Downtown St. Louis, at least here and there, is beginning to resemble New York’s SoHo of the 1980’s. The left-of-center home furnishings boutiques, the funky clothing stores (more, please!) and buildings that are finally beginning to show they’re homes and not just former business sites, all create urban fun. So Rooster, with its two storefronts, concrete floors with a pleasant mosaic and a collection of elderly mismatched mirrors, fits right in. Our resident historian, JP, adds that the building itself was once the site of Fahey’s, a saloon owned by the late Fat Fahey that served as a long-time late-night hangout for reporters and other dubious sorts.
Rooster does breakfast and lunch Tuesday-Friday, starting at 7 a.m., moves the opening hour back to 9:30 on Saturday and Sunday, and calls it brunch, one of our favorite meals. The big, sunny north windows encourage basking at this time of the year; come summer, it may be more of a problem. Orders are placed at the counter, but are delivered to the table. Coffee is serve-yourself from a couple of large vacuum bottles, fresh and flavorful, though we wish Rooster served fresh juice rather than the bottled kind.
The bulk of the menu consists of crepes, European-sized fellows probably 14 inches across and folded in quarters around the filling. We tried two, one savory and one sweet. 
A spicy chicken crepe did indeed have some pleasant heat, leaning in the Southwestern direction with notes of cumin and maybe a little chipotle pepper. The chicken itself was in good supply, chunks of a size that were easy to manage with only a fork. The lemon ricotta was less sweet than we anticipated, with a fair amount of lemon and the slightly crumbly ricotta giving a cheesecake-ish note.
On the non-crepe side of things, an egg sandwich came with lettuce and tomato on the hard-fried egg. Instead of the soft bread promised, it was on a sweet brioche bun, perhaps not the best choice, but overall, a generous and satisfying choice. Bacon on the side was crisp-chewy and meaty. At the next table, we saw fat, golden French toast and a bowl of oatmeal that was the real thing, not the vile instant stuff.
This is primarily a young crowd, not a surprise, given the neighborhood, and it’s a good option for morning food. To make things even more virtuous, the meat all comes from Missouri family farms.
Rooster
1104 Locust St.
314-241-8118
Breakfast & Lunch Tues.-Fri., Brunch Sat.-Sun
Credit cards: Yes
Wheelchair access: Poor
Smoking:No
Entrees: $5-$9
