Riverfront Times, November 24, 2021 by Riverfront Times

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MARCH 6-12, 2019

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THE LEDE

“We’re still doing our ceremonies, singing our songs, speaking our language. And often we [native people] don’t have a place at the table. And what I want people to think about is if you don’t see someone at the table, ask ‘Why not?’ Be a good ally. This whole thing about climate change has been in our spectrum for hundreds of years. We’re here praying for the water, because this is something we all need. ... But what I want people to know is we need water, but water doesn’t need us. So we need to take care of water and treat it as kin.”

PHOTO BY THEO WELLING

SAUNDI MCCLAIN-KLOECKENER (RIGHT), OF THE NATIVE WOMEN’S CARE CIRCLE, PHOTOGRAPHED WITH BASMIN, PERFORMING THEIR WEEKLY WATER PRAYERS AT LINCOLN SHIELDS RECREATION CENTER ON SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 21 riverfronttimes.com

NOVEMBER 24-30, 2021

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The Good News Business

eading and writing about small businesses in the past twenty months has sometimes felt like being in the obit business. We’ve watched so many of our favorites shut down and disappear. So it’s a joy this week to bring you the stories of a handful that have found opportunities — or at least ways to navigate the barriers — during the pandemic. You’ve got to be bold to start your own business, but to invest so much at a time when seemingly everything is crumbling? Inspiring. If you’re looking for a pre-holiday mood booster, or just gift ideas, take a look at our 2021 Shop Local guide, put together with help from our two stellar interns, Phuong Bui and Madyson Dixon. I hope you enjoy it. —Doyle Murphy, editor in chief

TABLE OF CONTENTS Publisher Chris Keating Editor in Chief Doyle Murphy

E D I T O R I A L Managing Editor Daniel Hill Digital Content Editors Jenna Jones, Jaime Lees Food Editor Cheryl Baehr Staff Writer Danny Wicentowski Contributors Eric Berger, Jeannette Cooperman, Mike Fitzgerald, Eileen G’Sell, Kathy Gilsinan, Reuben Hemmer, Ryan Krull, Andy Paulissen, Justin Poole, Jack Probst, Richard Weiss, Theo Welling, Ymani Wince Columnists Thomas Chimchards, Ray Hartmann Editorial Interns Phuong Bui, Zoë Butler, Madyson Dixon A R T

& P R O D U C T I O N Art Director Evan Sult Production Manager Haimanti Germain

COVER Shop Local! Meet the St. Louis business owners who took on the challenge of a pandemic while opening new stores

M U L T I M E D I A A D V E R T I S I N G Associate Publisher Colin Bell Account Managers Emily Fear, Jennifer Samuel Director of Business Development Brittany Forrest, Rachel Hoppman Director of Marketing and Events Olia Friedrichs Regional Director of Marketing and Events Kristina Linden C I R C U L A T I O N Circulation Manager Kevin G. Powers E U C L I D M E D I A G R O U P Chief Executive Officer Andrew Zelman Chief Operating Officers Chris Keating, Michael Wagner VP of Digital Services Stacy Volhein www.euclidmediagroup.com

Cover photo by

PHUONG BUI

N A T I O N A L A D V E R T I S I N G VMG Advertising 1-888-278-9866, vmgadvertising.com

INSIDE The Lede Hartmann News Big Mad Feature Cafe Short Orders St. Louis Standards Reeferfront Times Culture Savage Love 6

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S U B S C R I P T I O N S Send address changes to Riverfront Times, 5257 Shaw Avenue, St. Louis, MO, 63110. Domestic subscriptions may be purchased for $78/6 months (MO add $4.74 sales tax) and $156/year (MO add $9.48 sales tax) for first class. Allow 6-10 days for standard delivery. www.riverfronttimes.com The Riverfront Times is published weekly by Euclid Media Group | Verified Audit Member Riverfront Times PO Box 179456, St. Louis, MO, 63117 www.riverfronttimes.com General information: 314-754-5966 Founded by Ray Hartmann in 1977

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NOVEMBER 24-30, 2021

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NOVEMBER 24-30, 2021

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HARTMANN Mail Bag A letter from the (ex) president of the United States of America BY RAY HARTMANN

onald Trump has specifically requested that I not share this with anyone, but even though I’m one of his “BEST” supporters, I’m simply too excited to follow his wishes on this one. President Trump personally sent me an email — and by that, I mean a correspondence “ONLY meant” for me — that has given me the opportunity of a lifetime: the chance to “enter to win” a baseball that he signed while attending the World Series in Atlanta. I know he was there at the game — and he probably signed the ball between the times he was chip-chopping to mock Native Americans along with the Atlanta Braves fans. I saw the video of him doing that alongside our doting first lady. All I need to do is to contribute to the “Save America” fund for our real president and I have a real chance to win this treasure of a lifetime. Some people are saying that it’s the strongest and greatest offer ever made. Here’s what the email said: “Ray, “You have always been an incredible Patriot and I want to offer you something special. “I hand-signed a BASEBALL while I was in Atlanta watching the game and I want to make sure it’s given to one of my BEST supporters. My team told me you rank among the top in every category. “Since I am determined to give this baseball to only the most loyal of my supporters, I need you to keep this email confidential, Ray. It’s only meant for YOU. “I will be looking over the entry list soon - make sure I see your name there, Ray.” I’m just speechless. I have no idea how our president’s team determined that I “rank among the top in every category.” I don’t even know how I got on the mailing list, but I’m proud to have been there since just before the November 3

Many people are saying he writes the best letters. | TRUMP WHITEHOUSE ARCHIVES/FLICKR insurrection. I’m sure there are cynics out there who would question whether President Trump will personally look over the entry list. They’d say, “Don’t worry: He won’t really know if your name’s not there.” Well, did the Fake News Media say that about Santa Claus? I do miss the good old days. Do you know that from October 30 to January 6, I received 373 emails from our president and some other amazing people that I’m sure he told to contact me? I heard from Eric Trump, Lara Trump, Newt Gingrich, Rudy Giuliani, Mike Lindell and even Mike Pence during that time. But the letters I’ll always remember are the personal ones from the president himself. Here’s one of the first that he sent, on November 5, two days after the November 3 insurrection: “Friend, “THE DEMOCRATS WILL TRY TO STEAL THIS ELECTION! “Just like I predicted from the start, mail-in ballots are leading to CHAOS like you’ve never seen, plain and simple! The Radical Left is going to do whatever it takes to try and rip a TRUMP-PENCE VICTORY away from you, and that’s why I’m coming to you now. “I need YOUR HELP to ensure we have the resources to protect the results. We can’t allow the Left-wing MOB to undermine our Election. I’m asking my fiercest and most loyal defenders, like YOU, to FIGHT BACK! “I warned the Nation this would happen. I knew the Democrats

wouldn’t be able to accept another CRUSHING defeat, so now they’re trying to mess with the results. It’s madness! “I’m relying on your support right now more than I ever have before. Can I count on you to step up and FIGHT BACK!” I don’t mind sharing this letter with you today because it’s proof that President Trump was wise enough to have known that this election might get stolen from him by Democrats and the Far Left and the Fake News Media and some Republicans in Georgia, Arizona and Michigan. He told us that this would happen before if it even did. What more evidence does someone need to know that this was a steal? Some of his other personal letters really made me understand what was happening. Like this one that arrived on Thanksgiving Day in 2020: “Friend, “Despite the Left’s attempts to undermine this Election, I will NEVER stop fighting for YOU. “My Administration is achieving things no one thought possible - the stock market is up BIG, the coronavirus vaccine is underway and will be completed safely very soon. “We are accomplishing so much, which is even more reason to step up and DEFEND THE ELECTION! We cannot let the Democrats STEAL this Election from your alltime favorite President. They’ll DESTROY everything we’ve worked so hard for. “I’m calling on YOU to FIGHT

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BACK. We need to bolster our critical Election Defense Fund if we’re going to keep going. We can’t do this without you. “I had such a big lead in all of these key battleground states late into Election night, only to see the leads miraculously disappear as the days went by. Perhaps these leads will return as our legal proceedings move forward, but only if we have the resources to KEEP FIGHTING! “You’ve never let me down before, and I know you won’t start now. “Contribute $5 RIGHT NOW to stand with me and to DEFEND the integrity of our Election.” Looking back, that had so much it in, especially arriving on the holiday and all. I must admit I hadn’t noticed the part about the vaccine being safe, but he sure was right to tell me that he was my “all-time favorite President.” But I do feel a little guilty. You see, I forgot to send him money that time, or ever. And he ended up being proven right again. The president’s legal proceedings didn’t work as planned, but the Fake News Media didn’t tell us the full story, which is that the legal efforts only failed because the president didn’t receive enough resources to keep fighting. Still, the most important thing about this latest personal note I received from President Trump is that I finally heard from him again. The letter was dated November 16. That’s ten months and ten days since I last heard from him, at 12:44 p.m. CST on January 6. That one arrived precisely fourteen minutes after police were overwhelmed by MAGA patriots on the steps of the U.S. Capitol, where they had been sent to stop the election certification by our all-time favorite president. Even as one of President Trump’s BEST supporters, I hadn’t heard from him about donating money since. But I have now. n Ray Hartmann founded the Riverfront Times in 1977. Contact him at rhartmann1952@gmail.com or catch him on Donnybrook at 7 p.m. on Thursdays on Nine PBS and St. Louis In the Know with Ray Hartmann from 9 to 11 p.m. Monday thru Friday on KTRS (550 AM).

