June 2014

Best of Brunch Lemon Ricotta Blueberry Pancakes at Cucina Pazzo p. 36

Craft Beer

t h e

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Jalapeno Poppers

rebel without a menu

Corn Dogs

p. 49

p. 23

p. 30

a p. 29

June 2014

C a n

t o p

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L o s

P u n k :

FREE, june 2014

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J une 2 014 • VO LUM E 14, Issue 6 PUBLISHER EXECUTIVE EDITOR ART DIRECTOR MANAGING EDITOR MANAGING EDITOR, DIGITAL SPECIAL SECTIONs EDITOR contributing editor Fact checker PROOFREADER PRODUCTION DESIGNER EDIBLE WEEKEND WRITER CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS

What's your signature picnic dish?

CONTRIBUTING ILLUSTRATOR CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

White sangria with tons of peaches

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 ©2001-2014 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

A bottle of rosé

Allyson Mace for me and Ligaya Figueras gourmet dog Meera Nagarajan treats for Edie Garrett Faulkner Catherine Klene Garrett Faulkner Julie Cohen Rosa Heyman Emily Lowery Soft-boiled eggs with Michelle Volansky Louisiana Hot Sauce Catherine Klene Jonathan Gayman, Ashley Gieseking, Elizabeth Jochum, Greg Rannells, Carmen Troesser, Michelle Volansky Vidhya Nagarajan Glenn Bardgett, Andrew Barrett, Matt Berkley, Daniels Blake-Parseliti, Lauren Blake-Parseliti, Julie Cohen, Garrett Faulkner, Ligaya Figueras, Eric Hildebrandt, Kellie Hynes, Byron Kerman, Jamie Kilgore, Ted Kilgore, Cory King, Catherine Klene, Meera Nagarajan, Michael Renner, Dee Ryan Rebecca Ryan Rebecca Ryan Muffulettas using the "Lee Bailey's Allyson Mace City Foods" Rachel Gaertner, Jill George, recipe Jackie Wagner Jill George Mary Baker, Erica Van Buren

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 June 2014

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contents june 2014

editors' picks 13

EAT THIS Corn madeleines at Herbie’s Vintage ’72

14

HIT LIST 4 new places to try this month

reviews 17

NEW AND NOTABLE Nathalie's

by michael renner

29

BEER

20

POWER LUNCH Joy Luck Buffet

by byron kerman

by eric hildebrandt 30

VEGETIZE IT Corn dog carnival

23

NIGHTLIFE Los Punk

by matt berkley

by kellie hynes 35

MAKE THIS Berry custard cups

dine & drink

by dee ryan

25

last course

A SEAT AT THE BAR Four experts tell us what to sip, stir and shake

Photo by carmen troesser

by glenn bardgett, cory king, and ted and jamie kilgore 27

WINE

52

STUFF TO DO by byron kerman 54

WHAT I DO

Orange is the new white

Jacqui Segura

by daniels and lauren blake-parseliti

by ligaya figueras

June 2014

Catfish and grits at Soho Restaurant & Lounge, p. 36

Crushing on cans

Features 36

The best of brunch

by julie cohen, garrett faulkner, ligaya figueras, catherine klene and meera nagarajan 44

Mother spore A look inside St. Louis' bubbling obsession with fermentation

cover details

Best of Brunch The Lemon Ricotta Blueberry Pancakes on the brunch menu at Cucina Pazzo are a must-try.

For more on the best brunches in St. Louis, turn to page 36. photo by carmen troesser

by kellie hynes 49

short list: jalapeno poppers by andrew barrett

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letter from the editor

Left: Ligaya Figueras steals a bite of shiitake porridge from Bernie Lee, owner of Hiro Asian Kitchen.

Above: The sweet tofu pudding on the brunch menu at Hiro.

I like to rise and shine to a thick slice of my homemade, whole-grain tea bread, freshly baked then stroked with jam and real butter. I round it out with sliced fruit, café con leche done my way and a big glass of ice water. I’ve fussily eaten this combination for so long, I never thought

I’d consider changing my routine. That is, until I had a spoonful of the sweet tofu pudding on the Sunday brunch menu at Hiro Asian Kitchen. This silky custard is topped with vibrantly colored seasonal fruit and berries and crunchy maple-pecan granola. I could eat this upgraded Asian parfait by the pint.

try a bite of this beefed-up soupy rice, his passion for the porridge he grew up eating was evident as he pointed out each element – chicken, eggplant, shiitake mushrooms, pickled collard greens and a fried egg – adding that it’s best enjoyed with you tiau, doughnut-like strips of deep-fried dough.

Hiro owner Bernie Lee is partial to the shiitake porridge on the brunch menu.

It’s a staple morning dish in his native Malaysia – for many people from South Asia, actually – and when Bernie let me

No meal stirs our passions quite like brunch. After an assault on the evening, you’ve gotta find sustenance – but you don’t have to settle for sloppy eggs or yesterday’s special turned into a mucky

Cheers,

Ligaya Figueras Executive editor

If brunch is on your mind by week’s end, you won’t want to miss this month’s Sound Bites. Sauce executive editor Ligaya Figueras, managing editor Garrett Faulkner and art director Meera Nagarajan will discuss how the editorial team at Sauce whittled down a list of more than 40 contenders to give you the top brunches in town. You’ll want to take notes, then make your reservation. Tune in to St. Louis Public Radio 90.7 KWMU’s Cityscape Friday, June 13 at noon and 10 p.m.

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portrait by ashley gieseking

W

hen the weekend arrives, many of us push aside that quick bowl of Wheaties in favor of a hearty brunch spread that takes time to prepare and deserves time to savor.

casserole. Quality matters, as does service and ambience. In this month’s issue, we put a spotlight on the best brunches in town, including not-to-miss dishes and drinks (p. 36). We hope our picks help you to fortify yourself in the weekends ahead – and water yourself anew with a standout bloody or bellini, like the lychee-flavored one I’m having at Hiro.

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editors' picks

eat this

Madeleine, je t’aime, especially when butter and radishes are involved. The corn madeleines at Herbie’s Vintage ’72 hold this classic French combination – with a touch of Asian and Midwestern flair. Smear those petite, slightly sweet cakes with a swath of butter that’s whipped into waves of briny ocean goodness, thanks to the addition of red, orange and wasabi-green tobiko, then garnished with Missouri paddlefish caviar. Follow it up with a bite photo by greg rannells

of crunchy radish salad, brightened with mint ribbons and a squeeze of lemon. This standout, summery hors d’oeuvre is what fusion dishes aspire to be: a subtle, seamless blend of culinary traditions.

Herbie’s Vintage ’72, 405 N. Euclid Ave., St. Louis, 314.769.9595, herbies.com

June 2014

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hit list

4 new places to try this month

1

Lulu’s Local Eatery 3201 S. Grand Blvd., St. Louis, 314.300.8125, luluslocaleatery.com

2 This colorful watering hole ArtBar on Cherokee Street is to the Saint Louis creative set 2732 Cherokee St., what sports St. Louis, 314.769.9696, bars are to artbarstl.com Cardinals fans.

Art lines the walls and artists in all media are encouraged to use the space to perform, create and imbibe. Cozy up to the 54-foot bar and choose from 15 wines by the glass and nearly 20 local brews, or have the bartender craft a cocktail using small-producer spirits and house-made syrups. Build a board from a changing selection of local meats, cheeses and house-made pickles. Or fill a paper cone with the daily popcorn flavor. And if all that inspiration moves the artist in you, pick up the colored pencils and paper handed to you when you sit down and doodle away.

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Sweetology 9214 Clayton Road, Ladue, 314.736.4800, sweetology.com

Just when you thought you’d exhausted your outings-with-kids options, sucrose playground Sweetology opens its doors.

At this interactive retail concept, patrons young and old can get their hands sticky decorating cookies, cupcakes and cakes (including gluten-free varieties). The process includes stopping at the wish machine, which dispenses edible candy that you can write on and then insert inside your treat; using the frosting dispenser and mixology machine that will squirt out just the right shade of chartreuse; and choosing from nearly 200 sugar art options for decorations to turn that cupcake into a sugary masterpiece. Exhausted parents: Let the Sweetologists guide the kiddos through the decorating experience while you relax in The Drinkery with a cup of coffee or a glass of wine. Good luck leaving without a bag of candy tapped from a massive bulk selection that also includes all-natural and dye-free sweets.

4

4204 Main Street Brewing Co. 4204 Main St., Belleville, 618.416.7261, mainstreetbrewingco.com

Belleville’s first brewery in decades towers above surrounding fast-food chains and mom-and-pop spots lining Main Street. The former Amarillo Tex now sports dark leather, gleaming wood and shining fermentation tanks. Order a four-brew flight from the seven options currently on tap (Make sure two of your picks are the saison and California Common Rye.). The meat-and-potatoes crowd will find a wide selection of Certified Angus Beef steaks and burgers.

Among the many dishes with flavor twists, try the stuffed mushrooms with pickled beet-horseradish sauce. Housemade whole-grain mustard spiked with beer accompanies a croque-monsieur stuffed with smoked ham, apples, shallots and caramelized aged white cheddar. An open-faced meatloaf sandwich is packed with flavor, wrapped in applewood bacon and smothered in gravy. For dessert, pair a chocolate stout with the profiterole, which eschews traditional choux in favor of fried biscuit dough.

