St. Louis Restaurants
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Alas: The Brunch Is Gone
Don’t plan on heading to what we all knew as the Adam’s Mark for brunch at Chestnut’s this holiday season. Now the Hyatt Riverfront, the hotel is in the midst of big-time remodeling. The space once occupied by Faust’s, which often created great meals starring Bob Kabel as one of the city’s best-ever wine gurus
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Herbie’s Vintage 72
It felt like 1972, or ‘75, or maybe 1980. . . . The line of cars waiting for valet parkers stretched northward on Euclid Avenue for more than a block. Cheerful noise escaped when the front door opened, waves of warmth accompanying people on their way out, welcoming those arriving. A hostess juggled names and
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Everest Cafe & Bar
The Everest Café began life on Washington Avenue, just west of downtown. It seemed to do a reasonable lunch business, but evenings were usually quiet. We did begin to see other theater-bound folks at dinner, though, and word seemed to spread. Its careful move to Manchester Avenue’s mostly busy Grove area seems to have been
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Acero
Jim Fiala, a most talented chef and restaurateur (they are different talents), operates three excellent and successful St. Louis restaurants. We’ve had fine meals at all three, but right now we’re happiest – these things can change on very short notice–at Acero, with the Crossing and LiLuMa running close behind. The name is Italian for
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Cafe Ventana
Café Ventana’s web site talks about it as having a French Quarter style. And that’s not just because beignets are available — oh yes, and excellent, too. Located on the first floor of an old house (although happily wheelchair accessible) just west of the St. Louis U. campus, it has an easy-going feel that fits
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Modesto
It’s not often that we start a review with the dessert. But we know enough to put first things first, and the first thing today is to hurry to Modesto and try Grace Dinsmoor’s exquisite bread pudding. A relatively new item on the menu, a square of bread pudding arrives with the toffee-like sauce bubbling
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Paul Mineo’s Trattoria
Over the years, West Port Plaza has been the location of lots (and lots) of restaurants. Everything from ice cream shops to Japanese food with a view has been available at one time or another. Paul Mineo’s Trattoria, owned by the second generation of the well-known local restaurant family, opened there last winter, providing
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Cafe Ventana
Café Ventana’s web site talks about it as having a French Quarter style. And that’s not just because beignets are available — oh yes, and excellent, too. Located on the first floor of an old house (although happily wheelchair accessible) just west of the St. Louis U. campus, it has an easy-going feel that fits
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West End Grill & Pub
Theater buffs already have discovered the West End Grill & Pub. It’s right next door to the Gaslight Theater, a couple of blocks south of the late, lamented and never-to-be-replicated Gaslight Square. In fact, a double door connects pub and theater, so the elements are not a factor. At intermission, theatergoers use the pub as
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Bobo Noodle House
Small and stylish is the immediate impression at Bobo Noodle, tucked into a New York-narrow space in a new building across the street from the campus of Washington University. Zoe Houk who’s been opening and running restaurants around town for more years than her looks would have anyone believe, has created a spot that blends