[ Al's | Annie
Gunn's | Bar Italia | Café
Mira ]
[ Cardwell's at The Plaza | Chez Leon
| The Crossing | Eau | Frazer's
]
[ Giovanni's | Harvest | King
& I | King Louie's | Tony's
| Trattoria Marcella ]
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for meetings in St. Louis
Al's
Al's isn't deliberately retro,
it's just a very traditional steak place. No written menu, just
the house's version of "show" (main courses, superb quality protein,
both land- and water-based) and "tell" (an incredible number of
first courses) . The decor is unchanged from the Johnson administration,
the service is impeccable, and yes, that's probably a professional
athlete over in the corner. While the building, in an industrial
area north of Laclede's Landing, doesn't inspire confidence, the
limos parked in front are highly reassuring. Prices are never mentioned
in the ritual of an evening, but they're steep; this is no longer
the most expensive spot in town, but it could be if you're feeling
indulgent. Male guests are asked to wear jackets.
Al's
1200 North First St.
(314) 421-6399
www.alsrestaurant.net
Annie Gunn's
He just wants a good steak, she likes haute cuisine. Solution:
Annie Gunn's, which grew out of
the meat market and smokehouse next door, meaning the sausages and
things like huge smoked shrimp are all done in-house. This is New
American cooking at its best--five or six potato dishes, a deft
hand with game and banana bread pudding with caramel sauce that
makes the unsuspecting groan with delight. The wine list is large,
expensive and expertly handled. Reservations a necessity at this
very popular (and loud) place in the Chesterfield Valley just off
I-64, especially if you want one of the "snugs" that hold six to
eight, depending on avoirdupois and relationship.
Annie Gunn's
16806 Chesterfield Airport Rd.
(636) 532-7684
www.anniegunns.com
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Bar Italia
St. Louis' first serious encounter with Italian that wasn't tomato-sauce
based, Bar Italia in the Central
West End has proven its worth. You never know what to expect out
of this kitchen, with interesting treatments of risotti, fish and
vegetables. The wine and grappa lists are very serious indeed. And
it's become increasingly chic, with interesting types populating
the bar late at night. The large outdoor seating area is protected
from the wind, and no one grumbles if you linger over a mid-afternoon
coffee. Service is knowledgeable, but the tempo of the meal is more
leisurely than what most Americans are accustomed to. Dinner reservations
are a necessity.
Bar Italia
13 Maryland Plaza
(314) 361-7010
www.baritaliastl.com
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Café Mira
Clayton is the hot restaurant district right now. Café
Mira practically sizzles when you touch the door. Spare decor
reminds customers to wear minimalist chic, but don't expect anything
like similar treatment from the kitchen. That trend stops at the
door. Dishes like sweet-hot fried calimari and rock shrimp, lamb
shank in white bean ragout with tomatoes or Creole seared salmon
with a crawfish and corn beignet appear with uncommon vegetable
companions, leaving scarcely any room for the dynamite desserts.
Reservations are important.
Café Mira
12 North Meramec Ave.
(314) 721-7801
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Cardwell's at The Plaza
Don't be fooled by a location in a shopping center and nearness
to Neiman-Marcus. Cardwell's at
the Plaza is a very serious restaurant indeed, serious enough that
visiting wine gurus take lunch here. The menu involves riffs on
how America eats now, which means everything from stellar soups
to forays into curry. A little pasta, frequent variations on duck,
a pork chop and some exciting vegetarian food, courtesy of one of
the owner-chefs whose preference it is, add up to lots of choices.
Not surprisingly, the wine list is a big one. This is too good to
keep for the ladies who shop.
Cardwell's at The Plaza
94 Plaza Frontenac
(314) 997-8885
www.cardwellsattheplaza.com
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Chez Leon
At the southern end of the Central West End near Washington University
Medical Center, Chez Leon does bistro
French with considerable success. The interior feels right, with
mirrors and hat racks above the banquettes and French doors opening
to the street. So does the menu which delivers fine versions of
bistro standards like onion soup, roast chicken and sweetbreads.
There's also a cheese platter, a relative rarity in this town. Laudable
steak frites, with better-than-French beef and earthshaking fries.
Good service from people who understand their menu. Closed Mondays.
Chez Leon
4580 Laclede Ave.
(314) 361-1589
www.chezleon.com
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The Crossing
This relatively small spot in Clayton offers some of the best
celebrity-spotting in town. But that's secondary at The
Crossing, where the pleasures of the palate are indulged
with luxurious food. The emphasis is on Midwestern products whenever
possible, so game and duck are handled well, pork is always exciting,
and particularly in summer, vegetables shine. Nevertheless, it's
not Granny's food, unless she studied fairly recently at the CIA;
this is definitely modern cuisine from a kitchen whose bloodlines
come from Daniel and Gotham in New York. Pleasant but not overwhelming
decor, service occasionally stumbles.
The Crossing
7823 Forsyth Blvd.
(314) 721-7375
www.thecrossingstl.com
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Eau
Eau boy, is this room in the reborn
Chase Hotel in the Central West End a happening place! The café
section does breakfast and lunch and serves as an after-dark meeting
spot for the young and thirsty; the handsome, high-ceilinged bistro
across the hall offers dinner and a fine Sunday brunch. The emphasis,
not surprisingly, is on fish, but there's plenty to keep the carnivores
content in this new enterprise of the Kansas City-based PB&J group.