June 2014

photos by michelle volansky

Popular food truck Lulu’s Local Eatery has found its abode on bustling South Grand. You’ll find hearty wraps and sandwiches filled with local produce and served up with scratch sauces, plus a handful of noodle and stir-fry bowls and even a kids menu. Followers of this lunch wagon will notice that many of their favorite rotating specials now have a permanent place on the brick-and-mortar menu. As for sides, expect to find us indulging in both the kale salad and tater tots. After ordering from the counter that’s sustainably outfitted with repurposed wood, head to the patio where you can admire vegetables and herbs growing in recycled yellow filing cabinets. Food this fresh, flavorful and filling – not to mention super affordable – will keep even meat lovers contented. Just wait until the meal is over to tell them that Lulu’s isn’t just a vegetarian restaurant; it’s vegan.

June 2014

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reviews All Sauce reviews are conducted anonymously.

The personal-sized blueberry pie at Nathalie's

new and notable

nathalie's

by Michael Renner | Photos by Jonathan Gayman

I

f you’ve been inside the stately mansion at 4356 Lindell Blvd., you know it exudes elegance, grace and even a splash of eccentricity. For much of the 20th century and into the 21st, it was the Mayer Funeral Home. More recently, it was home to two short-lived restaurants, Savor and Salt.

Some six months ago, building owner Nathalie Pettus gave up playing landlord and opened her own restaurant in the fancy manse. Drawing from the staff at Overlook Farm, her Clarksville inn and farm, she brought in chef Jimmy Voss, who previously worked at Duff’s for nearly 40 years.

n e w a n d n o t a b l e n at h a l i e ' s p . 1 7 / p o w e r l u n c h j oy l u c k b u f f e t p . 2 0 / n i g h t l i f e LOS PUNK p . 2 3 June 2014

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It starts with the menu itself. It was heavy and clunky – a book, really – bound and embossed with the restaurant’s name, reminiscent of the unwieldy menus popular in formal restaurants 20 years ago. What was between the covers also felt dated, as if trendy ingredients like quinoa and kale were plugged into concepts from 1994.

When Greece (moussaka al forno), Brazil (feijoada) and Spain (zarzuela de mariscos) share the same Walnutpage, there’s no encrusted trout unifying theme at Nathalie's and, more than likely, something will suffer.

reviews new and notable p. 2 of 2

The interior layout of Nathalie’s remains as lavish as before. I recommend booking a table on the second floor for the sole purpose of sauntering down that magnificent staircase in the front parlor.

Granted, Nathalie’s opulent décor of crisp, white tablecloths, red napkins rolled into silver rings, red roses in silver vases and elegant chandeliers bucks the current barnwood, exposed-brick, reclaimedwhatever trend. The caveat? Don’t expect to gourmandize on similar opulence.

Farm-to-table is familiar now, but never has it been as personal as it is here; most of the organic produce, meat and even fish (tilapia raised in fish tanks) used at the restaurant comes from Overlook Farm. Even a few of the morel mushrooms featured one evening

AT A GLANCE Nathalie's

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as a limited-edition bruschetta appetizer were foraged there.

But what to do with what was presented?

Instead of the typical hand-eaten bruschetta, spears of grilled asparagus and an entire meaty morel lay draped across a slice of grilled bread. A disarray of chopped morels and shallots with bits of scallions were scattered to the side. Everything rested in a pool of golden liquid, in which, I assumed, the mushrooms were sauteed. It was all delicious, but only after tackling it with a knife and fork and reassembling the components into manageable bites.

In both composition and visual appeal, the clunky, muddled presentation portended things to come.

Where 4356 Lindell Blvd., St. Louis, 314.533.1580, Facebook: Nathalie’s

Don’t Miss Dishes Manchego flatbread, lemon curd tart

In my case, it was the moussaka. In the middle of the plate sat a mound of red paste consisting of thick-cut eggplant, tomatoes and hard-to-taste ground lamb topped with over-browned feta Mornay.

Encircling the moussaka were smaller mounds of incongruence: matchstick carrots and zucchini, quinoa, Swiss chard and a tumult of broccoli and Brussels sprouts. If the intent was a playful culinary mash-up, what arrived looked more like a paintball fight. With too many flavors and too much texture, the components lacked logic. And grass-fed lamb and farm-fresh produce or not, I’m still trying to figure out the $28 price tag.

At $26, the same was true for the small, boneless chicken breast (billed as bone-in on the menu) teetering atop a few roasted potatoes, braised leeks and sauteed greens. Snippets of charred broccoli seemed as if they were tossed on the plate as it left the kitchen. The entire meal rested in lemon-garlic sauce that, while savory and tasty, contained stark, naked cloves of garlic. The biggest misstep was the branch of wilted, cooked thyme draped over the breast, as if plucked from the cavity of a roasted bird and used as garnish.

Both dishes came off as homestyle to the point of messy, something that

Vibe Fun, over-the-top, almost bordellolike opulence, yet casual and comfortable service. Be sure to check out the upstairs bathrooms.

should not happen at these prices and in this setting. The farm steak didn’t fare much better. The cut varies depending on availability, and this night it was a 10-ounce rib steak – a boneless rib-eye.

It was fatty, well under the medium-rare temperature I ordered and devoid of the expected characteristic char, inhibited by the soggy Asiago cheese-horseradish with which the steak was encrusted. Once again, excessive pan jus overwhelmed the dish’s visual appeal.

At least diners haven’t lost the bread service battle here, as they have elsewhere; at Nathalie’s you get an assortment of baguette, pumpernickel and gluten-free mini corn muffins, all wrapped in a red linen napkin and served in a silver bowl to boot. More positive notes: a carrot-ginger soup of the day satisfied with the nutty warmth of cumin and sharpness of ginger, while a flatbread of manchego and goat cheese hit the spot with briny Kalamata olives and linguica sausage, all under a nutty, spicy romesco sauce. The lemon curd tart, three buttery-crispy almond shortbreads topped with creamy, zingy lemon custard interspersed with clouds of whipped cream, was a big hit.

Farm-grown blueberries made for a lovely personal-sized pie, complete with flaky crust and lattice top, along with a bite of house-made vanilla ice cream served in a Chinese soup spoon. But the thin smear of red jam underneath the pie was something you might have seen at Charlie Trotter’s two decades ago. The ice cream used for the peppermint pie was made in house, but the dessert suffered from muted mint flavor, ice crystals and a bright green hue. And speaking of mint, I did a double take when a mint julep and hibiscus mojito martini arrived garnished with a puny, bruised, brown-around-the-edge mint sprig apiece.

You have to applaud Nathalie’s for focusing on homegrown, local ingredients. But with so many dishes feeling dated and looking improvised, it’s hard to match what’s on the plate with the extravagant environs. You can’t play it both ways.

Entree Prices $20 to $32

When Dinner: Wed. to Mon. – 4 p.m to midnight

June 2014

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reviews power lunch

Power Lunch

joy luck buffet

by Byron Kerman | photos by carmen troesser

Maybe they should rename Joy Luck Buffet the House of Secrets.

The buffet itself is nothing to write home about, but the secret menu of spicy Sichuan specialties, available by request, opens the door to a new world of tastes.

[3]

[1] tripe, beef tendon, jellyfish and century eggs. The gauntlet has been thrown down for the adventurous diner. Joy Luck is also Joy Luck Buffet famous for its hot 8030 Manchester Road, pot dishes; a group of Maplewood, 314.645.9982, diners shares and cooks Facebook: Joy Luck Buffet the food together at the table. We would rhapsodize about it, but that sort of meal unfolds at too leisurely a pace for a Power Lunch.

Blah-ffet Joy Luck’s buffet [1] is ho-hum. The feedbag of choices includes the standard lo mein, sesame chicken, hot and sour soup, almond cookies and more than 100 other usual suspects. There is a stir-fry station where you select the meat and veggies and an employee cooks them in a capacious wok. The sushi looks forlorn, and the dessert area has the same sugared donuts and finger Jell-O you’ll find at every Chinese buffet in the area. At just $7 during lunch, this budget buffet is a favorite for high school and college kids eating away their growth spurts, plate after plate.

Churn and Burn Service is no-nonsense at any hour of the day, with dishes often shooting from the kitchen at breakneck speed. Tracking down a server for a water refill, however, may require some hand-waving. If you opt for the buffet, don’t be surprised to find the check dropped the minute you leave the table for your first foray. Protocol takes a back seat to practicality.

The Secret Menu Forget the buffet and ask for the Sichuan menu. It may take a few visits for the uninitiated to get the hang of ordering from the 42-page (!) tome, printed in Mandarin and English, but your effort will be richly rewarded. Sichuan food is known for being as spicy as the devil’s daughter, and the number of cartoon peppers next to each dish on the menu is a caution of its intensity.

Consider the hot and sour rice noodles appetizer: The noodles are tossed in fistfuls of pepper flakes and chile oil. You may need extra napkins to wipe away happy tears while you enjoy them. For the more reluctant, classic Chengdu dandan noodles dial down the spice, add minced pork and preserved bean sprouts and use egg noodles. It’s tasty, yet doesn’t pack that reality-warping heat.

The pork belly appetizer with garlic sauce has enough garlic to kill a coven of vampires.

Indeed, the tenderness of the pork belly is lost in a one-two punch of garlic and pepper.

The overall effect is like that of kimchee; for the first-timer, it’s pretty funky. An appetizer of bean curd skin with dried mushrooms

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The employees at Joy Luck Buffet make nearly 500 crab rangoon a day.

offered a chewy, smoky wrap made from tofu enclosing a welter of marinated shiitake mushrooms.