NOVEMBER 24-30, 2021

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NEWS

Ex-St. Louis Cop Sentenced to One Year in Beating of Detective Written by

DOYLE MURPHY AND DANNY WICENTOWSKI

x-St. Louis cop Dustin Boone was sentenced today to one year and a day in federal prison in the beating of a Black colleague, whom he mistook for a protester. The sentence handed down by Senior U.S. District Judge Richard Webber was lower even than the 26 months requested by Boone’s attorneys and a sharp departure from the ten years recommended by prosecutors and federal guidelines. Before announcing the sentence, Webber said that Boone was being judged “for his actions and not the action of others” — a reference to the chaotic scene during a protest on September 17, , in hich multiple o cers set upon Detective Luther Hall ith fists, knees and sticks. Boone was convicted in June of a federal felony for depriving. Hall of his civil rights. His sentence includes three years of supervised release and an order to repay $6,900 in restitution. During the 2017 protest, Boone was part of the police department’s Civil Disobedience Team, better known as the “riot police.” e and hundreds of other o cers deployed that September to quell protests against police brutality after another ex-cop, Jason Stockley, was acquitted of murder in the 2011 killing of Anthony Lamar Smith. cers responded ith force, unloading on protesters with pepper balls and tear gas in what a federal judge later described as an

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Dustin Boone (right) with wife Ashley and stepfather Anthony Boone. | DOYLE MURPHY “arbitrary and retaliatory fashion to punish protesters for voicing criticism of police or recording police conduct.” Police also conducted mass arrests, after which dozens of people reported being maced and beaten even as they follo ed o cers commands. While Hall’s mission that night was to gather evidence of lawbreaking and property crime, he became one of hundreds of people arrested during the demonstrations. He was working undercover, posing as a protester, hen hea ily armored o cers in Boone’s unit swarmed him. Hall later reported being beaten “like Rodney King.” In a statement to the court, Hall said the beating left his life “forever changed” and that he remains in physical pain. “People tell me it will get better,” Hall continued. “It will never be normal. I can never put this behind me because the pain reminds me of hat my fello o cers did to me.” Boone has admitted he kneeled on Hall’s back and pinned his head to the pavement during the attack but has insisted he never hit the detective and only piled on after the beating was underway. While federal prosecutors argued that Boone had a more direct role in the beating, Webber took clear sides in his remarks to the court: At the beginning of Monday’s

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The sentence was lower even than the 26 months requested by Boone’s attorneys and a sharp departure from the ten years recommended by prosecutors and federal guidelines. hearing, he called for a correction in a sentencing memo that stated Boone had held Hall to the ground hile another o cer beat him. Webber called the memo’s description “an inaccurate statement of the evidence.” Later in the hearing, Webber said Boone had brie y put his knee on Hall’s back, and had slammed Hall into concrete twice, but concluded “there is no evidence the Defendant ever struck” Hall. However, prosecutors argued that there was plentiful evidence for Boone’s mindset and in-

tent during the protests. During Boone’s June trial, prosecutors revealed a series of disturbing text messages sent by Boone that included racist slurs and gleeful descriptions of beating and humiliating people during and outside of the protests. In an example from April 19, , he te ted other o cers to brag that he and another o cer had tasered a suspected car thief in the head. “Dude caught a tampering 1st, resisting stealing of a motor vehicle out of the county and a TASER to the fuckin dome?” Boone wrote, adding, “Caught him in some THICK over grow in a side vacant lot, there was nobody around except me. Shaw, shithead and god... he is at the hospital now... poor guy.” Encouraged by at least one other o cer on the te t thread, oone added, “Hahaha we made him tell the other o cers on scene that he is a pussy! Hahaha he was puking on himself while EMS was looking at him and saying ‘I’m a pussy, in a pussy.’ And crying...... it was the greatest moment of my short career! Lol.” During the sentencing hearing, Assistant U.S. Attorney Carrie Costantin requested that Boone be sentenced to ten years in prison, and argued that the text messages showed Boone had been involved in four separate assaults as a St. ouis police o cer. he also noted that on the night of Hall’s beating, Boone had set up his phone so it could livestream the action to his girlfriend at home. “He’s totally showing off for her, showing how tough he is, showing what he’s going to do to this protester,” Constantin said. “This was entertaining to him.” The shocking text messages ere often sent to fello o cers but also members of his own family. Boone’s stepfather, Anthony Boone, retired as a sergeant in 2020 after 30 years on the force. He, his wife and Boone’s sister wrote letters to the judge ahead of Monday’s sentencing arguing, claiming Boone wasn’t the violent racist portrayed by prosecutors. Prosecutors responded by revealing the family’s own racist messages from Boone’s toxic group texts. “The zoo keepers cut off the supply of bananas and they are PISSED,” Anthony Boone texted as

protesters gathered in the streets after the Stockley verdict. In his statement, Hall addressed the raft of racist texts, noting that Boone’s family had claimed the messages eren t re ecti e of the “real” Boone. “But they are,” Hall said of the texts, and added that they show “blatant racism” and “disdain for the African American community.” Boone has his defenders. Anthony Boone claimed in his letter that he was friends with Hall, and that later he gave his stepson the detective’s cell phone number so he could apologize. Records of the text that Boone sent as an apology, released at trial, showed that Hall never responded. When it was Boone’s turn to make his statement before sentencing, he momentarily turned to face the audience, and Hall, who was sitting in a middle row with family and supporters. In the statement, Boone said his initial apology was “100 percent heartfelt” but added that he understands if Hall cannot accept it. Boone’s statement never touched on the night of the protest or his own actions, but instead focused on the aftermath of the release of his and his family’s racist text messages. Calling the texts “disgusting,” Boone said he would be embarrassed by them for the rest of his life. He said the texts represented “ignorant, irresponsible speech,” but also argued that his family, whose texts have now been made public as well, have been “defamed” by the prosecution. “The words produced in this case from my phone do not tell the full story of Dustin Boone,” he said, and, addressing Hall, added, “I’m sorry you had to read those words; please forgive me.” While sentenced to a year in prison, the additional day means that he can qualify for “good time” credit, which gives him a chance to further reduce his sentence with good behavior. Boone and four other city police o cers ere e entually indicted in the attack on all. o cer Randy Hays pleaded guilty and admitted bludgeoning Hall with a baton and kicking him. Bailey Colletta, who was dating Hays, also pleaded guilty, admitting she lied to a grand jury as part of the attempted coverup.

ays, ho testified against oone at his first trial, as sentenced to 52 months in federal prison. Colletta got two days behind bars and probation. cer te en orte as ac uitted, and jurors split on charges against e o cer hristopher yers during two trials, acquitting him of one charge and failing to reach a decision on another. He’s expected to plea to a misdemeanor rather than face a third trial. In Hall’s statement before Boone’s sentencing, he said the punishments meted out to Hays and Colleta were an example of “leniency” not shown to Black defendants. He told Webber that Boone’s sentence could send a “strong message” to the law enforcement community and that the “culture of excessive force” in the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department would continue unless o cers are held accountable. Hall and his attorneys did not make any statement after the sentencing. Heather Taylor, a retired SLMPD homicide detective and former president of the Ethical Society of Police, has been a frequent presence in the courtroom through the multiple trials against the officers implicated in all s beating. She now works as a senior adviser to St. Louis Public Safety Director Dan Isom. Outside the federal courthouse after the hearing, Taylor said the twelve-month sentence “is not going to help SLMPD.” “What I take from this, as a citizen of St. Louis, is that if you’re a hite o cer, and you ha e racism in your heart and spirit, and you attack someone clearly because they’re African American, you can show up before this judge in particular and he’s going to give you the least amount of time possible,” she said. “He will not take into account how that affects the people that live in the city.” Hall settled a civil lawsuit against the city for $5 million. He is still seeking materials gathered during the investigation as he continues to pursue a civil suit against indi idual o cers, including Boone. On Monday, before the sentencing hearing, Webber ruled that some of those materials, including full transcripts of witness testimony to the grand jury, will remain sealed. n

Boone Family’s Racist Texts Revealed Written by

DOYLE MURPHY Warning: Text messages quoted in this story include racial epithets.

n a letter, retired St. Louis police Sergeant Anthony “Tony” Boone wrote that his stepson Dustin Boone decided to switch careers from electrician to city cop because he wanted to “follow in my footsteps.” If racist text messages released in court documents are any indication, that’s exactly what happened. As protesters hit the streets in 2017 following the acquittal of a former police officer accused of murder, the elder Boone texted family members, “The zoo keepers cut off the supply of bananas and they are PISSED.” Two days later, he texted, “I’m sure the primate house will be the first to get broken into — free all their cousins and shit.” Federal prosecutors had focused on Dustin Boone’s text messages during his two trials for the beating of a Black undercover officer. Convicted in June, he was among uniformed officers who pummeled Detective Luther Hall, kneeling on Hall’s back and pinning his head to the street during the assault. Hall suffered serious injuries, including herniated discs in his back that required surgery. Messages recovered from Dustin Boone’s phone by FBI agents captured him and other officers bragging about beating protesters as well as jubilant descriptions of abusing and humiliating people in other incidents during his twoyear career. The messages revealed in court filings had focused on what Dustin Boone wrote, generally omitting responses by others who were not on trial. But after his family members wrote letters to a judge extolling the virtues of the now-former officer in hopes of earning him a lenient prison sentence, prosecutors responded last week by revealing excerpts from the family’s toxic group texts. Along with messages from Anthony Boone, there are epithet-laden texts attributed to Dustin Boone’s mom and sister. “Holy fuck, I hate niglets,” Boone’s mother, Melissa Boone, wrote on September 22, 2017. A month later, Dustin Boone sent a photo of a cash-stuffed purse he had seized, and she responded, “that’s what you call a nigga wad.”

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Retired Sgt. Anthony Boone. | DOYLE MURPHY On September 30, 2017, Dustin Boone’s sister, Kayla Boone, texted about the protests, saying, “idk they were yelling and singing songs and banging drums like they were back in Africa doing a rain dance.” Anthony Boone was still on the force for nearly three years after the texts in question, retiring in January 2020 after 30 years with the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department. Asked whether the department had concerns about Anthony Boone’s cases and, more broadly, racism among St. Louis police officers, a department spokeswoman said in an email that the “reported statements by the former employee are absolutely disturbing.” The spokeswoman noted the department had contracted with a consultant to “conduct a more robust racial bias and diversity training class as part of our Continuing Education program for all commissioned officers. This training began near the end of the summer and is near completion. While racial bias and diversity training is a yearly, mandatory component for all licensed Missouri Police Officers, we will continue to explore comprehensive training classes such as this to fulfill our Continuing Education requirements, and incorporating it into our Academy training.” Dustin Boone’s attorneys requested a sentence of 26 months in prison, well below the ten years recommended by sentencing guidelines and requested by prosecutors. In hopes of showing their client in the best light, they included Boone’s awards from the department and a dozen letters from relatives, cops and friends. The letters describe Boone Continued on pg 12

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Kim Gardner Defends Her Work, Meets a Fan Written by

DANNY WICENTOWSKI

fter an hour of listening to St. Louis’ top prosecutor, Terrion Watson approached the front of the Harris Stowe University auditorium and handed a crisp $100 bill to Kim Gardner. It was November 17, a rainy Wednesday night, and Gardner, the St. Louis Circuit Attorney, was making a rare public appearance for her supporters — and while they gave her frequent applause, only Watson expressed his admiration with currency. With a look of surprise — and with some amusement — Gardner took the bill from Watson’s outstretched hand. She walked to one of the upholstered chairs set on stage for the night’s event, and, after retrieving a pen from her bag, she signed her name in blue ink across the bill’s back before returning it to its waiting owner. “I wanted to talk to her so bad,” Watson explained later. With audience members lined up for photos, he hadn’t had a chance to do more than place the bill back in his wallet before she was on to the next person. “I wanted to tell her I appreciate her,” Watson told the Riverfront Times. “I admire her; she’s a hero in my book. She’s one out of a million.” That’s just one person’s opinion of Gardner, though many would agree with him: Gardner easily won a second term in 2020’s election and remains one of the most prominent examples of the nationwide wave of reform-minded prosecutors who swept into office in the wake of the Ferguson uprising and criminal justice protests of 2014.

