Short Orders

21

[SIDE DISH]

Opportunity Knocks

Amy Guo says Sando Shack, now expanding, may not exist if not for COVID-19

Written by CHERYL BAEHR

Opening Sando Shack was never part of the plan for Amy Guo.

For more than two years, she and her partner Dan Jensen had been in the process of opening a poke spot at City Foundry, but delays in the project kept pushing back the timeline. The wait wasn’t ideal, but it was tolerable until this October, when Guo got laid off from her full-time job. In need of a project and income, she and Jensen decided they had to figure out something in the meantime.

“We really started thinking if there was something we could do that wasn’t a brick and mortar but a small business venture,” Guo says. “One of the things we really liked when we were living in Seattle were Japanese sandwiches. We started looking into them to see if we could put our own little twist on them, and after some research, we realized that we could do this.”

If that meantime side project, Sando Shack (@sandoshackstl), was not part of Guo’s original plan, opening a restaurant certainly wasn’t — at least not until recently. A self-described nine-tofiver who has spent her entire career in the corporate world, Guo says the idea of upending her life for such an undertaking was never something she imagined herself doing. Laser-focused on her career since she entered college, Guo instead found success working in business and marketing, and eventually went on to earn her MBA.

Graduate school sparked in Guo an interest in entrepreneurship, but she was still trying to figure out what that meant for her career path. However, after moving to Seattle and meeting Jensen, a picture emerged. The pair bonded over a shared love of food and travel, and they spent most of their free time trying new places to eat. Jensen, who has a background in restaurants, expanded Guo’s culinary horizons, and she taught him about the business side of food. It wasn’t long before she began to consider opening a restaurant as her next move.

Guo and Jensen were both passionate about seafood and were particularly moved by poke. But the more they looked into opening a poke restaurant in Seattle, the clearer it became to them that the market was oversaturated. This led Guo to start thinking about other locations, including her hometown, St. Louis. Around that time, the City Foundry project was beginning to recruit businesses for its food hall; Guo thought it was the right fit, so she and Jensen signed on.

That was 2019. Plagued by delays in the beginning of the project and now the COVID-19 pandemic, City Foundry is still not open. However, Guo is excited that the extra time has given her and Jensen the energy to focus on Sando Shack, something they might not have ever thought of pursuing were it not for the delay in opening their poke restaurant. Since October, the pair have been doing almost weekly Sunday popups at their friend’s Central West End spot, Saigon Cafe, and have been thrilled with the reception. In fact, the feedback has been so good that they recently bought a food truck and plan on building their brand, even when their poke spot opens at City Foundry. It’s a funny twist of fate that has somehow turned her into a restaurateur — something she is still getting used to.

“It’s been really hard, because I am used to having meetings dictate my schedule,” Guo says. “I’m still getting used to this lifestyle where I don’t have a lot going on Monday through Friday, but then I get really busy on the weekends. It’s weird feeling like Sunday nights are when I can relax and wind down, because I am used to getting ready for the week on Sundays. It’s the opposite of what I’ve always done, but I like it. I like using my skills and seeing that what I am doing is working. In the corporate world, you’re often a small part of a large project and never get to see the end result. Here, you actually see how what you do is being utilized. It’s very satisfying.”

Guo took a moment away from Sando Shack to share her thoughts on the St. Louis food and beverage community, her love of coffee and Szechuan peppercorns, and why increased communication is one COVID-era restaurant practice that she hopes sticks around postpandemic.

With Sandoshack, Amy Guo is realizing her dream of being an entrepreneur. | ANDY PAULISSEN

What is one thing people don’t know about you that you wish they did? I was born in Maryland and then spent some years living with my grandparents and going to school in China until I was nine years old. That’s when I came back to the .S. and finished school and relearned English. I’m super grateful for the experience I had in China and proud to say now I’m uent in both English and Mandarin.

What daily ritual is non-negotiable for you? Coffee. Sadly I see my productivity difference when I have coffee versus when I don’t. And it’s just so yummy!

AMY GUO

Continued from pg 21

Who is your St. Louis food crush? I have a long list of restaurants to try since moving here! I’m doing a pretty good job going through the list but still have so many places to try. So far, I’m really obsessed with the beef carpaccio from the Bellwether. That restaurant also has such a good vibe and a nice rooftop patio.

Which ingredient is most representative of your personality? Szechuan peppers. It’s an exciting spicy avor that brings a level of comfort and homey feeling. Plus I love Szechuan cuisine.

If you weren’t working in the restaurant business, what would you be doing? My background is in advertising/ marketing. Up until recently, I was working in a strategic partnership role for a tech company. I definitely loved it and would continue doing that.

As a hospitality professional, what do people need to know about what you are going through? Speaking from a business standpoint, I’ve really had to think about how to adapt our marketing methods to fit the current circumstances we are in. We haven’t been able to draw crowds in or host any type of physical grand opening to generate customer engagement like a lot of new restaurants would do. We are also not a brick and mortar where we can rely on surrounding foot traffic for business, so I have really been focusing on social media marketing and partnerships, reaching out to other local businesses and restaurants to do collaborations in order to get our name out there.

What do you miss most about the way you did your job before COVID-19? Being social, giving handshakes and hugs to our friends and customers. Meeting new people and engaging with our customers are both very important to us, so we can’t wait to gather together again in a safe environment.