Standing Ovation An exploration of the Sichuan menu yields great rewards, like cumin lamb [2], a deceptively simple preparation of lamb pan-fried to the crunchy-crumbly texture of grilled gyro meat. Onions and red and green peppers add snap, and a rich bath of spices makes the dish downright addictive.

The Takeaway

Another favorite, kung pao squid [3], required a good 15 minutes to pick a veritable army of dried Sichuan peppers off the plate.

The struggle was worth it; pliant squid and peanuts cavort in a kung pao sauce that, like a well-aged Burgundy, takes the diner to a dark, deep, complex place. Best kung pao in town?

It’s been said of the Joy Luck version.

Once you order from Joy Luck’s Sichuan menu, you may never order the eatery’s buffet again. The mélange of intense spices used in the former makes for some dynamite dishes. If you like it spicy, you’ll find yourself crying literal tears of joy.

One Step Beyond Other delicacies on the menu include pork ears, pork kidney, pork knuckle, chitterling,

[2] June 2014

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nightlife

reviews

Los punk

nightlife

by Matt berkley | Photos by jonathan gayman

The bottled beer collection – there is no tap – is something that looks like a grab bag of suds snatched from someone’s parents’ fridge.

order it:

The mischievous, adolescent theme extends to the space. something like a sulking teenager’s bedroom, the 16foot bar is hemmed in by walls adorned with rock posters, depraved-looking longhorn skulls and a stand-up cardboard cutout of Elvira, Mistress of the Dark. The backyard is choked with smokers milling around a fire pit and a handful of Los Punk plastic chairs that 2709 Cherokee St., could have easily St. Louis, 314.932.5411, been yanked off the deck of my first Facebook: Los Punk apartment.

The uber-laid-back atmosphere is the work of owner Brian Thomas, who on any given night works his way around a hot grill out back or presents dishes he put together earlier in the day – like chicken paprikash, a Hungarian stew served out of a slow cooker next to that bottle of Old Crow. A well-worn board on the front wall lists the nominal food offerings. Like the booze and beer, it’s whatever they want to make that day; expect anything from greasy burgers to Korean barbecue tofu in delicate lettuce wraps.

Bartender Cory Bane of Los Punk

T

here’s no cocktail menu.

We’re going the other way,” said the bartender at Los Punk as he tilted back a generous pour of whiskey into my first drink of the night, a Jameson and ginger ale, and slid it across the bar. A little sweet but stiff as hell, it’s a satisfying and casual little escape. There’s no better descriptor for the drink or the bar.

On a Friday night, Los Punk rocks. A low-key band takes to the collapsible wooden stage tucked in the back of the June 2014

gritty, cramped saloon. Dim, noisy, oddly orange and not particularly organized, Los Punk is the ideal port in the storm for drinkers weary of cookie-cutter or even craft-focused bars. You won’t find anyone nursing a Manhattan with barrel-aged rye and a fat maraschino floating on top.

Tall shots of Fireball Cinnamon Whisky washed down with a bottle of Lone Star or a can of Busch are much more fitting here, where a bottle of regular Stolichnaya is about as high-end as you’re going to get.

(It’s hard not to love a place that proudly showcases a bottle of Old Crow bourbon.)

Los Punk

The Kimchee Chili Dog made an appearance on the constantly shifting menu at Los Punk.

Throwing his lot in with the growing number of new entertainment venues on Cherokee Street, Thomas opened Los Punk this January to the affection of neighborhood regulars who dig the original punk-rock, saloon-type venue enhanced by homemade street food.

The “punk” moniker shouldn’t serve as a deterrent; on various nights this place will host every type of music from reggae to alternative rock to local DJs and out-oftown rock groups.

Much more of a bohemian rock house than a seedy dive bar, Los Punk certainly welcomes more than Cherokee regulars and music fiends. And though the place is still raw and stumbles at times to find its feet, Los Punk benefits from a unique style and unapologetic attitude that, like Cherokee Street itself these days, lends to itself an attractive confidence.

How Los Punk does pairings: a shot of Fireball and a bottle of Lone Star.

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June 2014

dine

& drink

Check out the Kilgore's pick for a Negroni

A Seat at the Bar

ILLUSTRATIONS BY VIDHYA NAGARAJAN; photo by carmen troesser

Four experts tell us what to sip, stir and shake

I’ve been a fan of Dry Creek Vineyard wines since David Stare founded the Sonoma winery in 1972. His flagship white has always been the lovely fumé blanc, the synonym for sauvignon blanc, glenn bardgett which is why I was surprised Member of the Missouri Wine recently when I saw a label and Grape Board and wine bearing 2013 Dry Creek director at Annie Gunn’s Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc. I asked Dry Creek’s winemaker about it. Indeed, they make both! Its fumé blanc is produced from grapes grown in several areas of Sonoma County, while the newly released sauvignon blanc is only from vineyards in the Dry Creek Valley region. The latter offers crispness, the flavor of round, succulent pears and a lush mouth feel.

June 2014

The origin of the Negroni is as captivating as the iconic drink itself. It’s the early 20th-century tale of Camillo Negroni, a harddrinking Italian gambler, cowboy and count. Not happy with the drink in vogue, the Americano (sweet vermouth, Campari, club ted and jamie soda), Count Negroni requested kilgore his be made with gin instead USBG, B.A.R. Ready, BarSmart of soda. Soon, people were and co-owners/bartenders at ordering what Negroni was Planter’s House having. Its biting flavors can catch you off guard, but this bittersweet botanical beauty is one of our favorite cocktails. Simply stir together equal parts gin, Campari and sweet vermouth with ice. The Negroni — we’ll have what he’s having.

Adjuncts have been a debated topic in the beer world lately. Adjuncts are usually supplements to the main mash ingredients used to brew beer.

Examples include flaked corn, oats, rye, unmalted wheat, rice cory king or various sugars. Adjuncts Certified Cicerone, head have been criticized as inferior brewer at Perennial Artisan – and sometimes cost-cutting Ales and founder of Side – sources of extract, yet most Project Brewing craft breweries make beers with adjuncts to experiment and to enhance the character of the beer. The next time you pick up a Boulevard Saison-Brett, Bell’s Special Double Cream Stout or Perennial Tart Hopfentea, ask yourself what’s more important: the use of adjuncts in these craft beers or the fantastic flavor of the results?

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June 2014

wine

Orange is the new white

It’s made by nuns!

By Daniels and Lauren Blake-Parseliti

Photo by jonathan gayman

Chill orange wines in the fridge 20 to 30 minutes before drinking. They will show more fruit and texture – and simply taste better.

Unless you are really into wine, you haven’t heard of orange wine. Despite the name, it’s not made from oranges.

Rather, it’s made from white wine grapes, the juice of which is allowed to macerate with the grape skins for an extended period of time. This maceration can be as short as a few days or as long as several months, and allows for pigments and phenolic compounds, including tannins, to make their way from the skins to the juice, as in red wine production.

The result is a wine whose color spans from light copper to translucent brown, and a tannic structure that ranges from lightly silky to almost chewy. Because of this production method, the wines tend June 2014

to be rounder and have more heft than the average white.

There are no official orange wine grapes.

The category itself is a colloquialism – there is no sanctioning body that determines what is, and is not, an orange wine. Because most orange wines have historically been made in Italy and Slovenia, they tend to be made from white grapes grown in those countries, like Trebbiano, Malvasia, Verdicchio, Ribolla Gialla and pinot grigio. Therefore, orange wines can vary widely in aroma and flavor.

Orange wines have their naysayers.

One of the main criticisms is that these

wines do not pair well with food. In fact, they love anything briny and saline, so olives are a go, as is kimchee, if prepared traditionally. Keeping along salty lines, try pairing it with pasta ladled with puttanesca sauce (The capers, black olives and anchovies make it a killer combo.) or veal tonnato with capers.

Orange wines do quite well with most meaty fish – swordfish, tuna, monkfish – and scallops, too. If you are having only one glass of wine and need it to span a fish course and a meat course, bingo!

With everything orange wines have to offer – cool color, funky nose, cider-like zing – there’s no reason these edgy wines should only be enjoyed by hipster somms.

Buy it 2011 Monastero Suore Cistercensi Coenobium Lazio Bianco A blend of Trebbiano and other grapes from the Lazio region in Italy, this coppercolored white wine holds the scent of apples and oolong tea. On the palate is the curious combination of citrus zest, apple cider, briny green olives and woodsy herbes de Provence. $26. The Wine & Cheese Place, 7435 Forsyth Blvd., Clayton, 314.727.8788, wineandcheeseplace.com saucemagazine.com I SAUCE MAGAZINE I 27

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BEER

Crushing on cans

Find these craft beers and many more at the newly opened Craft Beer Cellar, 8113 Maryland Ave., Clayton, 314.222.2444, craftbeercellar.com.

Photo by jonathan gayman

By Eric Hildebrandt

As more craft breweries embrace the practicality of canned beer, it’s easier to find the perfect brew, no matter the occasion.

While there’s no doubt cans offer protection against light and oxygen that harm the quality of the beer, the most basic benefit to consumers is convenience.

Heading on a float trip or a picnic in the park? Cans are the obvious choice over bottles. Want to chill your beer quickly? Cans take to the task much faster than bottles. As summertime arrives, here are a few can’t-miss canned craft brews for hot St. Louis afternoons.

Santa Fe Freestyle Pilsner With its assertive use of the classic Saaz hop, Freestyle Pilsner has a crisp, spicy note that is perfect for a scorching summer day. Its light, delicate malt profile combined with those Saaz hops make this beer truly refreshing. “Easy drinking” is a huge understatement with this one.

