April 2015

ka-boomm at jilly’s ice cream bar p. 32

the list 20 dishes, drinks, faces & places we love

T R E N D WAT C H

R E V I E W

6

N E W

T H E B E S T D I S H AT

FOODIE FAST FOOD

LONA'S LIL EATS

PLACES TO TRY

CLEVELAND-HEATH

P. 12

P. 18

P. 10

P. 9

ST. LOUIS’ INDEPENDENT CULINARY AUTHORITY

April 2015

SAUCEMAGAZINE.COM

FREE, APRIL 2015

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contents APRIL 2015

editors' picks 9

EAT THIS Okonomiyaki at Cleveland-Heath

10

HIT LIST 6 new restaurants to try this month

12

TRENDWATCH A look at what's on the plate, in the glass and atop our wish list right now

reviews 15

NEW AND NOTABLE

25

WINE How to talk like a wine snob

by ben wood

BaiKu Sushi Lounge

by michael renner

26

VEGETIZE IT

18

POWER LUNCH Lona's Lil Eats

by byron kerman

by kellie hynes 29

MAKE THIS

21

NIGHTLIFE ArtBar St. Louis

Spanikopita flatbread

by dee ryan

by matt berkley

last course

Features

44

32

23

by byron kerman

20 dishes, drinks, faces & places

A SEAT AT THE BAR

46

we love

dine & drink

Four experts tell us what to sip, stir and shake PHOTO BY CARMEN TROESSER

Negi-Hama Tartare at BaiKu Sushi Lounge p. 15

Bread pudding

by glenn bardgett, cory king, and ted and jamie kilgore

STUFF TO DO

WHAT I DO Glenn Kopp of Missouri Botanical Garden

by ligaya figueras

THE LIST by matt berkley, julie cohen, garrett faulkner, ligaya figueras, byron kerman, catherine klene, elizabeth maxson, meera nagarajan, spencer pernikoff, dee ryan and kristin schultz

COVER DETAILS The List Ka-Boomm at Jilly's Ice Cream Bar is a frozen treat we love. To read about Ka-Boomm and the other dishes, drinks, faces and places that made The List, turn to p. 32. photo by carmen troesser

CORRECTION: The April "Vegetize It" column incorrectly stated that all Urban Chestnut Brewing Co. beers are vegan.

Some UCBC beers, such as those brewed with honey, contain animal ingredients. We regret this error.

April 2015

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A P R I L 2 015 • VO LUM E 15, ISSU E 4 PUBLISHER EXECUTIVE EDITOR ART DIRECTOR MANAGING EDITOR, DIGITAL SPECIAL SECTIONS EDITOR PROOFREADER FACT CHECKERS PRODUCTION DESIGNER EDIBLE WEEKEND EDITOR CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS

What's your favorite jelly bean flavor?

Coconut. I feel like I am getting my own palatable tropical party.

CONTRIBUTING EDITORS CONTRIBUTING ILLUSTRATOR CONTRIBUTING WRITERS I can't stand jelly beans.

I'm more of a dark chocolate girl.

EVENTS COORDINATOR LISTINGS MANAGER ADVERTISING SALES MANAGER ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES ADVERTISING ACCOUNTS COORDINATOR INTERNS

To place advertisements in Sauce Magazine contact the advertising department at 314.772.8004 or sales@saucemagazine.com.

To carry Sauce Magazine at your store, restaurant, bar or place of business Contact Allyson Mace at 314.772.8004 or amace@saucemagazine.com.

All contents of Sauce Magazine are copyright ©2001-2015 by Bent Mind Creative Group, LLC. The Sauce name and logo are both registered to the publisher, Bent Mind Creative Group, LLC. Reproduction or other use, in

Allyson Mace Ligaya Figueras Meera Nagarajan Catherine Klene Ligaya Figueras Emily Lowery Rebecca Koenig, Kristin Schultz Michelle Volansky Catherine Klene Sherrie Castellano, Jonathan Gayman, Ashley Gieseking, Elizabeth Jochum, Elizabeth Maxson, Greg Rannells, Carmen Troesser, Michelle Volansky Julie Cohen, Garrett Faulkner, Jackie Parker Vidhya Nagarajan Glenn Bardgett, Matt Berkley, Julie Cohen, Garrett Faulkner, Ligaya Figueras, Kellie Hynes, Byron Kerman, Jamie Kilgore, Ted Kilgore, Cory King, Catherine Klene, Elizabeth Maxson, Meera Nagarajan, Spencer Pernikoff, Michael Renner, Dee Ryan, Kristin Schultz, Ben Wood Rebecca Ryan It's a tossRebecca Ryan up between Allyson Mace Starburst Jill George, Angie Rosenberg, green apple and Jelly Belly Jackie Wagner juicy pear.

Jill George Georgia Kaye, Rima Parikh, Victoria Sgarro

whole or in part, of the contents without permission of the publisher is strictly prohibited. While the information has been compiled carefully to ensure maximum accuracy at the time of publication, it is provided for general guidance only and is subject to change.

The publisher cannot guarantee the accuracy of all information or be responsible for omissions or errors.

Additional copies may be obtained by providing a request at 314.772.8004 or via mail. Postage fee of $2 will apply.

EDITORIAL POLICIES The Sauce Magazine mission is to provide St. Louis-area residents and visitors with unbiased, complete information on the area’s restaurant, bar and entertainment industry. Our editorial content is not influenced by who advertises with Sauce Magazine or saucemagazine.com.

Sauce Magazine is printed on recycled paper using soy inks.

Our reviewers are never provided with complimentary food or drinks from the restaurants in exchange for favorable reviews, nor are their identities as reviewers made known during their visits.

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St. Louis, MO 63103 April 2015

letter from the editor

Here I am!

S PHOTO BY CARMEN TROESSER

even years ago, Sauce editors began honoring culinary chutzpa in St. Louis with an annual feature called The List, a tribute to the dishes, drinks, people and places we love. In the 2015 list (p. 32), you’ll find establishments and faces both old and new, as well as beloved dishes that stand out not just because they are trendy, but also because they are prepared so well that we can’t get enough. Then there are the stories that tug at our heartstrings so much we simply must share them with you – like the story of the tree at Noboleis Vineyards in Augusta, where I’m perched in the photo above.

I yearned to climb the Noboleis mulberry tree since last spring, when Angie Geis, the winery’s marketing director and daughter of Noboleis owners Bob and Lou Ann Nolan, gave me a tour. This tree sits on the 84acre property overlooking rows of vineyards with four varietals – Norton, chambourcin, traminette and vignoles.

It’s also the same tree whose beautiful silhouette graces the label of every Noboleis bottle (my favorite is the dry,

April 2015

oaky Baril de Blanc). Alas, there’s a sign near the tree that asks visitors not to climb it. After 80-plus years and wind damage sustained from a tornado in 2011, the grand old tree is now held up by cables.

Of course, the prohibited nature of this tree made me want to climb it all the more.

Thank you, Angie, for indulging my whims!

The tale of Noboleis’ tree is representative of what makes something worthy of The List.

In this case, the resolve of the Nolans (along with Angie and her sister, Chris Newbold) to preserve a single tree speaks volumes to their larger efforts to keep their 5-yearold wine business thriving. Every season poses risks, but

Noboleis Vineyards 100 Hemsath Road, Augusta, 636.482.4500, noboleisvineyards.com

the family presses on year after year in pursuit of a great harvest backed by a staunch commitment to making quality wine.

All of the people, dishes, drinks, places and stories spotlighted in the pages of this issue offer a glimpse of where a restaurant, bar, farmer or food advocate is at this moment in time. I hope after you read The List you’ll share in our enthusiasm for the state of our food community. Don’t stop there. Keep the discussion going by sharing the items on your list on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram using the hashtag TheSauceList.

Cheers,

Ligaya Figueras Executive editor saucemagazine.com I SAUCE MAGAZINE I 7

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editors' picks

EAT THIS

The OKONOMIYAKI at CLEVELAND-HEATH is no mere savory pancake. It’s Japanese street food at its finest.

There’s the eggy pancake topped with shredded cabbage, tender bits of shrimp and hunks of bacon. Then there’s the savory-sweet punch of Kewpie mayo and house-made barbecue sauce legitimized with soy sauce. Last comes the glorious PHOTO BY CARMEN TROESSER

crown: smoky bonito flakes shaved so thin they melt on the tongue. On a menu that constantly rotates, this umami-packed app has held court at C-H for almost two years. Long may it reign.

CLEVELAND-HEATH, 106 N. MAIN ST., EDWARDSVILLE, 618.307.4830, CLEVELANDHEATH.COM

April 2015

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hit list

6 new restaurants to try this month

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and charred onion salsa. Tequila, rum and mezcal take center stage among the spirits at Público’s modish, wood-meetsmetal 18-seat bar. Try Night on Fire (rum, cava, Creole shrub and both Angostura and Peychaud’s bitters) or a boozy slushy from the frozen drink dispenser. ¿No quieres alcohol? No hay problema. The house-made horchata has you covered – and doubles as dessert.

6679 Delmar Blvd., University City, 314.833.5780, Facebook: Público

2 PHOTOS BY MICHELLE VOLANSKY

The kitchen is on fire at Latin American gastropub Público where the woodPÚBLICO fired grill is responsible for everything from apps to sweet endings. Get in the Mexican mood with guacamole arepas, corn pancakes topped with fresh guacamole and served with queso and house-made salsa. Move on to oysters served with piquant red and green salsas, then go for the colorful plate of beets with crisp quinoa swathed in white chocolate mole.

