The Scoop: Jonathan Olson has left Erato as executive chef
Jonathan Olson has left Erato Wine Bar and Restaurant on Main Street. Olson’s last day as executive chef at the Edwardsville, Ill., restaurant was this past Saturday. According to Olson, the departure stems from a disagreement with management. Olson, who has lived in Edwardsville for more than a decade and has spent nearly five years…
Local mixologist from Franco takes home third at regional bartending competition
A Saucy congrats to T.J. Vytlacil (pictured, left) for placing third in the Greater Kansas City Bartending Competition this past weekend. His original drink, Silver and Sand, is a variation of the scotch-based cocktail Blood and Sand. Vytlacil’s recipe calls for 12-year Balvenie infused with lemon and ginger, Cherry Heering liqueur, fresh lemon juice, Lillet…
Lunching In Style
1. Lunchsak by Mimi the Sardine Substitute that old paper bag for this recyclable (and, might we add, adorable) one, made with 100 percent certified organic cotton. $19.95. Home Eco, 4611 Macklind Ave., St. Louis, 314.351.2000. 2. Neoprene Gourmet Getaway Tote Worried about keeping that fruit fresh until lunchtime? This bag, big enough to fit…
Fact or Fiction: All alcohol burns off when cooking
Welcome to Fact or Fiction, a new online column in which we dive into the truth behind some well-accepted foodie wives’ tales – and reveal whether they’re fact or fiction. All alcohol burns off when cooking Fiction: While professionals can’t agree on whether all the alcohol truly burns off when boiling or simmering a sauce,…
Sauce: The Photographs
We loved this cover. Local photographer Brian Fagnani shot this gorgeous photograph at Herbie’s in the Central West End for the November 2009 issue of Sauce. We’d almost call it our favorite, except that it’s too difficult to pick a favorite, thanks to the group of incredibly talented photographers we have working with us here…
The Scoop: Italian carryout spot opening in Dutchtown
Joe DeLurgio, owner of JVincent’s FoodEdge Catering Co. on The Hill, has gone into the restaurant business. His new place, JVincent’s Pronto Pizza and Pasta, is located at 3804 Louisiana Ave., at Chippewa Street in the space formerly occupied by Pitstop Barbecue. The carryout-only eatery will feature grilled Sicilian-style pizza as well as a variety…
The Scoop: Eyeing the new grill on Skinker
We were sad to see John’s Town Hall go away, so we can’t imagine how condo dwellers at 665 S. Skinker Blvd., felt to see the downstairs hangout close. But fill the highball, the once vacant space is now occupied by Caitlin’s Green-Eyed Grill. The bar and grill opened earlier this month, but right now,…
Extra Sauce: Just pickle it
In our August sandwich feature, we offered a solution to your sandwich topper blues: pickle it. Pickling infuses a layer of salty and sour goodness to your fresh produce, adding that little extra oomph to any meal – especially sandwiches. You can pickle all of your farm-fresh veggies, using recipes such as this one for…
The Scoop: New restaurant makes trip to Augusta even more pleasant
Hey, Missouri wine lovers! Mount Pleasant Winery now offers an option for visitors who want more than just grab-‘n-go fare. Appellation Café, located in the Augusta winery’s remodeled grocery building, features fine cuisine coupled with the estate’s award-winning wines, each of which are now for sale by the glass or bottle. Sure, you can still…
Eat your way through downtown
Three courses for $25? Yep, it’s time again for Downtown Restaurant Week. Now in its sixth year, this tasty event draws thousands of diners downtown to check out new eateries and catch up with old favorites. The fun starts today and runs until Sunday, Aug. 29. This year, 28 restaurants are on the list, with…
Fact or Fiction: Oil in pasta water prevents sticking
Welcome to Fact or Fiction, a new online column in which we dive into the truth behind some well-accepted foodie wives’ tales – and reveal whether they’re fact or fiction. Adding oil to pasta water prevents the noodles from sticking together. Fiction: When you add oil to pasta water, most of the oil will float…
Sauce: The Photographs
Ever wonder who’s behind the beautiful photography in each issue of Sauce? From a lowly fungi to a stunning squash blossom, the delicious food we feature in Sauce is finessed and finagled by a group of incredibly talented photographers to make each page into a work of art. Now, for one night only, you have…
Thai with a touch of soul at Sweet Basil
Six days a week, Sweet Basil Thai Café is a casual Thai restaurant on Pine Street, dishing up spring rolls, pad thai and other Southeast Asian delicacies. But on weekends, this downtown spot is transformed into a soul-food restaurant. Star Ellis, a Sweet Basil employee, is using the eatery’s kitchen on its shuttered days to…
The Scoop: Chez Leon extends bienvenue to familiar face from Café de France
Leon Bierbaum, owner of Chez Leon in Clayton, is feeling a bit of joie de vivre today as he announced the hiring of Marcel Keraval as executive chef. Keraval is known for his restaurant Café de France, which had a 23-year run, first downtown and later in Clayton. “He’s very fluent in classic French cooking.…
The Scoop: Oh Lolli Lolli brings sugar high to Clayton
Kids in the De Mun area of Clayton are all smiles thanks to the sweet arrival of candy shop Oh Lolli Lolli. Located at 802 De Mun Ave., the itsy bitsy store sells a wide selection of bulk and wrapped candies from the well-loved to the well-missed. In the chocolate category, customers will find rocky…
Nora’s sandwich fun
If our August Art of the Sandwich feature didn’t make your mouth water for some goodness between the bread, maybe a trip over to Nora’s Sandwiches, Soups & Salads in Dogtown will. The restaurant’s Beat the Clock offer encourages diners to arrive at the cafe between 5 and 7 p.m. Once you order, the time…
The Scoop: Mihalis Chophouse closed?