Kirkwood Station IPA Kirkwood Station recently announced it would begin canning a few of its beers, and hopheads rejoiced when brewer Dave Johnson revealed his IPA would be in that can lineup. Surprisingly easy drinking for 6.3 percent ABV, this beer has a light, malty, biscuit-like backbone.

But the hops are where it shines.

With notes of pine and grapefruit, this should be a hophead’s go-to for local canned beer this summer.

Stiegl Grapefruit Radler A radler is a beer beverage that consists of a 50-50 mix of beer and German-style soda or lemonade.

Austria’s Stiegl Grapefruit Radler is a blend of its Goldbrau and grapefruit soda. The result is a refreshingly tart beverage. Plus, with its mere 2.5 percent ABV, you can drink quite a few. Call it summertime in a glass.

Schlafly Summer Lager One of the area’s first craft beers in a

can, Summer Lager is Schlafly’s take on a Helles, a lighter style of beer that is bright and golden in appearance. Its use of German noble hops means this beer is easily accessible to both the beer geek and the big brewery drinker. A nice malt character plays well with the mild lemony hops. It’s a perfect thirst-quencher.

4 Hands Brewing Contact High With its take on a hopped-up wheat beer, 4 Hands has given us a brew that is perfect for IPA lovers and those who don’t like over-thetop hops. This is not your typical wheat beer. Brewed with orange zest and just the right amount of hops, it’s a citrus lover’s dream.

Looking to crack open more local brews? Six Row Brewing just released a trio of canned beers, and more are on the way from The Civil Life Brewing and 4 Hands Brewing. The craft can revolution has only just begun.

June 2014

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vegetize it

Corn dog carnival BY kellie hynes Photos by carmen troesser

S

ummer’s finally here, and with it my favorite seasonal bounty: carnival food. Sure, I appreciate a good garden veggie. But in a contest between a funnel cake and organic kale, deep-fried batter wins every time. My unhealthy obsession with fried fabulousness is responsible for my corn dog cravings, too. All it takes is a whiff of that county fair scent and I’m ready to eat until I hurl on the Tilt-a-Whirl. But while the “corn” is transcendent, the “dog” is problematic, and not just because I’m a vegetarian. Any right-minded omnivore should pause before consuming carny meat.

Vegetarianism isn’t the only dietary lifestyle we embrace. Visit our Wheatless Wednesdays column every Wednesday at samg.bz/saucewheatless, where you’ll find fabulous gluten-free recipes that won’t leave you wanting for wheat.

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I needed professional advice on how to make a vegan corn dog, so I popped into Element in Lafayette Square, where a team of five accomplished chefs collaborate on an ever-changing, seasonal menu. In retrospect, it probably doesn’t include Ferris wheel season because, while I was blathering on about the simple brilliance of food on a stick, Element’s executive chef Brian Hardesty was slicing up a sophisticated caramelized bacon-wrapped embutido (Filipino meatloaf). Nonetheless, he was a good sport, offering helpful suggestions like, “Don’t make anything with seitan, tofu and beans because that’s just too expected.” I nonchalantly crossed seitan, tofu and beans off my “must-try – yum” list and listened earnestly.

Hardesty thought I could purée vegetables, bind them with Ultra-Tex 8 (It sounds like a performance fabric but it’s actually a modified tapioca starch.), dehydrate or steam the mixture, and then smoke it. I was fresh out of modified tapioca starch, food dehydrators and smokers, so I turned to a quirky gem of a blog: Thriftyliving.net. Besides cat photos, it’s got some really nice vegan recipes, including one that calls for shaping tofu (Sorry, Chef!) into hot dogs using wheat gluten as a binder and aluminum foil as a mold, then steaming the dogs. Ms. Thrifty’s technique sounded crazier than

June 2014

a fun house – and it worked. I didn’t even need a vegan casing; the gluten holds the shape so well that the dogs can be grilled or – You know it! – battered and fried. Element chef Sam Boettler gave me the final piece to the appearance puzzle when he told me about the trick of using annatto seeds as a natural red food coloring. I used them to make annattoflavored oil, which didn’t change the taste of the dogs, but did help them look less beige and more like traditional franks.

To flavor the “meat,” I used what Hardesty called “hot dog spices”: cayenne pepper, onion and garlic powder. I also added a little barbecue sauce and smoked paprika for that campfire taste. If you want more exotic dogs, you could use nutmeg, cumin and cardamom. Or make them spicy with a squeeze of Sriracha.

Finally, I whipped up a cornmeal batter, but was flooded with guilt as I heated the oil. Four chefs and I went through a lot of trouble to make a healthy hot dog. Was I really going to ruin it? Yes, I was. Fried batter is fluffy, crispy and delicious. If you insist, you can bake your corn dogs. The batter will be denser and not a rich golden brown.

But, you’ll have made a healthy cooking choice. Me? I’m going to eat a few fried ones, then find a Tilt-a-Whirl.

Vegan Corn Dogs Inspired by the chefs at Element and the Thriftyliving.net blog 8 servings ½ cup plus 2 Tbsp. canola oil, divided, plus more for frying ¼ cup annatto seeds* 1 Tbsp. flaxseed meal** 4 oz. cooked cannellini beans 4 oz. firm tofu, drained and pressed 2 Tbsp. low-sodium soy sauce 2 Tbsp. barbecue sauce 2 tsp. smoked paprika 1 tsp. garlic powder 1 tsp. onion powder ¼ cup plus 2 tsp. sugar, divided 1½ tsp. kosher salt, divided ½ tsp. ground dry mustard ½ tsp. cayenne pepper ½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper ¾ cup vital wheat gluten** 1 tsp. cornstarch 1¼ cups white flour ¾ cup cornmeal ¼ tsp. white pepper 1 tsp. baking powder 1 cup plus 2 Tbsp. soy milk • Heat ½ cup canola oil in a small, heavy saucepan over medium heat until it is hot, but not boiling.

Add the annatto seeds, reduce heat to low and cook 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove the pot from the heat and let the oil cool.

Strain the oil into a jar and discard the seeds. Reserve 2 tablespoons annatto-flavored oil, and cover and refrigerate the remainder for another use.

• Place the flaxseed meal in a small bowl. Stir in 3 tablespoons of water.

Cover and refrigerate.

• To a blender, add the beans, tofu, the 2 tablespoons reserved annattoflavored oil, 2 tablespoons canola oil, soy sauce, barbecue sauce, smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, 2 teaspoons sugar, ½ teaspoon salt, dry mustard, cayenne and black pepper.

Blend until the ingredients are incorporated, stopping to scrape down the sides as necessary. Pour the mixture into a large bowl, and stir in the vital wheat gluten and cornstarch to make a dough.

• Divide the dough into 8 equal parts.

Gently roll each piece of dough into a hot-dog shape, approximately 3 ∕4 inches in diameter and 5 inches long. Wrap each hot dog in a 5-by7-inch piece of parchment paper, leaving an extra inch on each end of the hot dog. Twist the ends tightly closed. Repeat with an outer layer of aluminum foil, again twisting tightly.

• Fill the lower pot of a steamer half full with water, and bring the water to a boil. Place the hot dogs in the steamer basket, seam-side down, stacking them if necessary. Cover the basket with the lid, reduce heat to low, and cook the hot dogs over simmering water 45 minutes. If you’ve stacked the hot dogs, switch their positions halfway through.

Remove the pot from the heat and allow the hot dogs to cool to room temperature before unwrapping.

• While the hot dogs are steaming, combine the flour, cornmeal, ¼ cup sugar, 1 tsp. salt, white pepper and baking powder in a large mixing bowl. Remove the flaxseed meal mixture from the refrigerator and stir it into the flour mixture. Slowly add the soy milk, stirring with a fork or whisk until no large lumps remain.

The batter will be thick.

• Heat a heavy skillet over mediumhigh heat, then add ½ inch of canola oil. Heat the oil to 350 degrees. (The oil is ready when you dip the end of a wooden spoon into it and the oil bubbles.) Unwrap a hot dog and use tongs to dunk it into the batter, coating it evenly.

Drop the dog into the hot oil, using tongs to rotate it until it is golden brown on all sides, approximately 30 seconds. Remove the hot dog from the oil and drain it on a plate lined with paper towels. Repeat with the remaining hot dogs. Insert thin wooden dowels or chopsticks and serve hot. * Annatto seeds are available at Olde Town Spice Shoppe, 334 S. Main St., St. Charles, 636.916.3600, oldtownspices.com. ** Bob’s Red Mill Flaxseed Meal and Bob’s Red Mill Vital Wheat Gluten Flour are available at Whole Foods Market, 1601 S. Brentwood Blvd., Brentwood, 314.968.7744, wholefoodsmarket.com.

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make this

MAKE THIS Berry Custard Cups

Farmers markets and produce aisles are spilling over with berries of red, blue and purple so vibrant, they’ll send your white clothes into an anxiety attack. Berry season is brief and magical. Don’t miss a moment of it. To make berry custard cups: Preheat the oven to 475 degrees. Mix 2 cups fresh assorted berries with 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar, 1 teaspoon lime zest and 1∕4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper. Divide the berries between four small, ovenproof ramekins. Whisk together 8 ounces mascarpone cheese, 2 egg yolks, 2 tablespoons brown sugar and 1 teaspoon almond extract. Add an equal amount of the mascarpone mix atop each bowl of berries, then sprinkle with brown sugar and sliced almonds. Place the bowls on a lined baking sheet and bake 7 minutes. Remove from the oven and let sit 5 minutes. Dust with powdered sugar and serve. – Dee Ryan

active time: 5 minutes

photo by greg rannells

Make berry season even more memorable by picking your own.

