August 2014 Feast Magazine

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Inspired Food Culture

AUGUST 2014

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feastmagazine.com

AUGUST 2014

FUSIONFUN WILD TAPAS, COOL COCKTAILS & CREATIVITY Grilled Peaches with whipped Goat Cheese & Balsamic Vinaigrette

Encrusted Steak over Purple Potatos with broccoli & rhubarb elderberry catsup

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314.535.9700 | 4198 Manchester Ave., St. Louis, MO Inspired Food Culture

AUGUST 2014

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Inspired Food Culture | Saint Louis

AUGUST 2014 | 10 |

from the staff from the PUBLIsher

Raise a glass, st. Louis!

| 12 |

dIgItaL content

what’s online this month.

| 14 |

feast tv

A peek at the August episode.

| 18 |

feast faves

Our staff and contributors share inspired ideas for tasteful living in st. Louis.

| 26 |

coLUmns one on one

Kick off football season with shawn Zell, team chef and dietitian for the st. Louis Rams.

| 28 |

seed to taBLe

farmer Crystal stevens shares how to use fireroasted peppers three ways.

| 30 |

mystery shoPPer

Buy it and try it: guava paste.

| 32 |

menU oPtIons

never buy ricotta again after perfecting this simple at-home recipe.

| 34 |

sweet Ideas

Pastry chef Christy Augustin shares how to celebrate peach season with rich frangipane.

| 36 |

gadget a-go-go

five sparkling-wine savers are put to the test.

| 38 |

on the sheLf

new and notable in beer, spirits and wine.

| 40 |

the mIx

Break out the bubbly with the french 75.

| 82 |

the Last BIte

writer Crystal stevens digs into a sweet seasonal treat at dressel’s Public House.

COVER PHOTOGRAPHY Of iCE CREAm sAndwiCHEs fROm COLLEEn’s COOKiEs (P. 21)

BY Jonathan Gayman TABLE Of COnTEnTs PHOTOGRAPHY Of VAnBusKiRK CHOCOLATEs’ GOOEY BuTTER CAKE TRuffLEs BY Cheryl Waller

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feastmagazine.com

august 2014

45 -47 the inaugural

feast awards

49 -81 feast 50:

a celebration of the

ST. LOUIS

FOOD scene

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Magazine Volume 5

Hand Crafted Coffees Importing Fine Coffees from 20 Countries • QUALITY • EXPERIENCE • SERVICE

| Issue 8 | August 2014

EDITORIAL Publisher Catherine Neville publisher@feastmagazine.com Senior Print Editor Liz Miller editor@feastmagazine.com Senior Digital Editor Kristin Brashares web@feastmagazine.com Assistant Editor Bethany Christo bchristo@feastmagazine.com

Full Service Coffeehouse & Restaurant Supplier Fourth Generation Family Owned Coffee Roasters Since 1930

WWW.CHAUVINCOFFEE.COM

314-772-0700

Creating local Italian Food with help from our Farmers and Friends Since 2007

Copy Editor/Fact Checker/Proofreader Alexandra Bates, Barbara E. Stefano, Christine Wilmes Contributing Writers Christy Augustin, Tory Bahn, Brandon Chuang, Shannon Cothran Pat Eby, Kyle Harsha, Valeria Turturro Klamm, Matt Seiter Matt Sorrell, Crystal Stevens, Michael Sweeney, Shannon Weber ART Art Director Lisa Allen art@feastmagazine.com Assistant Art Director Alexandrea Povis apovis@feastmagazine.com Contributing Photographers Jonathan Gayman, Demond Meek, J.Pollack Photography Jennifer Silverberg, Cheryl Waller FEAST TV producers:

Catherine Neville Kristin Brashares production partner:

Pounds Media contributing Videographers:

Judd Demaline, Kurt Ehlmann, Cameron Hill, Alessio Summerfield Director of Sales Kelly Klein kklein@feastmagazine.com Contact Us Feast Media, 900 N. Tucker Blvd., 4th Floor St. Louis, MO 63101 314.340.8562 feastmagazine.com

$30 ~ 4 Course Tasting Menu 7266 Manchester Rd. Maplewood

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Distribution To distribute Feast Magazine at your place of business, please contact Jeff Moore at jmoore@stldist.com.

Feast Magazine does not accept unsolicited manuscripts, photographs or artwork. Submissions will not be returned.

All contents are copyright © 2010-2014 by Feast Magazine™.

All rights reserved.

314-644-1790 Fialafood.com

Reproduction or use in whole or in part of the contents, without the prior written permission of the publisher, is strictly prohibited.

M-Th 5-9pm • Fri/Sat 5-10pm

Produced by the Suburban Journals of Greater St. Louis, LLC

feastmagazine.com

august 2014

The Perfect Gift For Everyone ANDREA'S BOUTIQUE ART • ACCESSORIES • RESALE

Vietnamese & Chinese Restaurant

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A 2012 "FEAST" Favorite!

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Thank You all Local Area Chefs for Making Us #1 Located in the Meridian Shopping Center at Hanley & Eager Roads behind the Best Buy.

FREE PARKING IN THE METRO LINK GARAGE Tu-Th: 11am-9pm • Fr-Su 11am-10pm 8396 Musick Memorial Dr. • 314.645.2835 www.MaiLeeRestaurant.com

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Inspired Food Culture

AUGUST 2014

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publisher’s letter

FeAst eVeNts

the august issue marks our fourth anniversary, and we celebrate this milestone with the feast 50 (p. 49),

Ave., Downtown Clayton; claytonfarmersmarket.com

The market supports local farmers, spotlights organic and natural foods and unique specialties.

Fan Fest burger Challenge Sat., Aug. 2, 11am; Edward Jones Dome; stlouisrams.com

Local chefs compete in a burger cook-off at the St. Louis Rams’ Fan Fest.

schurcipefones Festival

fest in which we ask the

Sun., Aug. 3, noon to 6pm; Rooster on South Grand, 3150

they enjoy most about dining and drinking in St. Louis. And this year we are also introducing the first annual Feast Awards (p. 45).

South Grand Blvd.; baileysrestaurants.com

This annual festival closes out St. Louis Craft Beer week with samples of great local craft beers, amazing barbecue and family activities.

Clayton’s Food truck sundays August 10, 4 to 8pm; Shaw Park; claytonmo.gov/fts

Join us for great mobile eats and live music in Clayton’s Shaw Park.

Rather than approaching

John perkins’ southern best

our awards as a readers’ poll

Tue., Aug. 12, 6pm; Roth Living

or editor’s pick, we asked a panel of industry experts to

$60; RSVPstl@rothliving.com

Learn how to make Juniper chef-owner John Perkins’ fried chicken and more.

engage in a two-tier nomination and judging process to determine the winners in

Art of pAWs

each category. Using this peer-to-peer approach allowed us to give voice to those

Sat., Aug. 16, 7 to 11pm; Gallery 400

working in the culinary industry – and our panel will shift annually, ensuring a fresh perspective each year. Now, we did want to give our readers a say as well. So,

$40; stlefa.org/artofpaws

Help raise money for PAWS, which provides care for pets of those who are living with HIV/AIDS.

we took our judge’s nominees and put them up for a digital vote. Thousands (and

Midwest salute to the Arts

I mean many thousands) of you voted and you’ll see the peoples’ choice results

Aug. 22 to 24; Moody Park (Longacre Park); Free;

alongside our judge’s top picks in the 25 award categories.

This year we are also opening up our annual barbecue and cocktail party – the

midwestsalute.com

This festival brings art to the people with a kid’s creation station, live music and the chance to purchase unique art from more than 100 artists.

Feast 50 Fête – to the public. For the past three years, it’s been a private event, but

Festival of Nations

we’ve decided to open it up to the public and I invite you to join us at the gorgeous

6pm; Tower Grove Park

World’s Fair Pavilion in Forest Park on Thu., Aug. 21, to mix and mingle with our Feast Awards winners as well as the folks who contributed to this year’s delicious Feast 50 (turn to p. 80 for details).

Feast family is growing. Bethany Christo has come on board as our new assistant editor and Alexandrea Povis is our new assistant art director. They are both talented women, passionate about publishing and welcome additions to our team.

It’s been a very quick four years since Feast launched, and every day I feel immense gratitude to be able to do this work – right now there is so much creative energy and pure talent in the St. Louis culinary world. I’m inspired by the sense of collaboration and mutual respect that pervades our local scene, which is reflected in these pages. I hope that you, our readers, are as well. Cheers!

FEAST 50 FêTE

Until next time,

Thu., Aug. 21, 6 to 10PM; World’s Fair Pavilion in Forest Park $50; go to feastmagazine.com for tickets

Catherine Neville

publisher@feastSTL.com feastmagazine.com

AUGUST 2014

mix and mingle with the industry’s best at our annual barbecue and cocktail party! There will be live music, cocktails, hors d’oeuvres and a night to remember under the stars. @cat_neville

Sat., Aug. 23, 10am to 7pm and Sun., Aug. 24, 10am to

The region’s premier multicultural celebration, with more than 40 ethnic food vendors, music, dance, arts and crafts and an international bazaar.

schnucks Cooks Fresh ricotta

And as we sprint toward our October expansion, I am happy to announce that the

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Now to October, 4:30 to 7:30pm Thursdays; North Central

our annual culinary lovecity’s top food folks what

In this month’s Feast TV, I whip up VanBuskirks’ sweet ode to a classic: gooey butter cake. Watch the show on the Nine Network on Aug. 2 and make gooey butter cake truffles in your own kitchen.

Clayton Farmers’ Market

@cat_neville

Wed., Aug. 27, 6 to 9pm; Schnucks Cooks Cooking School; $40, schnuckscooks.com or 314.909.1704

Join us in the kitchen and make homemade ricotta with blackberry-herb preserves.

thirst For life Thu., Aug. 28; stlefa.org/events/thirst_for_life

Support PAWS by enjoying a libation at any of the participating Thirst For Life restaurants, which will donate 30 percent or more of your beverage tab directly to the organization.

2014 louFest Sat., Sept. 6, and Sun., Sept. 7; loufest.com

This two-day festival features national and local bands, great food in the Nosh Pit, artisan producers and vendors and a greening effort.

st. louis World’s Fare Fri., Sept. 12 to Sun., Sept. 14; Forest Park; stlworldsfare.com

Experience this unique celebration of St. Louis’ past, present and future as the energy of the 1904 World’s Fair is rekindled. Join us for 1904 historic exhibits, live music, local eats and more.

Our shelves are stocked with foods from countries far and wide.

We invite you to take a culinary trip around the world without leaving St. Louis

Bon Appetit's "50 Best New Restaurants in America" Wine Enthusiast Magazine "America's 100 Best Wine Restaurants"

by

GLOBAL FOODS MARKET is

Eater's "19 Hottest Bars in America" Thrillist's "33 Best Restaurants in America"

Coming to the Delmar Loop

GRAND OPENING 8.11.2014 Full-Service Grocery & International Market including

Martha Stewart Weddings

"The Dining District"

"Top Wedding Cake Pros"

A Chef-Crafted, Urban Food Hall Offering A Diverse Selection of Culinary Experiences

bengelina hospitality group Inspired Food Culture

august 2014

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DIGITAL CONTENT

hungry for more? connect with us daily:

PHOTOGRAPHy By J. Pollack Photography

feastmagazine.com WE HAVE A NEW ADDRESS!

In anticipation of our regional expansion in October, we are switching over our website URL, feastSTL.com, to feastmagazine.com. As we get closer to October,

FAcEbook. We hit 20,000 likes in July, and we’re

partnering with Strange Donuts to help us reach our next milestone at facebook.com/feastSTL.

PHOTOGRAPHy By Stacy McCann

watch for exciting updates and changes to the site as well.

TWITTER. Stay up-to-date on new openings

PHOTOGRAPHy By Jonathan Gayman

(such as Sauce on the Side’s new Clayton location) at @feastmag.

PHOTOGRAPHy By Jennifer Silverberg

PInTEREST. Find more local foods we love (like Katie’s Pizza & Pasta Osteria’s Kup’s Egg Pizza) at pinterest.com/feastmag.

onLInE EXTRAS: In our Feast 50 feature (p. 49), local culinarians share their go-to spots to grab a bite (like Asian Kitchen,

one of former Farmhaus general manager Eric Scholle’s favorites). For more insights, visit feastmagazine.com. Plus, get an extra boozy dessert recipe – ginger cream custard martini – from The Fountain on Locust.

GIVEAWAY: Enter for a chance to win a food-focused road trip to Indy! Our special package features two tickets to

Dig IN, a $50 gift certificate to R Bistro, a two-night stay at The Alexander and an active Indy tour for two – all valued at nearly $800. Details in the Promotions section at feastmagazine.com.

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feastmagazine.com

AUGUST 2014

InSTAGRAm. Get behind-the-scenes access to Feast TV at @feastmag.

Watch our videos.

youtube.com/FeastMagazine

#neighborhooddrinking #beerandbbq #happyhour #bars

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Inspired Food Culture

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FEAST TV

watch this month’s episode to:

TV

Look for the Feast TV splat throughout the magazine. It tells you which articles are part of this month’s episode!

Segment 1. From breakfast to dinner, discover Perennial Artisan Ales owner Phil Wymore’s ideal day of dining in St. Louis.

Segment 2. Go behind the scenes at Companion’s Early bird Outlet and meet Josh Allen, the company’s founder.

PHOTOGRAPHy by Cheryl Waller

Segment 3. Take a sip of nostalgia at Excel bottling Co., one of a few remaining mom-andpop soda bottlers in the United States.

Segment 4. Get to know Andy Karandzieff, part of the third generation behind a St. Louis institution: Crown Candy Kitchen.

Watch the upcoming August episode on the Nine Network (Channel 9) at 2pm on Sat., Aug. 2, and 1pm on Mon., Aug. 4. Feast TV will also air on the nineCREATE channel periodically throughout the month.

feast tv is brought to you by the generous support of our sponsors: MISSOuRI WINES

WHOLE FOOdS MARkET

ROTH LIVING

In August, reach for a bottle of Noboleis Vineyards’ Noblevescent.

Feast TV producer Cat Neville pairs it with Vanbuskirk Chocolates’ gooey butter cake truffles.

Get cooking at home! Pick up the ingredients and recipe from Cat’s demo at both St. Louis-area locations of Whole Foods Market.

Roth Living curates innovation and luxury in high-end appliances.

Explore Roth’s showroom to experience an appliance’s true performance and create the inspired kitchen of your dreams.

14

feastmagazine.com

AUGUST 2014

Pairs well with

SUNS H INE Summer is in full swing and Missouri wine country calls to us. The warm temperatures and clear blue skies create the need for adventure. Make the most of your wanderlust at one of our more than 125 Missouri Wineries. Spend the afternoon sampling some of our crisp, refreshing varietals while soaking in those beautiful rays.

Plan your escape at missouriwine.org.

Inspired Food Culture

AUGUST 2014

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feastmagazine.com

AUGUST 2014

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Inspired Food Culture

august 2014

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FEAST FAVES

| where we’re dining

2436 Taylor Road, Wildwood, 636.821.3006

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feastmagazine.com

AUGUST 2014

PHOTOGRAPHy by

Earlier this year, Thai Bistro opened in a sleepy strip mall in Wildwood, the newest venture for Joe Nanthavong, the former owner of the nowshuttered Land of Smile Thai restaurant in Olivette.

Open for lunch and dinner service, Thai bistro deftly prepares Thai and Asian-inspired favorites like red, green, yellow and panang curries (each served with your choice of chicken, tofu, beef, pork or shrimp), tom kha gai and tom yum goong soups, papaya and seaweed salads, a selection of noodle dishes, and more. Elsewhere on the menu, house specialties include phad cha mussels, pineapple curry and prawns with tamarind sauce, among others, allowing Nanthavong the freedom to experiment outside of the expected. The atmosphere at Thai bistro is comfortable, the dining room décor bends toward a modern aesthetic and the staff are friendly, knowledgeable and quick to offer recommendations – including what level of spiciness to order for each dish depending on your preference. The restaurant serves a tidy selection of beer and wine, as well as desserts – try the sticky rice with mango for a refreshing last bite. – L.M.

Jennifer Silverberg

thai bistro

FEAST FAVES

Theatre for

| Where We’re drInkIng

moonshine blues bar

Any Appetite!

wRiTTen by kyle harsha

2014-2015 Season On Sale

For many, the Mississippi River conjures thoughts of barbecue, whiskey and clapboard buildings with blues music drifting out from inside. That is the vibe that the owners of Moonshine Blues Bar in St. Charles were attempting to cultivate when they opened their establishment in 2013, and it has proved successful. As the name suggests, the bar features live blues music – played on Friday and Saturday nights – and the crowd is typically lively and willing to dance without being too raucous.

Mainstage

6-show packages start at just $93! Single shows on sale August 4.

One Man, Two Guvnors Sept. 10 - Oct. 5 A Midsummer Night’s Dream Oct. 15 - Nov. 9 Ring of Fire: The Music of Johnny Cash Dec. 3 - 28 Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner Jan. 7 - Feb. 1 The Winslow Boy Feb. 11 - Mar. 8 Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike Mar. 18 - Apr. 12

Located below Hendricks bbQ in the Old waterworks building on South Main Street, the bar is operated by in Good Company, the same group responsible for Hendricks, Cathedral Square brewery, Diablitos Cantina, Café Ventana and Sanctuaria, and is a playground for those in love with all things whiskey. behind the bar there are more than 200 varieties of whiskey, and the bar staff proudly claims the “largest whiskey selection in St. Louis.” Choices range from the familiar (a pour of Jack Daniel’s for $9) to the rare (Pappy Van winkle 12-year for $15) to the downright weird (pink lemonade moonshine for $9). The staff is incredibly knowledgeable and can make recommendations based on what you like.

For the patron who isn’t into whiskey, there are other offerings. The beer selection is rather hearty, featuring locally made brews from the likes of 2nd Shift brewing, Cathedral Square and 4 Hands brewing Co. There are a few menu items made with gin, rum, vodka and tequila – offered with the delightfully snarky caveat, “we don’t suggest it, but we have it.” The cocktails available are well-crafted, balanced and made without the how-dare-you-drinksomething-other-than-whiskey-neat sneer that sometimes accompanies whiskey bars.

The Fox River ($9) has a slight chocolaty note, along with delicious peach tones, and the billionaire’s Cocktail ($10) is refreshing and zippy.

studio theatre

Only 125 seats per show - don’t miss out - subscribe now!

Single shows on sale October 1.

A Kid Like Jake Oct. 29 - Nov. 16 Safe House Jan. 21 - Feb. 8 Buyer and Cellar Mar. 11 - 29

1200 S. Main St., St. Charles, 636.724.8600, moonshinebluesbar.com

Join us for Taste

of The Rep!

Thursday, August 21 4p.m. - 8p.m.

PHOTOGRAPHy by

Cheryl Waller

Food trucks, live music, fun!

Info: www.repstl.org

Kyle Harsha is a certified specialist of wine and certified sommelier with over 20 years’ experience in the food and wine industry. He drinks more wine than he probably ought to.

Subscribe Now

Best Seats • Best Prices • Best Benefits

(314) 968-4925 www.repstl.org

THE REPERTORY THEATRE OF ST. LOUIS 130 Edgar Road • St. Louis, MO • 63119 Photo:

Inspired Food Culture

Fly Omar Edwards

august 2014

19

FEAST FAVES

| where we’re dininG

the social affair at the station In April, Kelly Spencer, founder and chef of The Social Affair catering company, expanded her business with the opening of The Station, a market-meets-event space in Shaw. The Station is housed inside a former gas station that had fallen into disrepair before Spencer purchased the property and brought it back to life (the building is now included on the National Register of Historic Places). The reincarnated space embraces the building’s original architecture and features fun, colorful, retro interior design.

A native of birmingham, Alabama, Spencer’s cuisine brims with Southern influences, which shine in hearty grab-and-go foods, such as mac ‘n’ cheese and harvest chicken salad, and spreads like house-smoked salmon dip, baconand-bourbon jam and two types of rich pimento cheese: white and classic Cheddar. Spencer and her team also make pita chips, peppered crostini, rosemary crackers and desserts in-house, as well as fresh cocktail starters for Margaritas, Daiquiris, Mint Juleps and more. – L.M.

PHOTOGRAPHy by

Jonathan Gayman

2232 Thurman Ave., Shaw, 314.735.5527 thesocialaffairstl.com

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feastmagazine.com

AUGUST 2014

FEAST FAVES

| Food stuFF

sugar crush

CONGRATULATIONS TO THIS YEAR’S FEAST AWARD WINNERS!

Ice cream sandwiches combine two of our favorite treats: rich, refreshing ice cream and sugary, sweet cookies. Beat the heat this month with trips to these three local shops, which serve many indulgent desserts, including killer ice cream sandwiches. – L.M.

CoLLEEN’s CooKIEs

#FOLLOWTHEGOAT kaldiscoffee.com

I sCREAM CAKEs

toWER GRoVE CREAMERY

| 1 | Assorted ice cream sandwiches, $3.50 each; Colleen’s Cookies, 7337 Forsyth Blvd., Clayton, 314.727.8427, colleenscookies.com | 2 | Assorted ice cream sandwiches, $6 (tax included); I Scream Cakes, 2641 S. Cherokee St., Cherokee Business District, 314.932.5758, iscreamcakes.com | 3 | assorted ice cream sandwiches, $2.75; tower grove Creamery, 3101 s. grand Blvd., south grand, 314.772.2456, towergrovecreamery.com PHOTOGRAPHy By Jonathan Gayman Inspired Food Culture

august 2014

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FEAST FAVES

| SHOP-O-MATIC

rocket fizz WRITTEN BY Shannon Cothran

The staff members at Rocket Fizz, a new locally owned franchised candy and soda shop in The Loop, greet each person who walks through the door. “Hello!” they say, cheerfully. “How are you?

Let me know if I can help you find anything.”

No one ever answers them. Customers either stand for a moment on the doormat, while smiling slowly as they take in the visual onslaught of colorful merchandise, or they rush immediately over to a candy or an oddity that has caught their eye. The staff has learned not to take being ignored personally. One of the shop’s owners, Mark Strahm, laughs it off because, he says, after exploring the store, customers are happy to chat.

“Talking to people is so much fun,” Strahm says.

“I had a lady here yesterday who stayed for two hours and eventually came to the counter with her basket nearly overflowing with candy. She said: ‘I found all this stuff from when I was a kid. I have to buy all this for my grandkids so they know what I had when I was young.’ And I had a child saying, ‘What is this?’ about our suckers with real scorpions in them. He couldn’t believe it!”

Fun is what Rocket Fizz is all about. Concert posters and tin signs with puns decorate the walls (and are for sale). The cheery store employees play lively music, and the floor is strewn with tables displaying candies, toys and collectibles.

There’s the sugar-free table, the specialty chocolates table, the British chocolates table, the Japanese candies table and a table stocked with Americana, including Charleston Chews and Boston Baked Beans. Pair these with hundreds of sodas and a 40-foot-long wall of saltwater taffy, and a visit to Rocket Fizz is a fast favorite.

6303 Delmar Blvd., The Loop, 314.833.4614 facebook.com/RocketFizzSTL

FUEL UP WITH TREATS FROM ROCKET FIZZ

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|2|

|3|

Cheryl Waller

as saltwater taffy – in unexpected flavors like guava, pomegranate and chile mango – oversized lollipops and Mary Jane candies are just some of the shop’s whimsical and special treats. | 2 | Cookie dough, peanut butter and jelly, cookies and cream and bacon with chocolate are just a few of the sugary sweet, unexpected soda flavors sold at Rocket Fizz – though many of the shop’s specialty soda flavors are more familiar, including varieties of wild cherry, root beer, cola and more. | 3 | Among Rocket Fizz’s assortment of toys and gifts are many different styles of fake mustaches. There is a bacon-scented mustache (perfect for the Ron Swanson fan in everyone’s life), a bendable party mustache and a set of seven differently styled mustaches, one for each day of the week.

|1|

PHOTOGRAPHY BY

| 1 | Vintage and old-fashioned sweets such

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Something neu to watch Dau Neu is the new store in town, stocked with fun, funky and affordable furniture you won’t find anywhere else.

Our showroom is decked out with furniture with tons of customizable options. Come see what the buzz is about.

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AUGUST 2014

23

Welcoming Visitors for Over 200 Years!

The Businesses of Historic St. Charles, Missouri Come See What’s Happening This Summer

StringAlong With Me

Tony’s

On Main Street

Tony’s does catering.

10 off

$

The purchase of any 2 entrees

Please present coupon before ordering. One coupon per party. Not valid on Saturdays & Holidays.

Good thru 11/30/14

132 North Main in Historic St. Charles

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Fashion Accessories

tonysonmain.com

625 S. Main St. Charles, MO 63301

Taking any size reservations for any size party. Go to www.tonysonmain.com and make your reservations today!

( 636 ) 947-7740

Closed on Mondays

Tony’s On Main

Closed on Mondays

Mother-In-LawHouse Our O ur Famous F us Desserts D ts are a Perfect ending to our fine Dinners of Beef, Chicken, Fish or Liver and onions.

Bring in this ad for one free soft drink when you order dinner now thru August 1 • Relax in our Elegant Victorian Dining Room or Patio overlooking the Missouri river in Historic St. Charles, Missouri at 500 S. Main • Dinner Menu Tues-Sat Lunch Menu Mon-Sat Sundays Private Partys 30-80 Guests • Fine Wine selections and Bar

Join us for an engaging evening with five local 5 LOCAL AUTHORS SHARE IDEAS ON authors who will share their expertise on every WRITING IDEAS, part of the PROCESS, writing processfrom RESEARCH, initial ideas and EDITING research toAND editing and publication.

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Magical Gemstone Jewelry

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Come see and view the unusual.

• Create a stuffed animal of your very own in our STUFFIN STATION

• Miniatures for SALE • Many GIFT IDEAS • GIFT CErTIFICATES!