RACIST TEXTS Continued from pg 11

as a loving dad and generous neighbor and friend. Those who address his racist text messages described them as an aberration, contrary to his character. The Ethical Society of Police, an organization primarily of minority police officers, released a statement saying officers such as Boone must be held accountable. “The quotes about Mr. Boone’s character and explanations of his racist texts in an effort to slash his jail time also do not give him a pass on assisting with Det. Luther Hall’s career-ending injuries,” the organization said. “Mr. Boone, 10 years will not replace the lifetime of healing that Det. Luther Hall will have to experience.” In his letter to Senior U.S. District

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And yet, while the November 17 event at Harris Stowe was billed as a discussion around “transforming criminal justice,” the discussion was decidedly focused on the latest round of criticism directed at Gardner. Khatib Waheed, the office’s director of community engagement, described the event’s goals in his introductory remarks as a response to the “highly misinformed issues that continue to be perpetuated by the media, the police union and other very high-level adversaries.” If there were adversaries in the crowd, they stayed silent. Yet, while Gardner faced an audience of about 100 supporters, the event was an example of the fundamental tension in the tenure of the city’s first Black circuit attorney: She is, simultaneously, extremely popular and consistently blamed for the office’s struggles to close cases and retain staff. But Gardner remained unbowed, maintaining that the outside critics are nitpicking issues amid a bigger picture they refuse to see. “The prosecutor’s office has always been a ‘black box’ of the criminal justice system,” Gardner noted amid her first remarks of the night. “When you have these individuals criticize me and try to compare me to my predecessors, my predecessors were never the first African American prosecutor ever elected in his office since 1821. Let that sit there.” Gardner spent much of the night contrasting the challenges to her leadership with those of her predecessors. She rattled off examples: There’s the public war waged by Republican officials over her prosecution of Mark and Patricia McCloskey; the clashes with St. Louis police union over her “exclusion list” of officers she deems too untrustworthy to testify; her role in the prosecution and downfall of former governor Missouri Governor Eric Grietens; and the efforts by Missouri’s legislature to give the state’s Attorney General “concurrent jurisdiction” over St. Louis cases, to name just a few.

Judge Richard Webber, Anthony Boone describes a close relationship with his stepson, saying that he had tried to legally adopt Dustin Boone but was thwarted by Dustin Boone’s biological dad. Anthony and Dustin Boone were so close that Dustin legally changed his last name to match his stepfather’s in 2007 and presented the documents as a Christmas present, Anthony writes. The retired sergeant concedes in the letter that the text messages Dustin Boone sent were “vile” (not mentioning his own messages) but insists that’s not the kind of man his stepson is. Near the end, he urges the judge to consider Dustin Boone’s upbringing: “Melissa and I taught Dustin to treat everyone with respect and fairness and it shows in his personal life as well as when he was an electrician and continued to show in his work as a police officer.” n

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St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner faced a friendly audience. | DANNY WICENTOWSKI “My predecessors did not have to deal with the most egregious, aggressive police union in this country,” Gardner continued, referencing the St. Louis Police Officers Association. To be fair, the union also clashed with the previous circuit attorney, Jennifer Joyce, issuing a vote of “no confidence,” before she left office, but the rhetoric has hit new levels during Gardner’s tenure. The group’s business manager and spokesman, Jeff Roorda, has called Gardner a “menace to society” and said she should be removed by “force or by choice.” While Gardner’s clashes with Roorda and the union have made national headlines, the most consistent line of criticism has come in a steady drumbeat of news investigations into her office’s staffing: The first round came in June 2017, just six months into her first term, when the St. Louis Post-Dispatch revealed that at least eighteen attorneys had either resigned or been fired. Then, in a September 2019 cover story, the RFT chronicled a howl of complaints directed at Gardner’s office from attorneys, prosecutors and public defenders, all who described various levels of dysfunction between Gardner’s handpicked managers and existing attorneys. One year later, the Post-Dispatch followed up with its own deep-dive, reporting that more than 65 attorneys had either quit or been fired since Gardner took office — a turnover rate of more than 100 percent and representing a loss of more than 470 years of combined prosecutorial experience. In response, Gardner has repeatedly defended her office and insisted the losses were part of the expected transition and exiting staffers would be replaced. But in 2021, that has not been the case: This September, the Post-Dispatch reported that her office was down to fewer than 30 prosecutors and “desperately understaffed.” Still, there has been some recent movement to restaff the office: Gardner recently added five new employees,

including a chief trial assistant in the form of Marvin Teer, who had previously served as an assistant attorney general and traffic court judge in St. Louis. During Gardner’s November 17 event at Harris Stowe, Teer and about a dozen circuit attorney staff members were prominently seated in the first two rows near the stage. It was a show of support — but also something of a tangible retort to the recent reporting of a staff exodus. In her remarks that night, Gardner insisted that the Circuit Attorney’s Office “has never been filled to capacity,” and argued that it is normal for younger lawyers to “cut their teeth” prosecuting cases before leaving for higher paid jobs. She also argued that raising starting salaries, from $40,000 to $50,000, had helped “keep some people, but it’s not enough.” Gardner stayed consistent throughout the night, framing criticism of her office as either unfair or misaligned with the reality of working inside a justice system — particularly a system that is buckling under multiple sources of pressure, from the pandemic shutdowns to corrupt police to the persistent lack of trust that keeps crime victims and witnesses from coming forward. Despite the years of bad press, Gardner’s position is essentially unchanged since her winning 2017 campaign that made her circuit attorney: expanding diversion programs, reducing mass incarceration and repairing faith in the criminal justice system. “I have a lot of people who tell me I should just slow down, you know, I shouldn’t push as hard,” Gardner told her audience near the end of the event. “I want to push harder, you know; I want to fight harder, because I know it’s bigger than just me, it’s bigger than the time we’re in right now. What’s bigger is the future.” From his seat in the middle of the auditorium, Terrion Watson listened to Gardner with awe. “She’s fighting for what’s right,” he explained from his seat, moments after returning from the stage with his signed $100 bill. He said he had spent eight of the past nine years in state prison, and that his friends still behind bars had encouraged him to go see the city’s prosecutor. Watson wasn’t worried about Gardner’s staffing issues or the latest news report on her office’s dysfunction. He had listened to her call out corrupt cops and acknowledge that the legal system often put innocent people in prison — and to him, her words had hit like a revelation. “What she’s doing is hard. She’s fighting against a whole, big monster, and that system she’s fighting against, they’re not going to let up,” he observed. That’s why he had to approach the stage after her speech. Asked why he wanted her to sign the $100 bill, Watson answered simply: “Because she’s 100 percent real.” n

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THE BIG MAD A Very Special Big Mad Teaching bad cops a terrible lesson Written by

DOYLE MURPHY

e’ve got a special Big Mad edition this week. Instead of spreading the anger a mile wide and an inch deep, we’re drilling straight down to tap into molten fires of fury. The topic: the sentencing of ex-St. Louis police officer Dustin Boone. Going into Monday’s hearing in front of U.S. District Judge Richard Webber, Boone’s attorneys clearly thought they were in trouble. Their guy had participated in 2017 in a brutal assault on undercover Detective Luther Hall. Jurors convicted him in June of violating Hall’s civil rights. Faced with that, the lawyers were left to do the kind of creative hairsplitting that, done well, diverts from big, terrible facts and makes people think the smaller details are actually the most important part. For example: Yes, Boone kneeled on Hall’s back and pinned his head to the pavement during an attack. But attorneys focused on when he piled on, as if there is a good time to join a lopsided assault on your co-worker. Making their job even more difficult, the FBI had pulled just about the worst text messages a cop accused of assaulting what he thought was a Black protester could send. It’s tough to argue your client isn’t about beating the hell out of protesters when he’s texting, “It’s going to be a lot of fun beating the hell out of these shitheads once the sun goes down and nobody can tell us apart!!!” The defense attorneys really didn’t even have one of their usual tools — nice comments from Boone’s family members — to soften his image. They tried that, but then prosecutors reached a little deeper in the bag of garbage that was Boone’s texts and pulled out the horrifically racist messages his retired cop stepfather, mother and sister had sent in family group texts. Right, did we mention Boone was texting stuff like “Fuckin n-----s” to people? So the lawyers did what they could, making a version of the “locker room talk” argument here, explaining that Boone was just one of many shitty cops there. They knew their client was going to prison. Their task was to polish him up as much as possible and suggest to the judge a sentence that was low, but still significant enough to show Boone understood the gravity of what he had done.

They settled on 26 months. Two years and two months was way lower than the decade that the federal guidelines called for, but you’ve got to start somewhere. This felt like offering $2,000 for a car, hoping you can buy it for $2,500. Attorneys for Randy Hays, the ex-cop who clubbed Hall with a baton and testified against Boone, asked for 36 months in his case, and prosecutors recommended 70, going easy because of his cooperation with investigators. Judge Webber landed in the middle with 52 months. When it came time to sentence Boone, Hall pleaded in court with Webber to “send a strong message” to law enforcement. He criticized the judge’s “leniency” in Hays’ punishment and offered a glimpse of the toll the beating had taken. “People tell me it will get better,” Hall told Webber. “It will never be normal. I can never put this behind me because the pain reminds me of what my fellow officers did to me.” And, well, Webber did send a strong message to law enforcement. In court, he read excerpts of letters people sent in advance of the sentencing (standard in such hearings), allowed a Boone supporter in the audience to come forward and give a rambling endorsement of the former cop (less standard) and then offered his own, confusing anecdote of a childhood brush with racism (getting pretty weird). All of that seems fairly confusing, but when he got to the point, it was this: Boone wasn’t that bad. Certainly not as bad as prosecutors had argued. Not as bad as Hall, who had the experience as a Black officer of getting his ass kicked by white officers and then learning at least one of them was a hardcore racist, thought they were. And not even as bad as Boone’s own attorneys wagered in recommending those 26 months. No, Boone was only twelve-months-inprison bad, in Webber’s judgment. Boone only “briefly” kneeled on Hall’s back, the judge assured everyone. Boone wasn’t the one punching, kicking, body-slamming and baton whipping Hall, Webber argued. Boone — a white cop whose texts included accounts of multiple beatings, advice to other cops on which drugs were best and a message about taking “the 20s” and whether “sarge is cool w taking any of that cash” — was actually only a tenth as bad as the federal guidelines said he was, according to Webber. At best, whatever sentence Webber delivered, bad cops were only going to learn to be more discreet than Boone, who liked to memorialize his bad acts in texts. But Webber’s message to Boone’s fellow officers was surprisingly strong: Don’t even worry about it. n