For a list of area U-pick farms, go to pickyourown.org/ MOsl.htm.

Everyone loves quick recipes but when you’ve got the time, we’ve got The Weekend Project. Go to samg.bz/ sauceweekendproject where we’ll teach you to make French bread and use it to assemble banh mi sandwiches.

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Photo by CARMEN TROESSER

By Julie Cohen, Garrett Faulkner, Ligaya Figueras, Catherine Klene and Meera Nagarajan

June 2014

eggs benedict brasserie

photo by elizabeth jochum

We love everything about brunch. But don’t let our unabashed affection make you think we’re talking about any cobbled-together breakfast or lunch menu masquerading as something special. We don’t mess with basic brunches. And while we dig an epic buffet complete with waffle iron, omelet station and tiers upon tiers of desserts, that’s not what we’re talking about either. For us, true brunch is a sit-down affair involving menu items that can’t be ordered any other time of the week. It’s about delicious food, about drinks and décor and the intangible je ne sais quoi you feel there. Once you find your true brunch, the elusive weekend meal becomes less of a treat and more of a necessity. While “Sex and the City” may have made it a thing, a handful of area restaurants are making Sunday (and Saturday) brunch a meal to remember.

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brunch

Best bloody mary Cleveland-Heath

You’re gearing up for “Downton Abbey.”

Strawberries served with sweetened clotted cream, mint and honey is delightful. Combined with Sister Schubert’s biscuits, served to your table at brunch, it’s a smorgasbord fit for nobility.

Brasserie

4580 Laclede Ave., St. Louis, 314.454.0600, brasseriebyniche.com, Sat. and Sun. – 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

If too many bad bloody marys and overpriced plates of scrambled eggs have tainted your love for brunch, Brasserie just might be your panacea. The service is exacting, the scene is classy but not stuffy, and most importantly, the food is always on point. Since being too full for something sweet is just sad, start your meal by ordering the French toast with lemon curd or the hazelnut waffle topped with seasonal fruit compote. Then, move on to the croque-madame for yourself and the eggs Benedict for your companion.

After inhaling your croque, invite your friend to help you drag every last fry through all the deliciously decadent leftover Mornay sauce in exchange for a stab at her hollandaise.

If, like any true brunch-goer, you have a Pavlovian response to the pop of a Champagne cork, bypass the common mimosa in favor of the carefully concocted Violet 75, which adds gin, crème de violette and lemon to the bubbly. And if you find last night still has you feeling a bit fuzzy, there’s always the Corpse Reviver to sip and savor on the patio as you watch the world pass by, jealous of you and your reignited liaison amoureuse. – J.C.

Cleveland-Heath

106 N. Main St., Edwardsville, 618.307.4830, clevelandheath.com , Sat. – 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Time for a pop quiz. Of the five total dishes on the small-yet-mighty brunch menu at Cleveland-Heath, which is the best one to order? While you think, ponder the drink menu, where choices are simpler.

Lighter palates can order a delightful mimosa with fresh-squeezed orange juice, but for those wanting a real kick, order the CH Bloody Mary – the bloody to convert all bloody haters.

OK, time’s up. If you said the Lomo Saltado, a dish with roots in Peru but reminiscent of a Midwest slinger, you’d be right. Meltingly tender strips of rib-eye and caramelized peppers and onions are tossed with soy sauce and laid over a mountain of crisp shoestring fries (both russet and sweet potato), which is crowned with two over-easy eggs just begging to be punctured.

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garnish and gazpacho flavor, could be passed off as a meal, and after drinking one you’ll be too content to get defensive.

You’re a grits snob.

Seared Alaskan halibut and over-easy farm eggs is a stunner. The fish is perfectly cooked, the eggs are easy, the grits are cheesy and there are mushrooms and asparagus dressed in a citrus vinaigrette to make it healthy but magically delicious.

The CH Bloody Mary pairs a perfectly balanced sweet, savory, spicy (Hello, sambal!) house mix with a 1½-ounce Tecate chaser. Add it halfway through your cocktail to turn a classic bloody on its boozy head.

Of course, if you said the house-made cheddar drop biscuits and red-eye gravy, you’d also be right. Same for the stack of pancakes smeared with house-made tart cherry jam, sitting in a pool of maple syrup. Because the truth is that with impeccable service, hearty portions and unbeatable prices (each dish is $9), there are no wrong answers at Cleveland-Heath’s brunch. Class dismissed. – C.K.

The Restaurant at The Cheshire 7036 Clayton Ave., Clayton, 314.932.7818, restaurant-stl.com., Sun. – 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

When you brunch at The Restaurant, here’s what to order when: You’ve got Paul Bunyan’s appetite.

The prime rib hash with roasted potatoes is sauced in a flavorful, savory au jus, complete with poached eggs and horseradish hollandaise. You’ll be full until tomorrow.

Your mother-in-law is at the table.

The Bloody Caesar, a bloody mary with a shrimp

You have a sweet tooth.

The brioche French toast with lemon curd ricotta is a study in sweet. Roasted dates and vanilla syrup are tamed by tart strawberries and sharp, citrusy cheese.

Or just get the bananas foster waffle – dessert disguised as brunch. – M.N.

Atomic Cowboy

4140 Manchester Ave., St. Louis, 314.775.0775, atomiccowboystl.com, Sun. – 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Although this well-known restaurant and watering hole in The Grove opened in 2005, Atomic Cowboy’s brunch menu is a new innovation – which is good news for you, since the masses haven’t caught on yet. When we stopped in on a Sunday afternoon things felt a little empty, as if tumbleweeds might drift by.

But Lonesome Dove, Texas this ain’t, and whether you hitch yourself to the barnwood-and-brick saloon inside or the Quonset hut-shaded cabana out back, rest easy, partner – you’ve drawn a bead on one of the finest brunches east of the 100th meridian. Order the horchata iced coffee – spiced with Grand Marnier and Kahlúa – and try the kitchen’s kinda-sorta border-country take on eggs Benedict, which sneaks grilled toast under crabcakes – carne asada and smoked salmon are also options – streaked with citrusy hollandaise and chipotle mayo.

Twenty-somethings, scenesters and those on a budget take note: You can be out the door for under $20 with a cocktail and brunch under your belt buckle. But don’t rush off – this place was made for the young and iconoclastic to gather.

Saddle up and get out to your new Sunday brunch home on the range. – G.F. June 2014

Photo by CARMEN TROESSER

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Photo by CARMEN TROESSER

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brunch

4229 Manchester Ave., St. Louis, 314.932.5554, eatplaysoho.com, Sun. – 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

New York’s skyline may gird the logo of SoHo Restaurant & Lounge, but the name means “Southern hospitality,” and the kitchen has assembled a menu to prove it. Though it operates as a nightclub after 10 p.m. on weekends, SoHo pulls out the stops for its Sunday brunch, a stellar procession of traditional Southern food crafted by executive chef Ceaira Jackson.

Skip the stark interior that caters to the club scene.

Instead, make a beeline for the patio that overlooks Manchester Avenue and even features a couple shade-giving pagoda tents. The pacing of the service is a bit lax, but remember this is a lounge, people – plan to stay awhile. Kick back and listen to the music. Don’t neglect to order a mimosa – brightened with a splash of pineapple juice, it’s one of the best we’ve had – while you wait for an order of catfish and grits (authentic, battered in cornmeal), red velvet pancakes (divine – they include vanilla cream frosting) or the chicken and waffles (crispy and sweet). Amid the glut of Southern-inflected menus across town, SoHo is a sure standout. – G.F.

Vin de Set

Jax Café

Head upstairs to slake your mimosa yen, and since you’re there, try the Kir Royale, a sophisticated pour of Champagne and crème de cassis, a liqueur made with blackcurrants. $12 for bottomless mimosas; $1 extra per drink for other Champagne cocktails.

2017 Chouteau Ave., St. Louis, 314.241.8989, vindeset.com, Sun. – 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Your ticket to the brunch buffet also earns you one on the mimosa gravy train. All aboard! $22, includes brunch and bottomless mimosas.

2901 Salena St., St. Louis, 314.449.1995, jax-cafe.com Sun. – 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

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Gamlin Whiskey House

The Scottish Arms

Central Table Food Hall

In our February Nightlife column, we liked the Bloody Ghost – pepperinfused Jacob’s Ghost white whiskey and Zing Zang – so much we’re mentioning it again.

Our favorite part? It’s bottomless on Sundays. $28. 236 N. Euclid Ave., St. Louis, 314.875.9500, gamlinwhiskeyhouse.com Sun. – 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

You’re committed for 90-plus minutes to that soccer game – order yourself a generously poured bottomless mimosa while you watch the match in this classic pub atmosphere. $15. 8 S. Sarah St., St. Louis, 314.535.0551, thescottisharms.com Sun. – 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

With unlimited mimosas and unlimited bloody marys, this popular Central West End spot is a shoo-in for a hang-loose Sunday brunch. $15. 23 S. Euclid Ave., St. Louis, 314.932.5595, centraltablestl.com Sun. – 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Cielo It doesn’t get any more elaborate – or delicious – than Cielo’s bottomless bloody mary bar, otherwise known as Mary Mayhem. Choose from about a dozen infused spirits, six different flavors of ice cubes and countless garnishes. $12. 999 N. Second St., St. Louis, 314.881.2105, cielostlouis.com Sat. and Sun. – 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

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Photo by CARMEN TROESSER

Best of bottomless drinking

You survived Saturday night. Still up for a few more? If you find yourself with a hollow leg come Sunday, we recommend the bottomless cocktails here for taste and price.