Rumors are swirling in the local food universe that Mihalis Chophouse on McCausland Avenue has closed. Owner Michael Malliotakis was unavailable for comment today, but former executive chef Andy Shrensker, who recently departed from the chophouse to take the helm at Jim Edmonds 15 Steakhouse, said that he received word of the restaurant’s closing yesterday,…
Fact or Fiction: Don’t put tomatoes in the fridge
Welcome to Fact or Fiction, a new online column in which we dive into the truth behind some well-accepted foodie wives’ tales – and reveal whether they’re fact or fiction. You shouldn’t store fresh tomatoes in the refrigerator. Fact. Refrigerating a tomato can result in a fruit that is less flavorful, crisp and aromatic when…
The Scoop: Lineup changes at Jim Edmonds 15 Steakhouse, owner sets record straight on liquor license
Jim Edmonds 15 Steakhouse has added a new player to the roster, hiring Andy Shrensker as executive chef at the downtown restaurant. Shrensker makes the move from Mihalis Chophouse on McCausland Avenue, where he worked for the last year. Prior to cooking in the kitchen at Mihalis, Shrensker worked for four years as executive sous…
Drink This Weekend Edition: Lola’s absinthe lounge opens tonight
Big surprise: this weekend’s gonna be another scorcher. So forget the ball game and go straight for the air conditioning. Where to? Well, remember that new absinthe lounge we told you was coming to Lola a few weeks ago? It opens tonight, complete with plush couches, eye-popping décor and some truly tasty absinthe-based cocktails. Here’s…
The Scoop: Another new brewery coming to town
Boy, has it been a busy week for beer fans. Earlier this week, we broke the news that two former Anheuser-Busch employees will be opening Urban Chetnut Brewery Co. later this year. Now, St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s Evan Benn’s got the scoop on another new brewery headed to town, this time by way of Chicago. Phil…
The Scoop: Two St. Louis Bartenders Headed to Cocktail Competition in K.C.
A Saucy congrats to two area bartenders who were chosen as finalists for the Greater Kansas City Bartending Competition. TJ Vytlacil of Franco Restaurant and Chris Muether of Danno’s American Pub will be participating in the fourth annual GKCBC on Aug. 29 in Kansas City. The event is now the largest in the Midwest, since…
Extra Sauce: Another must-try sandwich
For the 10 to Try feature that runs throughout this month’s cover package on sandwiches, we taste-tested more sandwiches than we care to admit – and we’ve got the sauce stains and crumpled napkins to prove it. As so often happens in this culinary-rich city of ours, though, there were just too many amazing sandwiches…
Tuesday tequila dinner at West End Grill & Pub
The St. Louis Blues may have a knack for exiting the playoffs before things get interesting, but the players’ careers off the ice offer no shortage of fascination. Tony Twist won a multi-million dollar defamation lawsuit against a comic-book publisher. Bernie Federko was the coach of a “professional” roller-hockey squad for a few years. And…
The Scoop: No changes to the kitchen in Harvest sale
As St. Louis Magazine’s George Mahe reported, the executive chef at Harvest, Nick Miller, signed an asset purchase agreement yesterday, making the sale of the Richmond Heights restaurant official. Despite an earlier statement from owner Steve Gontram that “that there is no imminent activity to sell,” Gontram told Sauce this morning that the deal “all…
The Scoop: Mia Rosa Moves Out
Mia Rosa, the Italian eatery located at 4501 Manchester Road, has closed its doors. Owner Phil Noe, who opened the restaurant in the fall of 2008, cited slow business as the reason for the closure. This past winter, Noe transformed Mia Rosa into a late-night noshery called Satellite, hoping to attract more foot traffic. Unfortunately,…
