The bartender, a double old-fashioned glass in one hand, offered a generic welcoming smile as he moved behind it, fingers pulsing with bartenders’ radar seeking a specific bottle. He picked up the Crown Royal, poured a generous shot. His gaze drifted in our direction. He stopped, and he almost squealed with joy as he blurted, “Oh, what a wonderful day for rose!”
Cheerful glasses of a Mourvedre Rose, a wine special of the day at Annie Gunn’s, were in front of us as we studied the menu. On a hot day, there’s nothing better than a chilled rose wine as an aperitif. Sangria is very good, but rose is better, and while we’ve been praising the light, dry, delicious pink wine for many years, it’s nice to see other American drinkers catching up to us.
Saturday lunch is often a peaceful time for us, and sometimes we even plan it that way. A trip to the grocery store helps work up an appetite for lunch and, conversely, eating lunch helps us work up an expanded, mostly experimental, grocery list. Annie Gunn’s helps on both counts. Joe has been eating there a long time, to the days when the market first became notable for delicious, house-cured bacon and ribs, good conversation with Thom and Jane Sehnert and beer at the Pot Roast Inn next door.
That was before the great flood of 1993, with its iconic image of Thom waiting on the roof for a rescue helicopter. Since then, of course, both the Smoke House Market and Annie Gunn’s have grown and prospered. With Lou Rook III in the kitchen as the executive chef and his father, Papa Lou, as his sous chef, Annie’s has become a prime example of Great American Food, from steaks to seafood and with practically all regional styles represented.
Lots of vegetables, too, and a nod to Sehnert’s Irish heritage with the best variety and cooking styles of potatoes that we have seen anywhere in our travels. With resident expert Glenn Bardgett, joined recently by John Cain, the wine selection is superb.
But we digress. . . .
The restaurant is lovely, dark wood and brightly polished brass standing out amid memorabilia and various items of decor, from kitschy to lovely. The large, rectangular bar separates two dining areas, and a few “snugs” offer semi-privacy for small groups or large families. A tent-topped area provides for private parties, overflow and the like. Sitting at the bar for a meal is a pleasant change. It offers a chance to chat with a bartender, usually a well-informed person on many subjects. It’s also a good spot for people-watching, one of our favorite hobbies.
Lunch at Annie’s comes from a wide-ranging menu that includes standards, classics and a few dishes designed by Rook. House-made sausages and smoked meats are featured, and dishes are beautifully presented, their colors and textures creating what might be termed symphonic food.
Over the years, we’ve feasted on meat loaf, maple-glazed shrimp, chicken wings and other dishes, but we were pretty restrained last week.
Still, smoked Duroc hog belly, cooked confit-style, sliced thinly and served with warm Yukon Gold potato salad was a perfect appetizer, and the rose went nicely with it. The Mourvedre grape is one of the Rhone Valley regulars, usually blended with Grenache, Syrah and one or two others, like Roussanne or Carignane. There are almost two dozen Rhone varietals, so there’s plenty of fruit to choose among. The Mourvedre was tasty, but we like roses where the Grenache is dominant. Its light fruitiness pleases us a lot.
Joe was introduced to chicken-fried steak at the Topic Cafe in Columbia more than 60 years ago, and has liked it since, but the dish at Annie’s bears no relation to the Topic’s, and it has to do with the quality of beef, and the cream in the gravy, and the delicate whipped Yukon Gold potatoes. It’s delicious, and so were the memories.
The classic hamburger was a winner, but the kitchen neglected the slice of pork belly that was supposed to top the burger. The tomato was in peak-season form and high-quality beef made a difference. The tilapia reuben sandwich was a strange duck (a strange fish,maybe?). The soft white fish was delicate and perfectly cooked, and the caramelized onions were delicious. But we noted no sauerkraut, a key ingredient of a reuben, and the Norwegian Jarlsberg cheese (the Norwegian version of Swiss, holes and all) had little flavor.
We succumbed to a lemon tart, nicely sweet and sour, topped with a little blueberry compote. But Rook has led his dessert menu with bread pudding for many years, and it’s one of the city’s better version. The banana-caramel-bourbon sauce is glorious. So was our mood as we strolled out, and a while later we discovered an extra benefit. Being satiated provides a strong defense against impulse purchasing, and our weekly grocery bill was definitely on the low side. That probably will mean an extra trip to the market this week. . . .
Annie Gunn’s
16806 Chesterfield Airport Rd., Chesterfield
636-532-3314
http://www.smokehousemarket.com
Credit cards: Yes
Wheelchair access: Fair
Smoking: No
Entrees: (Lunch) $12-$18