Half & Half

8135 Maryland Ave., Clayton, 314.725.0719, halfandhalfstl.com, Sat. and Sun. – 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Eggs and coffee are the heroes of brunch, and Half & Half knows how to do both equally well. On Saturdays and Sundays, it offers a special brunch menu of three items with fresh, seasonal ingredients and, as always, eggs. These, by the way, are executed with precision, whether they’re perfectly poached atop the Soft-Shelled Crab Benedict; scrambled to a golden fluff and stuffed in breakfast tacos with chorizo; or simply served sunny side up to finish The Mom Hash, an earthy mix of mushrooms, spinach, snow peas, prosciutto and carrots. Since the wait for a table can last up to an hour on weekends, pass the time by indulging in Half & Half’s excellent coffee program, which outstrips just about everyone else in town. The menu includes everything from pour-overs to cold brews to drip coffee to espresso drinks, all brewed from thoughtfully selected and delicious beans. Try the Rwandan Rulindo from Handsome Coffee Roasters in a pour-over and you won’t be disappointed. – M.N.

Best coffee half & half

Bixby’s

Photos by CARMEN TROESSER

Missouri History Museum, 2nd floor, 5700 Lindell Blvd., St. Louis, 314.361.7313, bixbys-mohistory.com, Sun. – 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Coffee gets the shaft at a lot of restaurants, but at Half & Half it gets its own menu. Begin your brunch by perusing the tasting notes on the restaurant’s handpicked roasts, brewed up all ways in pour-overs, espresso drinks and cups of drip brew. However you choose to caffeinate, there’s something there for coffee-hounds of every stripe.

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Bixby’s is practically a St. Louis institution, tucked in a natural-lit corner on the second floor of the Missouri History Museum. Floor-to-ceiling windows ensure an unimpeded view of Forest Park, and among the after-church crowd and small family gatherings you’ll dine in a quiet bustle of activity.

You can either visit the buffet to fill your plate yourself, or order as much as you want from the restaurant’s a la carte menu, then settle in while the staff brings it straight from chef Callaghan Carter’s hands to yours. In either case, you’ll be handing over $25.75 – and that includes a glass of Champagne.

We recommend the eggs Benedict of the day.

During our visit, the big B included rich slices of Black Forest ham, a poached egg and locally sourced sunflower sprouts delicately arranged on top. Save room for a heaping portion of the bread pudding with caramel sauce, the capstone to this delicious – if staidly traditional – brunch experience. – G.F.

Hiro Asian Kitchen

1405 Washington Ave., St. Louis, 314.241.4476, hiroasiankitchen.com, Sun. – 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

When Asian flavors are on your mind, Hiro Asian Kitchen is the answer. Put a comb to that bed-head and hit up one of the most stylish brunches in town (with spectacularly snazzy décor to match).

Hiro showcases contemporary interpretations of breakfast and lunch dishes from China, Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, Taiwan and other Southeast Asian nations. You’ll also find familiar American a.m. fare reimagined with Pac Rim ingredients, like the parfait-esque sweet tofu pudding; the green tea waffle drizzled with sake syrup and topped with vanilla ice cream, house-made coconut cream and fresh fruit; and the Kaya Toast, a Malaysian-style French toast with house-made sweet coconut egg jam and a fried egg on the side.

Out late clubbing on Washington Avenue? Wake up with the Hiro Slinger, which features bulgogi beef, tater tots, chipotle mayo, spicy cheese sauce and an over-easy egg. From a pair of bloodies to the mimosa to the Lychee-lini, a modified bellini that subs puréed lychee for peach, the brunch cocktails here are filled to the brim with delicious Asian distinction. – L.F.

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farmer's Photo by CARMEN TROESSER

breakfast big sky cafe

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Big Sky Cafe

47 S. Old Orchard Ave., Webster Groves, 314.962.5757, allgreatrestaurants.com, Sun. – 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Tucked away off bustling Big Bend Boulevard in treelined Webster Groves is the respite from everything that ails you on a weary Sunday. At Big Sky Cafe, you’ll find an uncomplicated menu, a friendly, attentive wait staff and a serene setting, whether you take a seat in one of the dining rooms or settle into a thickcushioned chair on the patio. Dishes are well executed and celebrate the bounty of nearby farms, like the Farmer’s Breakfast, a fill-me-up platter of buttermilk pancakes, scrambled farm eggs, Todd Geisert Farms bacon and breakfast potatoes, the latter a thoughtful mix of finely diced russet and sweet potatoes. The house-cured salmon roll-ups, stuffed with lemony Claverach Farm sprouts and a parmesan-caper whipped cream, impressed with their fresh, savory goodness. If you’ve got a hankering for sweet, order the buttered peach French toast bread pudding with a dollop of airy Frangelico whipped cream. On the beverage side, little touches go a long way: The water carafe remains on your table; the Bellini is spot-on balanced; and the bloody mary, with its house-made bloody mix featuring local tomato juice and freshly grated, local horseradish, is the cleanest we encountered. – L.F.

Best dish

pancake Photo by CARMEN TROESSER; juice photo by greg rannells

lemon ricotta blueberry pancakes at cucina pazzo

Cucina Pazzo takes hot cakes to new heights with its Italian spin on Lemon Ricotta Blueberry Pancakes. The cakes, capped with blueberries and chunks of ricotta, are covered in a fluffy citrus zabaglione, maple syrup and sea-salt caramel butter. It’s no surprise why this is the kitchen’s favorite brunch dish, and ours, too.

Cucina Pazzo

LHC

Dining alfresco is the only way to do brunch at Cucina Pazzo. The patio is shaded by trees and, on a cool morning, makes for a lovely place to tuck in. Begin with the Meyer’s Wakeup Call, an infusion of vodka, espresso and Rumchata on ice finished with cinnamon.

The menu is full of Italian twists on traditional brunch dishes: the Chicken Saltimboca Benedict – breaded chicken, fontina, prosciutto, sunny side up eggs and a mushroom Madeira sauce on an English muffin – is satisfying and filling, especially with crispy pesto home fries on the side. Or share the Pancetta di Pazzo, thick-cut pancetta served with a jammy apricot and cherry mostarda, which has that salty-sweet thing down. But we especially loved a perennial favorite among the restaurant staff: Lemon Ricotta Blueberry Pancakes. Two pancakes are dotted with plump blueberries and ricotta cheese and topped with a frothy lemon zabaglione, which begins to melt the instant the custard hits the hot cakes. A modest drizzle of maple syrup and life-altering sea-salt caramel butter finish the dish. If you order only one thing for brunch, it should be this. – M.N.

True to name, nearly everything on the menu at LHC, formerly Local Harvest Café, is locally sourced or organically grown. It shows. Although its brunch lineup is barely two months old and cribs a bit from the regular menu, this is a hit-lister for anyone craving farm-to-table freshness (and a hangover cure).

392 N. Euclid Ave., St. Louis, 314.696.8400, cucinapazzostl.com, Sun. – 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

3137 Morgan Ford Road, St. Louis, 314.772.8815, localharvestcafe.com, Sun. – 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Sip on Kaley’s Comet, an effervescent juice of freshly pressed kale, apple, lemon and ginger, naturally sweetened by the fruit. Order the Sunrise Plate, the restaurant’s fragrant berry kefir poured over granola and topped with banana slices, served alongside toast and sliced fresh fruit. If you’re feeling deeper hunger pangs, go for the cheese grits and Italian sausage, braised in spicy tomato sauce. The Belgian waffle, too, is worth your while. Currently, it’s studded with blueberries and served with maple syrup, both organic, and is enough to take you back to Sunday mornings at the grandparents’. In such a cozy space, expect this nascent brunch haven near Tower Grove Park to start filling up soon – but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t pay a visit yourself. – G.F.

The Central West End is overrun with first-rate flapjacks. Visit saucemagazine.com/blog for our CWE Pancake Walk, the quickest route to the best pancakes on Sunday.

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Mother Spore

A look inside St. Louis' bubbling obsession with fermentation

By Kellie Hynes Photos by Greg Rannells

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Joe Stein, kitchen manager at LHC, holds his "pets" ... er, kefir grains.

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stare at the blob of sediment that has settled to the bottom of the glass bottle. It bears a passing resemblance to a ball of dryer lint suspended in watery green Kool-Aid, if dryer lint had tentacles. I can’t believe anyone drinks kombucha, but they do – in quantities so large that Sauce wants a story on it, and Whole Foods dedicates an entire refrigerator case to it. Even so, I find the cloudy liquid more freaky than foodie. I hide the bottle in the back of my fridge, close the door firmly and contemplate my career options while drinking a comfortingly familiar and completely artificial Diet Pepsi.

Though it sounds like a character in “Godzilla,” kombucha is technically a tea, just not the kind that’s served with cucumber sandwiches. It’s fermented, which means that in its pre-bottled state, the tea hangs out in a vat with some sugar and a symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast (SCOBY), aka the lint at the bottom of my bottle, aka the mother. The timeline varies, but imagine a dance party that lasts anywhere from a few days to a month, during which the yeast gorges on sugar and leaves probiotics and digestive enzymes as a hostess gift. When the music stops, the tea is so full of probiotics – nutritionally beneficial microorganisms – that it is still dancing.

If pasteurization is the process of killing harmful bacteria, fermentation is the process of bringing good bacteria roaring to life.