Keep the party going with an order of tacos al pastor – three house-made corn tortillas each filled with slices of spitroasted pork shoulder, pineapple, guajillo chile pepper, crema

1 Oysters at Público 2 Público

April 2015

The menu of Asian-inspired LUCKY comfort food BUDDHA at Lucky Buddha draws from Japanese, Thai, Korean and Chinese cuisines, to name a few, married together in harmony.

Entrees are divided between banh mi sandwiches, steamed buns and noodle bowls. All are customizable; don’t miss the sake-braised mushrooms tucked inside billowy steamed buns or the quadruple power of the Porkapocalypse, which features pork liver pate, gochujang-braised pork, char sui pork and braised pork belly.

Save room for dessert, such as sorbet in tropical flavors like lychee, passion fruit and chile mango. If you’re making an afternoon of it on the back patio, kick back with a Buddha Collins, a refreshing sipper made with Pinckney Bend gin, lemon juice, lemon grass syrup and Creole bitters.

In a town of steel mills LASCELLES and momGRANITE CITY and-pop diners, chef Eric Brenner aims to bring American comfort food with a twist to Granite City, Illinois. We’re happily making a meal of snacks, like dense yet flaky biscuits glazed with salted honey butter, a gooey dish of four-cheese mac-ncheese and deviled eggs dotted with maple-glazed bacon chunks. Heartier appetites should dig into the Farmhouse Burger, two diner-style patties with crisp edges and juicy centers stacked with bacon, smoked Gouda and a sunny fried egg on a toasted English muffin.

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1324 Niedringhaus Ave., Granite City, Illinois, 618.709.7375, lascellesgc.com

3701 S. Jefferson Ave., St. Louis, 314.833.4568, luckybuddhastl.com

This longtime concert venue in The Grove recently underwent a makeover, transitioning from music nightspot to eatery with a menu of monster sandwiches not for the faint of heart or appetite. Order a whole or half of meaty offerings like the Mississippi Nights Club, a fresh Fazio’s baguette piled high with turkey, roast beef, bacon, pepper jack cheese, spicy roasted red pepper cream cheese spread and the salty crunch of smashed Billy Goat chips. Go a tad lighter with The Frenchy, a classic chickenbacon-Swiss combo dressed up with mushrooms and a sweet, tangy red wine aioli. If you’re really hungry, dig into The Danimal, a carnivore’s dream of ham, turkey, roast beef, salami and bacon piled on sourdough slathered with pepper mayo and avocado spread.

Antacids not included.

PHOTOS BY MICHELLE VOLANSKY

THE GRAMOPHONE

4243 Manchester Road, St. Louis, 314.531.5700, gramophonestl.com

April 2015

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From the minds behind Monty’s Sandwich Co. downtown comes Monty’s American Grill. Co-owners Joel Williams and Steve May have shipped their signature sandwiches to Ellisville and added plenty of starters, entrees, sides and desserts. If the decor and dish presentation are modest, the flavor is anything but. Case in point: the Kuban, pretzel bread stacked with house-made pulled pork, ham, Swiss, pickles and spicy brown mustard.

Even if you decide on a more healthconscious black bean salad or shrimp po’boy wrap, go the full monty and pair it with one of 13 mostly local beers on tap, a similar number of bottled brews or 14 wines by the glass.

3 Vincent Van Doughnut 4 French toast doughnuts at Vincent Van Doughnut 5 Steamed buns at Lucky Buddha 6 Deviled eggs at Lascelles Granite City 7 Sorbets from Lucky Buddha

MONTY’S AMERICAN GRILL

Doughnut shop-onwheels Vincent Van Doughnut has opened doors at its Clayton storefront. The shop carries a dozen rotating options made from scratch daily, including popular doughnut flavors like chocolate-salted caramel and French toast (our favorite), and spring seasonal flavors like lemon-lavender and peaches and cream. Keep an eye out for new pastries, such as a maplebacon cinnamon roll, plus specials like Doughzels‚ doughnut-pretzel hybrids finished with sea salt and served with a rotating dipping sauce.

VINCENT VAN DOUGHNUT

40 N. Central Ave., Clayton, 314.899.9500, vincentvandoughnut.com

15850 Manchester Road, Ellisville, 636.220.3333, magstl.com

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A look at what’s on the plate, in the glass and atop our wish list right now

BY LIGAYA FIGUERAS

Burnt to a crisp Burnt toast? Not OK. But burnt honey dressing like the one tossed into the Brussels sprout salad at Metropolitan Farmer in Springfield, Missouri or at HandleBar in The Grove is A-OK. We’re loving charred everything: Element’s burnt molasses that was on its bourbon chicken, Cielo’s burnt wheat orecchiette with sausage ragout and rapini, the scorched onion that’s a must for the bone marrow risotto at The Libertine and the to-die-for burnt broccoli salad at Olio.

A scoop of booze

We like ice cream; we like it more with booze. Area ice cream shops are dishing up some sweet adult versions of our favorite frozen sundry. Where do we go when we want a buzz and a brain freeze? Ices Plain & Fancy, Jilly’s Ice Cream Bar, Serendipity and Clementine’s Naughty and Nice Creamery. You’ve tasted Clementine’s at some of your favorite restaurants; watch for the ice creamery to open its own shop in Lafayette Square May 1.

For more on Vincent Van Doughnut’s new storefront, turn to p. 11.

KRAUT SANS CABBAGE

Cool grills

Frankenbreak fast Cronut, cragel, flagel … all our favorite morning baked bites are getting smashed together. The pretzel croissant is the latest in breakfast buzzwords. No need to head to Manhattan’s City Bakery when you can go to Companion for a croissant prepared as a light, flaky pretzel. If it’s a doughnut you’re after, consider one of the nine varieties of grilled cheese doughnuts at newly opened Tom + Chee in O’Fallon, Missouri, or stuff your face with Doughzels, pretzel doughnuts at Vincent Van Doughnut’s new brick-and-mortar in Clayton. Look for Doughzel holes to make appearances as part of VVD’s line of mini-Vinnies, too.

Grills are hot, but some are cooler than others. At newly opened Latin American gastropub Público in The Loop, a custom wood-fired grill is the kitchen’s workhorse, the flames licking everything from hangar steak to pork collar to prawns. Just a few doors down, newly opened Seoul Q’s eight tabletop gas grills, each with an adjustable hood, and the extensive gas and exhaust lines installed overhead might have been a headache for health inspectors but are delighting diners hungry for Korean ’cue.

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Tiny is in Try extra-small on for size along Cherokee Street at new sevenseat cafe The Little Dipper (order the wheatburger) and at Earthbound Brewing’s 1,000-square-foot brewery and tasting room. For a sweet bite, squeeze inside 350-square-foot Spoon Baking Company in Alton. Then get ready to wet your whistle at eight-seat, 250-square-foot Tiny Bar when it opens downtown later this spring.

Chef express

As national fast food chains wage their antibiotic-free chicken marketing war, chefs are swooping in with their own express eateries that match the big guys on price but offer better food, prepared on-site. Newly opened Taco Circus in South City is the indie, real-food version of Taco Bell. Bob Brazell’s fried chicken joint Byrd & Barrel will even have a drive-thru like its former occupant, Popeye’s, when it opens this spring. And while local restaurant magnate Gerard Craft hopes to take his fast pasta concept Porano on a Chipotle-like journey when it opens in the Mercantile Exchange building downtown this summer, San Fran big name chefs Roy Choi and Daniel Patterson are a step closer to reinventing fast food with their concept, Loco’l, thanks to the success of a recent crowdfunding campaign.

April 2015

DOUGHZEL PHOTO BY SHERRIE CASTELLANO

Stop being such a sour-kraut. Chefs near and far are proving that this German staple side dish can still be good without green cabbage. In San Francisco, you’ll find kohlrabi kraut atop fresh oysters at State Bird Provisions and wakame kraut (yes, seaweed!) layered in a warm dish of wild mushrooms and kale at The Progress.

Closer to home, you can dig into turnip kraut when you order the rye spatzel at Sidney Street Cafe.

April 2015

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reviews All Sauce reviews are conducted anonymously.

Tuna Tiradito at BaiKu Sushi Lounge

new and notable

BaiKu Sushi Lounge

BY MICHAEL RENNER | PHOTOS BY CARMEN TROESSER

W

ith restaurant eclecticism now as varied as a grocery store aisle, sushi is no longer the weird uncle of the St. Louis culinary scene. Arguably, a cuisine has arrived when even its standard dishes, say, California or Philadelphia rolls, are looked upon as a safe province for beginners.

new and notable BAIKU SUSHI LOUNGE p. 15 / power lunch LONA'S LIL EATS p. 18 / nightlife ARTBAR ST. LOUIS p. 21 April 2015

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from a drizzle of toasted garlic soy and white truffle oil, strands of enoki mushroom, crunchy black tobiko and a delicate wisp of scallion. The thinly sliced, mild octopus nigiri is admirably punched up with a piquant red chile-citrus sauce, black tobiko and scallions.

reviews NEW AND NOTABLE p. 2 of 2

Rice is the khaki pants of Japanese cuisine. But BaiKu’s sushi rice, seasoned with rice vinegar, salt, sugar and mirin, is another animal – some would say art – entirely. It glistened, was never gummy and subtly complemented the fresh fish. Flying fish in six days a week, as BaiKu does, often brings something different, as it did one evening when cobia, a mild, white-fleshed fish, arrived to the table so clean-tasting that the thought of adding even a splash of soy sauce seemed sacrilegious.