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Meet the St. Louis business owners who took on the challenge of a pandemic while opening new stores BY DOYLE MURPHY AND MADYSON DIXON

n his new store — a pandemic venture that started out as a hobby — David Boykin is as much tour guide through the collections as salesman. He points out the Bing Crosby jukebox, a portrait of a high-society woman whose name is lost to St. Louis history, the few pieces of Josephine Baker memorabilia that haven’t sold already, vintage KSHE bumper stickers designed to promote St. Louis tour stops of legends such as Pink Floyd, and more than 100 clocks, all but two in working order. “The No. 1 comment: ‘There’s too much. I’m overwhelmed,’” he says. To make his point he gestures to a half Volkswagen taxicab that somehow disappears at the left of the entrance. “I have this gigantic car here, and they never see it.” Frenchtown Records, Antiques & More opened October 1 at 941 Park Avenue, a rare retail shop along the southern border of the LaSalle Park neighborhood, just across Interstate 44 from Soulard. It’s in this location because Boykin and his wife Christine live a few doors down, but the reason the business exists at all is the pandemic. “We were bored silly,” Boykin

says of the decision to bring the combination record-antique store to life. The overarching narrative of COVID-19’s effect on small businesses is one of destruction. While Amazon cashed in on the switch to increased online ordering in a socially distanced world and pocketed record profits that ere more than $100 billion higher in 2020, the past twenty months have been an ongoing wake for St. Louis restaurants and mom-and-pop stores. The ones that have survived have almost universally suffered body blows that will leave deep bruises for years to come. But it’s not all ruin. Determined entrepreneurs have also found openings in the chaos to launch new ventures, expand operations or chase dreams they otherwise might never have pursued. That was true of Boykin, who has a long running financial ser ices business in Clayton but was also inspired to do something with his giant collection of vinyl. His offerings at renchto n re ect his tastes, focusing primarily on rock, punk, reggae, soul and classical. The shop doesn’t sell online, and the collec-

tion is smaller than that of other record stores, but tightly curated. Christine Boykin, nicknamed the Chandelier Whisperer, works alongside her husband with a small staff to manage the many specialties of the place. David Boykin says they ended up doing the renovation on the two-story building themsel es after finding it nearly impossible to find and keep contractors during the early pandemic. Eventually, they plan to host concerts in the adjacent lot and maybe even e pand into the top oors or build a warehouse in back. Asked if he would have recommended to his financial ser ices clients to open a business during a global health and economic crisis, Boykins laughs. “No. For anyone doing any type of retail, it’s dicey,” he says, even in normal times. “It’s outrageous how much comes at you when you open a small business.” But for him, it was the opportunity to step back and try something new, something he says wouldn’t have happened otherwise. “If it wasn’t for COVID,” Boykin says, “this would never be here.”

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Trisha Boyle took her daughter’s advice on Sophia’s Crowns Flower Shop. | PHUONG BUI

or Trisha Boyle, her business was growing, pandemic or no pandemic. She started Sophia’s Crowns Flower Shop in 2018 in her two-bedroom apartment with the idea that o ers should be affordable to everyone. Beyond crowns, bouquets and arrangements, she offers classes, including Flower Crown Building and Sip for adults and Grow and Learn for kids. In the future, she plans to create a community garden and a greenhouse for o ers on a pair of lots she has leased through the Land Reutilization Authority in south city’s 11th Ward. With everything going on, she needed a shop. “I wanted to be able to deliver more for my market, and I knew to do that, I had to expand,” she says. “I knew that I had to grow

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from my home to an actual brickand-mortar.” The pandemic didn’t change that. Looking online one day, she quickly found a space inside a former YMCA at 4500 South Kingshighway Boulevard that has been converted into a mixed-use development with apartments and a honeycomb of commercial spaces filled ith small businesses. he held her grand opening on Juneteenth. She’s found that COVID-19 has affected certain logistics — curbside pickup and touchless delivery became part of her offered services, for example — but the demand for o ers continues. There were still weddings and memorials, corporate events and friends sending good wishes. And all those people working from home needed a little life in their

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spaces. “Flowers have been proven to improve productivity,” Boyle says. “They have been proven to reduce stress, improve your mood, sleep they ha e a lot of o er power.” The pandemic is a challenge, but Boyle is used to those. In fact, it was a hurdle that prompted her to start the business. Her eldest daughter, the shop’s namesake Sophia, has a variety of allergies and has had severe eczema since she was a baby. Boyle says they were dealing with all that when she took Sophia, then three years old, to Tower Grove Park, where the little girl fell in love with the o ers. oyle anted to buy her a bouquet to take that feeling home, so she called a orist. “The price was really expen-

sive,” Boyle recalls. “I was a college student at the time, a single mom. I said, ‘OK, I cannot afford to get this,’ and Sophia pretty much said, ‘Mom, we should just open our own o er shop. he said, o people can be happy like me, but not have to pay as much.’ I told her that was a great idea, because it was.” In the years that followed, Boyle set about making that happen. The t. ouis nati e is a first generation entrepreneur and says she has learned to navigate the challenges that arise. That includes the pandemic. She says she would be more afraid of failing to try than failing in business. “We as St. Louisans, we’re resilient naturally,” she says. “If there’s something we want to accomplish and do, we’ll put our minds to it. e ll figure it out.

The Webster Groves home of Betty’s Books has graphic books and fun spaces for readers of all levels and interests. | MADYSON DIXON

itting at home during the pandemic with her kids running around her, Betty Bayer found herself considering her plans for the future. She had been a librarian for years, but the idea of opening a bookstore had always been in the back of her mind. “This [the pandemic] made me prioritize my goals and see what’s most important to me,” Bayer says. With unexpected free time on her hands, she decided to take a class from the American Booksellers Association geared toward opening a store. Bayer says the class helped change what had been a longtime dream into a reality. oon, she as figuring out concrete steps, securing a space at the edge of the Old Orchard section of Webster Groves and ordering her first shipments of books. Her concept was focused on creating a family-friendly space with a specialty in graphic books for readers of all levels and interests. Betty’s Books opened on October 23. Despite the ongoing limitations of the pandemic, the first weekend was such a success that Bayer had to replenish her stock. She says she caught people in the shopping mood that hit a sweet spot before Halloween and with Christmas gift buying in the nottoo-distant future. The store sits in stylish digs at 10 Summit Avenue, a mix of dark walls and white shel es filled ith the brightly colored covers of classic comics, newly released series and fan-favorite graphic novels. In a corner, kids ill find a fort like reading nook with an open wooden roof below neon storm clouds. Betty’s has already begun to host artist appearances (St. Louis’ own Lauren Marx was a recent guest), and Bayer has plans for expanded events in the future. Her shop has a section selling the work of local creators, helping others in the area chase their dreams, too. Continued on pg 23

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At Ciao Chow, Jessica Mastrantuono-Hellmann and Frankie are getting to know neighbors — and their dogs — even better. | PHUONG BUI

SHOP LOCAL

Continued from pg 21

n the Hill, Jessica Mastrantuono-Hellmann spotted the future home of her pet store in the middle of one of the neighborhood’s prime commercial strips. “The more I looked at it, the more I fell in love with it,” she says. In July, she opened Ciao Chow at 1923 Marconi Avenue in the former home of Berra’s Furniture. Mastrantuono-Hellmann has been involved in pet rescue since she

was sixteen years old, and opening a retail shop was an opportunity to help fund her nonprofit ll a s Safe Haven. On a recent visit, she works behind the counter with the shop dog Frankie as well as Molly, a Staffordshire Bull Terrier puppy. The store is filled ith dog toys, gifts made by neighborhood artisans and the shop’s homemade pet food. Frankie slips off to the side and licks an extra of one of the doggy birthday cakes Ciao Chow offers. Mastrantuono-Hellmann is a third-generation Hill resident, and going into business here has only deepened her connection to the neighborhood.

“I knew most of the people here already, and now I’m getting to know them more personally,” she says. That goes for their pets, too. Ciao Chow has become a regular stop on walks for dog owners, who drop in to buy a quick treat. Opening during the pandemic has come with restrictions, including fewer of those personal interactions and just the general weirdness of the past year and change. “It’s not easy at any time,” Mastrantuono-Hellmann says, “but [the pet business] is one of those industries that continues to rise. eople ill al ays spend money

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on their dogs.” The new shop has given her a central location. The separate rescue operation has always been foster-based, meaning it didn’t require a physical space, but now that Ciao Chow is open, Mastrantuono-Hellmann can arrange handoffs there. In the future, she plans to add to the commercial business with a grooming service and maybe even expanded space. Eventually, opening in the midst of COVID-19 restrictions will just be part of the shop’s history. “The longer we’re here,” she says, “the more successful we’ll be.” n

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CAFE

Maria Giamportone and Daniel Gonzalez shifted their restaurant plans to St. Louis from Miami. Lucky St. Louis. | MABEL SUEN

[REVIEW]

Round-Trip Ticket Asador Del Sur transports diners to South America with its authentic cuisine Written by

CHERYL BAEHR Asador Del Sur 7322 Manchester Road, Maplewood; 314-802-8587. Wed.-Fri. noon-9 p.m.; Sat. 10 a.m.-9 p.m., Sun. 10 a.m.-8 p.m., Mon. 3-8 p.m. (Closed Tuesdays.)

