Review: Villa Farotto in Chesterfield

I’ve been driving through Chesterfield Valley for decades. Before soccer moms were called soccer moms, my parents used to schlep me from South County to Chesterfield Valley for my soccer games. That’s when it was nothing but crops, a restaurant, a soccer field, a jail with cool razor wire and an airport. In ‘93 when the flood waters receded, it was almost like they left the flotsam of huge growth. It’s been quite the last decade for the valley. Billions in development.

Chesterfield Commons now caps the scenic boulevard that is Highway 40 – Downtown to the Central West End to Clayton and so on to Chesterfield Valley. Being that most of the STL’s major development is on this 40 corridor, it’s fitting that the 2-million-square-foot strip mall sits in the valley. A few years into the valley’s burgeoning life, a night scene and fine dining have sprung. Now, you can come for more than Moen faucets and ciabatta sandwiches. You can even dance.

The look ...
Between a Bentley dealership and a 14-screen Cineplex, Villa Farotto stands alone. It’s incredibly easy to find, particularly at night, with its patio fire pit out front.

Some may recognize the name, but this Farotto’s is quite a bit different than the original one-theme locale in Rock Hill. Villa Farotto offers white-linen dining to casual fireside Shiraz to to-go baguettes. Reportedly, ownership spent more than $3 million building Villa Farotto and, honestly, you can tell. It’s a beautiful space, inside and out.

Inside, to the front-door hostess’s right, is the winding, multiroomed Vineyards – fine Italian dining. Behind her is the moderately sized upscale bar – our focus. To her far left is the casual, prepared-menu café/market – similar to the market at Lucas Park Grille.

The unevenly shaped bar centers the dimly lit, dark stone-and- glass-accented lounge, with handsome wooden tables to the bar’s left; a small fireplace with velvet couches, chairs and a baby grand to the right; and more couches and chairs in front. Impressionist party scenes hang from the wall. The lounge is roomy; space for standing equals space for sitting.

Belly up to the black-concrete bar top lit by blown-glass lamps and candles. Two of the lounge’s walls are glass, with huge panes separating the bar from both the Vineyards and from the small outside patio.

The scene …
Chesterfield Valley is as suburban as one can get in St. Louis. It’s mostly families out here, so nightlife caters toward affluent older singles and the divorced. The Villa Farotto bar hits its mark on the 40+ crowd. Proof? Things I overheard: “I have to close my tab so I can pick up my daughter from cheerleading practice,” “I’ve been divorced for 20 years,” “Back in the ‘60s … .” Many people yap into cell phones. They’re just as popular for moms as daughters.

Happy hours are cool but trumped in crowd size by weekend nights. Rather than hooking up, second/third marriages are the goal. Early in the evening, mustachioed men drink whiskey alone at the bar. At 8 p.m., every seat is filled. As the night progresses, the mood picks up. Whether everyone knows each other or not is unclear, but everyone acts like it. A rotating cast of musicians entertains Wednesday through Saturday. Think cover tunes like “Easy” and artists like Bruce Hornsby. By 10 p.m., guys are twirling and dipping gals in front of the baby grand. Save the band, almost everyone is white.

For the older crowd, Villa Farotto makes for great dates with fine dining and a lively bar scene. Women dress in diamonds, dead animals (fur, lizard skin, leather) and hats; men wear mustaches, sweater vests, blazers and golf-course ball caps. Befitting of the rich dudes, cigars dangle from many mouths.

The products …
Executive chef Gerard LaRuffa’s fine Italian Vineyards menu is available in the bar or restaurant. Not many people order items like the $33 Bentley Tenderloin at the bar, but man, is that beef tasty. Bar patrons mostly stick to appetizers such as steamed mussels, calamari and the very popular gourmet pizzas. Unless you’re ordering steaks, pasta or seafood, most food is reasonable at under $10.

At happy hour, a so-good-looking-you-don’t-want-to-eat-it antipasto tray, free for the taking, sits on the baby grand. Rather than pretzels, bartenders whet drinking appetites with bowls of Italian olives.

Moderately priced AB products dominate the beers, while there’s no rot-gut booze to be found. Cocktails, made with only top shelf liquor, run $5.50. The wine list, dominated by Italians, is divided into New World and Old World selections. Twenty-one by-the-glass labels run $6 to $12.

The straight 411 …
For fine dining, dancing and drinking, surrounded by suburban affluence, head to the bar at Villa Farotto.