There's also a terrace overlooking the pool, particularly pleasant
on a fine spring afternoon or an atypical (i.e., only slightly warm)
summer night.
Eau
212 North Kingshighway Blvd.
(314) 454-9000
www.chaseparkplaza.com
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Frazer's
The Clydesdales don't put on the feedbags at this dinner only
spot within sight of the Anheuser-Busch motherhouse in south St.
Louis, but everyone else does. Frazer's
is a storefront serving food that refers to everything from New
Orleans to a sweet white-haired granny, resulting in a variety that
ranges from chicken sandwiches to lavender duck. The spot is noisy,
with clientele that range from oncologists to blue-collar types
on their way to sports events, but the good-natured servers are
knowledgeable about their wares. If they mention a chocolate-studded
bread pudding, grab it. Reservations are a very good idea.
Frazer's
1811 Pestalozzi St.
(314) 773-8646
www.frazergoodeats.com
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Giovanni's
Dining on The Hill, St. Louis' Italian neighborhood, is a St. Louis
tradition. Elegant restaurants sit elbow-to-elbow with small bungalows
and Mom-and-Pop businesses. Giovanni's
is a choice spot for really big celebrations, and the food, now
under the second generation, is being reborn. Traditional dishes
like osso bucco and tagliatelle with mussels glow, but newer ideas
like duck breast in cognac/orange sauce positively sparkle. Giovanni
himself is often in attendance, but the service from black-tie waiters
doesn't lag, no matter what.
Giovanni's
5201 Shaw Ave.
(314) 772-5958
www.giovannisonthehill.com
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Harvest
Harvest offers modern American
food in a California-esque setting. In the close-in suburb of Richmond
Heights and sharing a vestibule with a superior cheesecake bakery,
it's a great spot for those who like their vegetables as well as
their meat or fish because the interesting sides are part of the
pleasure. First courses seem particularly tempting to the adventurous,
but the traditional palates shouldn't miss the buttermilk-battered
onion rings. Not a place for a quiet conversation but extremely
popular. Reserve unless you want to beg them to let you eat at the
bar.
Harvest
1059 South Big Bend
(314) 645-3522
www.harveststlouis.com
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King & I
Who knows how St. Louis ended up with one of the most authentic
Thai restaurants around at least when it comes to food? The
King & I introduced hundreds to the joys of pad Thai and
yum squid. Diners, ranging from suburbanites to students, throng
to the bigger-than-it-looks site in a multi-ethnic neighborhood
of South St. Louis. Main courses are probably better than appetizers.
Caution: This place is serious about spicing. Customers who specify
"hot" often get much more than they bargained for. Pina coladas
aren't ethnically accurate but prove to be an effective antidote.
King & I
3157 South Grand Blvd.
(314) 771-1777
www.thaispicy.com
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King Louie's
King Louie's began as an ancient
brewery tasting room near the St. Louis University Hospital that
became a bar which spawned a restaurant. In the process, the food
evolved, too, adding contemporary riffs to global cuisine, from
chicken sandwiches to Southeast Asian vegetable curries, pasta with
mussels to steak under a porcini mushroom sauce. Word-of-mouth has
drawn flocks of downtown lunchers and pre-symphony/theater/sports
events diners who don't mind the advent of white tablecloths and
an interesting wine list. Here's another vegetarian chef who takes
care of his constituency but makes sure everything tastes good.
King Louie's
3800 Chouteau Ave.
(314) 865-3662
www.kinglouies.com
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Tony's
Located in downtown St. Louis, that temple of the eating arts,
Tony's is formal dining, traditional
style. The Italian roots are still fully evident but the kitchen
gives a wide range of treatments to the best ingredients money and
reputation can obtain. Lobster albanello is the signature dish,
its rich creamy sauce calling for pasta to avoid wasting any. First
courses are a particularly hard decision, with wonderful soups,
truffled scallops and lots of old favorites you'd forgotten you
loved. The best cake-and-ice cream dessert in the Midwest, maybe
the country, is served here. And if nothing sounds good, make a
suggestion -- they can do it. Service is a little less formal than
it used to be, perhaps a result of the long-awaited redecoration
of the dining room.
Tony's
410 Market St.
(314) 231-7007
www.tonysstlouis.com
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Trattoria Marcella
Loud, happy, packed with people having a good time and eating
great food described as "rustic Italian," Trattoria
Marcella rocks on. The menu carries lots of pasta, pizza
and at least one risotto, plus carne and pesce done with American
ingredients, but it's a far cry from spaghetti and meatballs. Swordfish
paillards stuffed with eggplant and tomatoes, polenta "french fries"
with a porcini sauce, flash-fried spinach and squid topped with
shards of parmigiano show the house style. A young, new dessert
chef brought up through the ranks shows great potential. Is it any
surprise this is a family-owned restaurant? Closed Sundays and Mondays.
Trattoria Marcella
3600 Watson Rd.
(314) 352-7706
www.trattoriamarcella.com
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