And here we thought that St. Louis went crazy with the arrival of Old Standard, Byrd & Barrel, and Southern. Devotees will tell you that Memphis-based Gus’s World Famous Fried Chicken is the best thing since sliced bread, which happens to come with every order of the fresh-never-frozen, crackly-crusted bird, a sponge for the mildly spicy juices we summarized as “some heat, no hurt.” A sign outside reads, “Today’s Special: Chicken,” and—save for six serviceable homemade sides and a few fried starters (green tomatoes, pickle spears, okra)—doubles as the menu. Chicken is sold as pieces, plates, snacks, and specials and washed down with mainstream soda and beer, craft beer, and something unexpected: wine. The interior—weathered wood walls with rusting corrugated tin above and concrete floors below—conjures a rural chicken shack. Yet scoring a table is tougher here than at The French Laundry, which is why 40 percent of Gus’s business is carryout. A more interesting stat would be how much Gus’s chicken gets consumed in the car on the way to its intended destination. 7434 Manchester, 314-899-9899, gusfriedchicken.com.
How Butler’s Pantry helped shape St. Louis dining culture
Rickard Nix Jr. reflects on the catering giant’s surprising influence, from popularizing pasta favorites like chicken tetrazzini and pasta con broccoli to pioneering the city’s earliest boxed lunches.