So why, in an era when vials of hand sanitizer swing from key rings, would we eat bacteria on purpose? The simplest answer is that fermented foods, with their strong and complex flavor profiles, taste good. We don’t usually think about it – or try not to – but pickles, yogurt, beer and wine are all deliciously fermented. Love a good Reuben?

Its tang comes from two fermented foods: cheese and sauerkraut. Even better, fermented foods are good for us. Packed with probiotics, they contribute to everything from good digestive health to a strong immune system.

While fermentation may have once been the domain of hippies and home brewers, local chefs and adventuresome home cooks are bringing the craft back into their kitchens. I asked about their fascination with fermentation and learned that the process of nurturing a fermented culture – finding a mother and keeping it happy – was just

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as important to them as cooking with it.

Whether discussing sourdough, vinegar or even kombucha, chefs gushed about their mothers with the affection and respect that is usually reserved for, you know, moms.

When Local Harvest Café changed its name to LHC and revamped its menu this past winter, kitchen manager Joe Stein devoted an entire section of the menu to house-made fermented foods, including sauerkraut and kimchee, a spicy Korean side dish of fermented vegetables. But if you really want to see Stein’s eyes sparkle, ask him about his kefir cultures.

Stein showed me four gallon-sized jars, some filled with local cow’s milk, others with organic coconut milk. All held kefir grains, which is what the bacteria and yeast are called. “It’s like a pet,” Stein cooed.

“You name the grains. You think about them before you go to sleep. You worry that you forgot to feed them that day. I’ve got a whole colony in there.”

“You name the grains. You think about them before you go to sleep. You worry that you forgot to feed them that day.”

- Joe Stein, kitchen manager, LHC

He gently jiggled the jars. This moves the milk around and helps feed the grains. I asked to see his “pet” up close, and Stein ever-so-gently strained the kefir through a nonreactive strainer because, as he said, “The grains don’t like aluminum.” They looked like giant luminous white popcorn kernels and not at all like bacteria bombs, even though his homemade kefir had around three dozen strains of beneficial bacteria and yeast. Yogurt, by comparison, has fewer than 10 strains.

Enticed by the idea of being kind to my belly, I tried LHC’s mango kefir and vegan kefir, the latter made from grains grown in coconut milk. Defying my expectations, both were tangier than a traditional yogurt smoothie, but the fruit and coconut milk mellowed the sour punch, and they certainly were a palatable way to avoid a troubled tummy. I already make breakfast

Executive chef Bob Brazell of Athlete Eats babysits his kombucha mother.

smoothies, so I wondered: Just how hard would it be to grow and add my own kefir?

A few days later, Greg Rannells, photographer for Sauce and a fermenter of everything from sake to kimchee to mead, assured me that kefir is easy and inexpensive to make at home. It ferments at room temperature and doesn’t require special equipment. He gave me a little jar of his personal grains and a four-page instruction booklet. I felt the weight of responsibility, since Rannells, like Stein, referred to his cultures as pets.

I hoped to grow kefir grains as robust as LHC’s, but instead I killed them.

Apparently the grains did not enjoy basking in direct sunlight, which I would have known had I read the instruction booklet.

Rannells kindly gave me another batch, and I sought culturing advice from Marilyn Jarzembski, the “Kefirlady” of Fayette, Ohio, who sells LHC its grains. After emailing back and forth with her, I desperately wanted to live with Jarzembski and her 50-plus goats, whose milk nourishes her kefir grains. I settled for absorbing her folky wisdom. For example, don’t even think about feeding your grains ultra-pasteurized milk – “ultra-dead milk,” as Jarzembski called it – though regular pasteurized milk is fine. And if your kefir tastes too sour, just remove some grains, silly.

Sharing grains, or really any yeast starter, is another part of the culture of culturing. As Rannells said, “Cultures crave to be made and given away.” (To be fair, he said this before I killed his pet.) Bread starters are a good example. There’s even one around June 2014

Want to learn more about fermented foods?

Start here:

The Art of Fermentation

by Sandor Ellix Katz

Wild Fermentation

by Sandor Ellix Katz

Cooked

by Michael Pollan (Part IV: Earth, Fermentation’s Cold Fire)

town with a scandalous past, rumored to be 150 years old, possibly with roots in Italy. According to kitchen lore, the starter was stolen from a famous Chicago restaurant by a vengeful chef, who shared it with his chef friends. They shared it with their chef friends, and it made its way to St. Louis, where Matt Daughaday, chef at Taste, shared it with executive chef Derek Roe of Dressel’s Public House. Roe uses the starter, which he named La Madre, to make sourdough boules and focaccia. The focaccia is featured on Dressel’s bread board and is the anchor of Roe’s muffuletta. Roe feeds La Madre every day between 9 and 9:30 a.m. to be ready to make bread in the afternoon. Once he tried feeding it twice in one day, after he got off schedule. “It just wasn’t ready to be used after that second feeding. You gotta work on its schedule,” June 2014

Roe said. It took two weeks to straighten out the timing. “You gotta have patience.”

Patience is what Adam Lambay, executive chef at Grapevine Grill Restaurant at Chaumette Vineyards & Winery, advised when he talked about his cultures. While kefir and bread need daily feedings, Lambay’s pet culture was fed only once. He is making a balsamic-style vinegar out of 10-year-old Norton wine.

Always one for a project, a month and a half ago he inoculated the wine with a vinegar mother and some water. Though he will begin using samples of the vinegar next month, and periodically afterward, he plans to let the vinegar age in the barrel another 10 years.

As I made a note to check out Chaumette’s aged vinegar in 2024, I realized I no longer thought of linty fermentation mothers the same way. They seemed less tentacle-y and more warm and fuzzy. And when I finally tasted the kombucha in my fridge, I was able to enjoy its light, bright flavor. I even drank the weirdness at the bottom without flinching. (It wasn’t weird at all.) And then, my brave new palate was rewarded when I discovered the kombucha mother lode. Bob Brazell, executive chef at Athlete Eats, serves house-made kombucha on tap. That’s right, he will pull you a pint, or even a growler, of possibly the most delightful drink I’ve ever enjoyed. The one I tasted was oolongbased, full of happy, fruity effervescence. I tried not to giggle (the bubbles!) as Brazell told me about his fermenting process.

He refers to his mother as Mamma. He plays blues music on low for her while she ferments. “We brew the tea and then we have to let the tea cool,” he said. “And Mamma’s just hanging out. The music gives her something to keep her happy.

And everyone knows you gotta keep Mamma happy.”

So there you go. It turns out I love kombucha, particularly when it’s homemade and on tap. I drink it every day and haven’t craved a Diet Pepsi in ages. I’m also making my own kefir. It doesn’t drink quite as smoothly as kombucha, but I can’t stop feeding and jiggling my ever-growing grains. It really is a pet, and caring for it makes me happy. And as the chefs told me, if mamma is happy, everyone’s happy.

Kellie Hynes is a contributing writer for Sauce Magazine. She is happy to share her kefir cultures with you – if she hasn’t killed them first. Find her on Twitter @KellieHynes.

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short list

jalapeno poppers

Flying Saucer Draught Emporium

Milagro Modern Mexican

Southtown Pub

They might not be kosher, but they sure are delicious. Doubling down on meat sends these poppers out of this world. The inside is gifted with chorizo and cheddar jack cheese while the outside is swaddled in tender bacon with a slight crisp. This pairing will send even the most jaded bar food buff into rapture. Presented with a cup of ranch, as the gods intended.

“Relleno” translates to “stuffed,” and these Chilitos Rellenos live up to their name, resembling something like a piñata filled to capacity with house-made chorizo and goat cheese. These deep-fried treats are too big to be finger food, but all that’s needed is a fork to crack them open. Cilantro lime crema is a smooth way to complement that perfect mix of crunchy, creamy and spicy. Don’t wait for a birthday to try this modernized take on the packed pepper, but do celebrate the occasion with a margarita.

Despite their name, Atomic Turds taste awesome.

Chorizo sausage makes another appearance, this time alongside that stuffed pepper classic, cream cheese. The use of smoky peppers is a pleasant change-up to this folk favorite and adds sophistication to a food otherwise served on a paper plate alongside a pint of lager.

900 Spruce St., St. Louis, 314.932.1456, beerknurd.com/stores/stlouis

Photos by jonathan gayman

Cream cheese or cheddar cheese, bacon or chorizo – they’re all better inside a jalapeno. Often overlooked on the appetizer menu, these oozy hors d’oeuvres deserve their place in the junk food pantheon next to titans like onion rings and mozzarella sticks. Why eat just fried peppers or just fried cheese when we can have both?

If it’s a jalapeno, has stuff inside it and is made in-house (and all of these are), it’s in consideration.

— Andrew Barrett

June 2014

20 Allen Ave., Suite 130, Webster Groves, 314.962.4300, milagromodernmexican.com

3707 S. Kingshighway Blvd., St. Louis, 314.832.9009, southtownpub.net

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stuff to do:

this month

by Byron Kerman

Let It Ferment Class June 10 – 6 to 8 p.m., LHC, 3137 Morgan Ford Road, 314.865.5260, localharvestgrocery.com 2014: The year of kombucha. Everyone is slurping down fermented beverages these days (Find out why in “Mother Spore” on p. 44.). Then get hands on with fermented drinks at LHC (formerly Local Harvest Café). Jenny Bangert of Bamboo Studios discusses nonalcoholic fermented beverages like kombucha, kefir and kefir water in this intro-level class. Learn why they’re great for the tummy while you sip samples, then take home some of these goodies. Call for reservations.