The Scoop: Urban Chestnut Brewing Co. to join local craft beer revolution
Pull up a chair and get ready for a cold one, because a new microbrewery will soon be adding to the now booming local craft brewing scene in St. Louis. Urban Chestnut Brewing Co. will be an “unconventional-minded yet tradition-oriented brewer of craft beer,” co-founders Florian Kuplent and David Wolfe said today in a press…
The Art of the Sandwich: A better slice
Swiss from the local grocery isn’t the only slice that can top off that sandwich. Simon Lehrer, cheesemonger at The Wine Merchant in Clayton, urges you not to pass up artisan cheeses. Often overlooked at the sandwich counter, they can be the perfect complement to your essentials between the bread. Softer cheeses such as Brie…
Fact or Fiction: Cheese is made of mold
Welcome to Fact or Fiction, a new online column in which we dive into the truth behind some well-accepted foodie wives’ tales – and reveal whether they’re fact or fiction. Cheese is made of mold. Fact and Fiction. For this one, we consulted Simon Lehrer, cheesemonger at The Wine Merchant, and a human encyclopedia of…
Extra Sauce : Choosing the cover
Thanks to our extremely talented staff of photographers, Sauce art director Meera Nagarajan thumbs through dozens of gorgeous photographs each month to pick the best – and most mouthwatering – images of the food and drinks we feature in every issue. The hardest part is picking just one for our cover. Each month, we’ll give…
Drink This Weekend Edition: Whiskey barrel-aged cocktails now available at Niche and Taste by Niche
We’re excited (and thirsty) to announce that the whiskey barrel-aged cocktails that Ted Kilgore revealed to Sauce writer Ligaya Figueras in this month’s Elixir column are now available at Taste by Niche in Benton Park, where Kilgore mans the bar, and also next door at Niche. The cocktails have been aging in used oak barrels…
The Scoop: New blog to cover St. Louis’ wine scene
Ever wonder what restaurant in St. Louis has the most local wines on its list? Or how about which local grape is best to sip during this relentless heat? Soon there will be a place to discuss just such drinking dilemmas. Pulling from his 20-plus years of experience at The Wine and Cheese Place, where…
The Scoop – Harvest: No sale for now
Contrary to recent published reports that Harvest is changing hands, the restaurant’s owner-chef Steve Gontram reassured Sauce this morning that there is no imminent activity to sell the Richmond Heights restaurant to Harvest’s executive chef Nick Miller. “Although Nick Miller has applied with the city of Richmond Heights to explore the possibility of purchasing the…
Extra Sauce: Another must-try sandwich
For the 10 to Try feature that runs throughout this month’s cover package on sandwiches, we taste-tested more sandwiches than we care to admit – and we’ve got the sauce stains and crumpled napkins to prove it. As so often happens in this culinary-rich city of ours, though, there were just too many amazing sandwiches…
Sauce Celebrity Chef Series presents No Reservations: A Night with Anthony Bourdain
Fresh on the heels of today’s sold-out cooking demo and book signing with Rick Bayless, we’re excited to announce the next event in the Sauce Celebrity Chef Series: No Reservations: A Night With Anthony Bourdain, presented in partnership with the Fox Theatre. Spend what will no doubt be an entertaining evening with the legendary outspoken…
More deep-fried fun on Pam’s menu
Sauce readers may remember our review of Pam’s Chicago-Style Dogs & More in The Loop a couple of years ago, in which reviewer Bill Burge waxed rhapsodic about the diner’s Deep Fried Raspberry Zinger. Now Pam’s co-owner, Dan Revell, is diving even further into the terrifying realm of fried festival food by adding Balls of…
Fact or Fiction: Does alcohol freeze?