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Spices

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• Grilling rubs, marinades and spices • Hot sauces and peppers, including Ghost • Local soup, dip mixes & honey

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Unikat Polish Pottery at Siostra Polish Pottery and Gifts From Boleslawiec Poland

Main Street Books

Your St. Charles Independent Bookseller 1st Annual Writer’s Workshop

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407 S. Main St • St Charles 636.946.2449

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114 W. Mill St. • Waterloo, IL • 618.939.9933 • gallagherswaterloo.com

“A Big Easy Murder”

Interactive Comedy Mystery Dinner Theater It’s Nawlins’! The Big Easy! Bitsy Jones is getting her crew together to plan their float for the Mardi Gras Parade! Carlos Violincello, the well know mobster and concert violinist, is paying for everything.

What can go wrong? Plenty! No wonder Bitsy ends up dead!

The pirates John Lafeet and his wench, Anne Bonny, try to figure out who did it. Play your part in this interactive comedy murder mystery while enjoying a 4-course meal to DIE for! Make your reservations now; it would be a CRIME to miss out on this much FUN! Call for Reservations 314-533-9830.

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River City Granite 314.371.0300 • rivercitygranite.com Inspired Food Culture

AUGUST 2014

25

one on one

Shawn Zell

Team Chef and dieTiTian for The ST. louiS ramS WRITTeN By Valeria Turturro Klamm | PhOTOgRaPhy By Demond Meek

Feeding 200 people two to three meals a day is no easy task, but when many of those people are burning 3,300 to 5,000 calories each day, it’s an entirely different challenge.

For Shawn Zell, team chef and dietitian for the St. Louis Rams, that challenge is also a passion. “We have players from the Northwest, deep South, Midwest and West Coast who all grew up eating different things and have often eaten whatever they want,” Zell says. “Balancing what these players want and what they need is challenging, but very rewarding.”

How do you think food affects players’ ability to perform? We always tell the players you don’t put a low-octane fuel into a high-performance sports car, and they are those high-performance cars. I think the type of food and timing have a big impact on these players’ ability to perform consistently and at a high level. Weight gaining and losing is a major part of my job, as well as hydration management and preventing players from cramping. We’ve had a great deal of success not only in practices, but also in games, with eliminating cramping that sidelines players. How do you work with the team from day to day? I typically arrive at 5:30am to make sure breakfast is ready for the first players that come in to work out.

My assistant and I prepare individualized recovery shakes for the players, based on preference and specific needs, which they consume immediately after workouts. We then prepare a morning snack for them to eat before going onto the field. On the field, I can be seen with a very cool fanny pack full of snacks, gels, electrolyte solutions and liquids. I follow certain players throughout practice, making sure they continue to stay fueled. Have you received any unique food requests? There are so many different requests, I can’t begin to tell you which is the most unique – knowing a certain player likes to have lentils before practice or a certain type of jerky. Being able to provide them [that] is good for the body [and] good for the mind. Do you prepare a signature dish for the team? Scallops are one of the most popular dishes. We prepare a lot of fish – halibut, sea bass, tuna, swordfish.

Other favorites include bison meatballs, crab cakes, turkey legs, anything barbecue, and surprisingly, anything with avocados – salads, eggs or sandwiches. What do you enjoy most about your job? I get picture messages from players in the offseason of them drinking green smoothies or eating grilled fish, quinoa or barley, and it’s rewarding to know you had a small part in that. They are naturally competitive players,

St. Louis Rams 901 N. Broadway, Downtown 314.342.5201 stlouisrams.com

so making it into a game of who can eat the best and who is fueling better than the next guy is exciting to witness firsthand.

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Visit feastmagazine.com to read the full interview with Shawn Zell.

Try Us For Your Next Company Lunch!

Chi Mangia Bene Vive Bene! "To Eat Well is To Live Well" Proudly Serving Authentic Italian Food in a Family Atmosphere.

Let Us Cater Your Special Occasion Featuring Daily Lunch & Dinner Specials Feature of the Month: PIZZA! PIZZA! PIZZA! Try our Original Godfather Pizza.

Pizza served everyday except for Friday & Saturday evenings.

Reservations Recommended, Hours of Operation: Tuesday - Saturday 11am-10pm • Sunday Noon-9pm • Closed Monday

5442 Old Hwy 21• Imperial • 636.942.2405 • trattoria-giuseppe.com

Kitchen Open until Midnight Tuesday Night Flatbread Night - $6.00 Flatbread with one topping choice of white or wheat crust Martini - $6.00 choose any from our menu Trivia starts at 8 Thursday Night Pasta Night - $8.99 ½ Price Bottles of Wine Choose from 4 different types of angel hair pasta (also offering Gluten-Free) Served with salad and garlic bread Tues – Fri 4pm – 1:30, Sat. noon – 1:30, Sun. 9 – 3 New hours starting Aug 12 Sun. noon-midnight, Mon. - Thurs. 4pm-midnight, Fri. & Sat. 4pm-1:30

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Inspired Food Culture

AUGUST 2014

27

seed to table

Fire-Roasted Peppers Three Ways

There is nothing more nostalgic than the smell of a campfire. The aroma of oak, hickory, cherry and cedar burning while the smoke rises from the flames; the glow of the embers that tells you when it’s time to start grilling; the scent that lingers on your clothes for days. For me, the smell of campfires brings back many fond childhood memories of camping in the Missouri Ozarks – wading in the creek all day and cooking campfire dinners on cast-iron skillets at dusk, stars shining brightly and the symphony of wildlife swelling throughout the night.

story and recipe by Crystal Stevens Photography by Jennifer Silverberg

great way to make use of such a seasonal bounty, as they make excellent additions to soups, stews, pasta salads, side dishes and more. Peppers are among our favorite vegetable to grill during the late summer months, when they are at their peak flavor and ripeness.

Compared to charcoal grilling, cooking over wood might be something of a lost art, but in my opinion, the robust flavors of most foods are enhanced tenfold by wood-fired grilling. My husband and I tend to use reclaimed and repurposed materials in the multi-functioning fire pit and outdoor wood-fire barbecue grill we built using large, found stones and a reclaimed circular grill from an old charcoal pit. We use our wood-fired grill regularly throughout the spring, summer and fall months. I’ve found that fire-roasted flavor enhances any dish.

In these recipes we prefer to use jalapeño, poblano and Anaheim peppers. When grilling or roasting peppers, it is best to leave them whole, toss them in olive oil and sea salt and grill them on each side for about four minutes. They are ready when they have flattened slightly, are tender, and have nice charred grill marks. Remove them from the grill and let them cool for at least 30 minutes. Cut off the stems, remove the seeds and rinse slightly. If you’d prefer to grill peppers over a charcoal grill, heat the grill and allow peppers to grill for four minutes on each side. If you’re not able to use a wood-fired grill or charcoal grill at home, you can also roast peppers in the oven.

To do so, preheat the oven to 425ºF. Toss the peppers in extra virgin olive oil, lightly season with salt and bake for 20 minutes.

One of the many perks of being farmers is that we get to intercept a plethora of slightly blemished veggies before they go into the compost pile. We simply cut off the blemished parts, toss the rest in olive oil and a little sea salt, and throw them on the grill. Wood-fired veggies are a

Hot pepper paste, chowchow and tomatillo salsa are delicious on top of omelets, potatoes, meat or fish. All three make wonderful dips to serve with raw vegetables or tortilla chips, and the spicy chowchow and tomatillo salsa enhance fish tacos and quesadillas as well.

Crystal Stevens is a farmer at La Vista CSA Farm on the bluffs of the Mississippi River in Godfrey, Illinois, where she farms with her husband, Eric.

They have two children. Crystal is an advocate of integrating creativity into sustainability through writing, art, photojournalism and seed-to-table cooking. Find more of her work at growingcreatinginspiring.blogspot.com, which she created to launch her forthcoming book, Grow Create Inspire.

Fire-Roasted Hot Pepper Paste Serves | 24 | 24 6 2 1

fire-roasted jalapeño peppers fire-roasted poblano peppers Tbsp red wine vinegar tsp sea salt

| Preparation | In a food processor, combine all ingredients and process for 1 minute, or until a smooth and creamy texture is achieved. Paste will remain fresh for up to 2 weeks if transferred to a tightly sealed jar and kept in the refrigerator. It also freezes well in freezer-safe bags.

Spicy Chowchow Serves | 12 |

2 large onions, diced 4 cloves garlic, minced extra virgin olive oil 1 grilled green cabbage, cut in half lengthwise and grilled 3 small summer squash, cut in half lengthwise and grilled 3 fire-roasted poblano peppers, diced 5 fire-roasted jalapeño peppers, diced 2 fire-roasted bell peppers, diced 1 Tbsp sea salt 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper 1 Tbsp sugar

| Preparation | In a large pot over medium heat, sauté onions and garlic in oil for 2 minutes. Chop grilled cabbage and grilled squash into cubes and add them to the pot. Allow to cook on medium for 2 minutes. Add peppers, salt, black pepper and sugar. Cook on medium for 5 minutes, or until all ingredients are tender.

Chowchow will keep in the refrigerator for 1 week in a tightly sealed jar. Chowchow also freezes well in freezer-safe bags.

Fire-Roasted Hot Pepper and Tomatillo Salsa Serves | 4 | 36 6 3 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 4

fire-roasted tomatillos fire-roasted jalapeño peppers fire-roasted poblano peppers fresh lime, squeezed bunch fresh cilantro tsp red wine vinegar tsp sea salt tsp sugar tsp freshly ground black pepper small onions, diced cloves garlic, minced

| Preparation | Combine everything except onions and garlic in a food processor and blend on high for 1 minute, or until all ingredients are thoroughly processed. Pour mixture into a large bowl.

Add chopped onions and minced garlic.

Salsa will keep for up to roughly 1 week in a tightly sealed jar in the refrigerator. It also freezes well in freezer-safe bags.

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Walk in with

Walk out with

Try out Sub-Zero and Wolf products in full-scale kitchens.

Talk details with resident experts. And get a taste of all that your new kitchen can be.

rothliving.com • 314.991.0900 2260 Ball Drive St. Louis, MO 63146

44 North Brentwood Blvd.

Clayton, MO 63105

oceanobistro.com

facebook.com/oceano.bistro

Host your next event with us or we will be happy to cater to you!

Our chefs are delighted to create delicious and innovative ideas for your next gathering. Intimate dinner for two, graduation parties, office happy hour, bridal shower and even box lunches, you can find something for every occasion at Oceano Bistro. @oceanobistroclayton

Delivery, Dine In, Take Out, Catering 3 Locations

@oceanoclayton

We are introducing new items by taking our classic dishes and giving them a fresh seasonal twist with a light, heart healthy menu.

Stop by today and find your new favorite dish!

For reservations call 314-721-9400

9200 Olive Blvd, Olivette, MO

3150 Elm Point Industrial Dr St. Charles, MO

9955 Winghaven Blvd O’Fallon, MO

(314) 997-2301

636-724-7601

636-265-1234

Open 11am- Sold Out

www.SugarfireSmokeHouse.com Inspired Food Culture

AUGUST 2014

29

mystery shopper

Guava paste

if you think the words “paste” and “summer” don't belong in the same sentence, you would be correct – with very few exceptions. however, there is a paste perfectly suited for the warm weather we’ll experience before august becomes a distant memory.

What is it?

guava paste, also known as goiabada or bocadillo, is a thick preserve of fresh guava and sugar. traditionally made in large cauldrons set over fire, it is sold commercially – and inexpensively – in virtually every international or Latin market across the country. don’t waste your time perusing the jam and jelly section: this paste is packaged in magenta-hued bricks or rounds in stores across st. Louis, including global Foods Market in Kirkwood.

story and recipe by Shannon Weber photography by Jennifer Silverberg

What do i do With it?

similar in density to turkish delight, guava paste is most often sliced and paired with cheese in one of two ways: either perched atop cubes of cheese as an appetizer, or braided alongside cheese as a pastry. More confection than preserve, guava paste’s potent floral aroma imparts tropical flair in recipes that call for jam or curd: Fill cookies or bars, add swirls to cheesecake or give tarts a base layer. cubed, it’s a pleasant addition to muffins or quick breads. this paleta will transport you from poolside to beachside in an instant: guava paste and fresh pineapple suspended in a toasted-coconut and vanilla-bean-infused cream base is a grown-up twist on the traditional colombian paletas de coco con bocadillo.

Shannon Weber is a writer, graphic designer and stay-at-home mom who writes the award-winning blog aperiodictableblog.com.

Guava-Pineapple Paletas with Coconut VanillaInfused Cream serves | 10 | 1 2/3 ½ 2 ¼ 1 6 6

cup unsweetened coconut chips cup whole milk cup heavy cream cups unsweetened coconut cream cup granulated sugar pinch sea salt vanilla bean, split lengthwise, seeds scraped oz guava paste, diced into ¼-inch cubes oz fresh pineapple, chopped into ½-inch pieces

| Preparation – Coconut | preheat oven to 350ºF. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. spread coconut chips in a single layer on baking sheet, and toast for 5 to 8 minutes, flipping halfway through, until chips are golden brown. set aside. | Preparation – Base | in a large saucepan over medium heat, heat milk, cream, coconut cream, sugar and salt, stirring constantly, until sugar has dissolved and mixture is smooth. continue stirring until mixture just begins to boil. remove from heat; add toasted coconut chips, vanilla bean pod and seeds and stir to incorporate. transfer to an ice bath to cool for 30 minutes, stirring frequently. cover base tightly, transfer to refrigerator, and allow to steep for 6 hours or overnight.

| Preparation – Paletas | pour base mixture through a fine-mesh strainer to remove solids, pressing with a wooden spoon to remove all liquid. discard solids. in a standard 10-serving ice-pop maker, add 5 cubes guava paste to each mold.

Layer 1 heaping tbsp of chopped pineapple gently over guava paste; do not press down. add another 5 to 6 cubes guava paste over pineapple; distribute remaining pineapple over the top. Finish with 3 to 5 cubes guava paste. slowly pour paleta base into each mold, until filled. gently tap molds on the countertop to remove air bubbles and distribute base evenly, adding more as needed. gently push in popsicle sticks and transfer to the freezer until firm, at least 4 to 6 hours.

| To Serve | remove paletas from freezer. run each ice-pop mold under warm water for a few seconds on each side to loosen.

Unmold and serve immediately.

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LOUIS ST.

A

TH

P O LIC E

LET

U

E

6:00 PM SEPT. 19, 2014

IC LE A G

A Landmark Venue

with Historic Charm CENTRAL FIELDS IN FOREST PARK — MIDDLE OF THE BALLOONS. THE TENT ENTRANCE IS AT THE CORNER OF UNION & WELLS DR.

*

Tickets purchased in advance include VIP parking.

Live Music by The John Henry Band

*Children 5-17: $25. Children under 5: $5 Must be accompanied by an adult.

Dinner Premium Open Bar

Revisit the Reinvented Crown Jewel of St. Louis’ Beloved Union Station Small Plates Menu | Hand-Crafted Cocktails One-of-a-Kind 3D Light Show | Private Events

To reserve tables of 10, please contact Mardi Gras, Inc. for more information.

A BENEFIT FOR THE POLICE ATHLETIC LEAGUE

To purchase tickets please call Mardi Gras, Inc. at (314) 771-5110 or Alicia at (314) 289-5302.

OPEN DAILY AT 4PM

1820 Market Street, St. Louis, MO 63103 // grandhall-stl.com // 314-421-6655

Fun Food, Happy People, Great Drinks!

FEAST FAVE Pork Porterhouse. Rensing’s Porterhouse pork chop, cheddar jalapeno bread pudding, green beans, sunny side up egg

Mon-Fri 11:00-close, Sat 10:00-close Offering Saturday brunch First Come - First Serve (No reservations) Open Mon - Fri starting at 11 am and Sat starting at 10 am

106 N. Main St. • Edwardsville • 618.307.4830 • clevelandheath.com

Oma's Rummage Sale Saturday, August 23rd. Sale Starts at 8am, no sooner.

Oma's Barn Home & Garden changes with the seasons. Don't miss our great selection of everyday Home Decor, furniture and linens. As the temperature rises and the weeks pass we expand outside with everything you need for your garden planters, annuals, herbs, perennials and garden decor.

1.5 miles north of I-70 on Hwy 79.

Hours: Tuesday thru Saturday 10-5 Sunday 12-4

1057 Hwy 79 • St. Peters • 636.278.4445 • Visit us on

• facebook.com/lisa.hagemann.75 Inspired Food Culture

AUGUST 2014

31

menu options

Homemade Ricotta with Blackberry-Herb Preserves

We often leave meat fabrication to the butcher and cheese-making to the cheese producers, but making fresh cheeses at home isn’t as challenging as it might seem. Mild and creamy, fresh ricotta is one of the easiest cheeses to make and can be used in both sweet and

savory dishes. Paired with fresh blackberry jam, homemade ricotta makes a light breakfast, snack or appetizer. Traditionally made with the whey leftover from the production of other cheeses, ricotta is an example of Italian culinary ingenuity, where nothing goes to waste.

chef’s tips To Temp. Making ricotta is simple, but temperature is everything.

Bringing the cream and milk to a boil before adding the acid will yield a larger curd, which can become slightly rubbery. Maintaining a low simmer produces a fine curd and a creamy texture.

Fruit Fix. Making preserves at home is a great way to make the most of seasonal fruit or fruit that might be on its last leg. The true test of proper viscosity for your preserves is to cool a small plate in the

Homemade Ricotta with Blackberry-Herb Preserves Ricotta

freezer. Test thickness by placing a teaspoon of cooked jam on the cool plate, then place it back in the freezer for about two minutes. If it’s gelled up when you remove it, it’s ready to serve. The thickness or viscosity of your preserves is a matter of preference.

Paired Up. Basil and mint complement blackberries well, but feel free

to experiment with other herbs, too; thyme and tarragon also pair nicely with blackberries.

Make the Meal •H omemade Ricotta with Blackberry-Herb Preserves • Snow Pea Salad with Pancetta and Pecorino •S pinach Gnudi with Tomato-Butter Sauce • Peach Frangipane Tart

Story and recipe by Tory Bahn Photography by Jennifer Silverberg

Learn More. In this month’s class, you’ll learn how to make gnudi, a

delectable pasta dumpling, with your homemade ricotta. You’ll also learn how to make a fresh, crisp salad of snow peas, nutty pecorino and salty pancetta, which offers an alternative to standard salad greens and illustrates a different way to highlight snow peas.

Get Hands-On: Join FEAST and Schnucks Cooks Cooking School on Wed., Aug. 27, at 6pm to make the dishes in this month’s menu. Tickets are just $40 for a night of cooking, dining and wine. RSVP at schnuckscooks.com or call 314.909.1704.

Yields | about 1¼ cup |

cheesecloth 2 quarts whole milk 1 cup heavy cream ½ tsp salt 3 Tbsp fresh lemon juice or vinegar Blackberry-Herb Preserves

Yields | about 1½ cup | 1½ pounds blackberries, picked over and rinsed 2/3 cup sugar ¼ cup fresh orange juice 3 Tbsp fresh lemon juice ½ cup fresh basil leaves, packed 2 Tbsp fresh mint leaves, packed ½ tsp lemon zest

| Preparation – Ricotta | Line a large colander or sieve with a layer of fine-mesh cheesecloth, and place it over a large bowl.

In a 6-quart, heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat, slowly bring milk, cream and salt to 180ºF using a candy thermometer, stirring occasionally to prevent burning.

When mixture reaches between 180ºF to 190ºF, add lemon juice or vinegar and continue to cook at a very low simmer, stirring constantly, until mixture curdles, about 3 to 5 minutes. Pour mixture into the cheesecloth-lined colander or sieve, and allow to drain for 1 hour. Lift cheesecloth from colander or sieve, discard liquid, and place ricotta in an airtight container and chill. Keep in the refrigerator for no longer than 1 week.

| Preparation – Blackberry-Herb

Preserves | In a medium bowl, gently

mash half of the blackberries using a potato masher or a fork. Add remaining berries, sugar and citrus juices, and stir to combine. Set aside for 5 to 10 minutes.

In the bowl of a food processor, combine basil and mint. Pulse herbs a few times, until they appear roughly chopped.

Add processed herbs to the blackberry mixture, and stir to combine.

In a medium pot, add blackberry and herb mixture and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Continue simmering until mixture has thickened, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes. During the final 10 minutes, add lemon zest, stir to combine, and allow mixture to finish cooking. Remove pan from heat, and allow jam to cool and continue to thicken for about 1 hour. Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

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www.ofallon.mo.us/business-map Inspired Food Culture

AUGUST 2014

33

sweet ideas

Honey-roasTed peacHes wiTH ToasTed-almond Frangipane

When summertime rolls around and fruit trees are in bloom, i dream of peaches, nectarines and apricots in abundance. stone fruits are such a versatile summer crop that recipe variations are endless. they can be grilled or poached, served with fish or in salads, made into delectable jams, or used to create the most refreshing sorbets.

While it is tempting to simply eat summer peaches as is – juices dripping down your arm and all – roasting and serving them with elegant frangipane tea cakes makes a surprisingly easy dessert, with components that can be prepared ahead of time.

Frangipane is the chameleon of pastries. at pint size bakery we use it as a tea cake, but it is often baked into thin layers for the base of petit

fours, piped into tart shells to bake into fruit tarts, scooped into danish centers for rich bear claws or used as the decadent filling for a French puff pastry specialty called pithivier. once you master this recipe, like me, i’m sure you will find many reasons to make it again and again. truth be told, i prefer this recipe with apricots, but as locally grown peaches are more easily found at farmers markets and in grocery stores this time of year, they are substituted here. Just know that any stone fruit, even cherries, would work wonderfully in this preparation. For the almond paste, make sure you don’t mistakenly buy marzipan, as marzipan contains more sugar (and usually corn syrup or glucose) and is meant for candymaking, not baking.

story and recipe by Christy Augustin photography by Cheryl Waller

Honey-Roasted Peaches with Toasted-Almond Frangipane serves | 6 to 8 |

Honey-Roasted PeacHes

1¼ ¼ ¾ ½ ¼ 6

cups granulated sugar cup local honey cup water orange, zested (optional) cup sherry freestone peaches, ripe but firm

toasted-almond FRangiPane

Christy Augustin has had a lifelong love affair with all things sweet. After working as a pastry chef in New Orleans and St. Louis, she opened Pint Size Bakery & Coffee in Lindenwood Park in 2012. She calls herself the baker of all things good and evil. Learn more at pintsizebakery.com.

1 1 1½ 4 ¾ 1/3

8-oz can almond paste cup granulated sugar, plus 2 Tbsp pinch kosher salt sticks unsalted butter, room temperature whole eggs cup cake flour cup almond slices or slivers unsweetened whipped ricotta or mascarpone cheese (optional)

| Preparation – Honey-Roasted Peaches | preheat oven to 375ºF. in a small saucepan, combine sugar, honey, water and orange zest. bring to a boil over high heat, stirring to dissolve sugar. Lower heat to medium and simmer 5 minutes until thickened like syrup. add sherry to syrup off the heat. cut each peach in half and remove pit; do not peel. place peaches, cut-side down, in a 2-quart baking dish, and add syrup. roast for 8 minutes, turn peaches cut-side up, baste with syrup, and roast another 6 to 8 minutes, until tender. cool in dish before removing peels. peaches can be served immediately or chilled in syrup for 1 week. | Preparation – Toasted-Almond Frangipane | preheat oven to 350ºF. crumble almond paste into pea-size pieces, and combine with sugar and salt.

Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, blend mixture until almond paste is uniformly combined into sugar. add butter and cream until light and fluffy, scraping often. beat in eggs, followed by flour, until well-mixed. almond cream or frangipane batter can be refrigerated at this stage for up to 2 weeks. spray the bottoms of a 12-cup muffin tin. spoon approximately 2 to 3 tbsp batter into each cup, top with a sprinkle of almonds and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until tops are golden brown and spring back when pressed lightly. alternatively, the batter makes one 9-inch round cake; be sure to line the bottom of your cake pan with parchment paper, and bake approximately 35 to 40 minutes.

Unmold warm cakes and store at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 4 days, or in the freezer for 1 month.

| Assembly | top frangipane with slices of roasted peaches, and drizzle with syrup.

Unsweetened whipped ricotta or mascarpone cheese is excellent atop the cakes.

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aUg UsT 2014

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AUGUST 2014

35

gadget a-go-go

sparkling wine savers

WrITTeN By pat eby PHoToGrAPHy By Jonathan gayman

VaCu Vin ChaMpagne SaVer and pourer

epiC ChroMe plated ChaMpagne Stopper

epiVaC duo ChaMpagne and Wine SaVer Set

Metrokane Wine and ChaMpagne Sealer

pulltex epiC ChaMpagne opener/Stopper

PROS

PROS

PROS

PROS

PROS

The concept behind this gadget is great: It combines the functionality of a sparkling wine stopper with the convenience of a pourer. The stopper stays on, the handsome chrome bail flips up, and bubbly pours out. No need to wrestle the cap off, pour and reseal. Brilliant idea.

I loved the simplicity of this inexpensive winged wonder. Flip up the side bails, place over the bottle, push down, clamp, and carry on. The sparkling wine stays fizzy in the fridge for another day. Snap up the sides slowly; we love the slow whoosh sound followed by a distinct pop. Pour and reseal with ease.

This five-part stopper set preserves regular and sparkling wines – a plus for wine lovers. Car geeks will enjoy the Peugeot logo on the case.

Mad-scientist types take note: The clever pump-and-cap system – which removes air from wines to prevent oxidation, and pumps air into the fizzy ones to fill dead air and preserve carbonation – is almost too much fun.

Peugeot knows how to make sparkling wine stoppers. Spring for the bigger expense if you drink both.

A clever cap that fits over most bottles – lipped or not – this sealer twists into place and makes a good, strong seal.

Inexpensive and elegant in design, the sleek black cap looks debonair atop the sparkling wine bottle. The velvety material affords a comfortable grip, too.

