see drunk Australians playing in a fountain made for children. The restaurant itself is small, about 10 tables inside and nearly the same on the patio.
Tables at Motorino Singapore
Interior at Motorino Singapore
Seating at Motorino Singapore
Cooks at Motorino Singapore
Like any good pizza place, the oven is the focal point, the beating heart of the restaurant. It also helps to keep the restaurant warm on cool nights - something that doesn't exist in Singapore - so it just served to make the restaurant nearly unbearably warm. You've got AC! Turn it on!
Oven at Motorino Singapore
Cooking at Motorino Singapore
We started the meal with their meatballs, baseball-sized balls of juicy pork coated with a thin, slightly sweet tomato sauce, basil, and a hint of pecorino. I could have done with more cheese (who couldn't?), but these were a big hit at the table. One of the pizza customization options was to get these on top, something I'll do if I return.
Menus at Motorino Singapore
Meatball at Motorino Singapore
Our first pizza was the Soppressata Piccante, a spicy salami pizza with chili peppers, oregano, and sea salt. (There was a yellow spotlight behind us, shining onto our table, which meant that after sunset, the pictures started looking a little wonky. Just pretend they look perfect.) I liked this one - the mix of good tomato sauce, melty mozzarella, and the salty & spicy soppressata gets my approval. I thought the topping to crust ratio was a bit off, though. You can see that the crust pieces are pretty substantial.
Their dough is, by design, breadier than I prefer, so I actually ended up not eating most of the crust. Sacrilege, I know! It was all so I could eat more of the next pizza, though! I had good intentions.
Soppressata Pizza at Motorino Singapore
Tiger Beer at Motorino Singapore
Mushroom Pizza at Motorino Singapore
Our second pizza was the Cremini Mushroom and Sausage. From the description - Gaeta olives, garlic, sweet sausage, thyme - I thought it was going to be bursting with flavor. Somehow it ended up being very one-note, essentially a cheesy mushroom toast. Everything else was overpowered (or there simply wasn't enough) to counter the mushrooms. I only had one piece of this.
Aside from the mushroom pizza, I liked my meal at Motorino, but wasn't blown away. St. Louis wins this round, without a doubt in my mind. Next up for my global pizza tour will be Mario Batali's Pizzeria Mozza. It's been almost two years since I've had it, but it was my #1 favorite up until I left Singapore. Will it take down St. Louis' finest? We shall see in the next few weeks.
Motorino
Merchant's Court #01-01A
3A River Valley Rd
Singapore 179020
6334-4968
Dave and Tony's
With my newfound freedom, I now have the time to go all over St. Louis at lunch time - with that, I'll be posting some shorter lunch pieces. To kick things off, I visited Dave & Tony's Premium Burger Joint in Creve Coeur. As the name implies, burgers are their thing: you can either pick one of their pre-designed burgers, or fill out a sheet at the counter for a custom one. The range of options is hefty. You could craft a healthy salad with grilled chicken and a garden's worth of veggies, or you could get a extra large steakburger on a pretzel bun with cheese, onion rings, a fried egg, bacon, french fries, and steak butter. I keep meaning to ask them what the most ultimate (read: fattening) burger someone has ordered is - I bet I'd be impressed, but also disgusted.
The restaurant is family friendly, so it's got something for everyone: soups, hot dogs, chicken fingers, nachos. And since you may be stuck bringing your demon kids with you, take advantage of the beer and wine they have.
I typically get the Asian Salad wrap with grilled chicken, a healthier choice that allows me to go eat The Peacemaker's po'boys. It's mixed greens, sprouts, red onion, carrots, avocado, crispy wontons, and a sesame soy dressing. Get the dressing on the side if you don't enjoy a soggy wrap.
Their burgers are damn good for $6.99, especially considering they make pretty much everything in-house. This monstrosity below was the daily special, the Brewhouse Burger. A juicy medium burger topped with crispy onion, smokey bacon, jalapenos, stout mustard, and a cheddar spread, all on a pretzel roll. Eating that meant at least one less day in my life, I think, but it was worth it.
Asian Salad Wrap at Dave & Tony's
Burger at Dave & Tony's
Dave & Tony's is a solid option for a quick meal that won't break the bank, nor leave you disappointed. The business crowd crushes the restaurant during weekday lunches, but week nights and weekends are typically a good choice for a meal with the whole family.