Onii-san maki roll

came topped with salmon drizzled in ponzu sauce and, like buttons down the center of a dress shirt, thin jalapeno slices with chile aioli. After a searing by a blowtorch, the roll is crowned with bits of red tobiko and slivered scallion. This wasn’t a fireball so much as a firecracker; the heat emerged on the sly before ultimately being tamed by the cooling bits of cucumber and avocado.

At BaiKu Sushi Lounge, located inside Midtown’s Hotel Ignacio, you’ll find both rolls and many others, known in the business as makizushi. And like the other 17 selections from the classic maki menu, they will be fine, nothing revelatory, but all competently prepared and satisfying.

The same goes for the standard nigiri (two pieces per order) and specialty nigiri (one per order), as well as the sashimi (five per order).

Connoisseurs will remember Lee from Clayton’s now-closed Miso on Meramec, where he displayed his sushi skills in fine fashion. (Miso’s owner Brad Beracha is now co-owner of BaiKu.) They will also gravitate toward Lee’s five types of signature nigiri, one-bite wonders with a bit more whimsy and creativity than your standard nigiri. Deep crimson bigeye tuna gets the big treatment

If a Philly roll is the sushi equivalent of drinking SoCo, then executive chef Soung Min Lee’s eight offerings on the specialty rolls menu are more akin to topshelf bourbon. This is where enthusiasts congregate. The intricately constructed Onii-san roll, crammed with lemon-garlic crab, gobo root, cucumber and avocado,

AT A GLANCE BaiKu Sushi Lounge

Where 3407 Olive St., St. Louis, 314.896.2500, baikustl.com

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Don’t Miss Dishes Onii-san maki roll, Negi-Hama Tartare, Tuna Tiradito

A well-known chef adage is that we eat with our eyes first, a saying never truer than with Lee’s Negi-Hama Tartare and Tuna Tiradito, two of the menu’s small plates. The tartare consisted of diced green onion and yellowtail formed into a disc, sprinkled with black tobiko and Japanese seven-spice (shichimi togarashi) and topped with a tiny, bright yellow quail egg. With puffed prawn chips for petals and a thin slice of crispy fried papadum for a leaf, the dish’s look and flavor resembled the orchid garnish on the plate – full of texture and peachy, fleshy hues. Allowing the tuna to warm up a bit brought out more of the flavors. The tiradito was just as visually appealing: eight small rectangles of lightly seared bigeye tuna drizzled with ponzu and chive oil, all glistening on the glass plate like precious rubies. Each gem was topped with a toasted garlic chip, a sprinkle of shichimi togarashi, black tobiko, scallions and spooled daikon – and each morsel was the perfect marriage of crunch, spice, tang and chew.

The Kobe beef sliders were an unexpected surprise. Served on three grilled Hawaiian sweet rolls with a soy-ginger glaze, mirin pickles and onion crisps, they’re just the sort

Vibe Cool and sleek, striking a mood somewhere between sushi bar and dance club – sans dancing

of meaty chew you’d crave after a couple of beers and bites of raw fish. Lobster dumplings – six star-shaped, bite-sized bundles topped with red tobiko and bathed in a sweet soy reduction – looked nearly too good to disturb in their bamboo steamer bowl. But gone they were, and quickly.

With an extensive beer and wine list and an eight-item sake menu that allows for experimentation, especially with sashimi, drinking at BaiKu can take several forms. But if you want hot tea, the traditional sushi pairing, you’ll have to settle for the standard loose green stuff.

Most sushi houses nowadays are more lounge than restaurant, designed for drinking, noshing and looking cool. Enter BaiKu and you might think it’s one of the latest cocktail lounges. The space flows from the small first-level dining area gently up a few stairs, where BaiKu shares its lounge space with the hotel and Triumph Grill. The sushi bar, a scant four seats, is tucked to the side of the dining area. It’s not so much an afterthought as it is a respite from the hubbub of the packed dining room on a busy night. It’s also the best perch from which to watch Lee and his team in action. In keeping with the motorcycle theme (baiku is Japanese slang for “motorcycle”), framed white-painted sections of a disassembled bike serve as a focal point above a long banquette. The lounge area proper is sleek and modern, with ottomans, comfy couches, low tables and a large contemporary enclosed fireplace slipped into the smooth stone wall. Eating in the lounge is like eating off your coffee table while sitting on the couch, which means you’ll be bending over a lot. BaiKu’s soundtrack – electronic lounge music curated by local DJs – thumps and pulses its way through the space, laying down a vibe worthy of the environs.

It’s all very chic and appealing, making it a convenient and distinctive spot for a latenight nosh and drink after a Grand Center event. But with Lee behind the sushi bar, BaiKu is just as much a destination, a vibrant setting with substance and style where sushi beginners and connoisseurs alike can rub elbows with equal satisfaction.

Entree Prices Ranging from $4 for nigiri to $24 for entrees

When Sun. – 5 to 9 p.m., Tue. to Thu. – 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 4:30 to 10 p.m., Fri. – 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. to midnight, Sat. – 5 p.m. to midnight April 2015

April 2015

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reviews POWER LUNCH

Power Lunch

LONA’S LIL EATS

BY BYRON KERMAN | PHOTOS BY ELIZABETH MAXSON

Lona’s Lil Eats’ li’l counter inside Soulard Farmers Market sprouted into a full-grown Fox Park eatery with more menu choices and all the humble charm of the original. Diners here eat Asian-inspired dishes directly off paper-lined cafeteria trays and leave feeling content.

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local Ski sodas and house-made teainfused punches.

TWO APPS TO TRY THE MADDING CROWD

Lona’s spring rolls [1] are stubby torpedoes of glass noodles, shredded veggies and your choice of meat, served with the best peanut dipping sauce – made with house-roasted peanuts, lime juice, ginger, garlic and spices – that has ever passed these lips. The potsticker-like house-made dumplings [1] convey both a pleasant chew and crunchy char from the skillet. They’re filled with a succulent mix of steak, mushrooms and herbs, and served with a mouth-puckering sesame dipping sauce that’s equal parts salty, sour and spicy. A vegan mushroomonly version is available, too.

Word is spreading that Lona’s food is as delicious as it is healthy, and crowds are flocking there. The wait is rarely a concern, though, as the counter service Lona’s Lil Eats keeps business moving – 2199 California Ave., and if there is a line, you St. Louis, 314.925.8938, might just need the time lonaslileats.com to figure out your order, anyway.

THE TAKEAWAY

THE LITTLEST OF THE LIL EATS The deeper you dive into this menu, the more rewarding it gets. The spicy cucumber salad [3] raises you up in gentle warmth before lowering you down, its complex profile of chile paste, garlic, cilantro and other ingredients delivered via slices of snappy Persian cucumber. The lime-ginger cabbage salad, which also employs that delicious peanut sauce, elevates coleslaw from its otherwise moribund status. The middling Village Bamboo Stew may be the rare whiff here. Any textural possibilities for the dish were squandered in a mush of greens and funky aroma from the pickled bamboo.

YOU CALL THE SHOTS The conceit of Lona’s menu – that you build your own entree by choosing from various wraps, meats, fillers and sauces – works well, especially when you’ve scoped out your

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Chef-owner Lona Powers (left) with husband Pierce and their children Jane and Daniel

2 favorites after a visit or two. First, choose your enclosure device: a giant rice-paper wrap, flour tortilla or naked plate [4].

For protein, choose from grilled chicken, pulled turkey, grilled steak, sauteed shrimp or tender nuggets of mildly spiced stir-fried tofu. Then, pick your filler: cold or stir-fried glass noodles, jasmine rice, chopped salad or stir-fried red Thai rice. My favorite? I mad-libbed grilled steak with the nutty, sticky red Thai rice inside a spring roll wrap with that peanut sauce. In fact, among the five house-made sauces, there isn’t a weak choice in the bunch. Besides the peanut and sesame sauces, there’s Lona-Q, the house’s barbecue-esque sauce similar to a sweet,

Repeated visits to Lona’s are worth the trip, since the make-your-own entree concept encourages you to quest for your favorite combo. Enjoy the journey. This mom-andpop kitchen has a knack for clever sauces, skillful spicing and filling eats.

thick teriyaki; a tangy smoked vinaigrette that tastes like a cousin to French dressing; and lemon grass pesto, a dynamite fusion of Asian and Italian flavors.

MRS. T The restaurant’s impressive selection of hot teas is imported from co-owner Lona Powers’ family and friends in China and served in a groovy two-chambered teapot.

The heirloom green tea is complex and bitter. The iced green tea is mild, woody and tannic. Budweiser and craft beers are available, as are red and white wines,

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nightlife

reviews

ArtBar St. Louis

NIGHTLIFE

BY MATT BERKLEY | PHOTOS BY ELIZABETH MAXSON

stiffer Don Johnston matched a liberal pour of Ford’s Gin with dry curaçao, Luxardo Sangue Morlacco cherry liqueur and grapefruit bitters. It ArtBar St. Louis was the best drink 2732 Cherokee St., the bar served.