The slick open-and-shut levers on each side of this simple stopper make it the easiest to put on and take off of a bottle. No need to twist or push, this bubble-saver shields hands and fingers from wear and tear. The cap provides a grip for removing screw-off tops, but it still takes muscle. Good on bottles with and without rims.

CONS

Unfortunately, brilliant ideas don’t always work. In reality, this gadget wouldn’t lock onto any of the three different brands and bottles tested.

After many failed attempts, we called the test over. Three strikes, and this model is out. $14.99; Friar Tuck, multiple locations, friartuckonline.com

CONS

This model only works on bottles with a protruding lip, usually found on fizzy wines with a real cork and a wire bail.

The DeLorean-style gull wings lock on under the lip. Don’t let this distract you from buying a good stopper, but you’ll need another style for lipless bottles. $6.99; The Wine Merchant Ltd., 20 S. Hanley Road, Clayton, winemerchantltd.com

CONS

It’s big. The case won’t nestle easily into a drawer. It’s also three times the cost of the least expensive stopper tested. No major drawbacks, though.

CONS

The directions were vague, almost nonexistent, with this gadget. The testers, who had imbibed more than a few sips of sparkling wine before putting the cap on, got a little frustrated before one of them figured out the twist. A word to the wise wine lover, but not a major problem.

the sparkling wine stoppers work, and every salesperson said they have at least one. However, at best, they extend optimum drinkability by one to two days. These are good enough for Sunday morning mimosas made with leftover wine from a Saturday night celebration.

Fizz FiNdiNgS. Five wine stores had no preservers in stock – not

because customers snapped them up, but because wine salespeople sampling bubbly sometimes forget to bring preservers for the task and must buy up the entire stock.

36

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aUg UsT 2014

This model is priced a little higher than some models, for the same level of fizz preservation. For those who experience pain or weakness in their hands, this gadget provides good value. $16.99; Friar Tuck

$7.99; World Market, multiple locations, worldmarket.com

$21.99; Sur La Table, 1701 S. Lindbergh Blvd. #295, Frontenac, surlatable.com

Che

What to look for : Fizz-ability. Wine experts at several shops each acknowledged that

CONS

Fit FOR all. No one stopper fits all sparkling wine bottles, which generally vary more greatly in shape and size than standard wine bottles. Softer materials flex a bit more, but you may need to buy a few to fit rimmed, ridged, skinny and fat-necked bottles. bOttle NeCkS. A sparkling wine preserver needs to fit snugly over the bottle with an airtight seal. Look for features in the cap that allow the stopper to adjust to each bottle. Soft materials that form a tight seal, hooks that grip bottle rims, levers that clamp down the tops – you want features that allow flexibility.

Ck o ut pag e

Put a sparking wine 40! saver to work with the cocktail recipe in this month’s The Mix: French 75.

September 11 at the Ritz-Carlton 6 p.m.

An evening to benefit babies and families.

Catherine Neville Emcee

Annie Gunn’s, Café Napoli, Herbies Vintage ‘72, Home Wine Kitchen, II Bel Lago, J Buck’s, LoRusso’s, Oceano Bistro, Old Warson Country Club, The Racquet Club Ladue, The Ritz-Carlton, Scape, Truffles and more!

Contact Susan Bushnell 314.513.9961 marchofdimes.org/missouri

Jour de Fete

The gala showcases enticing culinary creations from St. Louis’ top chefs along with distinctive, one-of-a-kind auction items.

Saturday, August 9 - 10am-6pm Sunday, August 10 - 9am-4pm ARTS, CRAFTS, GIFTS & COLLECTIBLES! FOOD, DRINK AND ENTERTAINMENT!!

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COUNTRY

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• Tour & 1/2 tasting for two at Crown Valley Brewery.

• Enjoy a $20 voucher to use toward your dinner at Spokes Pub & Grill. Live music at Spokes Friday and Saturday nights (a shuttle will pick up at Spokes Pub & Grill at 11pm for those staying at Crown Country B&B).

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Call 866-207-9463 to BooK youR Stay oR to uPGRade youR ReSeRVatIon. Inspired Food Culture

AUGUST 2014

37

on the shelf

top AUGUSt pICKS

beer

WRITTEN BY Michael Sweeney

When he’s not writing, Matt Sorrell can be found slinging drinks at Planter’s House in Lafayette Square or bartending at events around town with his wife Beth for their company Cocktails Are Go.

tyRAnenA BRewinG co.’s BitteR womAn iPA

the BotAnist’s Gin

AvAilAble At: Corral Liquors, 965 E.

Edwardsville Road, Wood River, Illinois, corral-liquors.com; $8.99 (six-pack, 12-oz bottles) PAiringS: Spicy chicken tinga tacos • Manchego cheese One of my favorite things about Midwestern breweries is the way they pick and choose some of the best aspects of beers from the West and East coasts. Tyranena Brewing Co. – based out of Wisconsin – created an IPA that features a complex, lush, malty body (similar to East Coast IPAs) that’s pumped full of citrus and piney hoppiness (like the great IPAs from the West Coast). In this beer, we get the best of both coasts.

BAyeRische stAAtsBRAueRei weihenstePhAneR’s oktoBeRfestBieR

AvAilAble At: The Wine & Cheese Place, multiple locations, wineandcheeseplace.com; $35.99 try it: With a slightly sweet tonic such as Fever-Tree Indian Tonic

Although gin isn’t the spirit most associated with the Scottish island of Islay, the venerable Islay distillery, Bruichladdich, is making a name for itself as a progressive spirits producer. This gin is a testament to the company’s creativity. It’s a complex amalgam of 22 botanicals foraged from the island, with a bit of brininess to it, much like some of the company’s whiskeys. The Botanist has been unavailable for awhile, but it is now back on the market – and sporting some swanky new packaging as well.

AchA Vino’s BlAnco And Rosso VeRmouths ProvenAnce: Spain (15% abv)

AvAilAble At: The Wine & Cheese Place, multiple

AvAilAble At: Parker’s Table, 7118 Oakland Ave., Richmond Heights, parkerstable.com; $22.49 try it: The Blanco is a great substitute for dry vermouth in martinis, while the Rosso shines in drinks such as Manhattans and Negronis

When I begin seeing Oktoberfest and pumpkin beers on store shelves, I get excited, as it’s a sure sign that fall is right around the corner. Fall is my favorite time of year, and Oktoberfest beers are a perfect style for the season. The Weihenstephaner Oktoberfestbier is a classic version of the style, providing a big bready aroma and a clean caramel maltiness that makes it utterly quaffable.

cRown VAlley BRewinG’s fARmhouse lAGeR Style: American-style lager (4.7% abv) AvAilAble At: Randall’s Wines and Spirits,

multiple locations, shoprandalls.com; $7.99 (six-pack, 12-oz bottles) PAiringS: Grilled hamburger with Cheddar • Colby cheese In the days when water could kill you, farmhands used to be partially paid in beer. They needed something light and refreshing, and something that wouldn’t get them too tipsy. Crown Valley Brewing follows this tradition by crafting a crisp lager that features a lovely balance of soft maltiness and a slight spiciness, due to the noble hops.

AUGUSt 2014

ProvenAnce: Scotland (46% abv)

Style: Oktoberfest (5.8% abv)

locations, wineandcheeseplace.com; $10.99 (six-pack, 11.2-oz bottles) PAiringS: Schnitzel• Limburger

feastmagazine.com

WRITTEN BY Matt Sorrell

The creator of stlhops.com and founder of St. Louis Craft Beer Week, Michael Sweeney is also the craft beer manager at Lohr Distributing.

Style: American IPA (5.75% abv)

38

spirits

These vermouths hail from Destilerias Acha in the Basque Country of Spain, which has been distilling fine spirits since 1831. Crafted from an old family recipe, these vermouths have the requisite wormwood, plus plenty of complexity, thanks to the wide variety of all-natural ingredients they’re infused with, including herbs, roots and fruits. The Rosso is darker, with notes of bitter orange and dark fruit; the Blanco is on the lighter, more floral side of the flavor spectrum.

tuthilltown distilleRy’s hAlf moon oRchARd Gin ProvenAnce: New York (46% abv) AvAilAble At: The Wine & Cheese Place, multiple

locations, wineandcheeseplace.com; $31.99 try it: Sip it neat at first to appreciate the apple flavor Tuthilltown Distillery first achieved notoriety for its line of Hudson whiskeys, but the New York producer also makes a wide variety of other spirits. The latest is Half Moon Orchard Gin, named after the boat used by Henry Hudson to explore the river in New York that would eventually bear his name. This gin is lighter on the botanicals in favor of letting the base spirit – made from a unique combination of 80 percent wheat and 20 percent apples – shine through.

wine

WRITTen bY Kyle Harsha

Kyle Harsha is a certified specialist of wine and certified sommelier with over 20 years’ experience in the food and wine industry. He drinks more wine than he probably ought to.

vIlla WolF pInoT grIs, 2012 Provenance: Pfalz, Germany available at: The Wine & Cheese Place, multiple locations, wineandcheeseplace.com; $12.99 Pairings: Shrimp salad• Spicy ginger pork• Coconutbased curry dishes

Pinot Gris has a long, storied history in Germany, even though people typically think of it as an Italian varietal. J.L. Wolf is a winery that was originally established in the mid-1700s, achieving its heyday in the mid-1800s, before falling into disrepair. ernst Loosen took over the winery nearly 20 years ago and is leading the charge with delicious, traditional Pfalz wines. The Pinot Gris is best described as racy, or even sexy.

It’s all the good stuff people love about the grape (decent acid, mineral notes, a touch herbal) without the flab that can come from its Italian counterpart.

TreverI Cellars exTra-BruT sparklIng, nv Provenance: Yakima, Washington available at: Schnucks, 12332 Manchester Road, Des Peres, schnucks.com; $14.99 Pairings: Fish and chips• Fried mushrooms • Triple crème cheese

It is a seldom occurrence that I try a wine that makes me rethink what I consider to be the “best” in a category. This one did just that. Here you have a German-born winemaker crafting small-production wines from Washington that not only blow away the competition, but also can go toe-totoe with sparkling wines that are four times the price. The Treveri extra-brut is bone dry, refreshing and elegant, with a lemony, acidic backbone and enough white-fleshed fruit to make it user-friendly. Seriously, buy this wine.

sImon HaCkeTT THe gaTekeeper sHIraz, 2012 Provenance: McLaren Vale, Australia available at: The Wine Merchant Ltd., 20 S. Hanley Road, Clayton, winemerchantltd.com; $14.99 Pairings: braised lamb shoulder• Salt-and-pepper-crusted filet mignon• Kansas City-style barbecue sauce

not long ago, bottles of Shiraz plastered with “critter” labels from Australia left a bad taste in the mouths of wine experts, but there is still a lot to appreciate about Australian wines.

Simon Hackett, however, is proving that solid, well-made Shiraz is still being produced in Australia. The 2012 Gatekeeper has loads of black and blue fruits, along with a framework of mint and dill, but it won’t turn your teeth dark after one glass. With the alcohol by volume ringing in at 13.5 percent, this wine drinks pleasantly, and may change your mind about the grape.

Inspired Food Culture

august 2014

39

the mix

French 75

it’s celebration time! Feast turns 4 years old this month, and we’re kicking off the party with a bubbly classic cocktail, the French 75. in addition to celebrating the magazine’s anniversary, august in st. Louis usually brings high temps and humidity, which makes this refreshing cool-me-down drink all the more relevant.

story and recipe by Matt Seiter photography by Jonathan Gayman

buck’s club in London. as is the origin of many, many cocktails, he took a simple recipe, modified it and gave it a new name. he took a tom collins recipe that called for gin, lemon juice, sugar and club soda and replaced the soda with champagne. allegedly the champagne is where the “French” part comes into play; it’s that simple.

French 75 Serves | 1 | 2

Shore No. 11, Plymouth or Nolet’s) ½

the history – or folklore – of this drink also makes it quite intriguing. it is said that during World War i, american soldiers (or british, depending on what version of the tale you believe) on the battlefield had no drinking cups, so they took the spent casing of a 75-millimeter field gun; filled it with gin, lemon juice, sugar and champagne, and imbibed. thus, the cocktail was dubbed the French 75. how ridiculous is that? they didn’t have cups, but they had gin, lemons, sugar and champagne? a more likely origin of the French 75 resides in the pages of harry Macelhone’s recipe book, Harry’s ABC of Mixing Cocktails, first published in 1919. Macelhone gave credit to pat Mcgarry of

From my personal library of cocktail tomes, the earliest mention of using a spirit other than gin is in david a. embury’s The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks, published in 1948. he states that, “gin is sometimes used in place of cognac in this drink, but then, of course, it no longer should be called French.” apparently he drank too much and forgot that champagne is French, and that its inclusion in this cocktail is why the drink was named the French 75. all other writings preceding his (that i have found or have researched) call for gin as the base spirit. if you want the classic, stick to gin. cognac, though, is a good substitute – it’s just not a French 75.

Matt Seiter is a co-founder of the United States Bartenders’ Guild’s St. Louis chapter, a member of the national board for the USBG’s MA program and a continuing educator for all desiring knowledge of the craft of mixology. He is a member of Drink Lab and a consultant at Sanctuaria.

oz gin (Broker’s London Dry, North

½ 3

oz fresh lemon juice oz simple syrup oz Champagne or sparkling wine ice lemon peel or wedge (for garnish)

| Preparation | combine all ingredients except champagne and ice in a cocktail shaker. add ice, and shake for 15 seconds. pour entire contents of shaker into a collins glass. top with champagne and garnish with lemon peel or wedge.

Proper Presentation the French 75 is meant to be served in a collins glass, not a champagne flute or cocktail glass. the reference to the 75-millimeter field gun used by the French and american armies was just as simple. Most, if not all, soldiers knew what a French 75-millimeter was, as that weapon was one of the most popular guns used during World War i. the connection between a collins glass and the spent shell of a 75-millimeter is too close to ignore. a collins glass is a long, tall glass – one of the largest used in most bars. its tubular shape resembles the spent shell of 75-millimeter gun, however, the glass itself is smaller. When reading the earliest recipes for a French 75, all of the recipes are served in a collins glass over ice. there is no mention of champagne flutes or cocktail glasses. also, it’s as easy to “reload” a patron’s glass with the cocktail as it was to reload and rapidly fire the French 75-millimeter field gun. as for the gun itself, the Handbook of Artillery, published by the government printing office in 1920, states that, “the recoil mechanism [of the French 75-millimeter field gun] not only absorbs the greater part of the recoil energy, but it returns the gun to the firing position, and to be efficient it must be able to perform these two functions quickly, smoothly and continuously.” More simply, the gun is loaded (the cocktail shaker is filled with ingredients); the gun is fired (the cocktail is shaken); the casing is ejected (the contents of the cocktail shaker are dumped into a collins glass); and the gun is returned to firing position (the cocktail shaker is ready to be “reloaded”).

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AUGUST 2014

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Inspired Food Culture

AUGUST 2014

41

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Get Cooking! Broccoli Cheese Soup - 1½ cups fresh or frozen broccoli - 1 cup water - 1 cup milk

- ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese - 1 teaspoon diced onion - 1 chicken boullon cube

Place broccoli and water in a pot on the stovetop. Boil until broccoli is steamed, then drain off any excess water.

Place all ingredients in a blender. Pulse on low to gently mix. Gradually increase speed to high. Blend for 5 to 6 minutes or until heavy steam escapes from the vented lid.

Spoon into bowls and enjoy!

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AUGUST 2014

26th Midwest Salute to the Arts

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AUGUST 2014

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Every year we look forward to sharing the Feast 50 issue with readers, not only because it’s our anniversary issue, but also because it’s an over-the-top celebration of our city’s remarkable food-and-drink scene. This year, for the very first time, we are proud to present the Feast Awards, which will become a new tradition that makes the Feast 50 issue that much more special.

In the spirit of celebrating the industry experts who are shaping the St. Louis food community, we chose to give the Feast Awards a peer-to-peer judging structure. We approached seven local industry experts and asked them to weigh in on 25 categories ranging from the finest local chefs and restaurants to the very best wineries and breweries and more. The judges established the initial list of nominees, and after their winners were determined, we launched an online poll to give readers the chance to weigh in as well. Though only one of the five nominees in each category could claim the top spot, we have also shared honorable mentions, which indicate close second choices as determined by the judges. In addition to the judges’ winners, we have included the people’s choice winners in each category.

feast awards judges:

2014 feast awards winners Chef of the Year Chef on the Brink a superhuman sense of attention during service.

Nobody makes me feel so important.” – C.M.

Judges’ Winner: Kevin Nashan (Sidney Street Cafe)

Judges’ Winner: Josh Poletti (The Libertine)

Honorable Mention: Ben Poremba

Honorable Mention: Nicholas Martinkovic

(Elaia and Olio)

(Blood & Sand, Death in the Afternoon) PeoPle’s CHoiCe: Josh Charles (Elaia and Olio)

PeoPle’s CHoiCe: Josh Galliano (The Libertine)

Vincent Bommarito III, executive chef and co-owner, Tony’s

“Kevin is not only a very talented chef, but he is also a really nice guy who cares about his employees and his community.” – Dan Kopman “I can’t say enough about Kevin. He represents everything that is right with our industry. He is as passionate as the day is long; always challenging himself and his team, and my goodness, does it show. Sidney Street continues to evolve and reset the standard for fine cooking in St. Louis.” – Cary McDowell

Steve Gontram, owner, Five Star Burgers

What inspires Kevin Nashan after 10 years at Sidney Street? Turn to p. 64.

“Each time I bump into Josh Poletti, I can sense that he’s been diligently learning so many things. He just strikes me [as] having that vibe of an insatiable search for culinary knowledge.

Josh Galliano and The Libertine team are so fortunate to have him.” – C.M. “Josh has worked in some of the top kitchens in St. Louis, and as executive sous at The Libertine under the tutelage of chef Josh Galliano, Poletti has honed his skills and is cooking up great food.” – A.T.

restaurant of the Year Judges’ Winner: Sidney Street Cafe

restaurateur of the Year Judges’ Winner: Chris Sommers

Dan Kopman, co-founder and chief executive officer, The Saint Louis Brewery (Schlafly Beer)

Cary McDowell, corporate chef, Euclid Hospitality Group

Matt McGuire, director of service, Craft Restaurants Ltd.

(Euclid Hospitality Group) Honorable Mention: Gerard Craft (Craft Restaurants Ltd.) PeoPle’s CHoiCe: Mike Johnson (Sugarfire Smoke House) “Chris has a big vision for St. Louis, and he is taking financial risks every day in his businesses, which impacts our city well beyond the success of Pi and Gringo. He encourages others to take those risks and to do so in a way that has economic benefit beyond an individual business.” – D.K. “Chris picked St. Louis – good for us – to begin his dynasty, and it has grown so quickly – because he’s good.” – Vincent Bommarito III

CulinarY entrepreneur of the Year Judges’ Winner: Corey Smale (Strange Donuts)

Honorable Mention: David Bailey (Baileys’ Restaurants) PeoPle’s CHoiCe: Ben Poremba (Elaia and Olio)

Zoë Robinson, proprietor, Bobo Noodle House, I Fratellini, Bar Les Frères

“St. Louis has an amazing group of culinary entrepreneurs, but no one can hold a candle to Corey Smale and what he’s done with Strange Donuts. From crazy collaborations with St. Louis’ top restaurants to a Strange Donuts video game, he’s really taken guerrilla marketing to a new level.” – Adam Tilford “Corey and his team have reset the paradigm of social media marketing and strategic partnerships in the St. Louis market. From the addictive video game to the one-off parties they throw, it’s no wonder he’s expanding so quickly. Oh, and by the way, speaking of addictive: The Fat Elvis is a donut gamechanger. Go team Strange!” – C.M.

Adam Tilford, co-owner, Tilford Restaurant Group

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Find out why Corey Smale values culinary collaboration on p. 51.

AUGUST 2014

Honorable Mention: Cleveland-Heath PeoPle’s CHoiCe: The Libertine

“It’s so reassuring to see that with constant dedication, patience and a whole lot of love, a restaurant can be propelled into its own. For those who ever questioned Kevin, his brother Chris and his wonderful bride Mina for taking the St. Louis fave and running with it, certainly they have had the last laugh! Proof positive that the ‘family restaurant’ is alive and well in America – and what a gift that we were all able to watch it grow as the rest of the country now takes notice of their finesse and success.” – C.M.

See what Blood & Sand’s chef orders at Sidney Street Cafe on p. 76.

Find out what motivates Gerard Craft, chef-owner of Niche, on p. 61.

pastrY Chef

Judges’ Winner: Christy Augustin

(Pint Size Bakery & Coffee) Honorable Mention: Anne Croy (Pastaria) PeoPle’s CHoiCe: Simone Faure

(La Patisserie Chouquette) “Christy has an exuberance and down-home Southern charm that makes you want to eat oatmeal crème pies all day long.” – Steve Gontram “Fresh every day, tastes great – the way we all wish we baked.” – V.B.

Bar program - Beer Judges’ Winner: iTap

Honorable Mention: The Royale PeoPle’s CHoiCe: Bridge Tap House & Wine Bar

“These dudes know beer, and they have a lot of it on tap. On any given day, they are tapping something rare and drawing a huge crowd.” – A.T. “If you love beer, then you’ll be amazed by iTap’s vast selection of more than 500 different labels from around the world. They always have a fantastic, broad spectrum of styles on tap as well, allowing them to feature a great lineup of fresh, rare or limited-release beers. I appreciate their insistence on pouring their beers in styleappropriate glasses as well. Cheers!” – S.G.

new restaurant opened in the past Year Bar program - wine Judges’ Winner: Juniper

Honorable Mention: Three Flags Tavern PeoPle’s CHoiCe: Adam’s Smokehouse

“I can’t seem to stay away from [Juniper]. The restaurant is charming, the servers are darling and the food is delicious.” – Zoë Robinson “John Perkins did an amazing job transforming his former pop-up event space into a comfortable restaurant, and his Southern cuisine only adds to that comfort. Go get a bread basket and some fried chicken soon.” – A.T.

Read John Perkins’ essay about his creative process at Juniper on p. 50.

serviCe in a restaurant Judges’ Winner: Niche

Judges’ Winner: Elaia and Olio

Honorable Mention: 33 Wine Bar PeoPle’s CHoiCe: Robust Wine Bar

“What Andrey [Ivanov] has built there in such a short time is extremely impressive, thoughtful and fun; I always want to know what he is drinking.” – Matt McGuire “An amazing list, so diverse. Andrey is a marvel.” – Z.R.

Ben Poremba shares insights about the Elaia and Olio team on p. 49.

Bar program - CoCktails Judges’ Winner: Planter’s House

Honorable Mention: Blood & Sand PeoPle’s CHoiCe: Taste

PeoPle’s CHoiCe: Sidney Street Cafe

“[Planter’s House is] knocking it out of the park. A lot of talent under one gorgeous roof!” – Z.R.

“I’m admittedly very biased – but Matt McGuire is just fantastic! He has the rare, natural gift of being able to anticipate the needs of his guests, and has

“St. Louis legend Ted Kilgore has built a who’s who team of mixologists at Planter’s House, and the cocktail menu reflects it.” – A.T.

Honorable Mention: Tony’s

Mixologist

at Blueprint have figured out how to make ‘thirdwave’ coffee service approachable.” – A.T.

Judges’ Winner: Ted Kilgore (Planter’s House) Honorable Mention: Jayne Pellegrino

(Blood & Sand) PeoPle’s CHoiCe: Kyle Mathis (Taste)

“Ted Kilgore has the old classics down [and] the new stuff mastered. He’s just flat-out good.” – V.B. “Ted has run the finest cocktail programs in St. Louis for years and trained some of the best mixologists. He is an innovator; he is the man.” – A.T. “Few people are more deserving of an award.

Absolute mastery of his craft.” – M.M.

soMMelier

Caterer

(Robust Wine Bar) PeoPle’s CHoiCe: Brandon Kerne (Bar Italia Ristorante) “This gentleman is an extreme talent. I say this not only because of his vast knowledge and great palate, but also because he makes wine seem so simple and approachable.” – Z.R. “Andrey is such an immense talent. He could have turned his intellect toward any number of pursuits, but luckily for all of us, it happened to be wine. That intellect, combined with a frighteningly intuitive palate, makes for simply the most important wine person in our city. He has a tireless curiosity and brings this amazing historical perspective that give both narrative and life to the wine.” – M.M.

Learn more about Elaia and Olio from chef-owner Ben Poremba on p. 49.

CoFFee serviCe

Judges’ Winner: Blueprint Coffee Honorable Mention: Kaldi’s Coffee Roasting Co. PeoPle’s CHoiCe: Sump Coffee

“Blueprint is a great example of a group of young, passionate entrepreneurs making St. Louis a better place, one space and one business at a time. Like the new breweries that have opened, the team at Blueprint encourages me to keep pushing for greater innovation and higher standards in our business. So, while Kaldi’s remains my local coffee shop and its founders and owners are trusted business partners – and Northwest beans are in my cupboard at home – walking into Blueprint is an example of the potential we have in St. Louis.” – D.K. “This place is a real gem. Great space, great staff, great coffee.” – Z.R. “In addition to perfecting the art of pour-over coffee and espresso drinks, the talented baristas

Visit Companion’s Early Bird Outlet on p. 58.

Judges’ Winner: Kitchen Kulture Honorable Mention: Catering St. Louis PeoPle’s CHoiCe: Butler’s Pantry

“Chris [Meyer] and her team are always up to something good. I envy their freedom to continually cook so many diverse things – and they do it so well. Also, [they have] some of the coolest gear at the farmers markets!” – C.M.

artisan produCt/ produCer

Judges’ Winner: Marcoot Jersey Creamery Honorable Mention: G&W Bavarian Style

Sausage Co.