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bout three years ago, Maria Giamportone and Daniel Gonzalez found themselves in St. Louis and in need of a place to eat. Having come to town from Miami to visit their relatives, the husband and wife wanted to take the family to a traditional South American-style grill — the sort of place that honored their respective Ecuadorian and Uruguayan heritages. They thought it would be easy; such restaurants were common enough in south Florida that they assumed as much about their options in St. Louis. However, to their dismay, they could find nowhere that served the sort of South American feast they wanted to experience with their family. Their disappointment quickly turned into an idea: What if they moved to St. Louis to open such a

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restaurant themselves? The thought wasn’t entirely out of thin air. For a few years, Giamportone and Gonzalez had been talking about opening a restaurant together, a reentry into the industry for Giamportone, who had owned a spot in Miami twenty years prior. Though she closed up shop and worked in other industries, she often longed to get back to her true passion and found an eager partner in her husband, who loved to grill. t first, iamportone and onzalez assumed their restaurant would be in Miami and were actively scouting locations. However, that trip to St. Louis, and their casual search for storefronts here, led them to Maplewood’s bustling commercial district. They fell in love with the area and the space

— the former Reeds American Table — signed a lease in late 2019 and set out to realize their restaurant dreams. The result, Asador Del Sur, opened in the heart of Maplewood in August of last year, breathing vibrant new life into the storefront that had been dark since Reeds’ closure in mid-2019. Central to Giamportone and Gonzalez’s vision, the restaurant, whose name translates to “southern grill,” is meant to be a transportative experience, not simply a place to eat. They wanted to evoke the feeling of actually being in coastal cuador and ruguay, outfitting the restaurant in serene orange, blond wood, plush tan chairs and a stunning cream-colored marble bar illuminated from underneath. On a dreary afternoon, it felt like

Bone-in ribeye and asparagus — meats are cooked with salt on an open grill. | MABEL SUEN

Langostinos a la parrilla, or grilled chimichurri prawns with fingerling potatoes. | MABEL SUEN an escape. If Asador Del Sur’s decor is bright, its food is positively luminous. Giamportone and Gonale are fiercely committed to offering as traditional a South American dining experience as possible, importing meat, seafood and wine that you typically do not see on St. Louis’ restaurant tables. The patacones rellenos, for instance, feature shockingly fresh shrimp cut into bite-sized pieces and tossed in lime and spicy red chiles, served atop lightly salted tostones (smashed and fried plantains). Akin to shrimp ceviche, the shellfish is so fresh you onder how it’s possible to be enjoying it in such a landlocked locale.

The broiled and chopped scallops and mussels appetizer is another coastal treat. Gonzalez imports the scallops from Barcelona and the mussels from Ecuador, mixing them with a creamy cheese sauce and baking them into the large scallop shell like a twice-baked seafood feast. It’s visually stunning — the sort of dish you’d expect as an appetizer if you feasted with Neptune himself — and every bit as delicious. Asador Del Sur is not only successful with seafood. The Ecuadorian hayacas is a delicious combination of a ors not often seen together outside of that country. Similar to a hearty Thanksgiving dressing, the dish has a cornmeal

Aguacate relleno con camarones, or avocado with shrimp, served with yucca chips. | MABEL SUEN base mixed with tender pulled chicken, peanut butter, egg, red and green peppers, onions, carrots and raisins. For the uninitiated, it sounds like a quizzical mix, but it’s so balanced that it subtly hits every part of the palate with warm comfort. Giamportone and Gonzalez’s empanadas are some of the best you ill find, not ust in t. ouis but anywhere. Stuffed with a choice of fillings, the key to the dish is the a less, golden fried crust that s like the most aky, buttery hand pie you’ve ever experienced. The beef- and olive-stuffed version is particularly special, thanks to the interplay of the juicy ground beef and briny olives. Even a simple piece of grilled Argentinian chorizo is transcendent at Asador Del Sur. The succulent pork, seasoned with garlic and paprika and wrapped up in a snappy casing, chars up on the grill so that it blisters and splits, but not so far as to dry out. Paired with verdant chimichurri, it’s a masterpiece of the form. Asador Del Sur offers a selection of grilled meats, including tender boneless chicken thighs, simply grilled with salt. Juicy and kissed with grill char, this is chicken as it was meant to be experienced — so perfect you are content enjoying it unadorned until you see the ramekin of glorious chimichurri served alongside it. Gonzalez’s children have told him that no one grills meat like he does; when you experience

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his skirt steak, you will concur. There is nothing fussy about this preparation — just a sprinkle of salt akes, the best uality meat, imported from Argentina, and a searing hot grill. The thin meat is a lessly cooked medium rare, then furled around a small skewer like a massive, unstuffed spedini. The grass-fed beef is so hearty in a or the beefiest beef you will experience, ruining you for all others like a first lo e. If the skirt steak makes you feel like you are at an Argentinian barbecue, the langostinos evokes an Ecuadorian beachfront cookout. The large shellfish are so tender and fresh, you wonder if they weren’t swimming in the sea an hour prior to arriving on the table (Gonzales says it was a matter of days, since he has them o n in fresh from Ecuador). Infused with grill smoke, all you taste is sweet shellfish meat, smoke and sea. It s ethereal. That feeling is a constant at Asador Del Sur. Through every last detail of this joyous place, Giamportone and Gonzalez have created much more than a restaurant; they have found a way to create an experience that makes you feel thousands of miles away the moment you walk through the door — even though there is nowhere you’d rather be.

Asador Del Sur Patacones rellenos with shrimp .............. $13 Langostinos .............................................. $31 Skirt steak ................................................ $38

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SHORT ORDERS

[COMING SOON]

Global Flavors Saucy Porka will open its first St. Louis location in coming months BY CHERYL BAEHR

t. Louis will soon be getting a taste of globally inspired Asian and Puerto Rican fusion cuisine courtesy of Saucy Porka (3900 Laclede Avenue). The Chicago-based restaurant has plans to open its first location outside of the Windy City in the former Kaldi’s Coffee location on Vandeventer Avenue. Though no firm opening date has been set, owner Amy Le hopes to elcome her first diners in late December or early January. For Le, the St. Louis Saucy Porka represents a homecoming. A St. Louis native, Le grew up helping her mother with two area Chinese restaurants, one in south county and the other in St. Peters. From an early age, she and her brother, Phil Le, spent their free time in the restaurant answering phones, washing dishes and serving guests. The experience was formative, and even after moving to Chicago to pursue journalism and landing a job as employee number fourteen at then-startup Grubhub, she realized that she was meant to pursue a career in the business she grew up in. “I was brought on at Grubhub to watch the blog and social media, and I got reconnected to the restaurant industry again through that,” Le explains. “Working with restaurant owners and chefs made me realize how much I missed food. I had a side hustle catering for friends’ special events, and I just made a decision that working at a startup I was watching people live their dreams. I should live mine.” At the time, roughly ten years ago, the food-truck scene was just emerging in Chicago, so Le transitioned her catering business to the roving restaurant DucknRoll.

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Saucy Porka will brings its Asian-Latin American fusion to St. Louis in the coming months. | KIM KOVACIK While working in that community, she met fellow food-truck operator Rafael Lopez, and the pair instantly connected over a shared passion for food, especially those nostalgic of their experiences growing up in Asian and Puerto Rican households, respectively. After working together on events, Le and Lopez decided to merge their culinary styles to create a fusion of Asian and Puerto Rican cuisine, christening their concept Saucy Porka. More than just a simple mix of the two traditions, Le and Lopez were committed to fully merging the techniques and a ors of sian and atin merican cuisine and quickly grew a following for their unique style. Le points to Saucy Porka’s Asian Paella as emblematic of what she and Lopez (who recently left the business to pursue work outside of the industry) were going for when they created the restaurant. The dish uses Puerto Rican-style rice cooked with soffrito as the base, then adds coconut milk to gi e it a outheast sian a or profile. The rice is then topped

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with Chinese sweet sausage, Spanish sausage, slow-cooked pork, edamame and scallions, merging the two styles into one delectable dish. Saucy Porka’s egg rolls are particularly nostalgic for Le. Having spent most of her childhood in her mom’s Chinese restaurant, egg rolls are a staple of her food memories. For Lopez, a similar feeling centered around empanadas and arepas. Le is always excited when their fusion of those experiences, a chorizo egg roll, evokes nostalgia in both their Asian and Latin American guests. “We have people tell us that the egg roll reminds them of their mom’s Chinese restaurant, but we also have Latin American customers saying it reminds them of an empanada,” Le says. “One time, my mom tasted our pork and said she felt she was eating her pork, but it wasn’t her pork. That’s what we are going for.” For the St. Louis location, Le is working with both her husband, John Keebler, and her brother, Phil Le, who has spent the past nineteen

years with So Hospitality Group, the St. Louis-based brand behind such concepts as Drunken Fish and Kimchi Guys. Le is excited to finally ha e her brother on board for the concept — something the two have talked about for a long time but that finally came together over the past year. Together, they anticipate Saucy Porka being an exciting, quick-service restaurant whose emphasis on hospitality and global a ors ill be an integral part of the St. Louis food scene. “I’m super excited, because coming back to St. Louis is full circle for me,” Le says. “Coming back to St. Louis, I’ve realized how diversified the food scene has gotten over the past eight or ten years. When I was growing up, it was not as diverse, and now I’m seeing this next generation of kids who grew up in the restaurant business from Korean, Chinese and Vietnamese families, and they are starting these concepts because the timing is right and people are interested. It’s nice to come back. lot of memories are ooding back to us in the process.” n

[FOOD NEWS]

Return of a Classic Anheuser-Busch brings back classic beer for holiday season BY CHERYL BAEHR

nheuser-Busch’s gift to St. Louis this holiday season is the return of an old favorite: the St. Louis Lager. More than 115 years have passed since the beer was last in production, but Colleen Lucas, vice president of corporate social responsibility and heritage at Anheuser-Busch, says in a press release that it’s a perfect way to “recognize the community that has enabled us to continue to grow and connect with consumers all over the world.” The beer, a dark lager-style, originally began as a regional beer that ended up being distributed across the world; it will now be produced at the company’s Research Pilot Brewery in St. Louis based on the original recipe. You can find the drink at the Anheuser-Busch St. Louis Biergarten (1127 Pestalozzi Street, 314-

577-2626). The company is unveiling the beer ahead of Giving Tuesday (November 30), and the beverage will play an important role in giving back this year: For every St. Louis Lager sold, Anheuser-Busch will donate $2 to the United Way-led 100 Neediest Cases campaign. The program helps individual St. Louisans and families throughout the holiday season. “Each year, the holiday season, including Giving Tuesday, is a time to appreciate all you have and give back to help your friends and neighbors in need,” Julio Suárez from the Anheuser-Busch Foundation said in a press release. “Our amazing St. Louis non-profit partners, like United Way, have helped us build a stronger community in St. Louis and this Giving Tuesday, we are excited to toast a St. Louis Lager to celebrate and recognize their efforts while giving back to a great cause.” The Anheuser-Busch Foundation also contributed $25,000 to the campaign. President and CEO of United Way Michelle Tucker said in the press release she’s thankful for Anheuser-Busch and the Anheuser-Busch Foundation. With the donations, Tucker said, the United Way will be able to help thousands of St. Louis families this holiday season. n

The classic St. Louis Lager returns just in time for the holidays. | COURTESY ANHEUSER-BUSCH

[SIP THIS]

