Cafe

THREE MONKEYS THREEMONKEYSRESTAURANT.COM INFO@THREEMONKEYSRESTAURANT.COM 314.772.980 3153 MORGANFORD RD. ST LOUIS, MO 63116

Under new ownership, Three Monkeys has transformed into one of the best neighborhood restaurants & whiskey pubs in the area. With an ever-growing list of over 60 whiskeys, 16 craft beers on draft, specialty cocktail & an exciting new menu of gastro pub favorites - they have something for everyone. The menu is ample with offerings, including some of St. Louis’s best hand-tossed pizza, great shareable appetizers, burgers, vegetarian options, pasta, steaks & more. Embracing the price point of other south city pubs, Three Monkeys offers a great happy hour! Come enjoy $6 select appetizers, including the best fried Brussels sprouts in town, $5 Manhattans, Sazeracs & Old Fashions, as well as discounts on wine & craft beer. Sunday features one of the most extensive brunch buffets in the city, loaded with your favorite breakfast items, an omelet & pasta station, plus seafood, appetizers, desserts, & many other goodies. Located in Tower Grove South, it’s the perfect place to have dinner, share a pizza with family, or just belly up to the bar with your favorite drink.

BLK MKT EATS BLKMKTEATS.COM

314.391.5100 9 S. VANDEVENTER AVE. ST. LOUIS, MO 63108

The fast-fresh, made-to-order concept has been applied to everything from pizza to pasta in St. Louis, but the sushi burrito surprisingly had no Gateway City home until BLK MKT Eats opened near Saint Louis University last fall. It was worth the wait, though, because BLK MKT Eats combines bold flavors and convenience into a perfectly wrapped package that’s ideal for those in a rush. Cousins and co-owners Kati Fahrney and Ron Turigliatto offer a casual menu full of high-quality, all-natural ingredients that fit everything you love about sushi and burritos right in your hand. The Swedish Fish layers Scandinavian cured salmon, yuzu dill slaw, Persian cucumbers and avocado for a fresh flavor explosion. Another favorite, the OG Fire, features your choice of spicy tuna or salmon alongside tempura crunch, masago, shallots, jalapeño and piquant namesake sauce; Persian cucumbers and avocado soothe your tongue from the sauce’s kick. All burrito rolls come with sticky rice wrapped in nori or can be made into poké bowls, and all items can be modified for vegetarians. 9 SOUTH VANDEVENTER DINE-IN, TAKEOUT OR DELIVERY MON-SAT 11AM-9PM NOT YOUR AVERAGE SUSHI SPOT SPONSORED CONTENT

CRAWLING CRAB

314.328.3421 6730 PAGE AVE ST. LOUIS, MO 63138

Looking for the best seafood in St. Louis or the Midwest—don’t fret, Crawling Crab is now open! Here, we drizzle everything in garlic butter and then sprinkle on our magic dust! In a fun and casual atmosphere, you’ll enjoy fresh, hand-cleaned seafood ranging from lobster, shrimp, and of course crab legs. All platters come with corn sausage potatoes and Cajun boiled eggs and shrimp that won’t disappoint. For those pasta and veggie lovers out there, there is a spot for you here too! Enjoy our double dipped garlic butter rolls along side with your meal. And if you are still not stuffed, we have homemade dessert on the menu too! Have a big family coming in or an event coming up? Enjoy our family meal options and our beautiful seafood tables. As we continue to grow, we are excited to add new items to the menu, get creative with new recipes, and give back within the community. Join us on the first Tuesday of the month for $20 platter specials, and $5 appetizers on every Wild Wednesday! Open Tuesday thru Saturday 4pm-10pm, currently located in the 24:1 Coffee House Cafe.

CRISPY EDGE CRISPYEDGE.COM

314.310.3343 4168 JUNIATA STREET ST. LOUIS, MO 63116

What began in 2013 as a passion project in the founder’s kitchen has now grown into a retail and wholesale potsticker manufacturing facility located right in the heart of Tower Grove South. Crispy Edge believes that potstickers are the perfect vehicle to explore authentic global flavors from breakfast to dessert: handheld, wrapped in dough, and CRISPY! The restaurant features indoor and dog-friendly outdoor seating, private dining room, and a café lounge. The full bar and hot beverage program highlight local specialty coffee, cocktails, and beers. All products are made in-house and sourced from the finest ingredients. From Ordinary to Extraordinary - Crispy Edge is a global community for those who want something fun, tasty, social and exciting to eat.