Food truCk

Judges’ Winner: Guerrilla Street Food Honorable Mention: Vincent Van Doughnut PeoPle’s CHoiCe: Seoul Taco

Judges’ Winner: Andrey Ivanov (Elaia and Olio) Honorable Mention: Denise Mueller

the door that Pandora was there to open. And his products quickly became things we simply couldn’t live without any longer.” – M.M.

“Guerrilla Street Food’s monster pork burrito is amazing… I don’t know how I eat the whole thing, but I do.” – V.B. “Brian Hardesty and Joel Crespo run the best and most consistent food truck in St. Louis – their food flat-out never disappoints.” – S.G.

Find Brian Hardesty’s recipe for a St. Paul sandwich on p. 70.

Bakeshop

Judges’ Winner: Pint Size Bakery & Coffee Honorable Mention: Russell’s Café & Bakery PeoPle’s CHoiCe: La Patisserie Chouquette

“Christy [Augustin] makes everything look so fun and easy, and if anyone has ever attempted to produce the things that she does, you will have some clue as to how difficult baking all of those wonderful pastries can be. It is this sense of ease and joy that makes her shop the bright beacon of light that it has quickly become for St. Louis.” – M.M. “Pint Size doesn’t care about your waistline, and I like that – just delicious old-school pastries and seasonal ingredients.” – A.T.

Bread Baker

Judges’ Winner: Companion Honorable Mention: Red Fox Baking & Catering PeoPle’s CHoiCe: Black Bear Bakery

“Josh Allen and crew have been baking the best bread in St. Louis for a long time now. I am proud to be a longtime customer.” – S.G. “When Josh Allen founded Companion in 1993, there were few places to find artisan, qualityproduced breads. Pandora Bakery on Russell was about the one place in town to find the truth; they were making breads and baked goods of incredible integrity and helped build our town’s appetite for breads of quality.

Josh’s timing seemed perfect to walk through

PeoPle’s CHoiCe: Salume Beddu

“My day always starts with a slice of Marcoot’s havarti or one of their cave-aged cheeses. They have perfected their craft.” – A.T. “Amy Marcoot makes unbelievable products from an unbelievable herd of cows – just a great story.” – M.M.

CoFFee roaster

Judges’ Winner: Blueprint Coffee Honorable Mention: Sump Coffee PeoPle’s CHoiCe: Kaldi’s Coffee Roasting Co.

“Mike Marquard and his team [at Blueprint] asked me and my friend what we wanted to listen to on vinyl as he brewed our coffee.

This pretty much sums up his team’s attention to detail. I also like that they sell Stephanie [Fischer’s] wonderful pastries from Comet Coffee.” – C.M. “Maybe I’m partial because I get to watch them roast a lot of their coffee, but their attention to detail and quality of beans is tremendous.” – A.T.

speCialty Food shop Judges’ Winner: Vom Fass

ConFeCtioner

Judges’ Winner: Kakao Chocolate Honorable Mention:

Bissinger’s Handcrafted Chocolatier PeoPle’s CHoiCe: Crown Candy Kitchen “I wish I didn’t know how great this chocolate is; then I could stay away.” – Z.R. “Bacon brittle and sea salt caramels. What else is there to say?” – A.T.

Find out what Kakao’s best-selling confection is on p. 60.

regional Winery

Judges’ Winner: Chaumette Vineyards & Winery Honorable Mention: Mount Pleasant Winery PeoPle’s CHoiCe: Stone Hill Winery

“[At] Chaumette Vineyards & Winery, the owner cares – the first ingredient in a good wine.” – V.B.

BreWery

Judges’ Winner: Civil Life Brewing Co. Honorable Mention: 4 Hands Brewing Co. PeoPle’s CHoiCe: Urban Chestnut Brewing Co.

“Delicious, quaffable session beers don’t get any better than at Civil Life.” – S.G. “Anyone who knows Jake Hafner or [who] was introduced to him through 33 Wine Bar isn’t at all surprised by the quality and success of his Civil Life Brewing Co. Jake has always been a sort of heat-seeking missile toward quality. This form of tunnel vision has allowed for the production of some of the most compelling beers in our region, if not the country.” – M.M.

Wonder why Civil Life specializes in session beers? Turn to p. 56.

Honorable Mention: Baumann’s Fine Meats PeoPle’s CHoiCe: Global Foods Market

“There’s no other place in town that I could spend hours tasting vinegars, olive oils and Scotch. It makes for an interesting afternoon.” – A.T.

speCialty Wine, Beer and spirits shop Judges’ Winner: Parker’s Table

Honorable Mention: Randall’s Wines and Spirits PeoPle’s CHoiCe: The Wine & Cheese Place

“I’ve known my fellow brother [Jonathan Parker] from Tennessee for as long as I’ve been in St. Louis. I’m always amazed at the diverse selection of just the right products there, from American cheese that rivals the best Italian Taleggio I’ve ever had to high-quality dry pasta to the most sublime Novello olive oils I’ve tasted – and that’s before you get to beverages! Jon’s presence is apparent in every detail of his store.” – C.M. “Parker’s Table has always been such an incredibly fun place to be, where it seems that anything is possible. It’s this wonderful happening, a place you want to be a part of, a place that just by chance is one of the best wine shops in our area. Jonathan Parker is the ring leader of this bohemian circus – where there is an enormous collection of vinyl records to play, a community center/ hub for civic discussion to take place; [it] is part architectural salvage emporium, part toy factory – where he makes Ferris wheels out of coffee cans and architectural-scale models out of wine boxes and has thoughtful, wooden toys strewn all around for kids. This is the sort of thing that cannot be experienced on the Internet or with your phone in your hand. This is one of those places that you can actually interact with people and share an experience.” – M.M. Inspired Food Culture

AUGUST 2014

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ben poremba

chef-owner, elaia and olio

Every year we look forward to sharing the Feast 50 issue, our annual rip-roaring toast to the St. Louis food and drink scene.

Not only does the issue mark the magazine’s anniversary (we just turned 4!), but it also gives us the opportunity to let the inspiring people who shape and sustain our robust food-anddrink industry the chance to share what they love most about the St. Louis food community.

This year, we’ve compiled a collection of stories that showcase our local food scene, including 10 insightful profiles of beloved St. Louis restaurants, businesses and personalities; 30 Q&As with industry experts; and five first-person essays penned by some of our city’s most talented culinarians. Of course, no celebration of the local food scene would be complete without covering some of St. Louis’ most iconic dishes – think slingers, St. Paul sandwiches, frozen custard, toasted ravioli and gooey butter cake. In this spirit, we tasked five St. Louis chefs with interpreting these classics through their own culinary lens, which we’re pretty sure you’ll want to recreate in your home kitchen, stat.

As we reflect on the past four years, we feel an abundant sense of gratitude and so fortunate to be able to share the inspiring work happening in this industry. The following pages are filled with only a portion of the talent elevating our city’s food scene, which is a testament to how big and dynamic it truly has become, and continues to become, every day.

Turn the page to meet 50 of the people and places that have made a significant impact on the St. Louis food scene this year.

Contact information for restaurants and businesses is listed online at feastmagazine.com.

What do you think is a definitive flavor of St. Louis? For me, it’s Gus’ Pretzels – hot dog or salsiccia. I was introduced to it the first week I arrived to St. Louis. What do you think was the most important thing to happen in the St. Louis food scene this year? I think the fact that we had six James Beard semifinalists and two finalists speaks loud about the energized and prolific dining scene we have here. Or, as my good friend puts it, “It was a punch in the face.” What do you hope to see happen next in the local food scene? I would love to see people do more with ethnic foods; there are lots of excellent mom-and-pop ethnic restaurants, but very few upscale ones. Imagine you have one entire day to dedicate to dining out in St. Louis.

Where would you grab breakfast, lunch, drinks and dinner, and what would you be ordering? Depending on who is with me…

If it’s my mom, start the day at [La Patisserie] Chouquette: café au lait, canelé, maybe quiche. For lunch, I split a meatball sandwich at Adriana’s on the Hill. Champagne, blini and caviar at Bar Les Frères. Dinner at I Fratellini (zucchini carpaccio, pistachio trout, tiramisu); or if I can get a seat at Sidney Street, I do chef’s tasting menu. What inspires you to do the work that you do? My fuel is my family. I’m one lucky guy – when you’re surrounded with beauty and support, it’s easy to get creative and motivated. All of my motivation comes from them, for them. If you weren’t in the restaurant industry, what would you be doing? Interior or industrial design; I think I’d make a decent high school teacher, too. In 2014, you received your first nomination from the James Beard Foundation as a semifinalist in the Best Chef: Midwest category. What did that mean to you? I felt proud. It’s been a hard couple of years for my team – they work so hard and are very loyal and dedicated – and they feel proud to be a part of this. So that makes me feel very proud. This is a collective endeavor: It’s me and my family, my partners who are incredibly supportive, and my staff. photography by Jennifer Silverberg PICTURED: Ben Poremba loves the tiramisu at I Fratellini in Clayton.

PoP-uP to Permanent restaurant Written by John Perkins, chef-owner, juniper

|

photography by Jennifer Silverberg

you have seen the tightrope walker, arms splayed out or fists tightly clutching the balance pole, deftly treading the distance from point a to point b, foot by foot. one misstep, one moment unbalanced, will send him hurtling a great distance. to move forward depends on balance. it is much the same for the chef or the restaurateur. Creativity must be balanced with accessibility. too esoteric and you risk alienating people; too pedestrian and the product doesn’t stand up to scrutiny. i have always had an alternative business model, and in 2013 i debuted the latest version: i opened a restaurant, Le Coq, which only ran for the month of January. that first restaurant would be followed up with another, a good Man is hard to Find, a month or so later. Ultimately, i hoped to rotate through four distinct concepts by the end of the year. but it wasn’t long into the third run – the agrarian – that i realized how my desire to remain creatively engaged was working against the public’s understanding of what i was doing. My ego got the better of me for a while, and i kept pushing back, determined to make my idea work. but it just didn’t. every day felt like a personal rejection. it was excruciating. our numbers were dwindling, and the tether to our customers was fraying. the balance was off. i realized that, ultimately, this wasn’t about me; it was about the people who chose to dine with us. i owed them clarity. i also owed it to my staff. i even owed it, in a sense, to myself. it would have been easy to blame my audience, but to do that would have been a failure of imagination. that was the challenge: Create a restaurant that told a clear story and that was accessible, but do it in such a way that stayed true to our creative roots. Juniper was the answer, and with the help of an amazing staff and friends that helped clarify the vision, i think we are off to a pretty good start.

JOIN US! Visit

feastmagazine.com for info.

Join Juniper’s John Perkins in the kitchen for a Southern comfort food cooking class on Tue., Aug. 12. at Roth Living. Visit the Events section of feastmagazine.com for info.

PICTURED: Beet salad prepared by John Perkins, chef-owner of Juniper.

Corey smale

co-owner, strange donuts Who or what do you believe is a hidden gem in the St. Louis food scene? I love old-school pizza joints like Frank & Helen’s and Monte Bello. There’s a vibe you can’t recreate in those spots, and the ‘za is always out of this world. What do you think is a definitive flavor of St. Louis? What Mike [Emerson] and the guys have done at Pappy’s is what the taste of St. Louis is all about. It’s real, authentic and came from nothing, and nothing else compares. I love that each spot (Pappy’s, Bogart’s, Adam’s Smokehouse) has something different, and they’re all on point – that’s a beautiful and tasty thing. What do you think was the most important thing to happen in the St. Louis food scene this year? The overall growth and expansion of St. Louis craft beer continues to be something to admire and be truly grateful and thankful for. To see the giant steps each and every one of these breweries are making right now is an awesome thing. From bigger tanks to larger distribution, and overall more taps around town, it’s been a great year for local St. Louis breweries.

What do you hope to see happen next in the local food scene, and why? More people trying things and the interaction that comes with it. The people and scene are beyond ready and have been; continue to inspire them and yourself in terms of what’s possible. I think that’s the most challenging, and also rewarding, part. We’ll have the donuts covered. Imagine you have an entire day to dedicate to dining out in St. Louis.

Where would you grab breakfast, lunch, drinks and dinner? Hopefully it’s not a Monday. Ham, biscuits, eggs, fruit and OJ at Half & Half. Pho ga, and say what’s up to Qui [at] Mai Lee. Fear & Loathing [cocktails] at The Libertine, and walk to Pastaria for kale salad, canestri cacio e pepe and three scoops of gelato. Powerful. What inspires you to do the work that you do? Jason and I really inspire each other and that keeps things pretty sharp between us, but also when we’re collaborating and creating with the many chefs and artists we’ve been fortunate to work with.

We’re always looking to do something we haven’t even thought about, and then when we do, it’s often a rush to make it, then and now.

We also learn so much from these often weekly creative jams we have with chefs from all over, making a variety of different things. That keeps us and the nature of our business often inspired and very fresh. Strange Donuts has quickly become one of the most popular spots in town. How does it feel to have built such a beloved business? Every day is pretty awesome. We work really, really hard, and the reward of creating and building something people enjoy and hang out at and support, for real, is a humbling and powerful thing. Strange has become so much more than even we ever had in mind. Working with other businesses and really standing behind the motto “collaborate, collaborate, collaborate” has taught us so much about other artists and industries, and also ourselves. We couldn’t be where we’re at now without everyone’s help.

For the future, we hope to continue to find flavors and ways to inspire people to create more, worry less and, of course, stay strange.

matthew “mateo” daughaday executive chef, taste

Who or what do you believe is a hidden gem in the St. Louis food scene? I had a really, really good meal at Three Flags Tavern recently, and think that it is a place that I don’t hear brought up enough when people talk about new or favorite places to eat. I had one of the most solid meals I have had all year there, and think it is one of the best casual dining spots in the city right now. What do you think is a definitive flavor of St. Louis? I am a bit biased coming from a place that seems to worship the pig in the way we have, but I think pork is to St. Louis like seafood is to San Francisco. All the best places in the city utilize it because of how much local and awesome

available product there is. And as pork-heavy as our menu is, we never have anyone coming in asking, “Where’s the beef?” Some of the best dishes I have eaten in St. Louis have been pork dishes, from Mai Lee to Pappy’s to the first meal I ever ate at Niche. Imagine you have one entire day to dedicate to dining out in St. Louis. Where would you grab breakfast, lunch, drinks and dinner? Breakfast: I love cooking breakfast, so usually if I eat a real breakfast I am making it at home, but if I do go out, Winslow’s Home would probably be it.

It’s walking distance from my house, and they have some awesome choices in the breakfast department that are always solid. Lunch: Mai Lee. It is always a win getting to go to Mai Lee for lunch or dinner, but that’s definitely my No. 1 choice for lunch. For a backup plan, I just recently hit up Quincy Street Bistro for lunch; [it’s] hard

WrITTeN BY Brandon Chuang

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to [go] wrong there either. Dinner: Three Flags Tavern is a favorite for relaxed dinner. Nowadays there are so many options it’s hard to choose, but Libertine would probably be at the top of the list as well. What inspires you to do the work that you do? I am inspired by everything and anything really; you never know when the next good idea for a dish is going to come out.

What motivates me the most is the customers.

If they came in and loved the cornbread, the next time they come in I want to have a dish that they love that much more. It’s a challenge to try and come up with something that tops your last favorite thing – that is what makes it fun. If you weren’t in the restaurant industry, what would you be doing? My first career was as an English teacher, and that is likely what I would be doing. Luckily, with cooking, I get to tie both my love of food and teaching into one place.

ILLuSTrATIoN BY Lisa Allen

There are many ways to cook many things, but for burgers, there’s really just one. Heed the words of any respectable cook or chef and they’ll tell you roughly the same thing. Don’t over-handle the meat or it’ll get gummy. Place it on a hot surface and don’t touch it. Let it sear, locking in its own juices, and once that sear is complete, flip it once. But whatever you do, for God’s sake, don’t squeeze it.

Nobody told Frank Cunetto, the owner of Carl’s Drive-In in Brentwood. We know this because when you go to Carl’s – like everyone in St. Louis has, seemingly regardless of age, since they were a little boy or girl – you can watch them make your burger. You watch as they throw a 1/7-pound puck of raw beef onto the grill and then squeeze it to within a millimeter of its life. Literally, a millimeter.

The result isn’t so much a burger, but a beef crisp, cooked into a crisscross patterned edge you never thought beef could achieve, at least not naturally. But it does, and it’s delicious.

Trying to explain the unique deliciousness of Carl’s burgers is practically impossible – not even Cunetto himself can do it. “There’s really not much to see,” admits Cunetto about his restaurant’s specialty. The reason Cunetto can’t explain it is because that’s just the way it’s always been. He makes the burgers the same way the man before him did it. The way Carl did it. There’s no specialty burger here, no Carl’s deluxe. You simply order the size of burger you want, the way you want it.

And although the lines attest to their deliciousness – Carl’s 16-seat diner serves up to 700 patties a day during the busy season – Cunetto will continue to insist that the only thing he does is serve quality products.

“There’s nothing in the burgers except pure ground beef, either 80-to-20 or 81-to-19,” he says. “There, now you know the secret.”

9033 Manchester Road, Brentwood 314.961.9652

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BELOW: Stanley Browne and Arlene Maminta Browne love breakfast at The London Tea Room.

stanley browne and arlene maminta browne co-owners, robust wine bar

What do you think is a definitive flavor of St. Louis? St. Louis barbecue is all the rage right now, and with a rise in quality, there are so many great places from which to choose. People like simple, flavorful food, and barbecue is easy and fun to share. Sugarfire is one of our favorites right now, but frankly, we enjoy making pulled pork and barbecued pork steaks in our own backyard. -Stanley and Arlene What do you hope to see happen next in the St. Louis food scene? It would be nice to see a continued shift away from large portions. Smaller portions are not only healthier, but they allow for more diversity when having a meal. -Stanley If you had to name one thing that you feel is missing in the St. Louis food scene, what would it be? There is a lack of a skilled labor force. We need a larger pool of quality serviceminded people who are current and progressive.

It’s the only way to keep up with the demands of a growing, top-notch culinary scene. -Stanley Imagine you have one entire day to

dedicate to dining out in St. Louis. Where would you grab breakfast, lunch, drinks and dinner? We aren’t big breakfast people, so morning calls for a leisurely continental breakfast at The London Tea Room. They have proper British tea service (with milk) and lovely scones and quiche. Lunch at Everest Café is a treat for some great Nepalese-Korean-Indian food; the momos (Tibetan dumplings) and chicken curry are scrumptious. Rosé bubbles are our standard at Bar Les Fréres, or sips of one of their great wines by the glass for pre-dinner cocktails. We love sitting at the bar at Herbie’s for a classic grazing of our favorites – escargot, firecracker shrimp and beef Wellington – and there is always good wine to boot. -Stanley and Arlene What’s playing on the radio in your kitchen?

Honestly, it’s a lot of Katy Perry [on] Pandora – our 8-year-old daughter Molly’s choice. It’s usually the impetus behind our family dance party in the kitchen. Nothing hipster about it, just good family fun. -Stanley and Arlene What inspires you to do the work that you do? Travel. I really have to get away and experience other cities and cultures to keep my mind fresh and clear.

-Stanley. For me, it’s about sharing our passion with people and building community. -Arlene

jenny cleveland chef-owner, cleveland-heath

Who or what do you believe is a hidden gem in the St. Louis food scene? This is not necessarily just in the past year, but I really love the revitalization of simple foods – donuts, for example, and fried chicken – foods we all love and grew up with being done really well.

Imagine you have one entire day to dedicate to dining out in St. Louis. Where would you grab breakfast, lunch, drinks and dinner? I’d probably start at Wonton King on Olive for dim sum. Then I would definitely need a coffee and a walk. I’d probably end up at Olio for a light lunch – I love the hummus, beets, carrot salad, egg salad – you name it – with a glass of wine from their great list. After, a cocktail at Planter’s House (and maybe a predinner donut). I’d head to Farmhaus for dinner.

I haven’t been in a while and it would be great this time of year with all of the produce coming into season. Lastly, I’d stop by Melt on Cherokee and play pinball and Skee-Ball, have a cocktail, and just maybe – because it would be really late – I’d stop at Eat-Rite on my way home. What inspires you to do the work that you do?

I’m always looking for inspiration in cookbooks, magazines, on the Internet and through dining at other places. When we’re looking at adding things to the menu or working on a new dish or cocktail, in my head I’m always thinking about the end result, which is how it makes our guests feel.

Does the item put a smile on someone’s face?

And does that item make them happy with the choice they made? What really matters is that we get to make other people happy and excited about something that makes us happy and excited – food. I think that’s my motivation in this industry. You’re planning to open a cocktail bar next to Cleveland-Heath. What does it mean to you to further invest in the community? We love our location in downtown Edwardsville and love being a part of historic Main Street, which is still thriving. We’re so lucky to be in a community that really comes together to support [its] local businesses.

ABOVE: Jenny Cleveland loves the sesonally inspired menu at Farmhaus, with dishes like this Szechuan-style pork belly, green noodles, black walnuts, Fournie Farms corn and dried jalapeños by chef-owner Kevin Willmann.

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eric heath

chef-owner, cleveland-heath

PICTURED: Mike Johnson loves the Brussels sprouts at The Salted Pig.

mike johnson

chef-owner, sugarfire smoke house Who or what do you believe is a hidden gem in the St. Louis food scene? BBQ ASAP in Ellisville. It’s a small, underrated spot run by some really cool people who kill it on the competitive barbecue circuit – getting fourth in this year’s Memphis in May in pork shoulder is a huge accomplishment. What do you think was the most important thing to happen in the St. Louis food scene this year? I’m excited about all the barbecue restaurants that have opened or are opening this year. I want St. Louis to be included in the discussion for the best barbecue in the U.S., and I think it’ll bring nothing but awareness to the city. Imagine you have one entire day to dedicate to dining out in St. Louis. Where would you grab breakfast, lunch, drinks and dinner? Oh, easy.

Breakfast: eggs and hash browns at Connelly’s.

Goody Goody Diner [for] lunch. Bogart’s in Soulard – pastrami, tri-tip, pork rinds with beans.

Drinks: Only one drink I’m hooked on in St. Louis, Fear & Loathing at The Libertine. Dinner: fried chicken and Brussels sprouts at The Salted Pig in Frontenac. What’s playing on the radio in your kitchen? The Reverend Horton Heat with a little bit of The Clash mixed in, because we can.

What inspires you and motivates you to do the work that you do? I’m really motivated by all the awesome people who come to eat at Sugarfire. When they come, they are expecting

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the best barbecue they’ve ever had, and there is a lot of pressure on us to give it to them. With the huge crowds that come in, it’s pretty hard to please everyone, but we definitely try our best.

If you weren’t in the restaurant industry, what would you be doing? Definitely a beach bum. You recently opened a Sugarfire location in St. Charles, which means you now operate three locations in the St. Louis area. How does it feel to have built such a beloved restaurant? When I see all the people in line at my restaurants every day before we even open, I’m inside the restaurant trying to get ready for the madness to begin, but in my mind, I’m thinking, “I’m the luckiest guy in the restaurant business in town.” None of us ever imagined we’d be doing so well. As a matter of fact, the day before we opened, I was pretty sure it was the worst restaurant idea I had ever had – and I’ve had some bad ones. I wanted to apologize to my partners Charlie and Carolyn Downs for ruining their lives, but I didn’t because I didn’t want to scare them. Fast-forward two years, we’ve been on BBQ Pitmasters, took third in the Memphis in May world barbecue championship, were named best new restaurant, best barbecue and many more, and we feed, literally, a couple thousand people a day. It’s been a wild ride, but we take absolutely nothing for granted and are looking forward to growing – potentially out of state – and perfecting our craft. photography by Cheryl Waller

Who or what do you believe is a hidden gem in the St. Louis food scene? Mateo Daughaday is the most underrated chef in St. Louis, hands down. He is so consistent, creative and his food never disappoints.

Dim sum is also severely underrated in St. Louis; there are so many great dim sum restaurants. It is the perfect thing on a lazy Sunday. What do you think is a definitive flavor of St. Louis? For food, what defines us is our supportive nature among restaurants and bars. It blows me away that everyone is so good to each other here. I think that defines us. It’s the iconic restaurants that have really had the biggest impact on our definitive tastes and flavors (Pappy’s, Farmhaus, Niche, Sidney Street, Tony’s and so many others that I’ve unintentionally left out). Obviously there is a massive Italian population here, but it’s the American food genre that is so strong. Our barbecue is fantastic, the beer is iconic, our regional produce is as strong as I’ve seen it anywhere in the U.S. and our ability to throw caution to the wind and try anything is what makes us St. Louis. We aren’t afraid to experiment in St. Louis. What do you think was the most important thing to happen in the St. Louis food scene this year? The most important thing to happen here is a sense of independence. It seemed that this area suffered from a lack of identity for so long, but lately you see so many people just going for it. People are so creative here, and we are all starting to blossom. A true St. Louis food identity is being carried with a sense of pride. What do you hope to see happen next in the St. Louis food scene? I want to see more Food &Wine magazine [nominations], more James Beard [nominations], more national recognition – not just for food, but for the craft cocktail scene, the wine culture and the service aspect. I want to see some serious respect garnered for us.

We need to keep working extremely hard for it, and we need to keep it going. The only way we are going to get the respect we deserve is if we take the service part of our industry seriously. If you had to name one thing that you feel is missing in the St. Louis food scene, what would it be? Sometimes I think that a true sense of profession in our food scene needs to be polished. For so long, the food industry has been the least desirable profession. But now it is becoming a very respectable way of life. We can help so many people doing what we do. It is a great way to climb the ranks into entrepreneurship. The reason we choose to work in the service industry is because we love people and entertainment.

I feel like educating yourself, dressing the part, behaving appropriately and showing respect to those around you is so important to positive growth. People need to take care of themselves and exercise, eat well, sleep well and stay positive. Remember, dining is about an experience; it’s not about how cool you are for cooking or making the experience. We should pass along an industry to a newer generation that has been

cared for and inspired. Imagine you have one entire day to dedicate to dining out in St. Louis. Where would you grab breakfast, lunch, drinks and dinner?