ORDER IT: ArtBar St. Louis

St. Louis, 314.769.9696, artbarstl.com

ArtBar offers a simple yet accomplished assortment of food. During my visits this winter, it included smoked salmon accompanied with red onions, capers, crostini and a light and zesty Mexican crema, and Russian pelmeni dumplings set afloat in a savory beef broth. Mid-March saw the unveiling of the Kimchi Homie, a spring menu early release featuring G&W knackwurst served in a bahn mi roll and dressed with kimchi, fish sauce ketchup and a dusting of roasted peanut powder and fresh cilantro. An apparent fusion of German and Korean cuisine, the kimchi and other Asian fixings sub for sauerkraut to give the dish a funky, tangy flavor that was a breath of fresh (spring) air.

W

hile the many masterpieces from ArtBar St. Louis’ winter food and cocktail lineup have been replaced by a revamped spring menu, given ArtBar’s hits so far, you should make a beeline for one of the funkiest watering holes to spring up in one of the city’s funkiest neighborhoods.

The brainchild of co-owners Tom Halaska and Tatyana Telnikova aims to be both an offbeat saloon and a showcase for all varieties of local art. It hits both marks.

Floor-to-ceiling murals stand opposite the massive, multicolored 20-seat bar, the top inlaid with brushes, paints and other artsy knickknacks. There’s art at every turn: a delicate sculpture here, a painting there, black-and-white silent films playing on a TV next to an oversized Darth Vader figurine who is draped in a hug by Kermit April 2015

the Frog. Walls are adorned with various pieces from local artists over a floor laid with miniature granite flagstones.

ArtBar’s abundant beer menu features drafts from Schlafly, Urban Chestnut and 4 Hands – served on five rotating taps – and a hodgepodge of more than 30 wider-ranging bottles like Scrimshaw Pilsner, Crispin cider, Pacifico and Unibroue La Fin Du Monde. Artisan cocktails rotate roughly every few months, which may be for the best. This winter, some, like the French Inferno, didn’t work – it haphazardly threw together Camus V.S. cognac, Big O ginger liqueur, cinnamon bark syrup and apple juice, topped with a candied ginger garnish. There were a few winners, though: Blume’s Chalice, a light, refreshing take on a Pimm’s Cup, included lavender syrup and a spicy topper of ginger beer. The much

Like HandleBar, Telnikova’s other eclectic saloon in The Grove, ArtBar is quite simply a fun and happening place to wash away the workday in good company. Offbeat, hip bar-goers sip on Manhattans and sketch in coloring books available behind the bar. The crowd swells with 20- and 30-somethings for such weekly event nights as comedy open mic, burlesque bingo, art openings or WineCraft, which offers three wines, three food courses and an art craft to make and take home for $25. On weekend nights, the bar has become a mainstay for a steady crowd of young, diverse, often zany clientele who appreciate the madcap atmosphere.

Expect to see a lot of ironic T-shirts, hornrimmed glasses and shaggy beards.

It’s easy enough for a bar to host a few art openings, rotate a few locally commissioned portraits, crack open a few bottles, and brand itself as a hip gallery. But on Cherokee Street, where authenticity reigns, any endeavor that lacks something greater than the sum of its parts will soon find itself plagued with empty stools and tumbleweeds. This isn’t the case with ArtBar. This multi-talented newcomer will surely be sticking around.

The house keeps a rotating supply of St. Louis beer on tap, including brews by UCBC, Schlafly and 4 Hands.

East meets West in the pungent, flavorful Kimchi Homie, a G&W knackwurst on a banh mi roll.

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dine

& drink

See Cory King's picks for beers aged with fruit

ILLUSTRATIONS BY VIDHYA NAGARAJAN

A SEAT AT THE BAR / Four experts tell us what to sip, stir and shake New Zealand’s Villa Maria winery offers a vinous way to celebrate Earth Day (April 22). Having embraced sustainable practices from vine to bottle, Villa Maria is an industry leader in GLENN BARDGETT going green. The winery’s Member of the Missouri Wine sauvignon blancs draw and Grape Board and wine significant attention, but its director at Annie Gunn’s real star is the temperamental and finicky pinot noir. Typicity is a term used to describe the degree to which a wine reflects the grape’s origins and characteristics, and the 2012 Villa Maria Cellar Selection Pinot Noir ($24) exudes the cherry and spice typicity of this Burgundy varietal.

April 2015

The cocktail resurgence of the last decade has given rise to some memorable mixed drinks, but only a few will stand the test of time. One cocktail worthy of being labeled a new classic is Jasmine, created in the 1990s by bartender Paul Harrington, TED AND JAMIE known to cocktail fans as KILGORE The Alchemist. The bitter yet USBG, B.A.R. Ready, BarSmart refreshing drink combines 1½ and co-owners/bartenders at Planter’s House ounces gin, ¼ ounce Campari, ¼ ounce Cointreau and ¾ ounce lemon juice, shaken and served up with a lemon twist. Campari lends the drink a lovely pink color, and while Jasmine tastes surprisingly like boozy grapefruit, there’s not a drop of grapefruit in it.

Today’s beer primarily consists of variations on four ingredients: water, malt, yeast and hops. However, in early brewing, all beers were tart or sour, so fruit was used to balance the CORY KING acidity. Apart from the Certified Cicerone, head lambic producers of Belgium, brewer at Perennial Artisan authentically fruit-sweetened Ales and founder of Side beers are hard to find these Project Brewing days. Luckily, the modern drinker can experience beers fermented or aged with fruit in Unibroue Éphémère Apple, Brouwerij Van Honsebrouck St. Louis Fond Tradition Kriek Lambic and Mikkeller Spontandoubleblueberry. saucemagazine.com I SAUCE MAGAZINE I 23

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WINE

HOW TO TALK LIKE A

WINE SNOB

A slutty wine we love: Azienda Agricola COS Frappato

BY BEN WOOD | PHOTO BY ELIZABETH JOCHUM

What do “easy fruit,” “gravel,” “chewy” and “a serious hint of used bedroom sheets” have in common? They’re all tasting notes used by wine professionals. Personally, I would hesitate to uncork a wine that offers a hint of used linens on the nose, and I don’t want to chew a wine. I want to drink it.

Here, how to interpret a few haughty wine words so you can talk the talk when the sommelier approaches your table. Ordering the bottle is up to you.

April 2015

Backward

Petrol

Seashells

Hugely tannic and out of balance.

This wine will never be ready to drink.

Gasoline. Yes, really. Fine for an aged riesling, but nothing else.

Briny and crystalline.

Barnyard

Sanguine

Smells like a chicken coop. Well, perhaps not that bad.

Bloody, iron and very saline.

Brambly Fruit cocktail. Think Juicy Juice with thorns.

Monolithic Singular, the opposite of complex, one clear flavor.

Scorched earth Take some mud and burn it in a fire. Take a sniff.

Scrubby Smells like bushes. Usually a disjointed wine with a lot of green herbaceous stuff.

Slutty You will be drunk – very, very drunk.

For an intimate experience with a slutty wine that’s also delicious, open a bottle of Azienda Agricola COS Frappato. $30. Randall’s Wines & Spirits, 1910 S. Jefferson Ave., St. Louis, 314.865.0199, shoprandalls.com

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VEGETIZE IT

Vegan Bread Pudding

BY KELLIE HYNES | PHOTOS BY CARMEN TROESSER

J

osh Allen looked concerned. I had just told the owner and founder of Companion Bread I was developing a recipe for a vegan bread pudding. “So no eggs? But how will you make the custard without eggs?” he asked.

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We were sitting in the break room at Companion’s bread factory in South City because I have a not-so-secret crush on Companion’s fresh baguettes.

They’re made from just flour, water, yeast and salt – yet the application of heat creates a crazy alchemy that turns the simple ingredients into delicious loaves. And they’re vegan, although, as Allen noted, the custard that transforms bread into bread pudding certainly isn’t. I told Allen I’d solve the egg problem as I went along, which only made his brow furrow deeper. I suppose when you’re baking around 7,500 loaves of bread daily, “winging it” is not part of your scientific process.

Instead of my beloved baguettes, Allen suggested I use Companion’s pain de Beaucaire. It’s made from the same ingredients as the baguette, but baked into a larger loaf. Allen explained that Beaucaire’s crust-to-crumb ratio meant more bread to soak up the custard.

And to encourage that soaking, I could make the bread stale by leaving it out overnight or heating it in a low oven for 30 minutes. “Stale-ing is just moisture migration,” Allen told me, which is a line I’m using the next time my kids complain about chewy Goldfish crackers.

Now to solve the eggless custard puzzle. Canned coconut milk is the hero of my recent vegan baking adventures. It’s naturally sweet with a generous fat content that makes vegan food taste luscious. I heated two cans of the magic milk, stirred in some

April 2015

vegan margarine and sugar and added cocoa, because coconut and chocolate go together like bread and comfort. I tossed the bread cubes in the coconut milk mixture and baked it for an hour.

The result was a rich, fudgy brick. It tasted divinely chocolaty, but the fat from two cans of coconut milk felt heavy. And even though I had carefully migrated the moisture from my pain de Beaucaire, the custard barely soaked in, resulting in bread cubes that were a little gooey and a lot crunchy.

For my second try, I substituted a cup of lighter, unsweetened coconut milk for one can of full-fat coconut milk. I also let the custard soak into the bread before I baked it and reduced the cooking time so the final dish wouldn’t scorch.

