In December’s Five Questions column (page 54), we spoke with Kathleen McGowan, who recently opened Blondie’s Coffee and Wine Bar downtown, about her signature popovers, where the name “Blondie’s” came from and the never-ending revitalization of Washington Avenue. Now in the second part of this interview, McGowan reveals her favorite thing on her menu, how she decided to open her own place, why she would like to see chick flicks playing downtown and much more. You’ve had some interesting restaurant experiences. I worked in a restaurant to put myself through college, and when I graduated, my first job was selling wine to restaurants and resorts in Florida. I took bartending jobs when I got laid off to stay afloat. And then one day, I decided, my brothers have been successful opening restaurants [McGowan Bros. Development owns Lucas Park Grille], why don’t I approach them about a partnership? So I did. I’ve also done a lot of travel, and this restaurant – the menu, the drinks, the look of it, everything – is a conglomeration of a lot of my favorite things.
Does Blondie’s represent a breakfast option in an area with a dearth of breakfast options? I’ve lived downtown about 12 years, and there are a couple breakfast places here. But here, between 14th and Tucker, in the heart of Washington Avenue, there hasn’t really been a breakfast option like what we’re offering. We have omelet paninis, oatmeal, yogurt parfaits, and all sorts of espresso and latte drinks.
What’s one of your favorite things on the Blondie’s menu? I really like the Blonde Bomber breakfast sandwich. It’s three egg whites cooked omelet-style, with sautéed onions, spinach, feta cheese and sunflower-seed pesto spread on multigrain toast.
Tell us about your small plates. We have a cheese plate, with local Fox River sheep, goat and cow cheeses; and then we have French and Spanish cheeses. The charcuterie is all locally sourced, organic stuff from Salume Beddu. We’re really trying to use local products and support local vendors. Other small plates are things like beef carpaccio, hummus, Blondie’s sweet and spicy popcorn, veggie plates. Right now, one of them has yellow and red beets with parsnips, cauliflower, kalamata and green olives baked with lemon zest, olive oil, Mediterranean red wine, bay leaves, freshly shaved garlic and spices. It’s served with popover crostini.
What other sorts of dishes are on the menu? We have salads. We have sandwiches, like the applewood-smoked ham with cotto salami, Swiss cheese, olive tapenade and horseradish cream sauce; and the all-natural oven-roasted turkey with bacon, applewood-smoked ham, Gouda, lettuce, tomato, spicy Dijon and delicious sott’aceto relish. Right now, we have four soups: cream of chicken with wild rice, French onion topped with popover crostini and melted Swiss, and two other soups we rotate, at least one of which is vegetarian.
Our desserts include a hot-fudge popover sundae with Serendipity Tahitian Vanilla ice cream inside the popover and hot fudge and whipped cream. And, of course, Blondie’s Blondie: a butterscotch-and-toffee blonde brownie topped with Tahitian Vanilla ice cream and caramel sauce. Then we have dessert martinis, 30 wines by the glass, 60 bottled wines, 15 specialty beers and six creative wine flights that each have three three-ounce pours.
What about a favorite drink on the menu? One of my favorite martinis is the Brigitte Bardot (I named them after blonde bombshells.). It has Pearl Caramel Vodka, crème de cocoa, Godiva White Chocolate Liqueur and a little bit of cream, served with a salt and brown-sugar rim in a martini glass.
Washington Avenue just continues to add more awesomeness, hm? I moved to St. Louis 12 years ago, and I’ve lived in my downtown loft the entire time. So I’ve seen the boards come off the buildings and the revitalization and I’ve been a huge cheerleader for it the whole time. I used to feel like I was one of the only people jogging around the Arch in the mornings, and now you see other joggers and walkers and their dogs. So much has changed in the last 10 years. On Washington Avenue, I felt there was a need for some femininity on the street; there were a lot of sports bars. I wanted to create a place that I would want to visit.
What else would you like to see on Washington Avenue? I’d love to see more retail. The boutiques are great, but I would love to see a major name-brand come here, like on Chicago’s Magnificent Mile. I had this idea for the guy across the street to open an upscale women’s salon where they play chick flicks on TVs and offer you a glass of champagne when you come in (laughs). Hey, that’s something I would want!
What are your ultimate goals for Blondie’s? I want to continue to support more local companies and buy local. We want to do things right. We compost our used coffee grounds, and we’re in the process of looking for a farmer who wants them. We want people to enjoy the meal and the service and feel like, while they’re here, they’ve indulged themselves for a moment in time.
— Photo by Matt Marcinkowski
This article appears in December 2011.