This might be the hardest question. For breakfast, I would go to 222 in Edwardsville.

They’re down the street from my house, and they always have great coffee (especially the cappuccino), and wonderful breakfast.

For lunch, I think Olio would be on my list.

There are so many great places to get lunch, but at Olio they have fantastic small plates so you can try more without filling up. It would really be hard for me to pass up Farmhaus for lunch though, or Mai Lee, or Blues City Deli – the list goes on. Then I think probably Niche/Cucina Pazzo/Libertine/ Sidney Street for dinner. It’s too hard to choose, but usually when I go out to eat for a whole day, I hit about 20 places. And finally, drinks would be Planter’s House or Taste. I have left out about 60 of my other favorite restaurants. What inspires you to do the work that you do? Cookbooks, other chefs, listening to peoples’ stories about their favorite foods and foods I remember.

These things keep me afloat. I love hearing other peoples’ experiences and trying to emulate them. If I sit down [with] a cookbook for even five minutes, I can have a burst of about a thousand ideas. When I change our menu, I take one book to another room and sit for about two hours, and I can come out with a completely revised menu. I love people and how inspiring they can be. My favorite thing right now is watching how incredibly creative and motivated our staff is. Rick Kazmer is doing the best job at keeping us modern and delicious. It’s so nice to have people to work with who are inspired and good at what they do. I am always happy to work for someone who is ready to put themselves out there. I’ll gladly take a step back and help someone else complete their vision if I can. You’re planning to open a cocktail bar in Edwardsville.

What does it mean to you to further invest in the community? We love our community. This is the most supportive community that I have ever been a part of.

We are so fortunate to have great people surrounding us. It has taken so many variables coming together that have helped us to become who we are. We need to keep moving forward and get better every day.

Each day is a new chance to make right what you want to. I couldn’t be happier in any other profession. Watching people around me develop themselves and help others is the most satisfying thing I can think of as a business owner. When I leave our restaurant for a week, and our neighbors, staff and family take care of our business, it makes me feel so grateful that we have amazing people in this world. I am happy to give everything I have to make a better situation, and I seriously believe the people who surround me would do the same. Jenny Cleveland is the greatest thing to happen to me. She takes care of me and our staff like a mother.

There aren’t very many selfless people like her out there. Everyone who knows her has become a better person for it, and she applies that gift she has to our business and community. I am the luckiest man alive.

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A Brew-on-Premises Operation or (BOP) Recipe by Joy Grdnic christensen, The FounTain on LocusT | ediTed by tory Bahn phoTogRaphy by Jennifer silverBerG iLLusTRaTions by lisa allen

This rich shake combines salty bacon, sweet figs and a cup of bourbon for a decadent twist on classic vanilla custard.

Serves | 1 | fiG sauce

Remove from foil, and place on a small plate to cool completely.

| Assembly | pour vanilla bourbon custard shake in a tall glass, and top with fig sauce. garnish with candied bacon and whipped cream. serve immediately.

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1 Tbsp brown sugar 1/3 cup dried figs, finely chopped 1 cup bourbon, plus 1 Tbsp vanilla-BourBon custard shake

1½ 1 1 2

cups vanilla ice cream egg yolk oz bourbon Tbsp brown sugar whipped cream (optional)

candied-BourBon Bacon

oil 2 Tbsp bourbon 1 strip thick-cut bacon 2 Tbsp brown sugar

| Preparation – Fig Sauce | in a small pot, simmer brown sugar, figs and 1 cup bourbon until the liquid is reduced by half. cool mixture, and then mix in remaining 1 Tbsp bourbon. set aside. | Preparation – Vanilla-Bourbon Custard Shake | in a blender, combine vanilla ice cream, egg yolk, bourbon and brown sugar. blend until just smooth. The mixture will be thick. set aside. | Preparation – Candied-Bourbon Bacon | preheat oven to 400°F. using a silicone brush, brush a piece of foil with oil, and place on a small sheet tray. in a small saucepan, simmer bourbon until reduced by more than half. brush bourbon onto bacon. place bacon strip on foil, and coat both sides with brown sugar. bake for 20 minutes, until caramelized and almost crisp.

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scott carey owner, sump coffee

Who or what do you believe is a hidden gem in the St. Louis food scene? Taste, and Matt [Daughaday] as the executive chef.

Honestly, I know it’s not a slept-on gem, but I think relative to how great/talented both are with respect to other similarly situated concepts in other major markets – I do feel it’s significantly underrated or under-heralded

by St. Louis. What do you think is a definitive flavor of St. Louis? It’s hard to describe it beyond a platonic concept. Food tastes safe; it’s not often that the mouth is challenged. What do you think was the most important thing to happen in the St. Louis food scene in the past year?

I think the disappearance of the restaurant experience as [an] all-tasting menu was an important happening this past year. In particular, I’m thinking of Little Country Gentleman as a concept, and Niche’s attempt after it moved to Clayton. I believe allowing a chef – just like an artist, great thinker or creator – to do the thing they excel at and have dedicated their life to, without boundaries, produces the best dining experiences, the most creativity and innovation. The best meals I’ve had in St. Louis have all been tasting menu meals, and each time, those meals caused me to reconsider what I was doing – actually

made me feel like I wasn’t doing enough in my shop – and changed my perception of the St. Louis dining scene. Sometimes meals and food concepts don’t work a la carte, just like some albums don’t work as a series of singles, but instead only as integrated wholes. I think that concept disappearing from St. Louis is a great loss because it no longer pushes boundaries and instead allows/enforces current diner preferences, such as fine dining as a steak with two sides. It becomes like the story in Vonnegut’s short Harrison Bergeron. What do you hope to see happen next in the St. Louis food scene? I hope to see a class of dining arise that is executed as well as the likes of Niche and Sidney Street, but is more accessible price-wise, yet more casual and inclusive – without sport coats and French blue button-down shirts; less “expense-account” attitude and more “I work hard, and I play hard” kind of vibe – places beyond kitschy design. I would also very much like to see a well-executed ramen shop open in the city. Oh, please God, yes! Imagine you have one entire day to dedicate to dining out in St. Louis. Where would you grab breakfast, lunch, drinks and dinner? Lunch: Banh Mi So #1 – it’s a special on their whiteboard. The whiteboard never changes. I don’t know the name, but it’s the No. 8; drinks/dinner: Taste; dessert: Sidney Street Cafe. What inspires you and motivates you to do the work that you do?

Honestly, other restaurants and makers. When someone inspires you by blowing your mind, you say to yourself, “I suck,” and you figure out how you can do better, how you can be great. I say to myself, “How can I push myself so that I don’t look like a fraud, hack or get left behind?”

If you weren’t in the food and drink industry, what would you be doing? I’ve already had two prior careers – chemist and lawyer. I’d rather not think about a fourth. If I had to hit reset, knowing what I know now – and I got to go back to 18 – I’d put my 10,000 hours in and try to be a painter. How did you feel the first day Sump Coffee opened for business, and how has it felt to watch the shop evolve? The first day – giddy, like a marathoner crossing the finish line; and sick, like a marathoner crossing the finish line. It, of course, feels good to turn the sign every morning. However, it feels better to feel the place hum with people. When I’m in the back of the shop roasting coffee, I can feel the shop hum; I can see my team at the bar running the shop and interacting with people and people interacting with other people in the shop, and I’m doing nothing to move it along directly, just tucked away roasting; the shop has life. It’s a magical happening, like creating a painting, then standing back and letting people see it, interpret it and consume it on their own terms. pHotoGrapHy by Jennifer Silverberg

Written by Brandon Chuang illustrations by Lisa Allen

like many cities in america today, you’d be hard-pressed to throw a beer bottle – even after a few – and not hit a craft brewery in st. louis. and in these craft breweries you’ll find many different kinds of beers, a buffet of pilsners, ales, stouts and more. at last count, there were nearly 20 breweries that ply their craft in the shadow of the arch. needless to say, it takes – ahem – hops to open a brewery in this town, let alone a brewery that focuses on session beers; or, in nasCar speak, a brewery that focuses on making beer that doesn’t get you as drunk as quickly. “We wanted to make beer that we like to drink,” says Jake Hafner, owner of Civil life brewing Co. “For us, we gravitated toward session beers.” the “we” Hafner is referring to is himself and brewmaster Dylan Mosley. “beer has four ingredients,” Mosley explains, “water, malt, hops and yeast. each beer has a unique direction, a path that focuses more on one of these ingredients, even if ever so slightly.” to make beer is to combine these four ingredients. to put it very, very simply, water and malt come together and convert starches to sugar. Hops are then added for flavor, taste and aroma, and finally yeast is added to “eat” the sugar – the more sugar that’s eaten, the higher the alcohol content. it’s not unheard of to go to a brewery where the average alcohol by volume hovers in the 6 percent range. Civil life’s beer roster pretty much lives under 5 percent.

“We’re very particular about what we do,” notes Hafner. “if we’re making a German pilsner, we make sure we’re using German hops because that’s part of what makes a German pilsner a German pilsner.” “it used to be that beers were very regional,” echoes Mosley. “it’s got a lot to do with your surroundings – areas that are known for pilsners are known because, at some point, someone realized the water profile was most conducive for making pilsners. so they made pilsners.” “and now, we’re striving to make what’s us,” adds Hafner. “and it doesn’t hurt that you may be able to have one more either.”

PICTURED: Scott Carey loves the No. 8 whiteboard special at Banh Mi So #1: the meatless noodle bowl.

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3714 Holt Ave., Tower Grove South thecivillife.com

TV Watch the upcoming August episode on the Nine Network (Channel 9) at 2pm on Sat., Aug. 2, and 1pm on Mon., Aug. 4. Feast TV will also air on the nineCREATE channel periodically throughout the month.

In August, we celebrate classics in the St. Louis food scene. Discover Perennial Artisan Ales owner Phil Wymore’s ideal day of dining out. Go behind the scenes at Companion’s Early Bird Outlet. Take a sip of nostalgia at Excel Bottling Co., one of a few remaining mom-and-pop soda bottlers in the United States. And, get to know Andy Karandzieff, part of the third generation behind a St. Louis institution: Crown Candy Kitchen.

Feast TV is presented by Missouri Wines with additional support from Whole Foods Market and Roth Living.

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Holy Slinger, Batman!

See photo on next page.

Recipe by Cassy Vires, Home Wine KitcHen edited by Tory Bahn pHotogRapHy by Cheryl Waller

This fun, hearty slinger recipe reimagines everybody’s favorite late-night diner dish.

Serves | 6 | DuCk ConfiT

3 4 1 6 4 4 1 4

Tbsp salt garlic cloves, smashed shallot, peeled and sliced sprigs fresh rosemary duck legs duck thighs Tbsp freshly ground black pepper cups extra virgin olive oil

DuCk rilleTTes

¼ ¼

WrITTEn By Shannon Cothran

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IlluSTrATIOnS By Lisa Allen

In a 15,000-square-foot factory in South City, Josh Allen and his team of bakers just sent off the last truck of the morning, so they can now transform their loading dock into the tiny pop-up bakery that they assemble every Friday, Saturday and Sunday morning. The pastry case, freezers and wooden bread racks are wheeled out, and a large light fixture overhead ties the temporary shop together.

This is Companion bakery’s Early Bird Outlet, where bread sells for between $2.50 and $3.50 per pound, which, according to Allen, is 40 to 50 percent below the price of his bread at other stores. Customers trickle in and out of the outlet pop-up from 7am to noon, enjoying coffee and browsing the small but mighty selection of breads, pastries, granola, cookies and frozen products.

In the kitchen, tucked away behind the wheeled racks of bread for sale, Companion’s baking operation is full steam ahead. Bakers work around the clock to bake the 12,000 to 15,000 pounds of bread the company sells each day. The baking floor is only barren one day a year: Christmas. Allen’s hearth ovens are Companion’s crowning glory. The company uses them to bake more than 60 percent of its breads, and it is what gives

marc del pietro chef-owner, the block

Who or what do you believe is a hidden gem in the St. Louis food scene? Honestly, i think the hidden gem in the St. Louis area is a chef, and it is my brother-in-law and partner, brian doherty. because of my parents having a long tradition in the food scene in St. Louis, many people recognize my name, which i really appreciate. Sometimes that results in brian not getting the credit he deserves. He is an unbelievable chef. He is very intelligent and knowledgeable when it comes to everything about food. What do you think was the

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Companion’s products that baked-by-aFrench-grandma-in-Provence taste and texture that you just don’t find elsewhere.

cup Cognac cup diced apples duck confit (see below) ¼ cup minced onions 1 Tbsp chopped parsley 10 garlic cloves, minced 4 Tbsp unsalted butter ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper ¼ tsp kosher salt 2 Tbsp reserved olive oil from confit späTzle

Despite the heat from the ovens and the summer sun, the bakery feels open and the scent in the air is fresh and a little sweet.

Music thumps in the makeup area, where the dough is mixed and shaped before being sent to the proof box to ferment. “Whether you’re making Wonder bread or artisanal bread, the process is the same,” Allen says. “Mixing, fermenting, shaping, fermenting, baking.”

According to Allen, being a baker is all about timing: When the bread reaches the perfect point in the fermentation process, it must go into the oven. But will there be space in the oven? Workers must be exact in order to maximize oven space to produce thousands of pounds of bread and pastries each day.

The atmosphere in the factory is relaxed and friendly, and the bakers focus on their work, moving around each other in a perfectly timed dance, meticulously choreographed by Allen.

4555 Gustine Ave., South City 314.352.4770 companionstl.com/early-bird-outlet

most important thing to happen in the St. Louis food scene this year? i love how lots of businesses are doing collaborations. different chefs doing dinners together, restaurants and great local breweries, donuts, etc. it is a very positive feel. What’s playing on the radio in your kitchen? elvis. always elvis, and my kids know all the words. What inspires you to do the work that you do? i always get a buzz off of the new seasonal product that is either around the corner or coming in the back door. If you weren’t in the restaurant industry, what would you be doing? Something outdoors in the woods: mountains or skydiving.

1 1 ½ ¼ 2 ¼ 3

cup all-purpose flour tsp salt tsp freshly ground black pepper tsp ground nutmeg eggs cup milk quarts salted water

WhiTe Bean Chili

4 1 ½ 4 2 6 ½ 4 8 8 ½

Tbsp olive oil lb foie gras sausage, chopped lb bacon, diced shallots, sliced stalks celery, diced cloves garlic, minced tsp red pepper flakes bay leaves salt and freshly ground black pepper cups vegetable stock cups white beans, soaked overnight cup fresh lemon juice

Cherry TomaTo salsa

20 2 1 2

cherry tomatoes, halved Tbsp fresh minced parsley jalapeño, deseeded, minced Tbsp lime juice salt and freshly ground black pepper

assemBly

1 1 7 6 1

cup buttermilk cup breadcrumbs Tbsp olive oil, divided eggs Tbsp unsalted butter salt and freshly ground black pepper

| Preparation – Duck Confit | preheat oven to 225°F. Sprinkle 1 tbsp salt in the bottom of a sheet pan large enough to hold duck pieces in a single layer. evenly scatter half the garlic, shallots and rosemary in the container. arrange duck, skin-side up, over salt mixture, then sprinkle with remaining salt, garlic, shallots, rosemary and pepper. cover, and refrigerate for 1 to 2 days. brush salt and seasonings off duck, reserving garlic, shallots and rosemary. Rinse duck pieces under cold water, and pat dry with paper towels. arrange duck pieces in a single layer in a high-sided baking dish or ovenproof saucepan, and add reserved seasoning. pour

olive oil over duck, making sure duck pieces are completely covered, and place in oven. cook duck slowly at a very slow simmer until duck is tender and can be easily pulled from the bone, 2 to 3 hours. if the oil bubbles more, adjust oven temperature. Remove pan from oven. cool and store duck in fat. While submerged in oil, duck will remain preserved for 2 to 3 weeks.

| Preparation – Duck Rillettes | add cognac and apples to a small saucepan, bring mixture to a boil. Remove from heat and let come to room temperature.

Remove duck from oil, and reserve oil. gently remove meat from bone and shred it, taking care to remove small bones, cartilage and fat. in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a hook attachment, combine shredded meat, onions, parsley, garlic, butter, pepper, salt and cognacapple mixture. beat at medium speed for about 1 minute, taking care not to purée mixture or let it turn into a paste. the texture should be like finely chopped meat. drizzle some reserved oil on top and set aside, or store in an air-tight container and refrigerate for up to 1 week.

| Preparation – Spätzle | in a large bowl, combine flour, salt, pepper and nutmeg. in another mixing bowl, whisk eggs and milk together. make a well in the center of the dry ingredients, and pour in the egg-milk mixture. gradually draw in the flour from the sides and combine well; the dough should be smooth and thick. Let the dough rest for 10 to 15 minutes. in a large pot over medium heat, bring 3 quarts salted water to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer. to form spätzle, hold a large-holed colander or slotted spoon over simmering water, and push dough through holes with a spatula or spoon. do this in batches so you don’t overcrowd the pot. cook for 3 to 4 minutes or until spätzle floats to the surface, stirring gently to prevent sticking. drain spätzle in a colander and give it a quick rinse with cool water.

| Preparation – White Bean Chili | Heat oil in a large pot, and sauté sausage and bacon until crispy. add shallots, celery, garlic, red pepper flakes and bay leaves, and cook until fragrant. Season with salt and pepper, then add stock and beans. Simmer on low heat until beans are soft, about 1 hour. add lemon juice, and season with salt and pepper. | Preparation – Cherry Tomato Salsa | in a small glass container, add all ingredients, and toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper.

| Assembly | divide duck rillettes evenly into 6 patties. dip each patty into buttermilk and then into breadcrumbs. in a large skillet over mediumhigh heat, heat 2 tbsp oil, and pan-fry each patty.

Season with salt and pepper, and set aside. in a small skillet over low heat, heat 2 tbsp olive oil. individually crack eggs into skillet, taking care not to break yolks, and cook over low heat until just the whites are set. Set aside. in a large nonstick skillet over high heat, heat remaining olive oil and butter. add cooked spätzle in small batches, and sauté until crispy.

Season with salt and pepper. divide crispy spätzle over 6 large plates. top with warm white bean chili, and then add duck confit fritters. top each fritter with a fried egg and cherry tomato salsa. Serve immediately.

beloW: Gerard Craft loves the papaya salad at Fork & Stix.

Written by Josh Galliano, chef-owner, the libertine

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illustration by Lisa Allen

barbara Peterson, alexis Gauthier, larry Forgione, eddy leroux, tory McPhail, ethan Powell. these are my mentors, and they believed in the teaching of cooking. these folks wanted to be surrounded by passionate cooks, and they passed on their knowledge to the interested. these chefs embodied the notion that cooking is an oral tradition, where the elders pass on little tricks and stories while banging out a busy saturday night service. For an apprentice, listening becomes as important as proving your worth. before the popularization of cookbooks, the success of a cook was based on talent, skills and memory. Very few reference materials existed, such that a young cook had to remember all the recipes taught by the head chef. We begin as cooks by learning rote behavior, of torturing vegetables until they look like tiny footballs. as we progress through our profession, we must contemplate the nuanced textures and flavors to reimagine a classic reuben. the balance is achieved through the experience of cooking daily. i know when the fish is ready to be flipped because i have heard it sear many times before. More importantly, i had someone teach me how to cook that fish because that mentor cooked thousands of fish before i ever picked up a spatula. the mentor’s responsibility is complicated – you’re a babysitter, companion, instructor and confidant. there is a choice to be made as a chef: Do you make a good cooker of your menu, or do you make a good cook? it is a difficult decision to have a teaching kitchen. i have to be oK with mistakes, and i have to assume more food costs for their mistakes. usually food is produced for specific menu items; however, a mentor has to teach all kinds of foods and techniques, and i must be willing to produce food without an immediate return on my purchases. i have to be willing to train someone just to have them move on to another restaurant, hopefully to do much better things. i want to foster learning, not just because some good people taught me, but because a collaborative work environment is challenging and encourages more creative brainstorming.

Most of my cooks will tell you they have had to write papers. Writing a paper is not so much a punishment as it is a chance to learn about something on their own without me just handing them the information. Critical thinking, analytical thinking and research skills are needed for cooks who will make the move to be a chef. as an industry, we suck at training cooks to be managers and leaders. yelling, hitting and demoralizing cooks only perpetuates the “old boys’ Club” mentality, where culinarians are merely cogs to complete a dish. the proper and timely use of thinking will create modern kitchens of discipline and exploration. For this trick bag of roles and emotions, i’m probably thought of as a tyrant during the tenure of a cook, but i teach and they remember. at least the good ones do.

KaKao ChoColate’s sea salt Caramels WrITTeN By shannon Cothran

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PHOTOgrAPHy By Cheryl Waller

Push open the heavy doors at Kakao Chocolate’s shop on Jefferson Avenue, and a bell jingles above you, not an electronic beep, a real bell – one made of metal. The shop is small yet big enough to hold a varied inventory of chocolates, made in the large, airy kitchen, visible on the other side of the sales counter.

Owner Brian Pelletier and his crew like to play with sweets. “It’s not unlike being Willy Wonka,” Pelletier says. Once, a crew member made a Thai-inspired brittle with fish sauce. People still come in the store asking for the strange confection, but the staff hasn’t made it again.

They’re too busy playing with new recipes to think about old ones.

There is one recipe that Kakao makes over and over and will never stop making: its extraordinarily popular sea salt caramels. Kakao sells more of these caramels than every truffle put together. The caramel is made in small batches, which is what Pelletier believes makes it special. The 8-quart pot he places onto a single induction burner looks like an ordinary pasta pot you’d find in any kitchen. Into it, he pours heavy cream, cane sugar, corn syrup and honey.

The ingredients are high-quality and from local suppliers. Pelletier stirs the mixture gently in figure-eights to dissolve the sugars into the cream, and the white liquid slowly turns light tan.

Now it’s time for the fair-trade, organic whole vanilla beans. Pelletier carefully slices the beans open lengthwise with the tip of a very sharp knife and unfolds them, revealing the dark center and filling the room with a heady vanilla aroma. He scrapes the beans clean of the vanilla, and using a heat-resistant silicone spatula, presses the globs of vanilla against the side of the pot to release tiny black dots into the caramel. Then he tosses the whole

PICTURED: Josh Galliano’s collection of

journals, including two sketches Galliano drew.

beans into the pot; he’ll remove these later and package them for selling separately.

During the cooking process, Pelletier frequently adjusts the temperature on the burner. “Temperature is more important than timing,” he explains. “We want to get it up to just the right temperature. And that changes season to season, depending on a bunch of different things, including [outside] temperature and humidity.”

While the caramel cooks, Pelletier lays out a large sheet pan and covers it with a silicone mat. He drops metal bars down, and they clang loudly into place. The bars come in different sizes and weights and combine to form a frame for the caramel.

An hour later, when the caramel is ready for the next step, Pelletier removes it from the heat and adds rich pieces of butter, stirring until they dissolve into the hot candy. Arming himself with a thick oven mitt that reaches just past his elbow, Pelletier pours the caramel into its frame on the pan. It settles immediately into a shiny, glossy, still-golden pool.

In 24 hours, the sheet of caramel will be cut with a tool that Pelletier calls “the devil’s spawn of a pizza cutter and a rolling pin.” Then it will be dipped into Kakao’s housemade chocolate – either milk or dark or whatever kind they feel like playing with that day – and likely become the mocha, chile, sea salt or bacon caramels that customers love. Pelletier says they’ve played with making fruit-flavored caramels, and the ideas just keep coming – because at Kakao, caramel is open to interpretation.

Multiple locations, 314.771.2310 kakaochocolate.com

gerard CraFt

chef-owner, craft restaurants ltd.

Who or what do you believe is a hidden gem in the St. Louis food scene? I’m not sure if it’s still hidden, but I can’t believe there is not an hour wait at Fork & Stix.

Khao soi is incredible there, as is the papaya salad, extra hot. What do you hope to see happen next in the local food scene? I hope my wife will open the restaurant that we keep talking about. She is a star and everyone should see. (Sorry, Suzie!) If you had to name one thing that you feel is missing in the St. Louis food scene, what would it be? More young people. We need to recruit more young people to St. Louis because young people are directing the food scene. Imagine you have one entire day to dedicate to dining out in St. Louis. Where would you grab breakfast, lunch, drinks and dinner?

I’m pretty boring, but probably coffee at Sump, Southwest Diner for cornmeal pancakes, Winslow’s Home for lunch, and then The Good Pie for pizza and a beer.

I’m not going to lie, though: I will probably sneak over to Pastaria and steal a pint of gelato before anyone can see me. What inspires you and motivates you to do the work that you do? Inspiration comes from all over. I usually like to try and sit down with lists of all the ingredients we have available to us and go from there – but a bike ride can be equally inspiring to me.

I also like to look way, way back to really old cookbooks to see some stuff no one is currently talking about. If you weren’t in the restaurant industry, what would you be doing? I used to be a snowboard photographer and liked it a lot. I always used to dream of working for National Geographic and traveling the world to places no one else gets to go. How cool would that be? You recently traveled to Japan with your family. Does traveling spark inspiration? Traveling always inspires me, but not always directly. In Japan, I was really inspired by simple but very pure flavors and, above all else, their level of hospitality. photography by

AN D

Cheryl Waller

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Inspired Food Culture

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WrITTen By Shannon Cothran

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phoToGrAphy By Jonathan Gayman

In the morning, it’s quiet in the small and tidy kitchen at King & I on South Grand Boulevard, the oldest Thai restaurant in St. Louis. Chef Moon Louneviseth is focused.

She’s grinding together the ingredients for her homemade red chile paste: fresh and dried chiles, red onion, lemongrass, garlic powder, cilantro powder, coriander and galangal, a ginger-like root. She’s going to cook the mixture, with oil, in a large vat, until it reaches the perfect consistency.