Florissant Food Truck Knights June 12 – 5 to 8 p.m., Knights of Columbus grounds, 50 Saint Francois St., Florissant, kofc2951.org NoCo peeps, you sure are lucky. You get to be surrounded by warm, sweet food truckage at the new Florissant Food Truck Knights. The Knights of Columbus welcome 2 Girls 4 Wheels, Andrew’s Bayou Ribs, Cha Cha Chow, Gioia’s Deli Food Truck, Sarah’s Cake Stop, Sarah’s Meltdown, Steak Louie, Zia’s “On The Hill” truck and others to the nonprofit’s parking lot. Look for beer and soda, too, and bring donations for the canned food drive. Future FFTKs are scheduled for Aug. 22 and Oct. 10.

International Cheese, Wine & Canine Festival June 14 – 6 to 9 p.m., Purina Event Center, 300 Checkerboard Drive, Gray Summit, 314.982.3232, purinafarms.com There are little signs all over this festival identifying the edibles, potables and barkables from around the globe. Get to know

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more than 40 dog breeds, sample more than 25 wines, and check out performances

by Scottish dancers, German dancers, belly dancers and Swing St. Louis. Tasting tickets this year include two gourmet doughnut holes from mobile eatery Vincent Van Doughnut. Now you just have to figure out how to keep the cheese away from the dogs.

Tickets available online.

St. Louis Garlic Fest June 21 - 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., The Boathouse at Carondelet Park, 3900 Holly Hills Drive, 314.570.4945, gatewaygarlic.com The St. Louis Garlic Fest could be the most adorable and pungent festival of the summer. The day features garlic-themed art, garlic ice cream, a garlic-eating contest and 16 varieties of locally grown garlic, as well as a mini farmers market with other produce and a food court with very garlicky menus. And don’t miss the big announcement – the naming of a previously unknown heirloom garlic varietal Gateway Garlic discovered languishing on a defunct farm for 70 years.

Sustainable Backyard Tour June 22 – 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., multiple locations, sustainablebackyardtour.com Slow Food Saint Louis sponsors the fourth annual tour of some 40 private backyards that provide food for the owners, create wildlife habitat, and are beautiful places to relax. Best of all, the spaces showcase sustainable practices like using rain barrels recycled items and solar grids; planting fruit and nut trees; and raising ducks, rabbits, bees, chickens, fish and worms. Register online and print out your map of tour homes to plan your route.

June 2014

North City Farmers Market Saturdays through Oct. 18 – 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., St. Louis Avenue at N. 14th Street, 314.241.5031, ext. 104, northcityfarmersmarket. blogspot.com The North City Farmers Market is back and swinging with fresh produce, crafts, baked goods, health screenings and healthycooking demos. Returning vendors this year include 13th Street Community Garden, Burning Kumquat, Farmin’ Arman Foods, Foshunti Fruit Tarts, New Roots Urban Farm and WM Farms.

sponsored events Tower Grove Picnic in the Park June 1 – 4 to 7 p.m., Tower Grove Park, St. Louis, 314.771.2679, towergrovepark.org Picnic with dozens of your closest friends on the grounds near the Piper Palm House in Tower Grove Park. Six food trucks, including Shell’s Coastal and Zia’s “On the Hill,” will keep you full and Schlafly beer will keep you satiated while checking out the art exhibits, petting zoo and live music.

Dine Out for the Cure June 12, participating restaurants, 314.569.3900, komenstlouis.org Join the local fight against breast cancer by dining out two days before the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. Participating restaurants and food trucks donate a portion of the day’s proceeds to Komen St. Louis and two local restaurants, Pappy’s Smokehouse and Pickles Deli, donate 50 percent of the day’s proceeds. A full list of participating restaurants and food trucks is available online.

Food Truck Friday June 13 – 4 to 8 p.m., Tower Grove Park, St. Louis, 314.772.8004, saucefoodtruckfriday.com Head to Tower Grove Park for Food Truck Friday, with more delicious options and features this year. Find sangria, a kids station June 2014

to entertain junior truckies and more. This year, proceeds from beer sales benefit Lift for Life Gym. And if you’re hungry and in a hurry, stop by the Sauce tent for a Speed Pass, which enables holders to use expedited lines for ordering Come early and bring lawn chairs, blankets, kids and dogs.

Farm to Table June 28 – 9:15 a.m. to 8:15 p.m., Washington, 636.239.2715, ext.

101, missourirhinevalley.com Take Amtrack from St. Louis or Kirkwood to Washington for a day of wine, beer, food and fun. The event includes tours and tastings at Blumenhof and Noboleis wineries, a trip to the Washington farmers market and culminates in a multi-course pig roast dinner at Todd Geisert Farm. Make reservations online or by phone.

Saucy Soirée June 29 – 5 to 10 p.m., St. Louis Union Station, 1820 Market St., St. Louis, 314.772.8004, saucysoiree.com Join the Sauce Reader’s Choice Party 2014 in the beautiful and newly renovated Union Station. Be the first to know (and taste!) who you voted this year’s favorites in the St. Louis food scene. Mingle and taste goodies from dozens of top restaurants, wineries and breweries. Tickets and more information available online.

Schlafly Farmers Market Wednesdays through October – 4 to 7 p.m., Schlafly Bottleworks, 7260 Southwest Ave., Maplewood, 314.241.2337 ext. 2, schlaflyfarmersmarket.com Wednesday evenings, part of the Schlafly Bottleworks parking lot transforms into a farmers market brimming with meat, eggs, produce, baked goods and more. New this season: cooking demos by local chefs every third Wednesday of the month.

Midtown Farmers Market Saturdays through November – 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., 6655 Delmar Blvd., University City, 314.913.6632, Facebook: Midtown Farmers Market The newest farmers market to hit the scene pops up in The Loop. Grab your tote bag each Saturday morning and stuff it with produce, meat, eggs, baked goods, pantry perks and more from local farmers and artisan food producers. saucemagazine.com I SAUCE MAGAZINE I 53

No cocktail connoisseur is more dedicated to promoting the culture of the artisan beverage than Jacqui Segura, aka The Cocktail Ambassador. She took a breather from her frenzied schedule – holding down a day job in e-commerce and raising four kids – to talk about her favorite cocktail, hosting events for imbibers and what she misses seeing behind the bar.

When did you become The Cocktail Ambassador? September 2012. About two years earlier, I’d met (bartender) Matt Seiter. The only thing I drank at that time was Ketel One and tonic. (I) jumped whole hog into this cocktail list he had. They used to joke that I was their ambassador because I would go around to the tables at Sanctuaria and try to understand why every person there was not trying to finish this list and drink these amazing cocktails.

What’s your favorite cocktail?

Negroni. I love the simplicity and its tolerance for mistakes.

What’s the stupidest cocktail you’ve ever had? We went to New Orleans.

I had a hurricane. I remember getting headaches. It was so syrupy and sugary and powdery and red.

Are you going for the bartenders or the cocktails? I go for the cocktails, but I’ve had enough cocktails that I know who I can rely on to provide consistency. There has to be (enough) trust with the bartender that I can say, “I’d like to do a cognac drink tonight.”

And that they know me well enough to help me push forward in a new area.

Would you call the event a success?

My expectation going into that was I was going to give out 30 passports. To hear that Mandi (Kowalski at Planter’s House) sold over 300 of her Fujiyama Mama (cocktail) – I’m like, “Wow!” Next year, there’s no reason to limit it to St. Louis. I’m going to do a passport for Kansas City, Chicago and St. Louis.

What cocktail trends excite you?

A return to simple, core ingredients – three to four (of them). You really have to think about the quality of the ingredients. There’s one (trend) that’s gone away and I’m like, “Come back!”

– the theater of preparing a cocktail.

I love that. Part of my concern with

places going to bottled cocktails and cocktails on tap and quick-dispensing things is that you lose the theater. I’m paying anywhere from $10 to $15 for a cocktail. I want a floor show with it.

What do your kids say about your hobby? I had to fight less with them and more my image of what parents did. The idea of taking one evening a week and saying, “At 8 o’clock on Wednesdays, I am going to be someplace doing what I want to do” was a big step for (my husband and me). We were like, “Now, if you say you want to go to the gym and do yoga, that’s OK. Going to the bar to drink, that’s not OK.” I worried about that for about two weeks, then I was so over it.

– Ligaya Figueras

How does Boozy Book Club work?

I choose a book that’s cocktail- or spirits-related. I recommend people read it ahead of time – that’s just a recommendation, not a requirement.

I find a bar to host us. The book club meetings are all about “tasting” the book.

I don’t want them to know that they’re actually learning something. I don’t want to make it a lecture.

Why did you organize the Drink Like a Lady event series in March? This craft cocktail community is heavily male-dominated. I wanted to involve the women bartenders in St. Louis. And then I extended it even further: Can I challenge these women bartenders to use womenproduced spirits in the cocktails they’re creating? That was the extent of the instructions that I gave bartenders. From there, they could do anything they wanted.

The Cocktail Ambassador Thecocktailambassador.com

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Photo by jonathan gayman

What I Do Jacqui Segura

What are your favorite haunts in St. Louis for a cocktail? It’s so hard for me to separate bartenders from the haunts. I’ll follow Ted (Kilgore) anywhere. Kyle (Mathis) has done an outstanding job keeping the bar program at Taste going. I like Tony (Saputo) and Seth (Wahlmann) at Eclipse a lot. I think they’re always doing creative things.

June 2014

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