Eureka! This bread pudding was still rich and fudgy, but I could eat more than a bite without a tummy ache. Indeed, once I added a lemony coconut glaze, I ate a lot of bites. My trial-and-error baking method may not earn me a place in Allen’s bakery, but the result of this egg-free experiment was a dessert oozing with deliciousness.

FUDGY VEGAN BREAD PUDDING WITH COCONUT GLAZE 10 TO 12 SERVINGS 12 Tbsp. vegan margarine such as Earth Balance Vegan

Buttery Sticks, divided, plus extra for greasing 1 loaf stale Companion pain de Beaucaire or other stale French bâtard-style bread 1 13.5-oz. can full-fat coconut milk 1 cup unsweetened coconut milk 2½ cups sugar, divided 1 cup premium unsweetened baking cocoa powder, such as Ghirardelli 3 Tbsp. cornstarch, divided ½ tsp. kosher salt 1 tsp. vanilla extract 2 cups water 1 tsp. fresh lemon juice ¼ cup shredded coconut • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Lightly grease a 2-quart baking dish with vegan margarine.

• Using a serrated knife, cut the crust off the bread and discard. Cut the remaining loaf into 1-inch cubes (There will be about 6 cups cubed bread.) and place them in the prepared baking dish.

• In a large pot, whisk together the coconut milks. Over medium heat, bring the milk to a simmer, then whisk in 8 tablespoons vegan margarine, 1½ cups sugar, the cocoa powder, 1 tablespoon cornstarch and the salt. Continue to whisk until the ingredients are well combined and no lumps remain. Cook the mixture 2 to 3 minutes, until thick. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla

extract.

• Pour the mixture over the bread cubes, stirring to coat the pieces evenly. Let soak 20 minutes, then bake 40 minutes. Allow the bread pudding to rest 10 minutes before serving.

• Meanwhile, prepare the glaze: In a small pot over medium-high heat, combine the remaining 1 cup sugar and 2 tablespoons cornstarch. Whisk in the water and stir to dissolve the sugar and cornstarch. Bring to a boil, then cook 1 minute longer, whisking constantly. Remove from heat and whisk in the remaining 4 tablespoons margarine, the lemon juice and the coconut. Stir until the margarine melts. Cover to keep warm until ready to serve.

• To serve, spoon the bread pudding into bowls and top each serving with ¼ cup coconut glaze. Serve warm.

Hungry for more vegetarian dishes? Go to samg.bz/ saucemeatless every Monday to check out our Meatless Monday column, where you’ll find recipes to prepare tasty vegetarian fare at home.

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MAKE THIS SPANAKOPITA FLATBREAD ACTIVE TIME: 7 MINUTES

MAKE THIS Spanakopita is a crowd pleaser, but buttering sheet after sheet of puff pastry is time-consuming. Cut the fuss (and the fat) by putting the flavors of this dish on flatbread. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium-high heat. Add ¼ cup chopped red onion, 2 chopped green onions and 2 minced garlic cloves and saute until the onions have softened. Add 4 cups loosely packed fresh spinach and cook, stirring often, until wilted. Transfer the mixture to the bowl of a food processor. Add ½ cup ricotta cheese, ½ cup crumbled feta cheese, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, 1 teaspoon dried dill, and ½ teaspoon each lemon zest, nutmeg, kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Pulse until puréed. Place 1 loaf Afghan naan on a pizza stone or cookie sheet, spread the spinach mixture over the naan, and top with ¼ cup crumbled feta cheese. Bake 13 minutes. Remove from the oven, slice and serve immediately. – Dee Ryan

PHOTO BY GREG RANNELLS

For the freshest Afghan naan in St. Louis, head to 4043 Gravois Ave. At this convenience store with Arabic signage, you’ll find bread by Afghan Bread House, a bakery located in the back of the store.

If you enjoy Dee Ryan’s quick and easy recipes in Make This, don’t miss her online column, Just Five.

Go to samg.bz/saucejust5 to find recipes you can whip up in a jiffy and that require just five key ingredients.

April 2015

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LIST

T he

20 dishes, drinks, faces & places we love

KA-BOOMM Jilly’s Ice Cream Bar

PHOTO BY CARMEN TROESSER

by matt berkley, julie cohen, garrett faulkner, ligaya figueras, byron kerman, catherine klene, elizabeth maxson, meera nagarajan, spencer pernikoff, dee ryan and kristin schultz

How do you go Ka-Boomm at Jilly’s Ice Cream Bar? Start with a Tahitian vanilla ice cream base, then swirl in decadent brownie chunks made with 58-percent dark Swiss chocolate, Oreos and mini M&M’s for good measure. The name is short for kid-approved, brownie, Oreo, M&M’s, but the young and old dig it equally. “It is so whimsical when you see the tie-dye effect that the M&M’s give it,” said chef Casey Shiller, who created this Jilly’s fan favorite with fellow chef Dana Holland. “It’s kid-approved, but it’s kick-ass, too.” We’ll take a double scoop in a confetti waffle cone, please. 8509 Delmar Blvd., University City, 314.993.5455, jillysicecreambar.com – L.F.

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HOT ROAST BEEF SANDWICH

KIMBERLY HOSKIN-WESTCOTT PHOTO BY CARMEN TROESSER; BEER PHOTO BY JONATHAN GAYMAN; SANDWICH PHOTO BY ELIZABETH MAXSON

Eovaldi’s Deli

If a sandwich is just a sandwich, then Eovaldi’s Deli’s Hot Roast Beef must be meat and cake.

Delicately sliced top-round beef is piled high on fresh garlic cheese bread and topped with your choice of melted cheese (ours is mozzarella). While savory juices drip with each bite, a side of robust, hot au jus is served for the dip-on-demand types.

Still a sandwich skeptic? Start with a 4½-incher, but be warned: By next week, you’ll be on to the 6-inch then the 9, and by the end of the month, no one will be surprised when you quietly graduate to the 12. 2201 Edwards St., St. Louis, 314.771.5707, delionthehill.com – E.M.

Whether you know a dunkel from a Doppelbock or just light brew from dark, when visiting Craft Beer Cellar, snobbery is one of the few beer descriptors you won’t run across. “We’re not beer snobs, we’re beer geeks,” explained co-owner Ryan Nickelson. “We are excited about what beer is and how it’s made. It’s about sharing good beer with good people.” With the shop’s specialty being mixed six- and 12-packs, if you have trouble choosing between the 600 to 800 local, national and international craft beers available on any given day, allow the highly knowledgeable yet down-to-earth staff to lend its expertise. Come in to chat, indulge in free beer samples at the tasting bar, and when you buy too many bottles to tote, be prepared for the geeks to insist on carrying your purchases to your car – courtesy is their thing, too. 8113 Maryland Ave., Clayton, 314.222.2444, craftbeercellar.com/clayton – K.S.

CRAFT BEER CELLAR

KIMBERLY HOSKINWESTCOTT Cleveland-Heath

Cleveland-Heath doesn’t take reservations, which means the wait for a table could be up to an hour on a busy weekend night. Yet, I don’t mind because I get to chat with Kimberly HoskinWestcott, a hostess so vivacious, affable and just gosh-darn nice that I’m almost disappointed at the rare occurrence when Cleveland-Heath doesn’t have a wait.

service at a New York communications company and more than 30 years as a professional jazz singer.

Watching her at the front of the house – greeting new customers, hugging regulars, admiring a shy child’s toy – it’s easy to assume she’s been doing this all her life, yet Hoskin-Westcott has worked in the restaurant industry for only two years.

She attributes her hosting style – part entertainer, part ambassador and part traffic controller – to her 30 years of customer April 2015

Even when a waiting list runs 25 names long, Hoskin-Westcott has an uncanny ability to make each customer feel like her top priority – and as she’ll tell you, they are.

She believes the worst thing customers can feel is that the host has forgotten them.

“You try to let them know they can trust you: trust you to get them a seat, trust you know their time is valuable,” she said. “I keep an eye on them from when they first come in to when they leave. ... I try to make sure that I have a level of integrity and that people say, ‘Yeah, she’s going to help me out.’” 106 N. Main St., Edwardsville, 618.307.4830, clevelandheath.com – C.K.

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The Fountain on Locust

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Every time I order my favorite dessert at The Fountain on Locust, someone asks, “Can I have some? You can try mine!” No! I don’t want to try yours, and as for my Pineapple Inside-out Cake in a Cup, I don’t have enough to share. Once I arrange the perfect bite of whipped cream, ice cream and fluffy, house-made spongecake with a dab of the sweet, buttery pineapple sauce from its center, I understand why you’re jealous, but here’s the upside: You can get your own.

3037 Locust St., St. Louis, 314.535.7800, fountainonlocust.com – M.N.

April 2015

PHOTO BY ELIZABETH MAXSON

PINEAPPLE INSIDE-OUT CAKE IN A CUP

FRIED BAJA FISH TACOS Mission Taco Joint

The cooks at Mission Taco Joint are Fried Baja Fish Taco specialists. Seriously.

They manage to make tilapia taste as fancy as toro. First, the fish is coated in a batter made with 2nd Shift’s SubMission IPA and fried to a flawless crisp, then the usual suspects of pico de gallo, green cabbage and queso fresco are piled on. It’s finished with the crème de la crème: the creamy, smoky and bright chipotle baja sauce so perfect it makes all other tacos seem tragic without it. At $3 a pop, these tacos are a steal, so buy three or four or 10 (like me).