Louneviseth’s red chile paste is the reason King

chris bolyard

chef de cuisine, sidney street cafe What do you think is a definitive flavor of St. Louis? Pork. Heavily sauced pork. Pork steaks, pork shoulder, pork butt, St. Louisstyle spare ribs. Slap those saucy pork steaks between pieces of Wonder bread and you’ve got yourself a St. Louis Sunday supper. What do you think was the most important thing to happen in the St. Louis food scene this year? I think seeing Rick Lewis on the James Beard Awards’ semifinalists list was pretty incredible. Also, all the big shots that have come in and cooked in our kitchen at Sidney Street Cafe – Stephanie Izard from Girl & the Goat in Chicago, Sean Brock of Husk and McCrady’s, John Shields, Matt Accarrino from SPQR in San Francisco and Alex Lee, to name a

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ILLuSTrATIon By Lisa Allen

& I’s most popular dish, panang curry, is like no other. “Many restaurants buy their paste or make it differently from ours,” says manager Mee White. Louneviseth’s paste is special; the recipe was passed down to her by her former boss at King & I, who has since passed away.

gently together until the paste and milk are combined. The curry is finished with fish sauce (for meat eaters) or soy sauce (for vegetarians) and sugar. She’s completed the curries in 30 minutes and sets the white buckets full of sauce aside until the lunch rush hits.

When Louneviseth arrives at the restaurant each morning, she makes four liter-sized containers of curries for the day’s menu. She starts by cooking her red chile paste in a large pot, until it emits a certain aroma, then she adds coconut milk and lets the two boil

During the rush, Louneviseth stands at the gas range, where several long-handled, wellloved woks sit empty over a medium-high flame, ladles resting in their wells. The pans are warming, and when they reach the right temperature, she adds a bit of oil to each. When

few. What do you hope to see happen next in the St. Louis food scene? I’d like to see St. Louis get into sharing spaces: two concepts, one roof. You bake bread, I roast coffee… Cool, let’s get together and share costs. Symbiosis.

Imagine you have one entire day to dedicate to dining out in St. Louis. Where would you grab breakfast, lunch, drinks and dinner? I’d do breakfast all day long and work east to west through St. Louis. Have my coffee at Sump, then visit Christy Augustin at Pint Size Bakery for a muffin or sticky bun, followed [by] Jonathan Jones at Southwest Diner for New Mexican breakfast burrito (Christmas-style), then finish by seeing Josh Allen at Companion for a New Yawker sandwich and a side of toast. Oh, and for my late-night fix, I’d walk two blocks over from my house to Strange Donuts. What’s playing on the

the oil is hot, Louneviseth and her crew of cooks scoop out ladlefuls of the vegetarian curry prepared that morning into the hot woks. After heating the curry thoroughly, someone hands Louneviseth a metal basket filled with steamed vegetables and tofu, which she adds to the sauce and leaves to cook for one more minute.

Then Louneviseth pours the curry deftly onto a square, white plate, and a server scoops it up and delivers it to one lucky customer.

3155 S. Grand Ave., South Grand 314.771.1777, kingandistl.com

radio in your kitchen? Metal. It gets the blood flowing. What inspires you to do the work that you do? I’m doing a ton of recipe testing right now, and in thinking about what to have at the shop, I find myself inspired by the meals I grew up on. I also think about how I can put a fun twist on familiar favorites. I nailed down my Slim Jim recipe, and I’m pretty proud of the hot dogs we will have. If you weren’t in the food and drink industry, what would you be doing? Ten years ago I’d never picture myself saying this, but ranching – and I’d love to [ranch] in Missouri.

Just me, my family, my land, my cows, pigs, goats and chickens. But I think I’d miss the city life. You’re planning to open a butcher shop in the near future. What are you looking forward to most with the shop?

I’m ridiculously excited to offer a product

families can feel confident in. I’m also really stoked that I will be able to converse with folks coming into the shop. At the restaurant they keep me hidden in the back, so I rarely get to talk with guests. What will you miss most about working at Sidney Street Cafe? Kevin [Nashan’s] evolution is constant.

Whether it’s a new piece of equipment for us, creating a charcuterie program, building the garden or getting in some kind of cool seafood or product I’ve never cooked before, he’s constantly growing the restaurant in some way, constantly pushing himself and everyone around him to do more and to be more. After working with someone like that for more than a decade, you tend to take on that same trait and same desire for constant growth. I think what I’ll miss most is not being a part of whatever is to come at Sidney Street Cafe.

tim drescher

kevin lemp

Who or what do you believe is a hidden gem in the St. Louis food scene? I don’t know if these guys would be considered under the radar, but Lulu’s, Whisk: A Sustainable Bakeshop and Kitchen Kulture are standouts. Also, [I] have mad respect for the culinary excellence and use of local products by Christine Meyer and Michael Miller of Kitchen Kulture – I look forward to their amazing dishes every Saturday at Tower Grove Famers Market. What do you think was the most important thing to happen in the St. Louis food scene this year? Strange Donuts. Their fresh, positive and collaborative approach to business has been awesome and refreshing for St. Louis. These guys have proved that St. Louis is ready for new things and [is] willing to rally behind them and show their support. As a business owner, it has been incredibly encouraging and inspirational to watch these guys in action. [I’m] always pumped to see what concept or “done” Corey Smale, Jason Bockman and the Strange team will come up with next. Imagine you have one entire day to dedicate to dining out in St. Louis.

Where would you grab breakfast, lunch, drinks and dinner? Breakfast would be Elvis in Italy Crespelle (always craving) and amazing Bloody Marys at Katie’s Pizza & Pasta. Lunch from Kitchen Kulture and dinner at Niche (can’t go wrong – [I] would just tell the waitress to surprise me). What inspires you to do the work that you do? I am inspired by the source, as cliché as it may sound – the coffee farmers are the real artisans behind our single-origin coffees.

I try to honor their work in the best way possible with every batch we roast. There are a lot of exciting things happening at Kuva right now, including the launch of Wayfarer Coffee Co., the company’s newest collaboration. What have been some of the highlights this year? A lot of dedication has gone into building the Kuva brand over the past 10-plus years. It has been challenging without a coffee shop as an anchor – my approach instead has always been focused on building a very highquality packaged coffee brand via a grassroots approach. We started with a direct customer approach a number of years ago at the tiny Green Market in the Central West End, and over the past eight years, with direct customer contact primarily at the Tower Grove Farmers Market.

Kuva has developed a strong local presence over the years with a very long list of excellent local retailers, and this year, our distribution expanded outside of St. Louis into additional Whole Foods Markets and a number of other great specialty grocers throughout Iowa and Nebraska. It has been very satisfying to see this new growth.

Our direct-trade Peru Chilchos Conservation Coffee, in partnership with Missouri Botanical Garden, is now available at Dierbergs; we are the only roasters in the U.S. with this rare directrelationship coffee. [And] I am very pumped about my partnership with barista Paul Nahrgang and our new mobile enterprise, Wayfarer Coffee Co. My focus has always been on roasting coffee, and it’s great to partner with a talented barista at Paul’s level. We had multiple conversations this year on how great it would be to have a mobile third-wave “coffee shop” offering killer small-batch roasted and hand-brewed coffee.

Before we knew it, the concept became [a] reality.

Looking forward to the launch [in] August!

What do you think is a definitive flavor of St. Louis? The Hill has so much culinary history. What a fantastic neighborhood, and one that is completely self-sufficient. What do you hope to see happen next in the St. Louis food scene? More steamed buns, please, because they are delicious! If you had to name one thing that you feel is missing in the St. Louis food scene, what would it be? I am very excited for Peacemaker Lobster & Crab Co. to open its doors. This will certainly fill a current void in our local culinary scene. Fresh seafood, every day, from one of the best! Imagine you have one entire day to dedicate to dining out in St. Louis. Where would you grab breakfast, lunch, drinks and dinner? Breakfast at Southwest Diner: I would order the carne adovada. Lunch at Farmhaus for the blue plate; drinks at Planter’s House for A Mule Rye’d and an Old…But Still in Fashion #2; dinner at Elaia for the tasting menu.

What inspires you and motivates you to do the work that you do? I am inspired by those I surround myself with and by the places I visit. I am inspired by something I see, smell, hear or taste on a daily basis. We have no lack of inspiration. We only lack the time to put all of our concepts and ideas into place. 4 Hands Brewing Co. is coming up on its third anniversary. How has it felt for you to see the brewery grow and expand into other markets? It is the most exhilarating feeling; to work so hard at something and then to see others enjoying you and your team’s vision is just another one of those motivating factors.

Our future will look very similar to what we see today: doing everything in our power to produce the very best product.

owner, kuva coffee

owner, 4 hands brewing co.

josh allen owner, companion

Who or what do you believe is a hidden gem in the St. Louis food scene? Brian Marsden, Vincent Van Doughnut. Brian is busting his butt making terrific donuts from scratch, and quietly building a following because he’s doing it the right way. The overnight baking life isn’t glamorous, but Brian is committed to bringing St. Louis a really quality fried piece of dough. What do you think is a definitive flavor of St. Louis?

What makes this such a great food town is the breadth of talent and innovation coming out of the kitchens and bakeries and chocolate shops and brewpubs and coffee roasters all over town. I for one am thrilled that we are no longer known for simply toasted ravioli or square, lifeless pizza – we’re known for so much more, across so many styles. What do you think was the most important thing to happen in the St. Louis food scene this year?

Continued national recognition of so many of our talented chefs. No other small-market city seems to have the depth and culinary talent that St. Louis does, and the folks across the country are really taking notice. If you had to name one thing that you feel is missing in the St. Louis food scene, what would it be?

We are clearly missing a really great food hall.

With so many accomplished food craftsmen and specialty purveyors in town, there should be one central place where folks can come to experience all of it. Soulard [Farmers] Market should be an iconic national destination on

mike block

general manager, green bean delivery missouri What do you hope to see happen next in the local food scene? More good Tex-Mex carts or food trucks. I want to see them after every concert and game. I know the demand is out there. They’re just so good! Imagine you have one entire day to dedicate to dining out in St. Louis. Where would you grab breakfast, lunch, drinks and dinner?

Breakfast: Clayton Diner. Sitting at the bar, I would have an egg and cheese croissant with a side of hash browns and a black coffee. Lunch: Schlafly Bottleworks. Sitting outside, I would have a cold draft American IPA with one of their delicious sandwiches and a side field green salad. Dinner: Broadway Oyster Bar. This place is a lot of fun. Sitting anywhere, I’d order a hurricane and some mussels, then the sampler platter, because it’s all so tasty. What’s playing on the radio in your kitchen?

When the kitchen is hot, I would have to say an old Bruce Springsteen vinyl is turned up on the record player and is blasting into the kitchen.

What inspires you to do the work that you do? Working in an industry that addresses a simple need we all share: Everyone has to eat. I do what I can to promote healthy and delicious eating. What do you think is a definitive flavor of St. Louis? Schlafly Bottleworks.

ABOVE: Josh Allen loves the lobster roll at Demun Oyster Bar.

par with Pike Place in Seattle and the Ferry Building in San Francisco. Right now, it is most clearly not that. I’m still holding out hope that our city can get its act together and make it happen. Imagine you have one entire day to dedicate to dining out in St. Louis.

Where would you grab breakfast, lunch, drinks and dinner? I’m thinking I’ll take my five kids with me on this adventure, so we’ve got to hit spots that are family-friendly or close to a playground. Easy start: cornmeal pancakes at Southwest Diner. Mid-morning cappuccino at the original Kaldi’s on Demun.

Quick visit to the playground and a lobster roll at Demun Oyster Bar. Early dinner of burgers, fries and a Civil Life American Brown at Five Star in Clayton. And, of course, a quick stop for gelato at Pastaria on the way home. If you weren’t in the restaurant industry, what would you be doing? Living out of a van in Santa Barbara. What inspires you to do the work that you do? I’m inspired every day by everybody else working so hard to make this city great. We’re honored to bake for the outstanding chefs and restaurateurs and café owners of St. Louis. Everybody at Companion recognizes the responsibility [we have] every day – we owe it to our customers to give it everything we have, every day.

Anything less would be disrespectful to their continued commitment.

PhOTOgRAPhy By Cheryl Waller

hog’s head Toasted Ravioli RECIPE By Rick Lewis, QuINCy STREET BISTRO EDITED By ToRy Bahn PHOTOGRAPHy By cheRyL waLLeR

St. Louis is known for its T-ravs, and at Quincy Street Bistro, chef Rick Lewis prepares his version with a rich filling of hogs head meat. If you’ve never bought or cooked hogs head, Lewis suggests contacting Chris Mackenzie of Mac’s Local Buys, who can connect you with Kluesner’s Farm in Marthasville, Missouri. Lewis also recommends asking your local butcher shop to special order a hogs head for the recipe. The serving size for the recipe is substantial – let’s just say you won’t have to buy frozen T-ravs for quite some time, as the extra ravioli freeze well.

Serves | 25 | hog’s head RavioLi FiLLing

1 1 2 2 5 1

hog head salt and freshly ground black pepper bunch chopped parsley Tbsp fresh chopped thyme Tbsp fresh chopped chives eggs cup grated Parmesan

Romesco sauce

2 bell peppers 1 tomato 1 to 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil salt and freshly ground black pepper 2 cloves garlic ½ cup Marcona almonds 2 Tbsp chopped parsley ½ tsp Spanish paprika pinch chile flakes ¼ cup red wine vinegar ½ cup extra virgin olive oil egg wash

3 3

eggs cups milk

PasTa dough

2000 50 11 8 460

grams durum wheat (about 41/3 lbs) grams olive oil (just under 1 cup) grams salt (2¼ tsp) eggs grams water (2 cups) egg wash

BReading

2

2

cups flour, seasoned with salt and freshly ground black pepper remaining egg wash cups herbed breadcrumbs vegetable oil Parmesan for serving

| Preparation – Hog’s Head Ravioli Filling | Begin by deboning the hog’s head: using a good, sharp boning knife, cut the meat loose, beginning underneath the jowls and working your way up the head. After meat is trimmed

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from the head, season with salt and pepper, and place in a smoker. If you do not have a smoker, preheat a standard charcoal barbecue pit to around 200°F. Cook meat over indirect heat, low and slow for about 8 hours.

When finished cooking, separate skin, fat and meat. Grind skin, fat and meat in a meat grinder, first through a coarse grind, then again through a fine grind.

In a medium bowl, combine ground mixture with herbs, eggs and cheese. Set aside.

WRITTEn By Brandon Chuang ILLUSTRATIOnS By Lisa Allen

| Preparation – Romesco Sauce | Toss bell peppers and tomato in olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Char vegetables on a preheated grill until tender. Or, roast vegetables in a preheated 425°F oven until tender.

The platonic ideal for a diner is pretty much what every diner in America actually is: comfort food and friendly service. It’s genuineness and realness all wrapped up in a Formica shell. So it’s of no surprise that fried chicken and diners are such common bedfellows, and at Goody Goody Diner in St. Louis’ Wells/Goodfellow neighborhood, this is no exception.

In a blender or food processor, purée all remaining ingredients, except oil. Slowly pour in oil while blending to emulsify.

“We started making fried chicken back in 1984, when a regular customer came back from a trip to California and told us about chicken and waffles,” explains former owner Laura Connelly – that’s right, former owner. Connelly and her husband Richard recently sold the diner – a business that’s been in Mr. Connelly’s family for more than six decades – to Ryan Safi and his family. “We’ve had offers in the past,” notes Connelly, “but we knew that it would take someone special to take over Goody Goody.”

| Preparation – Egg Wash | In a medium bowl, whisk eggs and milk. This will be used to brush around the filling while making the ravioli, as well as during the breading process before frying.

| Preparation – Pasta Dough | In a stand mixer, combine all ingredients until a smooth ball of dough forms and springs back to the touch. Wrap dough in plastic wrap, and allow to sit for 30 minutes at room temperature.

Divide dough into 4 even portions. Cover reserved dough with plastic wrap. In a stand mixer fitted with a pasta attachment, roll 1 portion of dough into 1 sheet of pasta the length of your workspace. Start at the setting for the largest opening and reach the final level of 4 for thickness. Lightly dust dough with flour in between rolls if it gets sticky. using a small spoon, divide filling into 2 rows on the sheet of pasta to begin preparing ravioli, leaving about 1 inch between. Brush egg wash around filling. Roll out another sheet of pasta, and place it over filling, using your fingertips to remove any air bubbles beneath the pasta as you go. using a knife, cut square raviolis out, and crimp edges with a fork. Continue with any remaining pasta dough and filling.

| Preparation – Breading | Dip ravioli in flour, shake off excess, dip in egg wash and then in breadcrumbs. In a saucepot, heat oil to 350°F using a candy thermometer. Fry ravioli in oil until golden brown. Serve with Romesco sauce and cheese.

One of Safi’s first orders of business was to add a map of the U.S. to the entrance of the diner. “I’m not changing anything,” Safi says. “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. But I knew that people were coming from all over the country to eat here, and I wanted to be able to show it.” By the second week, Safi had to add a map of the entire world.

Patrons come from all over because they hear of Goody Goody Diner through past customers. They hear about it through places like Everyday with Rachael Ray, USA Today and The Wall Street Journal. They hear about the fried chicken. “Everyone loves the fried chicken,” Connelly exclaims.

Goody Goody’s fried chicken is good. It’s well-seasoned, it’s a generous serving and it’s unbelievably juicy. But the reason people come to Goody Goody to get fried chicken isn’t just because it’s good: It’s because the fried chicken is at Goody Goody Diner.

There’s a reason Al Gore, or more precisely, Al Gore’s people, had him stop into Goody Goody during his bid for the presidency. It’s because Goody Goody Diner is the platonic ideal of the platonic ideal of a diner. Much of the staff has been here for double-digit years.

Here, you order fried chicken and it’s served on a plastic plate with your choice of two sides.

Here, you can explain and pronounce everything on the menu – there’s no need for Google because here, everything is familiar to you. Here, comfort comes breaded and deep fried.

5900 Natural Bridge Ave., Wells/Goodfellow, 314.383.3333

kevin nashan

chef-owner, sidney street cafe Who or what do you believe is a hidden gem in the St. Louis food scene? Nate Hereford. Not necessarily under the radar, but he has helped Niche evolve with my buddy Gerard [Craft]. He flat out has great talent and, more importantly, [is] a [good] person. What do you think is a definitive flavor of St. Louis?

Smoke and hops – both seem to consume our air with amazing breweries and barbecue. What do you hope to see happen next in the St. Louis food scene? A different winter than last.

Selfishly, a great butcher shop by Chris Bolyard, because he has worked so hard for the past three years for that goal. [I] can’t wait to see it come to fruition. Imagine you have one entire day to dedicate to dining out in St. Louis. Where would you grab breakfast, lunch, drinks and dinner? Start with Half & Half, then coffee at Sump. Lunch would be at Pappy’s and Mai Lee and a snack in the afternoon at Crown Candy. Dinner would be bites at Niche, Farmhaus,

Cleveland-Heath, The Libertine and Olio. Finish it up late with an In a Pickle [cocktail] at Taste. And yes, this has been done before; I just wish there were more hours in the day. What’s playing on the radio in your kitchen? Eminem, Kenny Chesney, Rage Against the Machine and a little Sam Cooke. What inspires you to do the work that you do? I get inspiration everywhere. It could be a book, person, something I watched, a bike [ride] or run. If you weren’t in the restaurant industry, what would you be doing? Probably in the CIA. My grandfather was in it for 22 years, and I have always found it fascinating. Sidney Street Cafe celebrated its 10th anniversary in December 2013. What did celebrating that milestone mean to you, and what do you hope for the restaurant’s future? Lots of emotions. We were so grateful and humbled to be around for a quick 10 years, yet excited for the future because there is so much more we can do to improve and evolve Sidney. I hope we can continue to contribute to the St. Louis dining scene for many years to come.

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david bailey

owner, baileys’ restaurants Who or what do you believe is a hidden gem in the St. Louis food scene?

Stellina is under the radar, but I have no idea why; they’re freakin’ awesome. Parking and walking to multiple locations in Midtown also seems to be under the radar.

To me, Midtown is just as walkable as the Central West End, Downtown or South Grand.

What do you hope to see happen next in the St. Louis food scene?

More, more, more, good, good, good.

The more critical mass of quality that we have, the more we will get. I want more people to start moving here because they

want to work in or play in our burgeoning restaurant scene. Imagine you have one entire day to dedicate to dining out in St. Louis. Where would you grab breakfast, lunch, drinks and dinner?

Breakfast at Pint Size or LuLu’s; lunch at Sauce on the Side or Café Natasha’s; dinner at Franco or Stellina; drinks at 33 Wine Bar or Absolutli Goosed. What’s playing on the radio in your kitchen? “Fortunate”

by Atmosphere because it has great energy and a great beat, and lyrics that I can dig, like, “No amount of time will ever be considered enough/I’m trying to tether it up and live forever through love.” What inspires you to do the work that you do? From anywhere I can find it: the weather, the farmers, the flavors. I am curious about other people’s enthusiasm. My staff inspires me and the guests that come in motivate me for sure, but my beautiful wife and kids are the ultimate inspiration and motivation. In 2014 you opened Small Batch in Midtown, the Tower Grove location of Rooster is slated to open soon, and you announced plans to open a full-service, whole-hog barbecue joint across from Baileys’ Range. What does it mean to you to

own and operate such a diverse group of restaurants in the city? It means the world to me to be woven into the fabric of the food scene here in this city, that the residents of this town respond to what we do with love (because we love them!) and that we are able to be part of someone’s memory of this city after they visit.

It is incredibly fulfilling and rewarding to know that we are providing hundreds of good jobs and feeding thousands of people every year.

What about the restaurant development process do you enjoy most? Letting the creativity explode, and then gradually reigning in and refining the idea is very exciting and really gets me going. And taking something from the abstract to actual finished product, knowing that something that you imagined is now real, that is really, really great – but all of that pales in comparison to that first time a new restaurant fills up with people, and their chatter and smiles breathe life into a previously inanimate space – that, for sure, is the best part. phoTogrAphy by Jennifer Silverberg pICTUrED LEFT & rIghT: David Bailey loves the seasonal food at Stellina, like this caprese salad with local tomatoes, housemade mozzarella, basil vinaigrette and more, prepared by chef-owner Jamey Tochtrop.

Mai Lee opened when I was 8 years old. The first memory I have of being in a commercial kitchen was helping my dad wash dishes by hand because we did not have a dishwasher. I hated doing those dishes because, a lot of times, I’d cut my hands on knives or broken glass – this was not how dishwashing was at home. My favorite thing to do when I wasn’t washing dishes was to go into the dining area and annoy customers with my constant banter. It’s amazing how the question “What’s your name?” can lead to a 30-minute-long conversation with an 8-year-old.

A lot of really life-changing things happened to me in that kitchen when I was 13 years old. It was when I learned how to use a knife – a real knife. I thought I looked so cool cutting vegetables because my mom looked so cool cutting vegetables. My goal was to be as fast as she was. That same year, I also began to hone the craft of shaking a wok because, again, it looked really cool when the cooks did it. All of the flames and the banging reminded me of an action film. It was also the same year that I first bit the bullet and ate tofu. For some reason it tasted like noodles to me, and what kid doesn’t like noodles? I was hooked.

Even at such a young age, I gravitated toward the dynamic environment of a commercial kitchen. There were always new people to bother, new foods to try and bigger knives to use. Although I thought it to be fun and exciting, it was difficult at times to balance my schoolwork and the jobs I became responsible for at the restaurant. Every weekend and every school break meant I was at the restaurant full time. I may have resented it as a kid, complaining that I had no life, but I realize now that it couldn’t have happened any other way.

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Inspired Food Culture

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eric scholle

former general manager, farmhaus Who or what do you believe is a hidden gem in the St. Louis food scene? My favorite restaurant in St. Louis right now is a Korean place called Asian Kitchen on Olive near Interstate 170.

Here is what happens when you go there: 1. Get off the highway at Olive and Interstate 170. Head east, and look for the green awning on your left. 2.

Walk in and at least four members of their staff will excitedly greet you like you are a long-lost member of their extended family. You’re already smiling and loving life. 3. A free bowl of rice cakes in a spicy broth hits your table. 4. Order a Hite beer (which is perfect for the spicy food coming your way) and an order of the steamed dumplings (best in town). 5. Order an entrée (kimchi stew or bulgogi beef). 6. Sit back, and marvel as about 20 small trays of banchan arrive at your table. These small tastes of pickled and other randomly spicy treats from the kitchen are a Korean tradition. The staff just keeps putting more and more of the little dishes on your table.

It’s like Christmas morning 7. Sample the bites of banchan. Mix them with your entrées. Figure out which ones cool down your palate and which ones make it hotter. Slurp down your stew. Cool down your mouth with rice. Eat more banchan. Groan with delight. This is what eating and hospitality are all about. 8. Leave with the tiny bottle of super sweet coconut or mango juice they give to all their guests. 9. Smile and laugh as at least six members of their staff say “thank you” and “goodbye,” like you just scored the winning goal at the World Cup. 10. Think about all the friends you’re going to bring to Asian Kitchen. What do you think was the most important thing to happen in the St. Louis food scene this year? This may not be the most cheerful thing to bring up, but I think the most significant

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thing to happen to the St. Louis food scene in the past year was the near closing of the Local Harvest Café franchise. I would imagine nearly everyone reading this magazine has popped over to Morganford for a sandwich, salad or coffee at some point. They are definitely a well-known and revered entity in the community. We don’t need to speculate on the direct causes of Local Harvest’s financial problems. However, what I think everyone realized through their situation is that even a well-established St. Louis business can be victim to the harsh realities of the restaurant business. In the restaurant world, every small decision can have dire consequences.

The margins are razor thin, the highly skilled staff deserve to be paid and something as fleeting as a snowstorm or a Cardinals playoff run can absolutely crush someone in the food business in this town. As consumers, we need to accept the fact that local, hand-crafted food is expensive, and we may have to start paying a little more for it. And local restaurants need to cherish every customer and every transaction that comes through their door. I know I was deeply affected by their troubles, and used it as a personal wake-up call and motivation for my staff to value every guest that comes to our restaurant – and to work especially hard to keep our little pocket of the St. Louis food scene thriving.