J. SMUGS GASTROPIT JSMUGSGASTROPIT.COM

Housed in a retro service station, J. Smugs GastroPit serves up barbecue that can fuel anyone’s fire. Married teams of Joe and Kerri Smugala and John and Linda Smugala have brought charred goodness to the Hill neighborhood, nestled among the traditional Italian restaurants, sandwich shops and bakeries. Part of St. Louis’ ongoing barbecue boom, the J. Smugs’ pit menu is compact but done right. Ribs are the main attraction, made with a spicy dry rub and smoked to perfection. Pulled pork, brisket, turkey and chicken are also in the pit holding up well on their own, but squeeze bottles of six tasty sauces of varying style are nearby for extra punch. Delicious standard sides and salads are available, but plan on ordering an appetizer or two J. Smugs gives this course a twist with street corn and pulled-pork poutine. Several desserts are available, including cannoli – a tasty nod to the neighborhood. Happy hour from 4 to 7pm on weekdays showcases halfdollar BBQ tastes, discount drinks, and $6 craft beer flights to soothe any beer aficionado. 314.499.7488 4916 SHAW AVE ST. LOUIS, MO 63110

THE KICKIN’ CRAB THEKICKINCRAB.COM

314.888.8688 9616 OLIVE BLVD OLIVETTE, MO 63132

The Kickin’ Crab has joined the Crustacean Nation and is here to satisfy your taste sensation. The Kickin’ Crab is a fun-filled Cajun seafood destination where patrons come and escape into flavor paradise. Offering a distinct ambiance to enjoy the finest and freshest Cajun seafood around! Kickin’ Crab is a great place to hang out with friends, family, or both! No plates... no utensils! Just your hands, a bib, and our unique and absolutely irresistible KC sauces - a combination of spicy, sweet and tangy flavors - over freshly prepared seafood that will give your taste buds satisfaction unlike anything else you’ve ever tasted. Join us and partake in the festivities and quality of seafood that The Kickin’ Crab has to offer.

[REVIEW]

Jump for Joy

Viet-Cajun arrives in St. Louis at the outstanding Joyful House

Written by CHERYL BAEHR

Joyful House 3900 South Grand Boulevard, 314-696- 8255. Mon., Tues.,Thurs. 11 a.m.-8:30 p.m.; Fri.-Sat. 11 a.m.-9 p.m.; Sun. 11 a.m.-8 p.m. (Closed Wednesdays.)

The ph͙ t£i b´ vi¬n at Joyful House is a revelation in how powerful a simple broth can be. Clean and bright but still intensely flavorful, this glorious nectar tastes as if the very essence of beef has been distilled into a delicate liquid. More straightforward — and decidedly less sweet — than other versions of the classic 9ietnamese soup, the only flavor that punctuates the meaty broth is the subtle licorice perfume of anise. Thin slices of rare beef and herb-flecked meatballs bob in the glorious liquid along with silken noodles and, if you choose to add them, fresh herbs and bean sprouts.

Everything about this magical soup points to the fact that Joyful House is an outstanding 9ietnamese restaurant. And that’s correct — but it’s only part of the picture of what makes this four-monthold eatery such a delight. Flip past the first three pages of pho, b£nh m® and vermicelli bowls, and you come to a section of the menu advertising crawfish, shrimp and crab boils that seem more appropriately placed at one of the numerous seafood-boil restaurants that have opened across town in the past year. For a newcomer to this particular style of cuisine, 9iet-Cajun, it might seem like an odd combination. However, to anyone following culinary trends, it’s an indicator that Joyful House has quietly brought to town one of the hottest styles of cooking in the country.

Unless you’ve watched chef David Chang’s Netflix show Ugly Delicious or follow national food publications, the term 9iet-Cajun

A selection of dishes at Joyful House, including the spicy seafood boil (pictured top right) and a bánh mì sandwich (pictured bottom le). | MABEL SUEN

is likely a new one. The cooking style, however, is not and traces its roots back several decades to Houston and the 9ietnamese refugees that put down roots there following the 9ietnam War. As the story goes, members of this community were quickly enamored with the open-air crawfish boils they’d encounter in Houston, and they eventually began to put their own spin on the genre, incorporating Southeast Asian flavors with traditional Cajun ones.

The genre soon became intensely popular in Houston and eventually Los Angeles. It wasn’t until Houston chef Trong Nguyen of Crawfish & Noodles received a James Beard semifinalist nod for Best Chef: Southwest in 2018, though, that the style became white hot. It has since spread to other cities across the country, and now, St. Louisans can try it here, too.

Linh Ly (the face of Joyful House) and her family discovered 9iet-Cajun food throughout their travels and fell in love with the flavors. When the time came for them to move their international grocery store across the street from its original address on South Grand, they saw it as an opportu

nity to bring this style of cooking to St. Louis.

Although their original store was adequately sized for a grocery store, the new digs were not only significantly larger — they also came with a full-size commercial kitchen and dining room. Family members got to work concocting recipes both from memory and in accordance with their own flavor preferences and opened their doors in late September 2019 to share their creations with the rest of the city.

