Hit List: November 2015

Union Loafers Cafe and Bread Bakery After years of planning, renovating and baking, Ted Wilson and Sean Netzer have opened the highly anticipated Union Loafers in Botanical Heights. The cafe and bakery serves a small, rotating lunch menu of sandwiches, soups and salads along with artisanal loaves. Bite into the roasted pork sandwich, their take on a Cuban made with roast pork, country ham, Gruyere and house-made pickles piled high on Loafers’ ciabatta with house-made mustard and mayonnaise. Or try the smoked beet sandwich, also on ciabatta, which marries ruby sliced beets with Emmenthal cheese, hard-boiled egg, house-fermented sauerkraut and Thousand Island dressing. The real dark horse is a delectable nut butter and house-made jam sandwich (almond butter and raspberry jam during our visit) on buttered Light & Mild country loaf; it’s a childhood staple all grown up. Go green with a Little Gem Salad tossed with house buttermilk dressing, pickled shallots, fine herbs and sourdough breadcrumbs, and don’t forget to pick up a full or half-loaf on your way out to savor artisanal bread all week long. Union Loafers, 1629 Tower Grove Ave., St. Louis, 314.833.6111, unionloafers.com Retreat Gastropub Lace up your boots and hike over to Retreat Gastropub in the Central West End for elevated pub food. Grab a seat at the concrete bar or cedar tables and benches lining the interior and tuck in to the substantial poutine with fried fingerling potatoes and cheese curds bathed in a rich mushroom demi-glace. Though you may want to inhale all the gravy-soaked goodness, leave room for the Farmhouse Burger. Two smashed beef patties topped with house-made cheese sauce, candied bacon and a sunny egg, served on an English muffin-like bun from Companion. Be sure to grab a drink at the bar, which serves up a creative cocktail menu embroidered with house-made tinctures and shrubs. You can’t go wrong with the Fort Collins, a lively concoction of Bulldog gin, grapefruit and lemon juices, Amaro Averna, IPA syrup, a black pepper tincture and house vermouth. 2 N. Sarah St., St. Louis, 314.261.4497, retreatgastropub.com Byrd & Barrel Byrd & Barrel has come home to roost on Jefferson Avenue. This new South City eatery serves up pressure-fried chicken and indulgent fare. Choose from one of 50 canned beers and start your meal with the South Side Poutine: house-made tater tots coated in shreds of smoked chicken, mellow cheese curds and a choice of smoked mushroom or chicken gravy. Order a few juicy wings to share, but save room for the over-the-top Mother Clucker sandwich that piles a fried boneless thigh with caramelized onions, spicy pepper jelly, house-made Provel “Cheez-whiz” and Red Hot Riplets. If you manage to save room for a side, don’t miss the creamy Provel mac-n-cheese. 3422 S. Jefferson Ave., St. Louis, 314.875.9998, Facebook: Byrd & Barrel Tai Ke You don’t have to be an expert on Taiwanese cuisine to enjoy an authentic meal at Tai Ke. Start with an array of small plates, which are billed as side dishes and Taiwanese snacks. We swooned over the downy bao bun that holds a sliver of flavorful pork belly, and we devoured the link of red sausage on a curved bed of sticky rice that looks like a Taiwanese hot dog. Tai Ke also handles beef with aplomb – it’s incredibly tender in both the beef noodle soup (where you can cut your meat with a spoon), and spiced up with generous hits of black pepper in the sizzling beef entree over rice. 8604 Olive Blvd., University City, 314.801.8894 Robata Robata is the first of several anticipated ramen restaurants to open its doors in the St. Louis area. But before you slurp, peruse the numerous yakitori options and share the grilled shishito peppers, pork belly or bacon-wrapped enoki mushrooms, all skewered and grilled to order. An array of sushi is available, too (Robata’s owners ran the now-shuttered Sekisui). The main event, though, is the ramen, which can be customized with a variety of noodle choices, broths and garnishes. We sunk our spoons into regular-cut noodles swimming in tonkotsu-style ramen, featuring rich pork broth topped with roast pork, green onions, a boiled egg, bamboo shoots, bean sprouts, pickled ginger and wood-ear mushrooms. 7260 Manchester Road, Maplewood, 314.899.9595, robatamaplewood.com