You moved to Texas with your fiancé this summer. What will you miss most about Farmhaus? Somewhere along the way, the competitive streak in my nature started to take hold of the way I did my job at Farmhaus. Every weekend night led to me working the door of our 60-seat restaurant and trying to figure out how many people I could squeeze in and make happy without seriously pissing anyone off. I called it gambling. I would mostly win. Sometimes I would lose. Sometimes I would be carrying a table high above my head through the dining room to make

a six-top work. Sometimes I would be handdelivering sparkling wine and housemade Coppa Romano to guests whom I made wait too long. (In the kitchen we call this “Coppa time.”) Sometimes I would be hiding in the kitchen because 15 people wanted to kill me in the restaurant’s entryway.

But I would get a huge rush out of the whole experience, and I constantly drove to find out how to go bigger and better. So I would get off the phone at about 5:15pm on a Saturday and stroll into the kitchen with a wry smile on my face. The staff knew what I was up to. They would call me “butts in the seats” and “chef shalleigh” – a nickname given to me by my staff that is a deliberate mispronunciation of my last name to make me sound fancier than I am. What this all really meant was that I was going to make their lives exceptionally hard for the next four hours; not because I was trying to screw with them, but because I knew that we could do it.

I have always been supremely confident [in] and awestruck by our kitchen staff, and I would never ask them to do something I thought was unreasonable. So there would be shouting.

There would be cursing and slamming dishes.

But mostly there would be beautiful hustling and delicious food crafted by people who cared about every single element that left their hands each evening. Anyone who has watched a busy Farmhaus weekend night should know… It’s really something to behold. It’s like a carnival of food, and we all got to contribute to the show.

On one such Saturday night late last summer, my restaurant gambling addiction led me to be crushingly late attending to a table of two women. They had to sit outside while they waited for their reserved table to become available inside, and after a little bit of waiting, they elected to dine outside. All of my servers

were extremely busy, and I had to wait on the table myself. One thing led to another, and I’m now engaged to one of those lovely ladies. The addition of her to my world has, without a doubt, been the most important thing that I have ever experienced in my life. Now her career is taking us on a new journey, in a different city. Our paths wouldn’t have crossed if it weren’t for Farmhaus, so I guess all that gambling did pay off.

What I’ll miss most about Farmhaus are the people I have had the opportunity to work with.

Take all my love and appreciation for our guests, and multiply that by a hundred and you come close to my love for the people I’ve worked with at the restaurant. I strongly believe our greatest accomplishment here at Farmhaus is our staff. We’ve continually hired based upon personality, instead of experience, and I wouldn’t do it any other way. Seeing how the people running the place are a high school teacher and wrestling coach (me), an art therapist (Jessica Willmann) and a fisherman (chef-owner Kevin Willmann), we have always been open to anyone who walks in the door. We’ve hired a Schnucks customer service attendant, an Army National Guard member and a former Pizza Hut delivery driver (who somehow turned into a wine snob).

Everyone we’ve been lucky enough to have on payroll has given some piece of their personality to our restaurant, and we are better for it.

And I have to give a huge shout-out to the St. Louis food scene as a whole. The people involved are giving and friendly, yet fiercely competitive. That’s really cool. Everyone wants to get better as individuals and as a city. I know I will come back to visit St. Louis in the future and be amazed by what I encounter. I can’t wait.

PHOTOGRAPHY BY Jennifer silverberg

ABOVE: Eric Scholle loves the kimchi stew and banchan at Asian Kitchen.

feastmagazine.com

AUGUST 2014

sImone Faure

YOUR SOURCE FOR THE FINEST

chef-owner, la patisserie chouquette Who or what do you believe is a hidden gem in the St. Louis food scene?

Riverbend over on Utah [for] the cochon de lait po’boy… Maybe the red beans and rice if I’m feeling a bit homesick. I could be biased because Sam [Kogos], the chef/co-owner, is from New Orleans. Then again, no, no bias at all – it’s just ‘dat good. What do you think was the most important thing to happen in the St. Louis food scene this year?

Pastry chefs took their rightful place at the helm of the food empire. You know it’s true.

What do you hope to see happen next in the local food scene? I’d love to see chefs get involved in school lunches. We’re heading in the direction of avoidance in schools instead of teaching kids the value of quality ingredients and moderation. Imagine you have one entire day to dedicate to dining out in St. Louis. Where would you grab breakfast, lunch, drinks and dinner?

Here’s my Hobbit feeding schedule: First breakfast: Rooster’s Finnish Pancake/Dark Hot Chocolate. Second breakfast: Vincent

Van Doughnut’s PB&J and/or Maple Bacon.

Elevenses: Olio’s Jay’s Egg Salad on Toast/ Blood Orange Pellegrino. Luncheon: The Libertine’s Crispy Pigtails. Afternoon delight: Mai Lee’s Calamari Salad. Dinner: Sidney Street – everything, with a side of whatever. Supper: Elaia… Who knows, it changes nightly. But I know I’m gonna like it. What’s playing on the radio in your kitchen? “4 Chords” by The Axis of Awesome, ‘cause I’ve got a kitchen full of Broadway-bound pastry cooks. What inspires you to do the work that you do? I’m strongly influenced by pop culture, music, fashion. I enjoy giving people something that makes them go, “Wow, that’s cool! How did you do that?” If you weren’t in the restaurant industry, what would you be doing? I’d be a haunted history tour guide in New Orleans.

No joke! I’ve been practicing PHOTOgRAPHY BY Jonathan Gayman ILLUSTRATION BY Lisa Allen

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andy ayers

owner, eat here st. louis What do you think is a definitive flavor of St. Louis? Homegrown summer slicing tomatoes. The best tomatoes for salsa are grown in the Mexican state of Oaxaca; the best ones for pasta sauce [are grown] on the volcanic soils in Campania in Italy. The world’s best tomatoes for eating raw with a dash of [oil and vinegar] and salt and pepper are grown right around here, where the continent’s great rivers converge. What do you think was the most important thing to happen in the St. Louis food scene this year? It’s happening right now: summer. A person can eat fascinating, healthy, fulfilling and delicious meals – three a day – all from great food that is grown right here. Whether you cook professionally or at home, you can turn your meal planning over to

the season. Don’t write a menu and then shop for the ingredients; go to the farmers market, buy the best looking stuff you see, and then figure out what you’re going to do with it. If you had to name one thing that you feel is missing in the St. Louis food scene, what would it be? A St. Louis-based poultry processing plant. If there [were] an inspected processor right here in town, a lot more people would raise chickens, ducks and geese. It wouldn’t have to be a huge, multi-million dollar installation – a startup couldn’t compete with Tyson anyway. I’m talking about a small, local business on the order of a brewpub. What’s playing on the radio in your kitchen?

KWMU, I’m a news junky. KMOX when the Red Birds play. I spend a lot of time driving, buying from farms and delivering to restaurants, and I’m so glad to have Sirius on the road for classic vinyl – and the Grateful Dead channel.

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Recipe by Brian Hardesty, element edited by tory BaHn

|

photogRaphy by cHeryl Waller

illustRation by lisa allen

There are many variations on the St. Paul sandwich, but almost all of them call for Wonder bread, egg foo yong patties and pickles – and chef Brian Hardesty’s is no exception.

Serves | 1 | 2 1 1 1 1 1 3

tHE BLt at Crown Candy Written by Brandon Chuang photography by Jonathan Gayman

no matter what anyone tells you, there is no such thing as a “gourmet bLt.” Sure, you can upgrade the b or swap in some heirloom t if the season is right, but at the end of the day, there’s nothing fancy about a sandwich whose name doubles as the recipe. but if we’re all in agreement on the bLt’s station in life, then why are we all lining up outside of Crown Candy Kitchen in old north, waiting forever to eat a sandwich that my 5-year-old nephew could, quite literally, make for you at home? equally infuriating, why is everyone’s order so automatic – “a bLt and milkshake, please” – as if it’s the only thing on the menu, on the planet, that any man, woman or child could possibly want to consume? “i have no idea,” says andy Karandzieff, grinning, Crown Candy’s bLt-making, milk-shaking owner. to be honest, we don’t either. the bacon, which is fried in a large kettle of its own rendered fat (oK, that’s one good reason), is oscar Meyer. the lettuce, tomato and white bread are exactly what you’d buy at the store. the creamy spread?

Miracle Whip. the milkshakes and malts are the same thing: ice cream (albeit homemade ice cream), appropriate flavored topping (albeit homemade chocolate, if one is wont to order the chocolate version) and milk (albeit whole). again, on the surface, all things that can be easily procured to produce at home. So why?

When your order comes – the bLt stacked high with glistening bacon and the milkshake canister frosted over from cold – it is, we admit, impressive. and when you take your first bite and sip, it is delicious: the salty and sweet, the fat and the, er, fat. Waitaminute. the fat. the guilt. the goodness. this is our answer.

When was the last time you let yourself make a bLt sandwich with pretty much an entire pound of bacon? hell, when was the last time you let yourself buy white bread? and if you’re anything like us, you can count on zero hands the number of times you’ve actually made milkshakes, from scratch, using whole milk, at home. the fat is why we come. the fat is why we wait.

1401 St. Louis ave., old north 314.621.9650, crowncandykitchen.net

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1 2 1

oz pork belly, diced into ½-inch pieces water tbsp sunflower seeds tbsp kohlrabi, shredded Thai chile, minced tsp ginger, minced tbsp scallions, julienned drizzle fish sauce local farm eggs salt and freshly ground black pepper tsp vegetable oil slices Wonder bread pickled cucumber

| Preparation |

place pork belly into a saucepot and cover with water. boil pork belly for about 15 minutes. drain, and let cool. in a small bowl, mix sunflower seeds, kohlrabi, thai chile, ginger and scallions, and drizzle with fish sauce. set aside. in another small bowl, beat eggs, and lightly season with salt and pepper. in a nonstick skillet over medium heat, place a large metal ring mold, and add oil into ring. transfer vegetable mixture into the bowl with the egg mixture, and pour combined mixture into ring mold; allow mixture to cook for about 5 minutes. using a spatula, flip ring mold, including vegetable-egg mixture, and cook for an additional 3 minutes, until eggs have cooked thoroughly.

Remove ring mold, and place egg patty on top of bread. cut pickled cucumber into slices, and place on top of egg patty, then top with remaining slice of bread. serve.

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Written by Natasha Bahrami, co-oWner, café natasha’s

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illustrations by Lisa Allen

i would say that from day one, our family has always been a team. Growing up in the restaurant business meant watching my parents work 22-hour days and make unbelievable sacrifices. it also meant growing up surrounded by staff and patrons who felt like family. i was only a toddler when my parents opened the little Kitchen in 1983. bundled in a blanket, i was perfectly content being dragged into work with my parents. every morning, beginning at 4am, i would sit in my swing and entertain guests while my immigrant family prepared fresh fish and Persian shish kebabs alongside stuffed baked potatoes and spaghetti, to a demographic whose idea of ethnic cuisine had been limited to italian and chinese food. With no culinary experience and a kitchen that consisted of a convection oven and a stovetop burner, my parents attracted a following so loyal they would form a line around the Paul brown building in Downtown st. louis to lunch there. i learned to both crawl and cook on those tiles and continue to enjoy stories from guests who watched me grow up. i was 13 years old when café natasha’s opened on Delmar boulevard. i’d been learning and working in my parent’s restaurant kitchen for years, but i didn’t realize what being the namesake of this restaurant would mean for my life until i was 18 years old, a freshman in college running the restaurant’s front and back of house while my parents transitioned to south Grand to open Kabob international in 2001. i struggled, as i didn’t yet have my mom’s charisma or my dad’s palate. i hated the restaurant more than anything that year, but i did my duty. in 2003, when we closed café natasha’s on Delmar, everything changed (by this point, we were also operating the location on south Grand boulevard, which opened in 2001). My guests and co-workers had become family to me, and running the business was no longer work; it was an extension of my life. it broke my heart to watch it close, but i knew i wasn’t prepared to take over the business. so i did what i had to. i left st. louis to grow and to create my own identity. i started my own business in Washington, D.c., but now i am back here in st. louis where it all started, with a new vision to move forward with the growing cityscape. i studied, i experienced, i tasted life around the world, and i am excited to bring fresh ideas back to my city, to my family. the Midwest is flourishing. We are ripe and ready to appreciate the concepts and the amazing talent pouring their souls into st. louis, and i am eager to be a part of it. café natasha’s and the Gin room have come a long way since our humble beginnings at the little Kitchen, and we are thankful that st. louis continues to embrace us as it has for the past 30 years. from the people we hire to the people we serve, st. louis will always be home.

anthony devoti chef-owner, five bistro

aboVe: Anthony Devoti loves dining at Annie Gunn’s. Here, executive chef Lou Rook shares housemade local egg salad on grilled naan with Muscovy duck confit, cracklings, marinated heirloom tomatoes and pub chips.

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Who or what do you believe is a hidden gem in the St. Louis food scene? One of the chefs who I have kept an eye on for the past few years is a fella named Cory Shupe. Shupe is the chef-owner at a small farm-to-fork restaurant in Quincy, Illinois, called Thyme Square Café. They focus on breakfast and lunch, but also do farmer dinners a few Sundays a month. He worked with me at Five when we were just getting open and really did awesome stuff when he was here with us. I’m happy to see him be successful, spreading the good word of the fresh, local, handmade food that we started at Five eight years ago.

What do you hope to see happen next in the St. Louis food scene? More gardens, and chefs really working more closely with the dirt that our food grows in. I still think that there is a big disconnect between what we grow and what we serve – a big misunderstanding of the reality of what the words “in season” mean. Imagine you have one entire day to dedicate to dining out in St. Louis. Where would you grab breakfast, lunch, drinks and dinner?

Breakfast would start with a walk to World’s Fair Doughnuts with my son Luca in the wagon, telling stories, then lunch at Kim Ngan for pho and bahn mi. Lastly, dinner and wine at Annie Gunn’s. I would put my night in the hands of Lou Rook, John Cain and the crew there to take care of the night. What inspires you to do

the work that you do? We have a lot of open discussions on what our menus will consist of, between the kitchen crew, Lauren in the bar and myself. For us, the menu changes so often and is driven by what we get from farmers and out of our garden. At this time of year, the garden is a huge inspiration for us, walking out back and seeing what we have growing week to week or cutting fresh lettuce for salads – it’s pretty unbeatable and very inspiring. If you weren’t in the restaurant industry, what would you be doing? If I weren’t in the food industry, I would ideally be driving the Zamboni at a local ice rink and keeping bees. In 2014 you launched a series of rotating restaurant concepts at Five Bistro. What inspired the concepts? The idea behind the rotating concepts was to really have an outlet for our ideas. I think that every chef has more ideas for restaurants and menus than what he or she is capable of pulling off. These are all little restaurants that we can do, without the hassle of hiring a new staff, dealing with another landlord and having two spaces that are faraway from each other. I can keep an eye on what we do and be involved in the menus of two restaurants without even leaving the building or the kitchen.

Each of the concepts are restaurants that I’ve always wanted to own or be involved in, each one being its own unique spot. annie Gunn’s Photo by Jennifer Silverberg WorlD’s fair DouGhnuts Photo by Cheryl Waller

ABOVE: Anthony Devoti loves walking to World’s Fair Doughnuts with son Luca.

paul and wendy hamilton

co-owners, vin de set, 1111 mississippi, the malt house cellar, pw pizza, moulin What do you think is a definitive flavor of St. Louis? The craft beer revolution is certainly making a stand, and in my opinion, has turned the town’s old view of all things A-B upside down. It’s nice to see St. Louis embrace this trend so openly. From a food product, I immediately think of pork steaks, although you don’t see them that often on a menu – most tend to cook this at home in the backyard.

Interestingly enough, though, when you look at the explosion of barbecue restaurants, it kind of reinforces our city’s passion for all things pork. What do you think was the most important thing to happen in the St. Louis food scene this year? The multiple James Beard nominations were pretty cool and helped to bring a more serious food focus on our town.

The food truck revolution has created another really interesting dynamic in our culinary scene.

You have talented restaurant chefs leaving brick-and-mortar kitchens to open a much more affordable business model, while at the same time competing on quality and creativity.

What do you hope to see happen next in the local food scene? I would really like to see the St. Louis dining public step a bit more outside the box when it comes to unique ingredients or protein options. Restaurants in general would be able to charge lower prices if less popular cuts of meat were more generally accepted. In many cases, the cooking methods used for these dishes create very flavorful menu items that, in some cases, are far superior to the more popular mainstream choices. It really comes down to educating the diner as much as possible and giving them an opportunity to try something in a small portion first before offering it as an entrée. If you had to name one thing that you feel is missing in the St. Louis food scene, what would it be? More seafood options. Our options in St. Louis are very limited, especially from an independent point of view. Once again, it goes back to getting the dining public to step outside the norm. Seafood is more perishable and traditionally has higher costs than meat or poultry. It comes down to what the guest is willing to pay for their meal. I think there is a perception that you have to travel to the coast to get quality seafood, which just isn’t true anymore, when you consider air-freight delivery.

Imagine you have one entire day to dedicate to dining out in St. Louis. Where would you grab breakfast, lunch, drinks and dinner? Breakfast at Rooster: Wendy – biscuits and gravy, Paul – smoked salmon crêpes. Lunch at Pastaria: Wendy – bucatini all’amatriciana, Paul – garganelli pasta. Dinner at Bar Les Frères: Wendy – duck confit, Paul – steamed mussels. Drinks at Planter’s House: Wendy – Planter’s House punch, Paul – The Manhattanite. You’ve taken significant steps to make your restaurants environmentally friendly. Why is it important to you to build and operate environmentally friendly businesses? We believe it is the right thing to do. Much of what we have done certainly comes with a price tag, and our overall operating costs are higher. We believe in paying it forward, and by doing so, we have created a work environment that our staff is proud to be associated with and that shows in their loyalty and level of performance.

Our guests also appreciate our efforts, and we believe that, given the choice, they will dine with us for being environmentally responsible.

PHOTOgRAPHY BY Jonathan Gayman ILLuSTRATIOn BY Lisa Allen

chris desens

program director, the culinary institute at hickey college What do you think was the most important thing to happen in the St. Louis food scene this year? The closing of Duff’s after so many years of being a mainstay in the Central West End and in St. Louis dining. They were one of the early pioneers of locally sourced, seasonally driven menus and certainly paved the way for many others to follow in their footsteps. What do you hope to see happen next in the St. Louis food scene? The continuation of more successful restaurants and businesses opening that support and sustain our local economy. There are so many exciting ideas and talented professionals making their dreams into a reality – because success creates success.

The more people and places that succeed, the more opportunities [there] are for others to follow their dreams. If you had to name one thing that you feel is missing in the St. Louis food scene, what would it be?

There is great opportunity for collaboration in so many ways, such as the numerous charity events, farmers markets and a supportive culinary community that have had a positive impact on the food scene over the years.

Chefs in St. Louis – at all levels – are always willing to learn and always willing to share, making this an incredible city for food and dining. One impactful element of significance would be providing a path for passionate, professional and prepared students to grace the stoves of kitchens across St. Louis to elevate the level of culinary art across the board. We are working on that here at school every single day, and that is what gets me up in the morning. Imagine you have one entire day to dedicate to dining out in St. Louis. Where would you grab breakfast, lunch, drinks and dinner? Half & Half and Café Osage for breakfast. Lunch at Mai Lee and Pappy’s. Drinks at Planter’s House and Blood & Sand (before dinner), and dinner at Blood & Sand and Cleveland-Heath. I would order what the chef suggests and put myself into their very capable hands. My favorite place to dine is the establishment I am dining in. What’s playing on the radio in your kitchen? At school we teach our students to keep their focus on the task at hand and anticipate what’s next. Music can interfere with that process. However, when I am in my home kitchen cooking, I turn to ’80s music. It’s the music I grew up with, and it reminds me of my early days cooking and working my way into this business. What inspires you and motivates you to do the work that you do? I turn to my chef friends, as well as my cookbook and magazine collections, for ideas.

At work, the faculty and students inspire and motivate me. Being in the driver’s seat and being able to watch instructors share their passion and industry knowledge with students in a partnership, to reach their potential every day, is what stirs my soul. What do you love most about your work? I love being able to take part in providing realistic expectations and influencing others along their journey to success. I realize the tremendous need for prepared students entering the culinary industry, and I know, without question, this is not only my craft, but also my calling.

Gooey Butter Cake Truffle Recipe by Conor VanBuskirk, VanbuskiRk chocolates edited by Tory Bahn photogRaphy by Cheryl Waller

After developing this truffle recipe for Feast, VanBuskirk added the gooey butter cake truffle to its menu. Conor VanBuskirk says the truffle has been a big hit and will be available for purchase through August. Dark chocolate can be substituted for white chocolate for the shell coating if desired (pictured below).

Yields | 75 to 100 truffles | Gooey BuTTer Cake GanaChe

6 6 1 1 18 2½ 1 1

oz cream cheese oz heavy whipping cream vanilla bean, scraped of seeds oz honey oz white chocolate oz butter oz bourbon vanilla oz vanilla vodka

WhiTe ChoColaTe shell CoaTinG

19 oz white chocolate, 15 oz chopped for the shell, 4 oz solid chocolate powdered sugar, for rolling

| Preparation – Gooey Butter Cake Ganache | line a baking pan with parchment paper. in a saucepan, combine cream cheese, heavy whipping cream, scraped vanilla bean and honey. place white chocolate in a separate bowl. bring cream cheese mixture to a boil over medium heat, stirring to a smooth mixture. as soon as it reaches a boil, pour mixture over the bowl of white chocolate, and let sit for 2 minutes before stirring. using a spatula, stir mixture in small circles from the center of the

bowl toward the outside, creating a smooth ganache. let cool to 90°F, and then mix in butter, bourbon vanilla and vanilla vodka. pour finished ganache into the baking pan to make a thin layer and cover with plastic wrap. let cool in the fridge until firm, about 1½ hours or overnight. in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, transfer ganache and mix on medium speed for 30 seconds, or stir vigorously with a spatula in a mixing bowl. allow ganache to sit at room temperature for 5 minutes. line a sheet pan with parchment paper. using a small spoon or teaspoon, scoop balls of ganache onto the sheet pan at room temperature. When all of the ganache has been scooped, roll each portion by hand into a round ball.

| Preparation – White Chocolate Shell Coating | in a clean, dry bowl over a simmering pot of water, melt white chocolate. bring temperature of the chocolate to between 115°F and 120°F. Remove bowl from heat, add 2 of the 4 oz chocolate to mixture and let chocolate cool almost to 80°F, while stirring frequently. place chocolate back over simmering water, add remaining 2 oz chocolate and bring temperature up to between 86°F and 88°F, continuously stirring and agitating the mixture the entire time. at this point, dip ganache balls into white chocolate. try to maintain a temperature between 86°F and 88°F by gently rewarming if it drops below. dip ganache balls in melted chocolate one at a time, and roll in powdered sugar. serve.

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august 2014

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nick luedde

proprietor, the libertine Who or what do you believe is a hidden gem in the St. Louis food scene? My wife, Audra Luedde, and I have a 2-year-old, so other than time spent at the restaurant, our opportunities to dine out have been few and far between as of late it seems. That said, we cherish our times on Saturdays at the Tower Grove Farmers Market. While there, I make certain to never miss the opportunity to taste what Michael Miller of Kitchen Kulture is serving up at his booth. It’s always delicious.

What do you think is a definitive flavor of St. Louis? Coming back to St. Louis after many years spent in Chicago has really given me a great perspective on what St. Louis means to me, culinarily speaking. It’s changed so much since I left in the mid-’90s, in terms of cuisine; it’s become a completely different city. As is often the case, a city can be defined by what it does within its food scene, and St. Louis is no different. Before I left, I think the answer would have been simple; the discussion would have been centered on Imo’s and toasted ravioli. But now, we’ve come so far that to define ourselves by a singular food item is very difficult. From our current great chefs – Kevin (Nashan), Gerard (Craft), Josh (Galliano) – to our fantastic local neighboring farms, it’s difficult to name simply one thing. That said, I’d have to say that two things that really seem to make us stand out among other cities seem to be our brewing tradition (4 Hands, Civil Life, Perennial) and our unrivaled Vietnamese food (Mai Lee).

No city seems to even come close to doing those better. What do you think was the

most important thing to happen in the St. Louis food scene this year? The number of James Beard nominees was huge. Having five St. Louis chefs (Josh Galliano, Kevin Nashan, Gerard Craft, Ben Poremba, Kevin Willmann) receiving semifinalist attention is really a testament to what’s happening in St. Louis right now… Not to mention Ricky (Rick Lewis) being mentioned as a Rising Star Chef. I couldn’t be more proud of us as a city, and it’s really great to see some of our great chefs receiving the national attention they deserve. If you had to name one thing that you feel is missing in the St. Louis food scene, what would it be? I’d love to have a really good bao joint (Chinese steamed buns).

All buns, all the time. Imagine you have one entire day to dedicate to dining out in St. Louis. Where would you grab breakfast, lunch, drinks and dinner? I’d start off my day with a simple cup of coffee and a croissant at Kaldi’s. Swing by and grab lunch at Mai Lee because I must have some Qui Tran in my day. I’d grab dinner at my place, The Libertine, because I can’t imagine a better night than one that includes a meal cooked by Josh Galliano and Josh Poletti, and drinks made by Nate Weber.