6235 Delmar Blvd., St. Louis, 314.932.5430; 908 Lafayette Ave., St. Louis, 314.858.8226, missiontacostl.com – M.N.

TACO PHOTO BY CARMEN TROESSER; PORTRAIT BY ELIZABETH MAXSON

PAT RUTHERFORDPETTINE AND JIM PETTINE Sugaree Baking Co.

This past St. Patrick’s Day, like they do every St. Patrick’s Day, Pat and Jimmy fired up a grill in front of their Dogtown bakery, Sugaree Baking Co., and sold beer, brats and, in Pat’s words, “Some crappy high-school cafeteria pizza that we buy just for that day. The drunks just love it!”

Pat and Jimmy, formally known as Pat Rutherford-Pettine and Jim Pettine, exude a lust for life with a healthy dash of humor that precedes even their formidable skills in the bakery (where, it should go without saying, nothing they make is crappy).

Every day the couple descends from their home above Sugaree to whip up buttery quiches, chocolate croissants, small-batch fig bars, lemon coconut roulade cakes, crisp cookies and pies. Then each Monday they send out an email letting regulars know which pies will be for sale that weekend (the storefront is only open April 2015

Fridays and Saturdays), so customers can reserve pies in flavors like chocolate cream, peach-blackberry, caramel-apple crumb and dozens more. Even if you’ve never made it to the storefront, chances are you’ve already savored one of Sugaree’s cakes or pies. They often wind up at some of your favorite local restaurants and institutions, including Grapeseed, Quincy Street Bistro, I Fratellini, Kreis’ Steakhouse & Bar, Pho Grand, Tony’s A.M., and the concessions at the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra.

Don’t forget Sugaree’s potpies, sweet brioche and mini cheesecakes – you’ll wind up trying everything once you become a member of Pat and Jimmy’s extended family of customers. If you’re lucky, you might get a sneak preview of forthcoming dessert specials. If you’re even luckier you might hear tales from Pat of her daughter, grandson and the jerk who took her parking space last night.

Plenty of brides-to-be order wedding cakes from Sugaree, too. If you find yourself sharing gossip with Pat while she’s meticulously decorating one of their cakes, then you’re not just a regular, you’re a friend.

1242 Tamm Ave., St. Louis, 314.645.5496, sugareebaking.com – B.K. saucemagazine.com I SAUCE MAGAZINE I 35

KHAO SOI Fork & Stix

What is this sorcery in which otherwise unremarkable ingredients – egg noodles, cilantro, lime, yellow coconut curry, pickled mustard greens, red and green onions and your choice of protein – alchemize into perhaps the finest Thai dish in St. Louis? With khao soi’s harmonious ratio of cream, crunch, chew, sweet and savory, Fork & Stix’s northern Thai specialty demands to be ordered and reordered. Eat it with the accompanying soup spoon or slurp directly from the bowl. Table manners are no object at paranormal times like these. – G.F.

PHOTO BY GREG RANNELLS

549 Rosedale Ave., St. Louis, 314.863.5572, forknstix.com

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From left, Sam Gregg, Rick Lewis, Grant Twidwell, Kevin Ruck, Nick Vandas, Ari Ellis, Chris Ladley and Chris Tirone

Kevin Ruck keeps the oven and sandwiches under submission as Sam Gregg bangs out fries, and Ari Ellis plates like a drummer keeping the beat. Meanwhile, Lewis is ever moving – either on the pass or on the floor talking to QSB’s adoring fans.

Why would a bunch of folks with serious culinary cred – former exec chefs and sous from fine-dining restaurants – swap white cloths for the casual comfort of a South City bar and grill?

“Cooking is meant to be fun,” Lewis said. “The majority of these people probably got into this business because they enjoyed cooking and the camaraderie of the kitchen. We try to keep that as much as we can and play nice.”

It’s a lively kitchen playing a very nice rhythm, but a restaurant that’s churning out some of the very best food in town can’t always be just fun and games. The dinner rush brings a different tune. “We like to keep it pretty laid back until things are really popping. That’s when it gets down to business,” Lewis said.

“We turn the music off.”

THE KITCHEN CREW Quincy Street Bistro

BLOODY MARY PHOTO BY SHERRIE CASTELLANO; STAFF PHOTO BY ASHLEY GIESEKING

On any given night, the music playing in the back of the house at Quincy Street Bistro ranges from “heavy metal and punk rock to Katy Perry and friggin’ classical music,” said Rick Lewis, Quincy Street’s

DEBORAH HENDERSON Midtown Farmers Market

executive chef and front man whose lineup of rock-star cooks nails every performance.

In Quincy Street’s kitchen, Nick Vandas and Paul Heinz handle the first set, with Vandas

It’s a sunny Saturday morning in The Loop. Throngs of people stroll amiably, music drifts through the air, toddlers eat fruit popsicles in their strollers, and a farmer offers you a just-picked strawberry to sample. This sweet moment is brought to you

by Deborah Henderson, the fairy godmother of farmers markets. “I get such satisfaction from the generations I interact with at the market,” she said, “from bringing in high school students as interns, to the 90-year-old patron that comes every week, to the new mother that didn’t miss her Saturday morning at the market, just days after giving birth.”

Beyond her unpaid, full-time job as manager of the Midtown Farmers Market and interacting with customers, Henderson wants to make these open-air markets successful for vendors and farmers. In 2012, she wrote and passed through legislation known as the Farmers Market Ordinance, which provides fair permitting fees and standardized food safety and sanitation codes for St. Louis County farmers markets. Then, Henderson created the Midwest Association of Farmers Markets, a nonprofit that promotes the local food movement through farmers markets and community programs. “We set a precedent in the state – so it can be a model for others if needed,” Henderson said.

6655 Delmar Blvd, University City, 314.913.6632, Facebook: Midtown Farmers Market – D.R. April 2015

on morning prep and Heinz tackling lunch service. In the evening, you’ll find Chris Tirone expediting while Chris Ladley and Grant Twidwell tag-team on grill and saute and Dakota Kalb entertains entremets.

But now that Lewis is leaving QSB this month to team up with Mike Emerson of Pappy’s Smokehouse and open chicken spot Southern, the band will have to keep its beat without him. “They are all very accomplished, seasoned cooks and chefs. That transition there is going to be super easy,” Lewis said. “They’re just going to keep rocking and rolling.” 6931 Gravois Ave., St. Louis, 314.353.1588, quincystreetbistro.com – L.F.

Smoking Mary The Scottish Arms When I find myself in times of trouble, Smoking Mary comes to me, speaking words of wisdom, sip at me.

No joke: This devilishly good batch o’ bloody at The Scottish Arms is concocted with a house-made mix of peat smoked tomato and celery and Benromach Peat Smoke Speyside single malt Scotch whisky. Sip slowly and take note of the spicy, smoky notes at play in this remarkably complex cocktail – before and after your hour of darkness goes away.

8 S. Sarah St., St. Louis, 314.535.0551, thescottisharms.com – G.F. saucemagazine.com I SAUCE MAGAZINE I 37

From left, Katie Herrera, Shae Smith, Chris Hoertel and Karen King

WOMEN BEHIND BARS

To those not fluent in craft beerspeak, decoding the global beer list at The Side Project Cellar is a bit like reading a foreign language textbook. Enter Side Project Cellar’s bartenders, four women who will not only guide you to your future favorite beer, but also they won’t make you feel like an idiot when you butcher the pronunciation of Brettanomyces (hey, you tried).

Here, co-owner Karen King explains why the people she hired make Side Project Cellar one of the best places in town to grab a pint of craft beer.

Karen King: The Side Project Cellar co-owner | Years in beer: 5 The boss: “I didn’t intend to hire an all-women team, but that is who were the most talented and passionate. … I can teach someone how to bartend, but you can’t teach passion.”

savvy. We use Square, and she’s teaching me how to do it. … I’ll put a new beer on draft, and I’ll look over and Shae is already looking it up on RateBeer and teaching about it.”

Katie Herrera: Tasting room manager | Years in beer: 10 Second in command: “Besides the fact that she has an awesome personality … and she’s great behind a bar, she has experience changing kegs and deciding, ‘Oh, this keg blew and this would be a great choice to replace it.’

She’s a great person to leave in charge.”

Chris Hoertel: Bartender | Years in beer: 6 Translator: “She came from Home Wine Kitchen. We have a lot of international beer and crazy beer on draft, and she’s used to explaining really cool food ideas to people, so that’s a nice transition.

People might ask ‘What’s an Oud Bruin?’ just like they might ask, ‘What’s a lardon?’” – C.K.

Shae Smith: Bartender | Years in beer: 4 Self-starter: “Shae is super tech

7373 Marietta Ave., 314.224.5211, thesideprojectcellar.com

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The next time you have a case of the Mondays, hit up one of St. Louis’ culinary hotspots that break with tradition and open their doors on Monday. Head to Farmhaus for its Blue Plate Special lunch of crunchy fried chicken, mac-n-cheese, smashed taters, house salad and tea. For dinner, check out Niche’s Monday Supper, where the sous chefs take the reins for a $35 three-course meal of refined comfort fare, or stop by Juniper for its Mondays-only Meat and Three, a Southern tradition served family style. Don’t feel like dressing up?

