Now that the Highway 40 closing is upon us, many folks are thinking of dining closer to home, a mixed blessing for the hard-working, talented men and women of the St. Louis restaurant community. The thought does encourage folks to take a new look at spots that are close to home, or, in some cases, close to work. And that’s a good thing. People often tell us that our books, or this blog, jog the memory in terms of restaurants unvisited for a long time and almost forgotten, or are useful reminders that more than the same two or three favorites are still part of the local scene.
So it’s time for new looks at old favorites, for everyone. At The Crossing, which was the first of Jim Fiala’s restaurants (next came LiLuMa, and now Acero), we’ve always been happy, and usually excited, by our meals. On our most recent visit, things were nicely abuzz, neither mobbed nor abandoned, and service was just where it ought to be, not fully formal, but respectful of the food and setting, and we could make decisions without concern that our thinking was about to be interrupted to hear, unbidden, about the server’s preferences.
Newcomers are sometimes startled to see the demi-partitions along the east wall of the room. In a previous restaurant, booths were there, and it’s taken us some time to get used to the tables and chairs. Why leave the dividers up? But we’ve decided we like the idea of a little more privacy, especially since there are plenty of other tables for our favorite restaurant-based sport of people-watching.
Dinner still begins with a ramekin of the onion-and-blue cheese souffle to go on housemade toast, a delightful, dangerous start that can endanger the diner’s capacity to leave room for the rest of the meal. It’s just crying out for a glass of cool white wine, or maybe even a flute of Champagne.
It’s impossible for at least one of us to resist ordering white anchovies; this visit, they came with roasted red pepper strips and some sweet, slightly crunchy pea sprouts. And a lovely tangle of tagliatelle, thin and yet still slightly toothsome, was interlaced with black trumpet mushrooms and an anointing of truffle oil. Maybe some day we’ll get tired of mushrooms and truffle oil, but not for another century or so, we suspect. And a small serving of a mussel stew sparkled in the mouth, something citrusy punching up the leeks, parsley and bay leaf, a tingly, delicious treatment of the humblest mollusk.
Sometimes we succumb to the lures of a menu despite our intentions—we try to balance our ordering so we can talk about a variety of things, getting pasta as well as veal at an Italian restaurant, for instance. But it turned out to be a seafood festival this visit to The Crossing. Aqua pazzo (which translates from the Italian as "crazy water", and refers to a spicy, unthickened fish soup) is in several places around town. No one seems to be a purist about it, and Fiala’s version combines triggerfish, shrimp, scallops and a few mussels in a slightly thicker, tomato-y broth that’s so rich it’s almost sweet, and whose spiciness is well under control. We were unfamiliar with triggerfish, which was a delightful addition. It has body and excellent flavor, and many local eaters don’t have to be fearful that it might taste fishy.
Equally successful was skate, unlike most fish St. Louisans are familiar with because it’s just the large fins, or "wings" of the critter. It arrived with capers and lemon-butter, its usual garnishes, but the capers were deep-friend, intensifying their usual tangy saltiness with texture and flavor creating more fun. In addition, what we thought at first was mashed potatoes was actually parsnips, their light sweetness a nice note.
Dessert? We intended to just nibble at the lemon semifreddo, the half-frozen creamy mousse. Nicely lemony, its tart coolness finished things off nicely. Just another bite, maybe…and it was pretty much gone.
The wine list is elegant, large and expensive, but there are bargains in both the French and Italian sections, and it’s also a fine spot to splurge on something special.
Lovely stuff, serious food, extremely satisfying.
The Crossing
7823 Forsyth Blvd., Clayton
314-721-7375
Lunch Mon.-Fri., Dinner Mon.-Sat.
Credit cards: All major
Wheelchair access: Fair
Smoking: No
Entrees: $29-$36