Winter Wonderland Wandering Winterland pop-up bar brings holiday cheer to the Lou BY CHERYL BAEHR

f the pandemic has taught Tiffany Kaltenbach one thing, it’s that people are willing to brave the elements and take their parties outside. That’s why this year — instead of closing up shop for the season — she’s turning her traveling bar the Wandering Sidecar (thewanderingsidecarbarco. com) into a winter-themed pop-up party, Wandering Winterland. “I’ve always been pretty inspired by Miracle and those other holiday pop-up bars and thought about doing something similar to

Tiffany Kaltenbach is keeping the festivities going with Wandering Winterland. | ANDY PAULISSEN that,” Kaltenbach says. “I think this is going to be a good opportunity for people who still want to gather but maybe aren’t ready to go inside.” This is the first year that altenbach, who launched the Wandering Sidecar in 2016, has offered the Wandering Winterland experience. Completely customizable,

the pop-up includes holiday music, festi e decor, a fire pit, a heater and winter-themed warm and cold cocktails, all served out of her vintage-camper-turned-bar. A veteran bartender, Kaltenbach has created a drink list that embraces the a ors of the season. Warm offerings include Nutella Hot Cocoa, Mulled Wine and Hot

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Toddies; those looking for cold libations can choose from such concoctions as the Sugar Cookie Cocktail, the Santa Sangria or the Feliz Navidad Margarita. Typically, she suggests that guests who book Wandering Winterland choose one cold and one hot offering, though each package can be tailored to each party planner’s needs. Though Kaltenbach expects Wandering Winterland to be popular during the month of December, she believes the party will continue well into the new year. As she’s seen in the past, many party planners, especially those in the corporate space, are opting to host their holiday events after the December rush when things are more low-key. Because of this, she does not have a hard end date for the pop-up, though she expects things to dwindle down near the end of January. However, if the response she’s received to Wandering Winterland is any indication, the pop-up could go on for longer. “The day we announced was the busiest day my website has ever seen,” Kaltenbach says. “Obviously people are very interested.” n

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ST. LOUIS STANDARDS

[

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ICONIC PEOPLE, PLACES & DISHES T H A T A N C H O R S T L’ S F O O D S C E N E

Old School Hacienda’s Mexican fare connects the restaurant to the community — and to the past Written by

CHERYL BAEHR

hen Alexandra “Alex” Rodriguez tells the story of Hacienda, she cannot separate the restaurant from her late father, Norberto, even though he would have disliked some of the details she chooses to share. A native of Tampico, Mexico, Norberto immigrated to the United States when he was just sixteen years old, making the journey by himself save for an acquaintance who was bound for New York. Though Norberto thought he’d make the way up east too, his fellow expat told him that the Big Apple might be too fast for him, handed him $10 and said he should try St. Louis instead. With no formal education and no English, Norberto accepted the money and was determined to figure it out. “He always hated that I’d share he didn’t have a formal education, but I think that’s the coolest part,” Rodriguez says. “He is completely self-taught. He came here completely alone with only ten bucks and a ‘good luck’ from his friend. is first ob here as on a farm making one dollar a week. I can’t even imagine how little money that was, but he did what he had to do for a minute, then found his way into restaurants and worked his way up.” Now at the helm of the restaurant her dad founded in 1968, Rodriguez can’t help but feel a sense of pride at what he accomplished, as well as an obligation to keep his dream alive. It’s a weight — albeit a welcome one — she feels because of Norberto s significant impact on the St. Louis dining scene. When he arrived in St. Louis in the early 1960s, Mexican cuisine was not widely available, but he was instrumental in changing that. He started out slowly, opening an American-style breakfast spot in downtown Overland, where he gradually added Mexican dishes to the menu here and

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Hacienda has been a St. Louis tradition since 1968. | ANDY PAULISSEN

Now at the helm of the restaurant her dad founded in 1968, Rodriguez can’t help but feel a sense of pride at what he accomplished. there. It didn’t take long for him to develop a following, so he expanded both his hours and offerings, turning the daytime spot into a budding Mexican restaurant. Norberto’s restaurant eventually outgrew the small breakfast spot’s space, and as he looked around for larger digs, he realized that there was enough demand for his Mexican dishes to open a place solely dedicated to the country’s culinary traditions. That restaurant, Hacienda, opened in 1968 just down Woodson Road from his original daytime concept, and was an instant success — so much that he began scouting for a second loca-

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Alex Rodriguez proudly carries on her dad’s legacy. | ANDY PAULISSEN tion a handful of years after opening the Overland original. When he came upon an old residenceturned-restaurant on Manchester Road in the middle of Rock Hill, he knew he’d found his spot. When he opened the current Rock Hill Hacienda in 1977, the area as significantly less de eloped than it is today. However, Norberto had the foresight to see what the area could become, and he sold off his original location to some family members so that he

could focus on the new place. As Rodriguez explains, there was just something special about the space that people felt drawn to, likely because of its colorful history — something that everyone who worked there embraced. “This location was originally a residence that was owned by a steamboat captain,” Rodriguez says. “It had already been converted into a restaurant when my dad bought it, but if you look around, you can tell where the ex-

Hacienda’s warm atmosphere keep generations of diners coming back. | ANDY PAULISSEN

The Rock Hill location has become an icon of the city’s dining scene. | ANDY PAULISSEN terior walls were and where we added on. There’s just so much history here. The staff even thinks they have seen ghosts — there are all these stories about a woman in a purple dress. No one has seen her in a while though, so maybe she parted ways and is at rest.” Though Rodriguez never saw any specters herself, she and her brother, John, have their own stories about the restaurant that they grew up in. “We were there all the time,” Rodriguez says. “It’s funny; when you’re little, your normal is your normal. For me, having a restaurant was my normal, but I know it as definitely special. I remember being so little and helping put doilies on plates — when you are fi e, that feels special. e also learned how to fold napkins, just little things like that. When I got a little bigger, I did coat check during the holidays and definitely felt like a big kid doing that.” Though Rodriguez and her brother understood somewhere deep down that the restaurant was their birthright, they were not convinced it would be their

career. Instead, they went off on their own paths — Rodriguez to Chicago for art school and her brother to Berklee College of Music in Boston. However, when it became clear to Rodriguez about a decade ago that her father needed help, she returned to St. Louis and has been in charge of the restaurant ever since. Rodriguez says that it’s been quite a ride since taking over, especially with the challenges the last year and a half has presented. She credits her longtime staff with keeping the restaurant going — some of whom have worked there for decades, including the kitchen manager, who has been a presence at the property even before her dad owned it. “We joke around that he came with the building, because he literally did,” Rodriguez laughs. “He was working in the kitchen of the restaurant that was here before my dad bought it, and he just stayed on working even after the change. He’s worked in this building since he was seventeen making all of our recipes, and he’s still here today.”

Hacienda makes as much from scratch as possible, including its chips. | ANDY PAULISSEN Rodriguez feels that her kitchen manager’s story as well as the stories of her other longtime employees and her family are the reasons that Hacienda has such a special place in the hearts of St. Louis diners. Though she knows the food is delicious, she also understands that people continue to patronize the restaurant decades after its founding because they feel a connection to the people who work there. Those relationships are what sustained the restaurant through the pandemic-induced closures and switch to carry-out, and they continue to sustain her and her staff as they have adjusted to the new COVID-19 normal. However, Rodriguez believes there are good things that have come out of the pandemic. Though she sadly had to close her fast-casual concept, Mayana, she was able to turn the former restaurant’s food truck into an Hacienda on

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wheels. Between that and the Hacienda catering truck, she and her team were able to not just keep the restaurant a oat, but spread oy and a little bit of normalcy to the community. She hopes to continue these new ventures while keeping the restaurant steady because she knows how much it means to people — and how much it means to her to keep up the house that her dad built. “I’m always thinking of my dad,” Rodriguez says. “I always know what Dad did was special; I felt that growing up, and I always looked at it from that perspective. I feel honored and grateful to be here and am so proud of my dad — not just that he built this, but because of everything he did. He was self-taught and did this on his own, and I am honored and grateful I am a part of protecting this and keeping it going and keeping his dream alive.” n

NOVEMBER 24-30, 2021

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REEFERFRONT TIMES

[EDIBLES]

Weed Eater High-potency cannabis edibles land in Missouri dispensaries Written by

DANNY WICENTOWSKI

n some recipes, tripling one ingredient might lead to disaster. But in Honeybee’s line of popular Blood Orange Strawberry fruit gumdrops, tripling the THC content — from 100mg to 300mg — has made no difference to the fruit a ors imbued into each drop by chef a e ens. “It’s still such a small amount,” says Owens, the director of culinary for Proper Brands and its line of oneybee edibles. en ith these high potency ersions, e didn t find any real impact so far in the taste or in the consistency.” Along with the gumdrops, Honeybee is rolling out a similarly upgraded ersion of its peanut and pretzel chocolate bar, its ten pieces containing a total of 300mg. Made with European milk chocolate, roasted peanuts and crunchy pretzel, the bar is marketed as “a gro n up ersion of a childhood fa orite. It’s a product informed by Owens pre ious role as a chief chocolatier for Bissinger’s — though he notes that, as a high-end confectioner, he was often working to keep costs do n in a ery competiti e marketplace. In cannabis, things are different. A bag of gumdrops can sell from $35 to $40 in a St. Louis dispensary, and the new “high potency arieties are selling for $75. For a confectioner, that price point means greater latitude to use ingredients like premium fine chocolate and real fruit. e ha e more e ibility, ens says, though he also adds that he s ust as e cited to create ne a ors for oneybee as he as as a chocolatier for a storied confectioner like Bissinger’s. The creati ity is certainly still here,” Owens says, and jokes, “We had 350 years of history at issinger s e e ust had a year

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Colorado edibles manufacturer Robhots is bringing a line of edibles with a whopping 300mg of THC to Missouri markets. | VIA ROBHOTS here. So we’re still working on building that. e e only got more years to go.” Putting aside whether Owens and Honeybee can last to the year e re hoping humanity can make it that long, at least), Proper Cannabis co-founder Matt LaBrier points out that time is an important ariable hen talking about increasing a product’s THC potency. In a state where cannabis has been legal for little more than a year, patients with limited edible e perience can innocently intake more THC than they intend. Safely eating edibles takes a le el of caution. It could be the difference between eating half a gumdrop and a full one, and LaBrier says that Proper, which produces the line of Honeybee edibles, has had to consider the relati e ine perience of issouri patients when determining just how strong to make its products. e references the ad ice he offers to cannabis users trying an edible for the first time tart slo . “We were trying to be cognizant that this was a new market, and we didn’t want to come out of the gates with a product that had a chance of being ingested