Swing by Pastaria for Meatball Monday, or if even that sounds like too much effort, enjoy dinner in your pajamas after grabbing a Meatball Monday meal to-go from Bolyard’s Meat & Provisions, featuring fresh beef and pork meatballs with Pastaria’s pasta and pomodoro sauce. We’ve never looked forward to Mondays as much as we do now.

Bolyard’s Meat & Provisions, bolyardsmeat.com; Farmhaus, farmhausrestaurant.com; Juniper, junipereats.com; Niche, nichestlouis.com; Pastaria, pastariastl.com – S.P.

Monday Funday

April 2015

PHOTO BY CARMEN TROESSER

The Side Project Cellar

BONE BROTHS Bolyard’s Meat & Provisions

As any fantasy geek worth her salt knows, an elixir is a magical liquid that can cure illness or extend life. We feel much the same about Bolyard’s Meat & Provisions’ savory bone broths. Even though research shows that protein and collagen released from bone marrow can boost one’s immune system, the good people at Bolyard’s aren’t making any such promises about their broths.

However, we must note that owner Chris Bolyard drinks a cup every day, and we think he’s in fine form (and our receipt for the broth does read “remedy” … ).

BROTH PHOTO BY GREG RANNELLS; BEER FLOAT PHOTO COURTESY OF ICES PLAIN & FANCY

To create these broths, bones are roasted, simmered for hours and finished with a little salt and aromatics. The results are rich, clear brews, just a bit thick from the marrow released from the bones. Bolyard’s chicken broth is infused with thyme, sage, bay leaf and turmeric and smells like a cup

The Drizly App

April 2015

4 Hands Chocolate Milk Stout Float Ices Plain & Fancy

of Thanksgiving. Kaffir lime, lemon grass and ginger are added to the beef broth, evoking the flavors of pho. The pork broth is simmered with local Arkansas Black apples from Vesterbrook Farm, as well

as some Chinese five-spice, which delightfully turns the idea of mulled cider on its head.

Even though we can’t scientifically prove that the

Never run out of alcohol at a dinner party again with the Drizly smartphone app, which is basically Amazon for booze. (We’ll pause now to let that marvelous-ness sink in.) You can order beer, wine and liquor and have it delivered to your door in less than an hour. Type in your address and this user-friendly app will pull the thousands of libations – organized categorically and alphabetically – available in your delivery area. Place your order and voilà, your party is revived without you so much as teetering from your hostess throne.

Available for iPhone and Android. – J.C.

broths at Bolyard’s are granting us longer lives, with liquids this tasty, our lives are certainly enhanced. 2810 Sutton Blvd., Maplewood, 314.647.2567, bolyardsmeat.com – D.R.

All the childhood root beer floats and chocolate milk sucked up and swirled around your eyes through those crazy straw glasses have prepared you for Ices Plain & Fancy’s 4 Hands Chocolate Milk Stout Float.

The vanilla ice cream base is whipped with shaved chocolate and frozen in a cloud of liquid nitrogen. Two scoops get drenched with half a pint of 4 Hands’ chocolate milk stout and the remaining beer is served on the side. Now to find those crazy straw glasses … 2256 S. 39th St., St. Louis, 314.601.3604, icesplainandfancy.com – C.K .

IN-HOUSE SALUMI

While Salume Beddu’s excellent Calabrese salami, soppressa da Veneto and finocchiona salami are found at most local groceries, only at its brick-and-mortar shop can Salume Beduu you find the rarer cured meats.

Experimental salami made for Salume Beddu’s quarterly Cure Club package, including an earthy hazelnut, a woodsy porcini and a take-no-prisoners ghost pepper, are available in limited batches for the public, while Beddu’s highly sought-after primal cures can be found year-round. The shop’s crown jewel is its culatello, a whole-muscle cure created from the heart of a prosciutto. Another scarce standout is the Spanish-style coppa rossa, made with smoked paprika, coriander and Chimayo chile.

3467 Hampton Ave., St. Louis, 314.353.3100, salumebeddu.com – S.P.

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Geisert Farms

While Cherokee Street is still known for its antique shops, international farmers market and authentic Mexican fare (for good reason), the South City strip running between Broadway and Gravois is also becoming known for, well, just that. No longer is Cherokee a smattering of restaurants and stores concentrated around a couple city blocks; we have a full business district on our hands. Don’t believe us? Next time you’re attacking the requisite torta at Taqueria El Bronco (2817 Cherokee St., 314.762.0691, taqueriaelbronco. com), afterward, visit one of these eclectic venues, and when you’re done, keep exploring.

Farming isn’t what it used to be. Ask Todd Geisert. His family has operated Geisert Farms in Washington for nearly a century, and much more has changed than the farming equipment. Always entrepreneurially minded (he started a metal fabrication business as a high school junior), Geisert diversified the farm’s offerings when he took over in 2008. Today, he boasts an abundant yearround roadside farmstand and creates more than 50 different meat products from potato-bacon sausage to teriyaki snack sticks. Geisert also distributes his pork to dozens of St. Louis restaurants and shops, unites fellow independent farmers across eastern Missouri and still raises hogs according to a deceptively simple philosophy:

“The animals can be what they are, out in the fresh air and the sunshine,” Geisert said. “You can tell that they are content by looking at them.”

Here, four ways Geisert is redefining what it means to be a farmer: A businessman “Produce is a big part of our business now. The first year I planted 120 tomato plants and I thought that was a lot. … The last couple years, we planted 5,000 tomato plants.

Once we build (customers’) trust and give them a good quality product at a reasonable price, it’s a fairly easy sell from there.”

An ambassador “We’re pretty proud of the town. I’ve done quite a bit of

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traveling across the United States, and there’s not too many places like Washington, Missouri. The volunteerism is the biggest thing you’ll find in Washington that is unique. …

Some people have left town and didn’t realize how good they had it until they came back.”

A family farm advocate “I feel a responsibility to help people grow and try to keep the family farms to give people an avenue to keep a living.

That’s a tough thing to do in our business.”

A softie “Dealing with the baby pigs is my specialty.”

4851 Old Highway 100, Washington, 314.791.6942, toadspigs.com – C.K.

1. With just seven seats, cozy is an understatement at Cherokee Street’s newest cafe, The Little Dipper (2619½ Cherokee St., 314.625.3530, Facebook: The Little Dipper), where soups and sandwiches are the specialty, including its filling vegetarian wheatburger.

2. The Fortune Teller Bar (2635 Cherokee St., 314.776.2337,

Grits SoHo Restaurant & Lounge

thefortunetellerbar.com) serves up masterful cocktails along with unconventional bites such as the vegetarian chili accompanied with a slice of Black Bear Lickhalter rye bread. 3. Hearty Russian dumplings laced with creme fraiche are one of the culinary highlights at ArtBar (2732 Cherokee St., 314.769.9696, artbarstl.com), a colorful watering hole that also showcases local art, and hosts comedy open mics, live bands and burlesque bingos.

4. Athlete Eats (2837 Cherokee St., 314.932.5566, athleteeats. com) features scrumptious but sensible entrees for the customer who enjoys dishes like grass-fed, bunless bulgogi burgers along with tailor-made, cold-pressed fruit juices. – M.B. Cherokee Street is bustling like never before.

On this month’s Sound Bites segment, Cherokee Street business owners Minerva Lopez and Kristin Dennis join Sauce executive editor Ligaya Figueras to discuss the growth of this eclectic South City business district and its diverse food and beverage offerings. Tune in to St. Louis Public Radio 90.7 KWMU’s Cityscape Friday, April 17 at noon and 10 p.m.

There’s no better evidence of a Southerner’s DNA than the way she cooks grits. Called polenta

by Yanks and Philistines, there are plenty of imitators out there, but few standouts. At The Grove’s SoHo Restaurant & Lounge, the grits fashioned by executive chef Ceaira Jackson are bona fide. Steaming, buttery, cheesy mounds of the stuff make exquisite brunch pairings with the fried catfish, chicken and waffles or even red velvet pancakes.

You’ll shout for joy. You’ll gobble them up. You’ll beg for more. SoHo’s contribution to the classic – and deceptively difficult – Southern standard is a display of true grit.

4229 Manchester Ave., St. Louis, 314.932.5554, eatplaysoho.com – G.F. April 2015

TODD GEISERT PHOTO BY GREG RANNELLS; GRITS PHOTO BY ELIZABETH MAXSON

CHEROKEE STREET

TODD GEISERT

April 2015

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STUFF TO DO:

THIS MONTH

BY BYRON KERMAN

Missouri Mycological Society Forays Dates and locations vary, momyco.org It’s just $15 to become a member of the Missouri Mycological Society, and then you can join the expert-led forays (mushroom hunts) around the area and take home nature’s finest fungi. April is a big month for mushroom hunting, and MOMS has scheduled forays in Washington State Park (April 19), Pere Marquette State Park (April 25) and Springfield, Missouri for the annual Morel Madness hunt (April 10 to 12). Before embarking on these forays, you might also want to check out the 10 Common Poisonous Mushrooms of Missouri class at Babler State Park (April 4).

Bourbon & Bow Ties April 18, Sasha’s on Shaw, 4069 Shaw Blvd., St. Louis, 314.771.7274, sashaswinebar.com It’s a two-fer: The Bourbon & Bow Ties party at Sasha’s on Shaw is a debut of the chillaxin’ spot’s new cocktail menu and a fundraiser for the nearby City Garden Montessori School. Look for libations featuring fortified wines, grape-based spirits and spirits aged in spent wine barrels. A Beam Suntory representative will share tastes of premium whiskeys, and guests can dip bottles of Maker’s Mark bourbon into liquid wax to create the brand’s signature look.