Welcome to Fact or Fiction, a new online column in which we dive into the truth behind some well-accepted foodie wives’ tales – and reveal whether they’re fact or fiction. Alcohol does not freeze. Fiction: Actually, alcohol does freeze; its freezing point is simply far below that of water. For instance, water freezes at 32…
St. Louisan up for Chef of the Year award
We would like to wish a Saucy good luck to local chef James “Kevin” Storm who will be competing in an annual national cooking competition this week for the Chef of the Year award, put on by the American Culinary Federation. Storm, who has been whipping up dishes as the executive chef at Bellerive Country…
Short List: Steak frites
Steak frites is the quintessential French bistro dish: an inexpensive but flavorful slab of beef seared to medium rare, topped with maître d’hôtel butter and served with a pile of crisp, perfectly golden-brown frites. Traditionally, the steak itself was often onglet, or hanger steak, which is still often used in France, although you’re just as…
Bryan Carr takes on the challenge of Atlas
When Bryan Carr worked at a San Francisco restaurant in the 1980s, he lived a mere two blocks from chef Michael Roberts and his wife, Jean Donnelly. But it wasn’t until years later, when Carr and his wife, Diane, dined at Roberts and Donnelly’s Atlas Restaurant in the Central West End, that the couples met…
A Dozen Sweet Peppers to Find at Local Markets this Summer
Sweet peppers don’t get much respect. Anyone can name four or five hot peppers without blinking, but naming four sweet peppers? Not so easy. Here’s a dozen you’ll find at local markets this summer. Bryan Shaner of Ravenscroft Collective near Potosi, Mo., recommended Melrose. “The flavor is sugary, then it mellows to a green bite…
Review: Peppe’s Apt. 2 in Kirkwood
Thirty-some years ago, when I was in graduate school, my favorite restaurant, bar none, was Gian-Peppe’s on The Hill. I’m sure my many visits to the cozy, classic Italian, white tablecloth, waiters-in-black-tie restaurant on Marconi Avenue ate up more student-loan money than textbooks did, but at the time it seemed worth it. Gian-Peppe’s had a…
Review: Shiver Vodka Bar & Champagne Lounge in St. Louis
What’s novel about Shiver Vodka Bar & Champagne Lounge is not its trendy walk-in ice chamber. It’s not the overwhelming selection of more than 150 premium vodkas and 25 sparkling wines. Face it, it’s been done before. What does stand out at Washington Avenue’s newest late-night hangout is the fast-paced bottle-tossing, glass-spinning, drink-pouring action behind…
Recipe: Modesto’s Paella Mixta
Escape August in landlocked St. Louis via the dinner table, where you can evoke the ocean breezes of the Mediterranean with paella. At Modesto on The Hill, chef Grace Dinsmoor conjures visions of warm and sunny Spain via the robust flavors of paella mixta, a coastal version of the classic dish that’s brimming with fresh…
Paella Mixta
• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. • In a small saucepan over medium heat, heat the chicken broth until it’s very hot. • Sprinkle the chicken pieces with salt. Heat the oil in a paella pan and fry the chicken until golden on all sides. Remove to a warm platter. • Add the green…
Orange-Chive Tartar Sauce
3 cups
Rosemary Marrow Butter
1 cup
Green Bean Chutney
2 cups
Goat Cheese & Tomato Tartlet
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. • Fit the pie dough into a tartlet pan. Line the shell with parchment paper and fill it with dried beans, rice or pie weights. • Bake for 25 to 35 minutes or until the crust is almost completely cooked. • In a sauté pan, heat the olive…
Romesco
2 cups
Kilgore Uncorks a New Age in Mixology
It may be hot, humid and muggy, but bartender Ted Kilgore has news that will make cocktail fans want to stick around town this month: He’s uncorking his latest alcoholic experiment, whiskey barrel-aged cocktails. In June, Kilgore prepared 3-gallon batches of two different cocktails – enough for 100 drinks of each mix. He poured them…
A Great Room in Lafayette Square
Sqwires, located in the Lafayette Square neighborhood, is a great space, a union of old and new. The building used to be a bed factory, then a wire factory. A system of pulleys still hangs overhead, while the room below incorporates steel, concrete and exposed brick. Red-cushioned seating, flowers on the tables and artwork on…
The Art of the Sandwich: Ten to try
From the marvelous and meaty to the oh-so-cheesy, St. Louis offers some truly amazing sandwiches. Here are 10 you gotta try. Short Rib Sandwich A short rib sandwich is typically a hot mess, albeit a tasty hot mess. Thankfully, the version at Herbie’s Vintage 72 won’t have you looking like a 3-year-old at the table.…
A Few Standouts at Peppe’s Apt. 2
Peppe’s Apt. 2 is, in some ways, like many of the countless Italian restaurants in St. Louis. It is cozy, comfy and offers a relatively small list of good, if not exciting, wines. The list features Italian wines, of course, including a Trebbiano and a Sangiovese, both offered by the glass and both described as…
Flawless Flavor: Heirloom tomatoes need little to shine
What do you do with this tomato?” I asked the chefs. “As little as possible,” was the unvarying answer. Seems odd for a fruit so versatile it provides the basis for things as varied as ketchup, marinara sauce and the BLT. But these chefs were not talking about standard red cooking tomatoes. Instead, they were…