Joyful House’s large dining room is a blank canvas for enjoying this colorful cuisine — literally. The restaurant is glaringly bright, outfitted in pale, icy gray-blue paint and a white wall of carved tiles. There have been a few attempts to bring character to the space — a cool, sea-themed mural of a fish, crab and bowl of noodles at the front door as well as red garland heart wall-hangings hung every few feet on the sparse walls, likely a nod to the then-upcoming 9alentine’s Day holiday. It’s a bit sterile, but it’s much nicer than what you’d expect from a restaurant inside of a grocery store.

Joyful House more than makes up for such bare-bones decor with its colorful food. Like the pho, the 9ietnamese side of the menu shows the Ly family’s prowess in the cuisine of their homeland. The b£nh m® Ó̱c bít, for instance, is perfection of the form, beginning with the shockingly fresh 9ietnamese baguette that is as crisp and flaky as a croissant on the outside and pillow-soft inside. The bread serves as a base for layers of thinly sliced pork, p¤t«, pickled vegetables and herbs, and a garlic mayo infuses every bite with pungent creaminess.

If Joyful House’s pho is a soothing bowl of comfort to the palate, the b¼n b´ hu̹ soup is an energizing jolt of electricity. The noodle soup is heartier in texture than the pho, its broth scented with lemongrass and ginger. However, the real treat is the layer of fiery chile oil that slicks the top of the bowl. The spice is a striking contrast to the fatty pork patty, pork feet and beef shank contents of the soup. The layers of texture and flavors are magical.

The Shaking Beef, or bo luc lac, is another excellent dish. Cubes of tender steak are soaked in a soy-forward marinade, coated in black pepper, then seared with Continued on pg 28

Shrimp stir fried in ginger and scallion sauce. | MABEL SUEN

HAPPY HOUR

JOYFUL HOUSE Continued from pg 27

white onions and bell peppers. The marinade mingles with the beef’s juices, forming a glaze that soaks into the accompanying rice — a simple dish, but a dazzling one nonetheless.

Even a dish as straightforward as the 9ietnamese-style chicken wings is revelatory; juicy meat is coated in light yet crisp breading that is minimally seasoned to allow the dark meat’s flavor to shine through. However, the restaurant’s must-have poultry dish is the quail, which is flawlessly grilled so that the outer skin develops a pleasantly bitter char that complements the meat’s subtly sweet marinade.

The quail, alone, is enough to make Joyful House a standout, but the 9iet-Cajun side of the menu seals the deal. Boils include any combination of shrimp, crawfish, lobster, crab, mussels and clams and are served with corn, sausage and potatoes. The components are very similar to a Louisiana-style boil, but the key difference is the sauce and spices that give the seafood its unique flavor. This, in addition to the fact that the sauce is tossed with the seafood after it’s cooked, makes for a more intense and thicker layer of sauce that can be soaked up by all of the components.

Joyful House offers straightforward garlic butter or lemon-pepper sauces. However, the standout is its Joyful Sauce, a unique blend that pairs chile heat and garlic with a ginger perfume. You can get any of the sauces to your desired, four-point spice level (Joyful Sauce is at a minimum of a level two); the level three, or me

dium-spiced, was enough to tingle the lips and tongue without causing forehead sweat.

The seafood boils are likely why you come to Joyful House, but they should not overshadow other dishes on the 9iet-Cajun menu, including the shrimp stir-fry, or t¶m x¢o h¢nh gͥng. Massive, prawnsized shrimp are lightly dusted in flour, then saut«ed with ginger and scallions; the flour forms a silken coating for the plump, snappy shellfish. Accented with sliced white onions and sprigs of green onions, this is the bestexecuted shrimp dish I’ve had in recent memory.

Joyful House is not all about spice, but you can go that route — and if you do, the restaurant offers several fruit smoothies to cool the heat of a level-four seafood boil. If you haven’t experienced a 9ietnamese-style avocado smoothie, this is a perfect opportunity to enjoy the creamy, subtly sweet treat. For the more adventurous, the restaurant also offers a durian smoothie, which is perhaps a good training-wheels-style introduction to the controversial fruit. Blended with cream, ice and a touch of sugar, the durian is more like a really funky vanillamango-flavored custard with a distinct onion flavor.

The durian is a memorable experience, but one that, if you put aside your preconceived notions of the fruit, is wholly enjoyable. It’s exactly like Joyful House in general — if you keep an open mind about what 9ietnamese food can be, you’re in for a treat.

Joyful House Bánh mì .................................................. $4.99 Shrimp stir-fry .......................................... $17 Combo No. 2 seafood boil ....................... $22