Webster Groves Herb Society Herb Sale April 25 – 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., First Congregational Church of Webster Groves, 10 W. Lockwood Ave., Webster Groves, 314.739.9925, wgherbs.org Spring is always in the air at the annual Webster Groves Herb Society Herb Sale.

Dreams of thriving herb gardens come true when guests purchase varietals of basil, lavender, mint, thyme, rosemary, cilantro, chives, catnip and dill. Get your veggies started, too, with heirloom tomatoes, peppers, kale,

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artichokes and asparagus. A L’Ecole Culinaire chef and students will dole out food samples made with the herbs of the day. Plus, look for demonstrations and a gardening book sale.

Kids’ Classes at L’Ecole Culinaire Dates vary, L’Ecole Culinaire, 9811 S. Forty Drive, Ladue, 314.587.2433, lecole.edu Children ages 5 to 14 are welcome at the new kids’ classes at L’Ecole Culinaire. Upcoming classes include Cookies (April 25), Muffins (May 30) and Cinnamon Rolls (June 27). Students will learn the fundamentals of baking and how to be safe and have fun in the kitchen. Parents are encouraged to join the fun and play sous-chef to their kids.

Caffeine Crawl April 25 and 26, times and locations vary, caffeinecrawl.com A celebration of some of the city’s top cafes, the annual Caffeine Crawl is a tour with stops at a dozen coffee shops, including Benton Park Cafe, Chauvin Coffee, Comet Coffee, Kakao, Kaldi’s, Kayak’s, Northwest Coffee and Sump Coffee. Seven different tour options are offered, whether you take a chartered bus, your car or a bicycle. Each tour stop includes a short presentation by a cafe owner or employee, followed by chocolate or coffee samples. Saturday night’s climax is an After-Crawl Party at Blueprint Coffee.

Dining Out for Life April 30, participating restaurants, 314.645.6451, diningoutforlife.com/ stlouis/restaurants Fried chicken at Miss Leon’s, the chocolate ice-cream martini at Baileys’ Chocolate Bar and meatloaf at Mathew’s Kitchen are but a few of the choices from the menus at more than 150 restaurants participating in this year’s Dining Out for Life. A percentage of the April 2015

restaurants’ till from that day benefits Saint Louis Effort for AIDS, which helps prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS through education and provides support to people living with the disease.

Figueras, art director Meera Nagarajan and wine writer Glenn Bardgett as they host a breakfast-for-dinner cooking class featuring recipes and drinks from the pages of Sauce. Register online.

Midtown Farmers Market

sponsored events

SLPL Brew Launch April 7 – 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., Schalfly Tap Room, 2100 Locust St., St. Louis, 314.241.2288, slpl.org/events The St. Louis Public Library and Schlafly have joined forces to create the SLPL Peated Scotch Ale, a tribute to library patron Andrew Carnegie’s Scottish heritage and in celebration of SLPL’s 150th anniversary. Raise a glass at this 21-and-older event and be among the first to try this librarian-approved brew.

Central Conversations: Urban Farming April 8 – 6:30 to 8 p.m., Central Library, 1301 Olive St., St. Louis, 314.241.2288, slpl.org/events Sauce executive editor Ligaya Figueras moderates a roundtable discussion of urban farming and sustainability in St. Louis with local sustainability leaders Mary Ostafi of Urban Harvest STL, Molly Rockamann of EarthDance and Michael Sorth of Gateway Greening.

360 Beer Tasting Dinner April 9 – 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., Three Sixty, 1 S. Broadway, St. Louis, 314.241.8439, 360-stl.com/april-brew-view-sixty Three Sixty is celebrating beer throughout April during Brew with View, and it’s kicking things off with a special beer dinner. Guests can sample craft beers from local breweries, while noshing on Three Sixty’s fare sourced from local purveyors.

360 Celebrity Beertender Event April 10 – 4 p.m., Three Sixty, 1 S. Broadway, St. Louis, 314.241.8439, 360-stl.com/april-brew-view-sixty Guests can raise a pint while helping to raise money for the local chapter of Pedal the Cause – all while being served by their favorite local celebs.

Wine & Dine with Sauce Magazine April 10 – 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., Dierbergs, 1080 Lindemann Road, Des Peres, 636.812.1336, dierbergs.com/school Join Sauce executive editor Ligaya April 2015

April 18 – 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., 6655 Delmar Blvd., University City, 314.913.6632, Facebook: Midtown Farmers Market Spring is in the air at the Midtown Farmers Market. Look for vendors like Biver Farms, Buila Family Farm and ArtHouse Coffees, gather the first spring greens and purchase seedlings for your home garden.

A Tasteful Affair April 19 – 2 to 5:30 p.m., Four Seasons–St. Louis, 999 N. 2nd St., St. Louis, 314.652.3663, foodoutreach.org More than 40 area restaurants and caterers from across St. Louis will come together at Four Seasons–St. Louis to help raise funds for Food Outreach. Sample fare from all participants, bid on auction items and participate in raffles.

St. Louis Earth Day Festival April 25 – 4 to 7 p.m. and April 26 – 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., The Muny at Forest Park, 1 Theater Drive, St. Louis, 314.282.7533, stlouisearthday.org Celebrate sustainability during a weekend of fun, food and education at St. Louis Earth Day Festival in Forest Park. Kick things off with food trucks, music, beer and kids’ activities Saturday at Earth Day Eve, then join in the festivities at the main event Sunday. Get your fill from nearly 30 food vendors, sip Schlafly’s Organic IPA, and enjoy free yoga, MetroBus painting, music and a recycling extravaganza.

Schlafly Farmers Market Wednesdays in April, 4 to 7 p.m., Schlafly Bottleworks, 7260 Southwest Ave., Maplewood, 314.241.2337, schlaflyfarmersmarket.com Get your first pick of the spring produce when the Schlafly Farmers Market returns to its weekly schedule. Nearly 30 vendors will be present, including newcomers like Tamale Man, SeedGeeks and Two Men and a Garden.

Tower Grove Farmers Market Saturdays beginning April 11, 8 a.m. to noon, Tower Grove Park, 4256 Magnolia Ave., St. Louis, tgmarket.org The Tower Grove Farmers Market returns from its winter hibernation to welcome vendors selling everything from produce and meat to preserves and bread. Get there early to join in a free yoga session before filling your bag with produce. saucemagazine.com I SAUCE MAGAZINE I 45

WHAT I DO

testing new things that might be appropriate to grow in our area.

Glenn Kopp

What happens to produce grown at Kemper? If we have overproduction, it goes to food banks. Some (produce) we give to staff and volunteers to get feedback. If the timing is right, we can use it at a cooking class.

Looking for ways to make your garden the envy of your neighbors? Glenn Kopp, horticulture information manager at the Missouri Botanical Garden’s William T. Kemper Center for Home Gardening, is at your service.

Kopp, a MoBOT employee of 30 years, tells how he and his team help everyone develop their green thumbs.

What do you do to people who pilfer the produce? Give a very stern look.

There have been occasions where someone will come in with a shopping bag and start grabbing things. We have to say, “I’m sorry. There’s no picking allowed.” We are a display garden. If everyone took samples, it wouldn’t look very good. People would say, “What’s the matter with that plant?”

How do you decide what to plant in the demonstration gardens?

We’re selecting things of interest to home gardeners, so if there are new cultivars of roses that are more disease-resistant or a new color, we’ll try that. Also, we have an experimental garden. We’re always

What are the biggest mistakes gardeners make in springtime?

People try to work the soil when it’s still wet. Some people plant warm season crops too early; you should wait until mid-May to plant tomatoes.

Inadequate soil preparation; doing a soil test is worthwhile to find out the nutrients you need for the soil.

Matching sun conditions with what you want to grow; most vegetables do not do well in shade. Watering: People water in the evening, which is not a good time. If you keep the plants wet overnight, there’s a greater chance they’ll get fungal diseases.

You’re a Master Gardener. What is that? It’s a volunteer program that started in Washington State in 1973. People are trained and then do volunteer service. Here in St. Louis, our volunteers go to 16 weeks of classes once a week. Some come with gardening experience, though that’s not required. We match their skills to where they can work.

What does a Master Gardener wear for gardening? An old T-shirt from the old Japanese festival or a Best of Missouri T-shirt. Those are good. Pants instead of shorts. Good shoes. A hat.

What oddball gardening questions have you fielded? Recently, somebody wanted to grow edelweiss in their home. Edelweiss is an alpine plant known from The Sound of Music. It won’t grow in St. Louis. The volunteers at the answering service write down some of the unusual questions.

Someone asked how would they use Miracle Whip on their strawberries.

They meant Miracle-Gro. Does talking to a plant help it grow?

Breathing minimally increases the carbon dioxide around the plant, some people say. There’s nothing conclusive.

- Ligaya Figueras

Missouri Botanical Garden William T. Kemper Center for Home Gardening, 4344 Shaw Blvd., St. Louis, 314.577.5100, mobot.org 46 I SAUCE MAGAZINE I saucemagazine.com

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PHOTO BY ASHLEY GIESEKING

Got a pressing gardening question? Call MoBOT’s Horticulture Answer Service at 314.577.5143 to get one-on-one help from a Master Gardener.

April 2015

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