I’d then grab late-night cocktails at either Planter’s House or Taste. And, of course, I’d swing by Mission Taco on the way home to crush a couple of tacos (because apparently, I was still hungry). What’s playing on the radio in your kitchen? Josh has a tendency to play a great deal of ska in the kitchen. When we are setting up for the night in the front of the house, Ben Bauer (our head barkeep) mans the sound system and appeases me by playing my favorites: Fugazi and Tom Waits. When I’m not around, I’ve heard he can be found pumping

nicholas martinkovic

executive chef, blood & sand, death in the afternoon What do you think is a definitive flavor of St. Louis? I’ve recently started a love affair with Ted Drewes because the South Grand location is pretty close to my house, and I can tell other St. Louisans are fans based on the perpetually long lines. What do you think was the most important thing to happen in the local food scene this year? The increase in the number of James Beard nominees this year is truly exceptional. You can be certain St. Louis will continue to have a spot on the national food map. Imagine you have one entire day to dedicate to dining out in St. Louis.

Where would you grab breakfast, lunch, drinks and dinner? First, I would get a coffee at Sump; brunch at Brasserie; cocktail hour at Taste; dinner at Sidney Street Cafe; and then, after-dinner drinks at Planter’s

House. What’s playing on the radio in your kitchen? Katy Perry, Talking Heads, Milli Vanilli, The Cranberries, Toto and Buddy Holly. What inspires you and motivates you to do the work that you do? My team is what motivates me the most. They are all incredibly focused, creative and influence me to stay forward-thinking. You took over as executive chef at Blood & Sand earlier this year. What do you enjoy most about your work? What I enjoy most about Blood & Sand is that I’m not limited to painting with one brush. We are growing as a company, and we’re very excited about our new adventure.

PHoToGraPHY BY

Jennifer Silverberg

PICTURED: Nicholas Martinkovic loves dining at Sidney Street Cafe.

Here, chef-owner Kevin Nashan shares a roasted allium tart.

Lionel Ritchie. Lots and lots of Lionel Ritchie.

What inspires you to do the work that you do? Anytime we are creating a drink or a cocktail for the menu, I tend to draw from authors, movies or musicians for inspiration.

All of our cocktails begin there. Whether it’s Tom Waits, Serge Gainsbourg or Henry Miller; whatever I am listening to or whomever I am reading tends to find its way onto the menu.

Sometimes that’s not a good thing. I seldom watch television, but I did stumble upon the movie Sharknado when that had its brief moment in the sun. Needless to say, we served quite a few Sharknado cocktails that week. If you weren’t in the restaurant industry, what would you be doing? I’d probably be bumming around the Italian Riviera, writing poetry and drinking wine on the beach. Or perhaps a super spy; I’d be an awesome super spy. Or maybe just an accountant. One of those three: sun-drenched Italian poet, super spy or accountant. The Libertine celebrated its first anniversary this past spring.

How did that feel, and what do you hope for the restaurant’s future? I couldn’t be more proud. It’s an odd and difficult thing to attempt to open a small business, let alone a restaurant. What I’ve learned over the past year is that, in fact, is not at all what a small business owner is doing. What is truly happening is that, if it’s done right, you are beginning a family – enveloped with all of the nuances and tribulations that come with doing so. In retrospect, over this past year, that is exactly what, unknowingly, we did at The Libertine; we created a family. And St. Louis, proudly, is our home. A home we plan on living in for a very, very long time.

david wolfe

co-founder, urban chestnut brewing co.

What do you hope to see happen next in the St. Louis food scene, and why?

Two words... James Beard. Why? Because it’s definitely been earned – just not yet awarded.

If you had to name one thing that you feel is missing in the St. Louis food scene, what would it be? I always work this one in somewhere: a St. Louis city and county merger. While it might not show on the surface, or be tangibly detected, the resulting unity of a merger would change the landscape of St. Louis – including the food scene.

Urban Chestnut’s flagship location is in Midtown, and the brewery opened a much larger second location in The Grove earlier this year. What has been the most exciting part about expanding?

Day one arrival: exhausted. Day one opening: surreal. Day one closing: holy crap! The Grove is an incredible nightlife district that is only on the cusp of its potential, and being in The Grove is amazing. The transformation that took place on our end of The Grove was immediate, and the response has been more than expected. What’s next for Urban Chestnut? Any plans for future expansion? Lots of little things. (Did you hear we just released a year-round cider on draft, Bushelhead?) But the most exciting thing for us is, now that we have our new bottling line upand-running, we’re going to be able to open up in new markets outside of St. Louis. First, we’re going to hit Columbia this summer and Kansas City shortly thereafter. From there, [it’ll be] more of Missouri and out of state as well.

john nash manager, starrs

Next time you order a coffee at Kayak Coffee in University City, don’t place your order and then sit down and wait for the staff to bring it to you. Walk over to the brewing spot, and watch your cup of coffee bloom in the capable hands of your barista.

Kayak manager and Kaldi’s Coffee Roasting Co. employee David Fasman – like all Kaldi’s baristas – prepares your drink by first selecting a Chemex, Kalita or Bee House coffeemaker, according to the beans being brewed and the drink size you order. Fasman knows which coffeemaker brings out the best of each roast.

The Mexican roast calls for a Kalita. He’ll start by filling a hive-shaped metal kettle with hot water, and then preheating the Kalita.

He’ll wash out the filter with the hot water to remove any flavor of paper, so that you only taste coffee. He’ll weigh out 25 grams of coffee

for the 400 grams of water he plans to brew with. He’ll refill the kettle and let it sit so the temperature will drop to between 195°F and 205°F, the acceptable range for brewing coffee.

After grinding beans that were roasted by Kaldi’s roasters, Fasman will add the grounds to the filter and shake them to even out the bed and remove any air pockets. After setting a timer, he’ll saturate the grounds and then pause to let the coffee bloom.

During the blooming process, the coffee’s aromatics will be so strong that if you take too deep a breath near the filter, the earthy scent will sear your nose cavity and linger for the rest of the day.

“We bloom coffee for 30 to 45 seconds,” Fasman says. “I like to think of it as a

living entity. It’s breathing. When it stops breathing, I need to give it more [water].”

He’ll lift the kettle and begin to pour the water in slow, continuous circles, evenly saturating and agitating all of the grounds, all while timing himself; Fasman’s goal is to have poured all 400 grams of water in two minutes and 30 seconds.

The aroma of your coffee as it finishes brewing will be warm, inviting and almost chocolaty.

Fasman will swirl the decanter before pouring the finished coffee into a mug and tiny glass decanter on a simple wooden tray.

And then, he says, “You drink it.”

Multiple locations, 888.892.6333 kaldiscoffee.com

Who or what do you believe is a hidden gem in the St. Louis food scene? Spencer’s Grill in Kirkwood. I think it’s the best breakfast spot in St. Louis. Great hash browns, eggs to order, piping hot coffee (freshly ground), and biscuits and gravy. A real sleeper. What do you think is a definitive flavor of St. Louis?

G&W Sausage. Great stuff made in-house and an authentic extension of the German heritage in St. Louis. [Also,] Carl’s Drive-In. [It’s] one of my favorite restaurants in St. Louis. It doesn’t pretend to be anything but what it is and has stayed focused on delivering the goods for decades. What do you think was the most important thing to happen in the St. Louis food scene in the past year? The opening of the Mid-American School of Wine.

An educated consumer is the best customer!

What do you hope to see happen next in the local food scene? More locally produced artisan cheese. Missouri has a great dairy industry, but there’s a definite lack of highquality cheese-making throughout the state. If you had to name one thing that you feel is missing in the St. Louis food scene, what would it be? Local support for fine dining.

[It] seems like St. Louis residents will spend money in Chicago, New York, Miami, Paris, London, etc., [but] fine dining seems to struggle here. Imagine you have one entire day to dedicate to dining out in St. Louis. Where would you grab breakfast, lunch, drinks and dinner? Breakfast: Spencer’s Grill – black coffee, two eggs over-easy, bacon, hash browns and a side order of biscuits and gravy. Lunch: Lewis Café’s (in St. Clair) daily lunch special – it’s always good. Dinner: Bar Italia – mussels as an appetizer and their famous tortellini. What inspires you to do the work that you do?

My inspiration is always quality first, no matter the subject. What also inspires [me] is my continuing (27 years and counting) passionate interest in the wine industry. It’s a fascinating mix of geography, history, agriculture, chemistry and artisanal talent. You joined the team at Starrs earlier this year. What have been some of the highlights so far? Starrs is St. Louis’ oldest operating wine shop. This was the store to beat when I founded The Wine Merchant in 1992. The store has the potential to be the finest wine and cheese shop in the Midwest, which is exactly my goal. Changes that I’ve made have been many, including a weekly store email newsletter, weekly wine classes, Saturday “open house” wine tastings, special wine dinners, a remodeled and expanded “cut-to-order” cheese department, a new mix of value-priced wines from Spain, France and Italy. We’ve expanded our selection of high-quality half bottles (375 milliters) of wines from around the world. I’ve also brought back items that customers have requested, like Bud’s phenomenal cold-smoked Atlantic salmon, hummus, housemade cookies and biscotti, just to mention a few. Looking to the future, I plan to expand our selection of wines from France with a focus on Burgundy, Champagne, Loire Valley and the LanguedocRoussillon, plus high-quality specialty items and fresh seafood (we have a couple of great sources). We’re also looking to expand special events that may include some outdoor festivals.

phil wymore

owner, perennial artisan ales

Written by Josh Ferguson, co-oWner, Kaldi’s coffee roasting co. illustrations by Lisa Allen

twenty years ago, Howard lerner and suzanne langlois opened a little café called Kaldi’s coffee in the demun area of clayton. it was an all-in-one space containing the café, the roaster, an office or two and a “warehouse” (a few shelves). it was decidedly not on a high-traffic commercial street, and it was born before america cared about specialty coffee. fast-forward 20 years, and i sometimes shake my head in disbelief. My family and i partnered with Howard and suzanne 10 years ago and purchased the company in 2007. We have cafés in st. louis, columbia and Kansas city; we’re in grocery stores and restaurants, on campuses such as Washington university and the university of Missouri, and in offices throughout the Midwest. this year brings an updated Kaldi’s brand, a sixth location in st. louis and a new training and roasting warehouse opening in early fall. alongside starbucks, Howard and suzanne brought specialty coffee to st. louis, and we are proud to see the progress that has been made. coffee supports the up-and-coming regions of our world, and that means a lot to us. the farmers we work with – in places such as uganda, rwanda, tanzania, ethiopia and Papua new guinea – are proud to sell their crops to roasters like us, and we’re proud to serve it. When possible, we go on-site and work with them to improve their quality and output. as a result, they receive above-average wages for their work. in a way, we “buy local,” even though the agricultural requirements of the coffee plant demand that we buy from farmers near the equator, thousands of miles away. coffee refreshes my mind. for some, it generates feelings of euphoria, a snap to attention. is any sip better than the first sip of morning coffee? i most enjoy the sounds, the aromas, the café experience and the human interaction between barista and guest. for fans of Kaldi’s, it’s sometimes grabbing a coffee to go, but it’s often so much more. it’s old friends talking for hours on end, or business meetings and the hope of a deal, or just “me time” – peaceful solitude with the daily newspaper. coffee births a new day, every day. that’s more than enough to get me out of bed every morning.

Who or what do you believe is a hidden gem in the St. Louis food scene? I had to think about this forever, but I think I’m going with sandwiches from Salume Beddu. St. Louis has so many great sandwich shops, and Salume Beddu is certainly known for [its] cured meats, but I think some people may forget that this is one of the must-go places for sandwiches.

What do you think was the most important thing to happen in the St. Louis food scene this year? The dawning of the Strange Donuts era. Donuts are supposed to be fun, [and] these guys take it to another level. Keep an eye on them – they’ll make you feel like anything is possible. What do you hope to see happen next in the local food scene? I’m eagerly awaiting Kevin Nashan’s Peacemaker Lobster & Crab Co. This is my kind of jam, and it will be a very welcome addition to the St. Louis food scene. If you had to name one thing that you feel is missing in the St. Louis food scene, what would it be? A serious ramen shop that only focuses on ramen: housemade noodles, choices of broth, slow poached eggs, etc. This just strikes me as something that is missing because I absolutely crave it. Imagine you have one entire day to dedicate to dining out in St. Louis.

Where would you grab breakfast, lunch, drinks and dinner? I really wish I could do multiple versions of this answer because this scene has so much [to] offer. Here’s one version: I have to start with coffee – a Kyoto from Sump. This is a marathon, so let’s do a light breakfast at Pint Size Bakery – I love their BLT muffins and savory scones. For lunch, I’m going to Quincy Street Bistro for a Southsider and a side of mashed potatoes.

After a nap, I’m going to stop by ArtBar and ask Tom Halaska to just make me something.

Dinner will be at Farmhaus – a third to half of the menu will be ordered, including all of the fish dishes. What’s playing on the radio in your brewery? It depends on who’s brewing, but if it’s me, my current playlist will be new albums from Chromeo, St. Vincent and the new live album from LCD Soundsystem. For me, music is fleeting, but a perfect time stamp – and soundtrack – that accompanies the memories of your life. What inspires you to do the work that you do? When developing a recipe, I get inspiration from engaging my senses and paying close attention to balanced, high-flavor-impact moments – whether eating or drinking. Those memories are sometimes transcribed into beer. My motivation is simple: Try to create something that people enjoy. If I can do that, the rest takes care of itself. If you weren’t in the food and drink industry, what would you be doing? I would try to be an astrobiologist or a marine paleontologist.

I would probably bootleg liquor on the side to tackle my student loan debt, though. In September Perennial will celebrate its third anniversary. How has it felt to see the brewery grow and expand? It has been a tremendous feeling to see our beers reach other cool markets across the country and [to] work every day with amazing people to make that happen. Workplace culture is extremely important to us, and our people create a fun dynamic that makes the brewery a blast to come back to every day.

PICTURED: Tatyana Telnikova loves the Sidecar cocktail at The Fortune Teller Bar.

tatyana telnikova

owner, handlebar, artbar st. louis

Who or what do you believe is a hidden gem in the St. Louis food scene? Everest Café in The Grove is my favorite gem of a restaurant. Best lunch buffet in the city if you ask me. Delicious, healthy and [it has] a great mission. Imagine you have one entire day to dedicate to dining out in St. Louis. Where would you grab breakfast, lunch, drinks and dinner? We have chickens in the backyard, so I always have breakfast at home – best scrambled eggs in town. But I know Café Osage has amazing brunch, so if I had to, I’d go there.

For lunch I would either hit up Everest Café for the buffet, Café Mochi for the seared tuna salad or HandleBar for some solyanka and gravlax blinchikis. As for dinner, if it’s a fancy date, we’d go to Franco and get adventurous with trying things that I can’t pronounce properly, or maybe Atlas. For drinks, definitely happy hour draft beers at the HandleBar, then ride back down to Cherokee Street and have a Fortune Teller [Bar] Sidecar and then over to ArtBar to enjoy just about every one of the seasonal cocktails.

What inspires you to do the work that you do? I enjoy cooking and drinking and very much enjoy watching others enjoy our creations, so that’s the motivation. As for inspiration, the HandleBar menu was definitely inspired by

my Russian heritage, fueled by memories and infused with beer. At the end of the day, it is people that motivate me. I love [the] people I work with, both the staff and the guests. I feel very lucky for the life I live and the wonderful people who surround me. Earlier this year you opened ArtBar St. Louis on Cherokee Street. How did you feel on opening day?

It was magical, really. Watching an idea come together, materialize and be even more beautiful than I originally imagined – it was incredible. I very much enjoyed the creative process of working with Jamie Jessop (who did the build-out) – we vibe well off each other. I am also very happy to finally be working with Tom Halaska; [I] could not think of a better manager for ArtBar. Opening day was so fun and also a bit surreal for all of us.

We watched that place be under construction for so long that seeing real customers excited to be there was just out of this world. I would love to see both ArtBar and HandleBar be staples in the communities they are in. Joe Edwards is my longtime role model, so if my places can have anything like the energy, longevity and success of places like Blueberry Hill or The Pageant, I’ll be very happy and very proud. On my end, I promise that we’ll continue giving back to the community as we have been over at the HandleBar for the last – almost! – four years.

PHOTOGRAPHy By Jonathan Gayman

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Inspired Food Culture

AUGUST 2014

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LocaLLy Made Soda at exceL BottLing co.

Written by Shannon cothran

|

PhotograPhy by cheryl Waller

the tiny downtown of breese, illinois, is nestled among rolling farm hills, way off the interstate. it’s just a few blocks long and has all the necessities in quaint, vintage forms: a church, a bank, a funeral home, a small market and a post office. one block farther and over the railroad tracks is excel bottling Co. breese’s local soda maker since 1936, excel bottles Ski, a citrusy, carbonated drink that is the favorite soda of almost every resident of southern illinois. they also make Frostie root beer, Lucky Club Cola and 14 other fun flavors, all made with pure cane sugar. the bottling warehouse has two bottling areas: one, in the back, is ultra-modern, fast and loud. the reusable Ski bottles come out of the 50-ton bottle washer sanitized and ready to be refilled. the bottles clang along a conveyer belt, crashing into each other so loudly it’s unbelievable they don’t all shatter. they don’t, though: they cruise along the conveyor, filling with ice-cold Ski, getting their caps fastened on and crashing once again – this time into orange cases that hold 24 of the shiny green glass bottles. in the front of the bottling factory sits excel’s other bottling machine, which has occupied the same space since 1936. When general manager bill Meier’s grandfather caught a bank robber in 1936, the town bank rewarded him with a cash prize, which he used as seed money to start the business. he bought the bottling machine, and it’s been bottling excel sodas ever since. it’s a little slower than the company’s modern one, and the room it’s in isn’t air-conditioned – but it still works perfectly, humming along, filling glass bottles with Cherry breese, which Meier describes as “like a Shirley temple in a bottle.” the conveyor belt of this vintage bottler stretches out of a hole in the side of the building and into the street, where customers can pick up cases of their favorite sodas and drop off empty bottles. the old machine is proof that at excel bottling, “good things don’t have to change.”

Some retailers that carry excel in Missouri are Little o’s old time Soda Fountain in St. Charles, blues City Deli, baileys’ range, Sauce on the Side, Sugarfire Smoke house and Fields Foods.

488 S. Broadway, Breese, Illinois, 618.526.7159, excelbottling.com

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kevin WiLLMann chef-owner, farmhaus

What do you hope to see happen next in the St. Louis food scene? the James beard semifinalist list was huge for St. Louis. My friends from far and away were very intrigued by what we have going on here. i was even more proud to see my boys nashan and Craft recognized in the finals. Imagine you have one entire day to dedicate to dining out in St. Louis. Where would you grab breakfast, lunch, drinks and dinner? breakfast and smiles at Pint Size with Christy [augustin] and [her husband] Matt – that savory biscuit thingy and some coffee. then off to bogart’s for ribs, and hopefully, Skipper’s smoked wings. Drinks (anything gin) and a snack (fried cornbread) with Mateo [Daughaday] at taste, then off to Mai Lee to hang with Qui and get the full soul-quenching treatment (the pho with all the good stuff and so much calamari), with Josh galliano, Kevin nashan, gerard Craft and Mike emerson at the table so we can hang and blow off steam. then i meet up with [my wife] Jess and we head off to Sidney Street Cafe so bob Zugmaier can work his magic on dessert, and we can close down and have a “shifty” with

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the crew. Followed, finally, by an ice-cold frosty busch in the backyard with Zoe (my doggie) and the fireflies. What’s playing on the radio in your kitchen? KMoX, Cardinals baseball…

Duh! If you weren’t in the restaurant industry, what would you be doing?

Fishing! no question about it. our old chef de cuisine and good buddy andrew Jennrich put it well when he was cutting up and mocking me one day. he said, “hi, my name is Kevin Willmann; i’m an angler, but i’ll be cooking today.” What would you say was the most significant thing to happen to you or to your restaurant in 2014? Seeing eric [Scholle] off to texas with his lovely fiancé, tahira. there are no words to describe how much he and his friendship have meant to me and Jessica over the past eight years. i think of eric as a brother. i believe he has been the most driven and committed among us in this great city, and his goodwill toward everyone’s success has been an extension of Farmhaus that will be sorely missed. all the cred always goes to the chefs, but overlooking eric’s impact on the food community, and specifically Farmhaus, would be an embarrassing mistake.

Jessica and i will always share the credit of Farmhaus’ success with him, and we wish him well on his new journey.

Join us on Thu., Aug. 21, to celebrate the magazine’s fourth anniversary and the Feast Awards at the annual Feast 50 Fête from 6 to 10pm in Forest Park. Visit the Events section of feastmagazine.com for info.

Written by Brandon Chuang photography by Jonathan Gayman illustrations by Lisa Allen

Salumi – not salami, “salumi” – is a pretty fancy word. Another common term for it is “charcuterie,” but that doesn’t fall off the tongue nearly as well as salumi does. It just sounds complex, you know? And if you ask Mark Sanfilippo, the co-owner and chef of Salume Beddu in Lindenwood Park, it is.

“I should’ve made beer,” he jokes.

Part of the reason that salumi is so complex is because of the rules and regulations that bind the creation and sales of cured meats. According to the FDA, every detail, every degree of temperature fluctuation and every ounce of water loss must be logged and recorded.

In Sanfilippo’s case, it’s all in 3-inch thick, white-ringed binders. “Because of what we’re doing, working with raw meat protein, we are inspected constantly.”

Sanfilippo doesn’t have to do this. Having worked for names your grandmother knows – names such as Batali – Sanfilippo could’ve opened a small eatery or a sandwich shop.

He could’ve stayed in Los Angeles, rising through the ranks of the Croc’d One’s army.

But this is what he chose. “Everything we do here has its own challenges, and I love it,” he explains. “I’m working on recipes where I don’t get to know the results for, at minimum, six weeks.”

Curing meats is one of the oldest and most storied forms of food preparation. Every day, Sanfilippo and his small but mighty crew churn out a multitude of salumis – sopressata, calabrese, coppa, guanciale – all for the delight of his loyal customers.

Sanfilippo puts a huge amount of effort into the products he produces – perhaps more than most cured meat producers do.

But still, he does it, working continuously to strengthen the salumeria that Forbes anointed the best in the country. Here, in a strip mall in South City, right next to a Christian bookstore and a title company.

“I wanted to be near the farmers,” says the St. Louis native about his relocation from the West Coast. “Everything we were getting [in Los Angeles] was from here. It only makes sense that I’m here.”

3467 Hampton Ave., Lindenwood Park, 314.353.3100, salumebeddu.com

the last bite

lemon-poppy seed pound cake

PHoTogRAPHy by Jonathan Gayman

CoNTRIbuToR: Crystal stevens, writer Dressel’s Public House has been our St. Louis go-to restaurant for many years now. As farmers, my husband and I truly appreciate the integrity of the chefs who support growers and purveyors of local produce. It takes a little extra work to use farm-fresh produce, but the end result is phenomenal. A family-owned business, Dressel’s has been in operation since 1980 and has taken gastropub to a whole new level over the past few years. The restaurant’s ingredients are fresh, its fare is hearty, and every bite leaves us truly satisfied. Executive chef Derek Roe has been purchasing our produce for years, as his passion lies in cooking from scratch with seasonal fruits and vegetables. After a delicious fivecourse lunch with Feast senior print editor Liz Miller, we enjoyed a lovely slice of lemon-poppy seed pound cake with seasonal fruit coulis and a dollop of lemon-balm ice cream for dessert.

The lemon-poppy seed cake was baked to perfection – moist on the inside, with a nice crisp edge – and was the ideal combination of light and fluffy, as well as rich and decadent. The refreshing flavor of the strawberry coulis reminded me of biting into a freshly picked strawberry, plucked from the field in the early summer sun. Lemon balm, a beautiful aromatic herb used both medicinally and in culinary preparations, is known as “the herb of vitality.” Applied to the ice cream, the lemon balm imparted a subtle pop of citrus in the silky ice cream. Its greenish hue was achieved by blending a small pinch of fresh parsley with the lemon balm herb, which had steeped in milk and cream overnight, and was then blended with an immersion blender. I couldn’t help myself; I certainly indulged in more than a few last bites.

This month, I will definitely be returning to Dressel’s for its newest incarnation of this dessert: lemonpoppy seed pound cake with smoked blueberry preserves served with sweet thyme ice cream, with a rich balance of smoky, tangy, slightly spicy and sweet flavors.

Dressel’s Public House, 419 N. Euclid Ave., Central West End, 314.361.1060 dresselspublichouse.com For more of Crystal’s work, turn to p. 28, where she shares how to fire-roast peppers at home to make fresh, spicy pepper paste, chowchow and salsa.

F OREST P ARK

SEPTEMBER 12-14

The St. Louis World’s Fare Board of Directors, in collaboration with The City of St. Louis and the St. Louis Parks Department, are honored to present the 1st annual St. Louis World’s Fare Heritage Festival and Games taking place in historic Forest Park!

Featuring local chefs competing in 5 categories in a 2 round competition culminating in a culinary showdown live at the St. Louis World’s Fare!

S P E C IAL FEATURES AT THE FARE!

CALLING ALL CHEFS! Check www.stlworldsfare.com for rules and to enter.

V I SI T TH ESE PA RTI CI PATI NG RESTAUR A N T S AT T H E CUL I NA R Y P I K E

Live Art Exhibits in Artist Palace Live Band Competition at The Battle for the Fare!

Day of Event Entries for Dance Competition Fun, Educational Journey In The Historic Experience Interactive Displays On Kid's Island Day of Event Entries In The World's Fare Games World Business Expo

Check www.stlworldsfare.com for an updated list of participating restaurants!

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AUGUST 2014

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FARM FRESH. HOMEGROWN PROUD.

DAVE & DARREL THIES

Thies Farms & Greenhouses MARYLAND HEIGHTS, MO

KELLER FAMILY Keller Farms COLLINSVILLE, IL

BRUNE FAMILY Pin Oaks Farms NEW HAVEN, MO

As your neighborhood grocery store, Schnucks has been supporting our neighbors and the community by providing the freshest local fruits and vegetables for 75 years.

Our buyers are proud to partner with local growers like Thies Farm & Greenhouses and Keller Farms for the best locally grown produce. Look for fabulous, just-picked fruits and vegetables arriving all summer – stop by and check out what’s fresh every day, every week!

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