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and being too much for folks,” he e plains. ut, pretty uickly after opening our door and selling oneybee all o er the state, e kept getting feedback that there was a market for higher-potency edibles.” Indeed, e en ith the candy and chocolate designed for taste, patients who rely on edibles for relief from pain and insomnia may find themsel es eating and spending more than they’d like to attain the same effects. Proper’s Honeybee line of edibles isn t the first to reach the 300mg benchmark for high potency in Missouri. Through a partnership with Kansas City-based cannabis producer lo r, the olorado edibles powerhouse Robhots offers t o a ors of mg T gummies, Peach Mango and Blue Raspberry, with each pack containing ten candies of 30mg THC each. The products sell for around in t. ouis area dispensaries. ansas ity nati e, Robhots founder Zack Romey has seen his company e pand from olorado into multiple cannabis industries. Like LaBrier, he credits public demand for higher THC content in edibles for dri ing the company

to offer steadily stronger arieties; that includes a 1,000mg product where each gummy contains mg of T , significantly more than Missouri’s current crop of high-potency products. ou ha e people ho really can’t eat a bunch of sugar, but they can eat a small gummy that has the high dose that they need,” Romey points out. “With our products, what we really found successful is they taste great and there s consistency. ou re ne er going to ha e a patient ho eats a gummy and they get way more than a 50-milligram dose or a 30-milligram dose.” Romey says he e pects issouri cannabis patients to see more high-potency edibles on dispensary menus, especially if the competition creates pressure for lower prices. ased on his e perience in olorado, he sees the a ailability of 300mg Robhots products as “stepping stones” to 500mg, and perhaps more. “I get emails a couple times a eek from people saying, I ha e this condition, I was on this list of prescription narcotics,’” Romey says. “Now they’re just eating our gummies.” n

Sen. Elizabeth Warren is one of the Democratic lawmakers asking the president to act. | MAVERICK PICTURES / SHUTTERSTOCK.COM

[ W E E D L AW S ]

High Crimes Senators call on Biden to pardon all nonviolent cannabis offenders Written by

LEE DEVITO

.S. Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey of Massachusetts and Jeff Merkley of Oregon sent a letter to President Joe Biden earlier this month calling on him to use his executive authority to issue a blanket pardon for all nonviolent federal cannabis offenders, whether currently or formerly incarcerated. In the letter, the senators, all Democrats, called America’s war on drugs “failed and racist.” “America’s cannabis policies have punished Black and Brown communities for too long,” the senators wrote, adding that despite legalization in states across the country, as well as roughly equal cannabis usage rates, “Black Americans are still nearly four times as likely to be arrested for cannabis possession as white Americans.” The senators also note that 27 states and Washington, D.C., have decriminalized cannabis possession, while 36 states have legalized cannabis for medical use and eighteen states, two territories and the District of Columbia have legalized cannabis for adult use. The senators point out that a majority of Americans, nearly seven in ten, support cannabis legalization. On the campaign trail, Biden said that

“we should decriminalize marijuana” and “everyone [with a marijuana record] should be let out of jail, their records expunged, be completely zeroed out.” “Our country’s cannabis policies must be completely overhauled, but you have the power to act now: you can and should issue a blanket pardon for all non-violent federal cannabis offenses, fulfilling your promises to the American people and transforming the lives of tens of thousands [of] Americans,” the letter states. “The Constitution grants you the authority to pardon broad classes of Americans to correct widespread injustice, as previous Presidents have done,” the letter added. “Most importantly, such a pardon — combined with your leadership on an accessible expungement process to formally clear the criminal records of those affected — would mark the beginning of a reversal of decades of ineffective and discriminatory cannabis policies, allowing Americans to return to their communities, find housing and jobs, and rebuild their lives without the burdens of an unjustly imposed criminal record.” Earlier this year, New York Senator Chuck Schumer, also a Democrat, introduced the Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act, which would legalize marijuana by removing it from the Controlled Substances Act, allowing for it to be taxed and regulated. The proposed legislation would also immediately expunge the criminal records of people with low-level marijuana offenses. Last year, the U.S. House voted in support of the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act, which would also decriminalize cannabis at the federal level. It was the first time Congress ever took up cannabis reform legislation. n

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NOVEMBER 24-30, 2021

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NOVEMBER 24-30, 2021

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CULTURE [COMMUNITY]

Care Package Contemporary Art Museum’s Day With(out) Art event to focus on AIDS awareness Written by

JENNA JONES

ommunity and care. Those two words encapsulate what the Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis (3750 Washington Boulevard) will focus on for its upcoming event Day With(out) Art: Enduring Care on Wednesday, December 1. The event is in conjunction with World AIDS Day, a day of awareness of the AIDS pandemic and the 40th anniversary of the first I diagnosis. St. Louis was actually home to one of the first I patients. i teen-year-old Robert Rayford died in at ity ospital o cially of pneumonia, but doctors would test his tissue in , si years after the AIDS epidemic began, and find his death as caused by an AIDS-related illness. CAM is partnering with nonprofit organi ation isual I to host the event. It will begin with a roundtable conversation as a panel discusses the power of community care through activism, cultural organi ing and art. Charles Long, an artist and activist on the panel, is involved with the group What Would an I oula o It focuses on providing direct service and support to those li ing ith I or I . Long tells the RFT the panel will probably discuss recent events, like the I pandemic, and how community care plays a role. “We’ve seen communities actually step in and fill the gap here traditional services that are provided by institutions like the government have failed,” Long says. “The importance of community care, not only in these moments, has always been present, particularly around I I acti ism. Long will be joined on the panel by Lois Conley, host of the Impact I I Initiati e and founder of the riot useum of lack is-

Charles Long, an activist and artist, will be a panelist at the roundtable discussion CAM is hosting. | COURTESY OF CHARLES LONG tory, as ell as by I educators and advocates Montrelle Day and iyonee ickman, both ith the Community Wellness Project. A press release details that the program “aims to disrupt the assumption that an epidemic can be solved with pharmaceuticals alone.” The news release instead points to “corrupt leadership within go ernment and non profit organi ations, as ell as broader racial and gender inequities that persist despite scientific ad ances. The panel discussion will lead to the sho ing of films, commissioned by isual I . ilmmaker Katherine Cheairs will have her short film Voices at the Gate shown at Day With(out) Art. Voices at the Gate was created during the pandemic and throughout challenging personal times for Cheairs and her family. She’s grateful it has come to life and for the isual AIDS members who supported her throughout the making of the film. er film is a collection of archival essays and poems from incarcerated women, many of whom li ed ith I or I . The poems, originally written in the ’90s, are performed by contemporary activists, but the cinematography focuses on the landscape surrounding prisons in rural communities, heairs e plains.

“Even if people are behind the prison wall, they still have a life — they still have their creativity. Their voices, their message to the world, reach beyond that.” “I was always struck by how there was this beautiful countryside,” Cheairs says in an interview with RFT, “and then, you know, just up the hill and over there is this large structure with these large gates and spaces of detention.” Voices at the Gate focuses on that u taposition of the open land ust ne t to a space here people are confined. he says she ants t. Louisans to be present when they atch the film, to be open to the words and images they’re hearing and seeing.

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I made a film that s kind of, in a sense, a meditation,” Cheairs says. “There’s this idea of land as a witness. The idea of a tree as witness that is listening, that it’s hearing a container of stories as well. Even if people are behind the prison all, they still ha e a life they still have their creativity. That their voices, their message to the world, reach beyond that. Because we have, you know, many people who are incarcerated now. That s ust not past it s an ongoing, present e perience. Both Long and Cheairs are hopeful the panel discussion and films ill help inspire t. ouisans to keep the conversation around I I and community care going. Long says that oftentimes people believe the focal point of activism is on the coasts, but he’s hoping that Day With(out) Art can help St. Louisans feel more connected to the “cross sections of art and community.” Cheairs wants to remind others that I and I still e ist, and to think about the past where the “vibrant activism” of the ’80s and ’90s was prominent. She points to women I acti ists like atrina aslip and Joanne Walker as inspiration. These omen ere fighting in prison for human rights, for access to I medications, access to health care as a right, not as somebody who was willing to throw their own selves away because the state or the people who put them there thought that that’s where they belonged, heairs says. or these women to actually say, ‘No, I actually am a human being. These are the things that I need. You need to include me into the definition of AIDS. I need support. I need resources. I m going to e pect this prison to actually care for me because I’m a member of the community.’ It’s something we need to be thinking about now.” Other videos will also be shown, centering mutual aid and collective care. The City of St. Louis epartment of ealth, lanned Parenthood of the St. Louis Region and Southwest Missouri, and other organi ations are scheduled to have tables with information at the event. A Day With(out) Art runs from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, December 1. Admission is free. Warm drinks and light refreshments are also e pected at the e ent. n

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NOVEMBER 24-30, 2021

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[GALAS]

Maxi Glamour to Host Black Friday Ball Written by

JENNA JONES

In addition to the Pink Floyd tribute, the Symphony also announced two dates with Ben Folds. | COURTESY SLSO

hopping can arguably be the most stressful part of the holiday season, but Maxi Glamour and the Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis are hosting an event to take the pressure off. The third Black Friday Ball and Marketplace kicks off this Friday, November 26, with an afternoon full of shopping that transitions into a panel discussion and performances by Glamour, Passion Principle and more. Taking place at CAM (3750 Washington Boulevard), the marketplace starts at 4 p.m. and features Black queer artists. Supporting such artists is an important mission of Glamour’s — they are the founder of Qu’art, an organization that focuses on financial stability for t. Louis queer artists and intersectional queer liberation. Featured artists for the marketplace include Casper Levi, Ori Tala, Lydia-Rae Wehmeyer and Tiélere Cheatem. Others — such as Brooke Elston, Olivia Obi and Kyla Hawkins — are also scheduled to appear at the event. As the afternoon fades into evening, a panel discussion — moderated by Glamour — will take place. Trans activist and actress

[SHOPPING]

City Foundry Hosting ‘WintrMarkt’ Marketplace Written by

JENNA JONES

hop until you drop this holiday season with the return of the City Foundry’s “WintrMarkt.” The City Foundry (3730 Foundry Way) has hosted plenty of marketplaces this year, but this one will help you support local businesses while also checking names off

[MUSIC]

St. Louis’ favorite blue-skinned, tricoastal fairy demon brings the party to CAM this week. | VIA THE ARTIST Toni Bryce, Saint Louis University Professor of Communications Cypress Reign and Executive Director of Forward through Ferguson David Dwight will join Glamour to discuss strategies for Black queer liberation. Galleries will close early to accommodate what comes next: a ball complete with performances. The performances spotlight “Black Queer performance art of all styles,” according to a press release. Glamour and their band, featuring Erik Dontè, are scheduled to play a set, as well as other artists including Lavish Jules, Lydia-Rae Wehmeyer and Adria Nicole. Finish the night off with the ball and a Vogue competition. A $1,000 grand prize is up for grabs for the