What do you miss least? Crowded establishments. I enjoy how restaurants, bars, gyms, etc. have things a bit spaced out now.

What have you been stress-eating/drinking lately? Lots of takeout food and wine.

What do you think the biggest change to the hospitality industry will be once people are allowed to return to normal activity levels? The level of communication and transparency between the businesses and its customers. Since the pandemic, businesses have over-communicated about what they’re doing and how they’re taking the proper precautions of keeping their customers and staff safe and healthy — which is great. We believe that this level of communication and transparency should stay a consistent goal even after normalcy returns.

What is one thing that gives you hope during this crisis? This community and the amount of support we see everyone giving each other. From trying each others’ foods, offering help and spreading the word through advertising, collaborations and social media, this community has shown that working together is the key to getting through a crisis like this. n

[OPENINGS]

De’Lish Emporium to Open This Summer

Written by CHERYL BAEHR

For years, Jeramy Perry and Bri Rubin have been using their culinary talents to help other people realize their visions. Now, the husband and wife pastry team are excited to finally make their own dreams a reality when they open their new bakery, De’Lish Emporium (www.delishemporium.com), this summer in Benton Park.

“We’ve always done everything for everyone else, but now the question is what can we do for ourselves that will make us happy and content,” Rubin says. “I lost my job because of the pandemic; Jeramy was an essential worker. It was scary, so we felt that now was the time for us to figure out who we want to be and what legacy we want to leave for our children.”

Perry and Rubin, who go professionally by the names Jay Sweets and Bri Delights, met eight years ago while working in the restaurant business. At the time, Rubin was a culinary school graduate and Perry was currently finishing up his culinary program, both focused on pastry. It was natural that they would bake together in their spare time, and they found joy in making special treats for friends and family.

Eventually, their efforts turned into the business Bri Delights. While working full-time in other jobs, the pair tried their best to keep up with orders they got through social media, pop-ups and word-of-mouth recommendations from loved ones. After five and a half years, they wound down the operation to focus on their other jobs and raising their growing family.

Now they are back at it, only this time, they’ve taken the leap and gone all in with De’Lish Emporium. According to Perry and Rubin, the bakery is part of a multi-use building in Benton Park, near the intersection of Jefferson Avenue and Arsenal Street that is currently under construction. De’Lish will be the first part of the operation to open; after that, an events space will double as a cafe for the bakery during daytime hours. Additionally, they plan to have a space at De’Lish for local artists and makers to sell their goods, and a commissary kitchen to help people get their food business ideas off the ground.

As for the bakery itself, Perry and Rubin describe their style as nostalgic but bold. They like to take things that are familiar and reinvent them — something they have been eager to do while working for others.

“We’ve been wanting to embrace this side,” Rubin says. “Anywhere we’ve worked we’ve had these creative limits and could only go so far. This is our chance to be bold, be outside the box and do what we want to do.”

Perry and Rubin are proud of their commitment to making everthing from scratch. Their hot chocolate bombs, for instance, use not only homemade chocolate, but homemade marshmallows; every ingredient — from the cookies in the cookies-and-cream version to sprinkles — are made from scratch. Guests can also expect pastries such as traditional Frenchstyle macarons and a Chocolate Lovers cake made with chocolate cake, chocolate buttercream, chocolate macaron crunch, chocolate ganache and mini chocolate chips.

Though they don’t have an opening date, Perry and Rubin hope to have at least the bakery open in the next month or two for curbside. They plan on having their grand opening sometime in the summer.

“The St. Louis food community is so wonderful,” Rubin says. “We want to support that. It’s so good to have a community of people who you know and trust that you can send people to if there is something that you can’t make for someone. We’re so happy to be part of it, and we want to give back.” n

De’Lish Emporium will bring sweets, treats and a space for local makers to Benton Park. | COURTESY OF DE’LISH EMPORIUM

Southside Alchemy Takes the Gold

Written by CHERYL BAEHR

When bartender Todd Brutcher founded Southside Alchemy in 2019, he did so with the goal of making a superior Bloody Mary mix. Now, the cocktail world is taking notice, honoring his Sweat & Tears mixer with a gold medal at the Drunken Tomato Awards, a international contest to crown the top Bloody Mary mixes. Southside Alchemy’s Sweat & Tears mix won the “Spicy” category.

According to the judges, the mix displayed “medium consistency; sweet mild heat with underlying celery avors good heat build, good level of acidity and good thickness,” as well as “black peppery spice” that is “pretty spicy.” Southside Alchemy’s Mild Mannered Mary won the silver medal in the competitions’s “Mild” category.

This is the second year in a row that Southside Alchemy has taken home the gold at the competition. Last year, the mix received top honors in the “New Release” category.

Brutcher started making his Bloody Mary mix when he was a bartender at Onesto. Convinced that he could make a better product than the mass-produced options available in the market, he concocted his own version and developed a loyal following.

Encouraged by the reception, he started bottling his mix, together with a sangria base, under the name Southside Alchemy. The latest award is ust more affirmation that he is on the right track.

You can get your hands on Brutcher’s award-winning mixes at several local retailers, including Schnucks, Civil Alchemy and LeGrand’s, as well as farmers markets, the Canteen at 9 Mile Garden food truck park and Grace Meat + Three. n

Southside Alchemy’s Sweat & Tears Bloody Mary mix is prize worthy. | ED ALLER