Vogue competition, along with other cash prizes for categories like Sex Siren, Hands, Face and Bizarre Bazaar. Vanessa Frost is the commentator, and participants will be judged by Dee “Carta” Davis, Logik Oricci, Godmother Spirit Ebony, Father Trell Chanel, Legend Intyce Makaveli and Anthony Redd Williams. Free tickets are required for the marketplace, and it’s highly encouraged to reserve your spot for the ball and performances with a max of two tickets per person, per portion of the event. Walk-ins will be welcomed based on availability, and COVID-19 safety measures will be observed. Free HIV testing is also available, provided by Vivent Health. Visit camstl.org for more information. n

your gift list. The marketplace is organized by the St. Louis-based organizations Women’s Creative and Joya. Hosted every Saturday and Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. beginning Saturday, November 27, the boutique market features 50 different vendors each weekend. WintrMarkt runs until Sunday, December 19, so around 200 local businesses are expected to participate. Not only will there be gifts to buy, but there will also be local entertainment from carolers and high schools. Additionally, Schlafly Beer is scheduled to have a pop-up bar at the event. An STLMade charity gift-wrapping service will also be on site. “WintrMarkt is the most fun and convenient way to support local this season

while also knocking out your weekend holiday shopping,” Jessica Conick of the Women’s Creative says in a press release. “It’s also a lot more reliable than anxiously checking the shipping notifications for online orders.” Conick says the organizations are proud to be “STL made” and grateful for sponsors, such as Schlafly and Saint Louis Bank, for helping provide the opportunity for local businesses to sell to St. Louisans during “the most important season of the year.” The event is hosted indoors within and around the Food Hall. It’s free to attend, but if you reserve your spot online, you will receive an emailed “swag bag” that offers discounts for vendors. Visit thewomenscreative.com to RSVP. n

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SLSO Announces Pink Floyd Tribute Written by

JENNA JONES

f you’re already thrilled about the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra’s movie concerts that include Harry Potter and Indiana Jones, we have great news for you: Another special night is being planned by the organization, but this one is a tribute to classic rock band Pink Floyd. Two more St. Louis Symphony Orchestra concerts will take over Powell Hall (718 North Grand Boulevard, 314-534-1700) early next year. The first is slated for Saturday, February 26. The Music of Pink Floyd will feature the orchestra paying homage to the band and playing hit songs such as “Money,” “Learning to Fly,” “Comfortably Numb” and more. Vocalist Randy Jackson will join the orchestra for the performances, as will a rock band and guest conductor Brent Havens. This isn’t the first time the SLSO has dedicated a space for classic bands: They’ve also had tribute nights for Led Zeppelin and the Beatles. Also on the schedule are two concerts performed with Ben Folds, the piano-playing singer-songwriter. Folds has performed with other orchestras, as well as multiple times with the SLSO; he was last here in February 2020 and sold his show out. His two upcoming shows are scheduled for Friday, April 1, and Saturday, April 2. Tickets for The Music of Pink Floyd cost $35, while tickets for the Folds show are $55. Visit slso.org or call the box office at 314-534-1700. A negative COVID-19 test or proof of vaccination is required to get into Powell Hall, and masks are also required. n

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SAVAGE LOVE GET OUT BY DAN SAVAGE Hey, Dan: I have a friend who is a trans man. Recently he just got out of a shitty relationship. His ex suddenly lost interest in him and wouldn’t work with him on fixing it. He’s heartbroken. He told me women often reject him once they find out he is trans and he’s tired of endless rejections. We met in the college town where he still lives, but our entire friend circle (including me) has moved away. Even without the trans part, it’s not easy to be a 30-something single man in a liberal college town. He’s convinced he’s doomed to be alone. I don’t want to be dismissive about his experience as a trans person (I’m a cis woman), but I keep trying to walk the fine line of encouraging my friend to reach out, meet people through community events, volunteering, etc. He also mentioned to me that people our age (thirties) are more transphobic than younger people, but he doesn’t want to be the kind of 30-something perv who dates people in their twenties. My heart aches for my friend. Do you have any advice for him to make more friends and/or find a new romantic partner? Friend Really In Extreme Distress The only thing worse than being dumped by someone who refuses to ork ith you on fi ing it is being dumped by someone who already made up their mind to dump you — meaning the relationship was already dead — but then wasted months or years of your life pretending to work on it. So, if your friend s e kne it as o er, RI , they did your friend a fa or by refusing to go through the motions of orking on it. That would come as cold comfort to your friend, of course, so don’t pass it on to him. But continue to gi e him the ad ice you e been gi ing him, hich is both standard and e cellent. et out of the house, do shit, go places, meet people — that s the same ad ice I ould e gi en him, and it s the same ad ice e ery other ad ice columnist on the planet ould e gi en him. That your friend hasn t taken your ad ice yet — that he’s still wallowing in his grief doesn t mean your ad ice as bad, RI , only that he s not

ready to take it. As for dating while trans… I e isited a lot of liberal college towns and they tend to be more welcoming and accepting places for trans people than, say, your a erage laskan fishing illage. nd most women — cis or trans — aren’t going to wanna fuck or date with your friend. (And he is open to dating trans omen, right I m gay and most men — cis or trans — don’t wanna sleep with me. Now, men ho find me attracti e don t re ect me once they reali e I m gay, but being re ected by a oman ho initially found him attracti e after he discloses that he s trans That re ection is gonna sting more. But your friend can a oid that kind of re ection by disclosing right away. My friends ith I ho don t anna deal ith the drama of ha ing to disclose and being re ected for it put it out there right away. Since your friend is e entually going to ha e to come out to the women he dates, putting the fact that he’s trans on his dating profiles disclosing it right a ay tells omen ho might ha e a problem ith it to keep mo ing. In other ords, RI , your friend has the po er to ip the re ection script by essentially saying, I m trans and if you’re not open to dating a trans man, please sho yourself out. Instead of aiting to be re ected by cis women who won’t date trans men, he ll be re ecting those omen first. nd finally if gro n ass adults in their twenties want to date him, your friend should date them. Refusing to date someone due to something they can’t control or change about themsel es their age seems discriminatory (ageist!), patronizing (people in their twenties are adults!), and in your friend’s case, hypocritical he doesn t en oy being re ected o er something he can’t control or change). But my hunch is that your friend is ust making e cuses. i e him a little more time to allo , RI , keep urging him to do the ob ious get out, go places, do shit, meet people), and in a few months your friend will be introducing you to his new partner — and it’s probably going to be someone in their twenties he met at a community e ent ho later sa his profile on Tinder and s iped right on his openly trans ass. Hey, Dan: You recently posted a letter from a woman who was dating an “age appropriate” man. Could you

please define that phrase for me? I am a 65-year-old straight white guy. Twice married, twice divorced. I was once told that a guy could divide his age in half, and then add the number 13 to that number to get the minimum age for a potential partner. I don’t know where those numbers came from but using that formula, I come up with a minimum age of 45. I am open to dating women my age, or older than me. But so far, my contacts with older women have not led anywhere. I guess the bottom line is that these days I find myself attracted to younger women. That’s all there is to it. So, I am hoping to get some guidance from you on this subject. Aging Gentleman Enquires Sincerely Oh, wow — one of those rare older men into younger omen. on t see your kind e ery day. uck, marry, or keep any consenting adult ho ll ha e you. Be realistic about your prospects t ice di orced and getting up there , , and make a conscientious effort to control for dickful thinking, i.e., the kind of wishful thinking men of all ages engage in when their dicks are hard. Also, don’t be cluelessly coerci e. traight guys need to bear in mind that women are taught to prioriti e men s needs o er their own (that’s the way women are sociali ed and to fear male iolence (that’s the way women are terrorized). Consequently, many women find it di cult and or scary to say no to a man. o, hen a oman gi es you an ambiguous ans er I m ery attered , or gently deects I m ery busy , take that as a no. Hey, Dan: I’m a 30-year-old straight, cis woman, and I’ve been in a serious relationship with my boyfriend for a year. I love him, and the sex is mindblowing when it happens — which is about twice a week when I’m not spotting. We can only have sex when he initiates, but there’s more. I’m on the pill and I often spot a little from the second week to the moment my period comes, a side effect with which I am okay. However, if any blood is present, nothing can happen since he’s disgusted by it. He won’t have anal sex because he’s disgusted by feces. He won’t play with me and a toy when there’s blood present, even a drop, and he won’t go down on me at all, as he doesn’t like it. He

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also doesn’t want me touching myself when I go down on him, as he finds it distracting. Opening the relationship is not an option for him. It seems to me that anything that does not revolve around his penis penetrating something and coming out perfectly clean is a turnoff for him. While I feel hurt, I also wonder if I’m being abusive by asking him to do things that he doesn’t like to do. When I bring up the topic he insists this is my problem, not his. Is there a way forward? Frustrated About Intimate Life Under Restrictive Edicts There s no ay for ard, I R , there s only a ay out T . If you d like to present your soon to be e boyfriend ith a lo ely parting gift, I R , I suggest getting him a toaster and a leshlight. uct tape them together, lea e them on your side of the bed, take your shit and go. Because it’s a warm, silent hole your boyfriend wants for a partner, I R , not a oman ith a fully functioning suite of female reproducti e organs, to say nothing of a woman with needs, wants, or desires of her o n. I strongly suspect your e boyfriend on t miss you or your agina that bleeds or your ass that poops or your mouth that opens and asks for perfectly reasonable things, I R , and I m confident that e en if you miss him at first, you on t miss him for long. Because within a week you’ll realize being alone is better than being with a selfish piece of tyrannical shit. eah, yeah ou lo e him. ou d pretty much ha e to lo e him or you d ha e to con ince yourself you lo ed him to put up ith his shit for a week, much less a year. But the longer you stay in this relationship, I R , the greater your frustration and resentment will grow, and a day ill ine itably come hen you re no longer in lo e him and what’s left of your self-esteem, selfconfidence, and sense of se ual agency ill ha e been destroyed. on t ait until the lo e is gone and the damage is permanent to lea e this asshole. ea e him no . . . lease don t ork on fi ing it before you dump this asshole and you aren’t required to get him a parting gift, lo ely or other ise. et yourself a po erful ibrator instead. questions@savagelove.net @FakeDanSavage on Twitter www.savage.love!

NOVEMBER 24-30, 2021

RIVERFRONT TIMES

NOVEMBER 24-30, 2021

riverfronttimes.com

NOVEMBER 24-30, 2021

RIVERFRONT TIMES

Riverfront Times, November 24, 2021

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