Photograph by Katherine Bish

(page 1 of 2)

There are thousands of local restaurants. Tens of thousands of menu items. And probably a hundred thousand opinions as to what this city’s “30 Best Dishes” might be. Did that intimidate us? Nah. But we knew researching them demanded two things: parameters … and loose-fitting clothes.

So we narrowed our options to appetizers, entrées and—since diners are cutting back in every sense of the word—the ubiquitous small plates. We set three simple goals: variety, balance and February availability. In the process, we sampled some classic dishes, discovered a few neoclassics and even rediscovered several signature items and concluded they became popular for a reason.

Now it’s your turn. Try one dish, maybe revisit another. But do so soon. February is a short month—unless you happen to be in the restaurant business.

•

[Note: Numbers are used to list, not rank]

1. Bacon-Wrapped Pork Tenderloin
1111 Mississippi ($17.95)
What hoisin sauce is to moo shu and hollandaise is to Benedict, fig-port demi-glace is to this dish. It’s integral, it’s necessary … and it’s delicious. Larding tenderloin with smoky, salty bacon may seem a bit superfluous, but one taste of that sweet, figgy reduction, and you’ll not only endorse such an offbeat fruit-and-pork pairing, but also consider that this richly layered sauce has the depth to crack even the hard-core fig-ophobe. 1111 Mississippi, 314-241-9999, 1111-m.com

2. Feijoada
Yemanja Brasil ($17)
Arguably the world’s greatest comfort food, feijoada overwhelms the platter. A generous stew of smoky sausage, pork ribs, Brazilian beef and shiny black beans takes center stage. Tangents of seasoned rice, vinegary collard greens and crumbly toasted yucca grains beg for attention. Spoon, mix and create—but don’t sweat the four-digit calorie count. Work it off with a postprandial samba session inspired by liberal doses of caipirinha cocktails, arguably the world’s greatest disinhibitor. 2900 Missouri, 314-771-
7457, brazildining.com

3. Chicken Liver Terrine
Niche ($10)
This dish’s texture is luxuriously grained—it’s been properly chopped, not ground—and the mineral flavor of chicken liver is layered with sweet onions and rich chicken stock in a terrine that celebrates the elegance of simplicity. The meaty, firmly packed appetizer arrives with a glossy dollop of orange-and-date compote that adds a contrasting tangy sweetness, plus slices of dry, crusty bread for smearing it all on. Starters don’t get much better. 1831 Sidney, 314-773-7755, nichestlouis.com

4. Hamachi-Avocado Ceviche
Oceano Bistro ($9)
It is to regular ol’ ceviche what your iPhone is to two cans and a string. A citrus-spiked marinade “cooks” buttery-sweet domino slices of yellowtail, along with marble-sized globes of Sweet 100 tomatoes and avocado wedges, all arranged in a puddle of creamy garlic aioli and sprinkled with crisp radish sprouts and tender English peas. It’s bold to match the extravagance of the rich yellowtail with the citrusy bite of ceviche marinade. It works. Beautifully. 44 N. Brentwood, 314-721-9400, oceanobistro.com

5. Pâté de Campagne
Robust ($6)
It’s that rural, campagne style where the pork and herbs are as coarsely ground as meatloaf. The medallion is pressed just tight enough to hold its shape—it doesn’t crumble under the knife. One bite and the bold, meaty liver taste rolls over the palate without overpowering it. Add a dab of piquant, rough-milled mustard and a nibble of crisp, baby-thumb–sized cornichons and you have a pâté of the caliber too rarely seen—and enjoyed—in these parts. 227 W. Lockwood, 314-963-0033, robustwinebar.com

6. Rainbow Trout Filets Over Shiitakes With Hazelnuts and Chives
Pomme ($26)
It took only about two weeks from the time this item debuted on Pomme’s dinner menu (in mid-November) until raves about it started infiltrating our email in-boxes. It’s a sautéed boneless trout, served skinless, sprinkled with a little finely cut prosciutto on top, ladled with a warm sauce of brown butter, chicken stock, hazelnuts (turned as pliant as chickpeas), sorrel and lemon juice, sided with a corn crepe that’s studded with leeks. Boiled down: a seriously delicious meal for the serious fish lover. 40 N. Central, 314-727-4141, pommerestaurants.com

7. Mixed Fry
Terrene ($9)
How does Terrene get away with this ridiculous-on-paper appetizer? Literally, it is a pile of ridiculous on a piece of paper: a plate full of breaded and fried items, lined underneath by a square of matching beige butcher paper. Changed seasonally about five or six times a year, it may contain lemon slices (rind on, mind you), anchovies, red onions, shrimp, calamari, butternut squash, green beans, sage leaves … The list could go on. It may sound questionable, but it tastes delicious: a mélange of acidic, salty and earthy flavors. It’s a mystery we’re happy to leave raveled and a dish we’re happy to ravish. 33 N. Sarah, 314-535-5100, terrene-stlouis.com

8. Black Truffle Scallops
Erato on Main ($12)
Here’s the word on the fat, diver scallops at Erato: perfection. Just getting them to come out tender is, well, tough. Owner/chef Kevin Willmann has perfected the two-sided sear and nailed the fine line between opaque and overcooked. This signature appetizer features shaved Oregon black truffles, some truffled whipped cream and a pick-me-up of ancho chili oil. Are these scallops worth the drive to Edwardsville? You bet … and we haven’t even mentioned the entrées. 126 N. Main, Edwardsville, 618-307-3203, eratoonmain.com

9. Steak Wasabi
Sidney Street Café ($29)
We could have picked virtually anything on Sidney Street’s menu for this list. We chose the steak wasabi for shock value. Who’da thunk that one of St. Louis’ most revered bastions of Continental cuisine would match up a regal, succulent tenderloin filet with a wasabi crème fraîche and a tangle of tempura-fried vegetables? While the beef registers lusciously on the palate, the wasabi tiptoes tinglingly up the nasal passages. A full-on sensory experience. 2000 Sidney, 314-771-5777, sidneystreetcafe.com

10. Foie Gras Brioche “French Toast”
Harvest ($15)
No local restaurant matches Harvest’s treatment of foie gras. A glistening lobe of the liver is pan-seared to perfection, then carefully arrayed atop thick, dry brioche toast. The taste? A buttery mouthful of the last sunny day of autumn. To balance the richness, a gastrique of dried apricot is swished around the plate for a sauce that is delicious and cleverly sardonic—matching the stunningly rich liver with France’s only fat-free sauce. 1059 S. Big Bend, 314-645-3522, harveststlouis.com

11. Barbecued Shrimp and Grits
~scape ($11.95)
The Captain & Tennille of appetizers … Plump, juicy shrimp seem destined for matching with the coarse, stone-ground texture of cornmeal grits. It doesn’t hurt the relationship when those lemony grits are veined with melted cheddar and ringed with a zippy pan sauce that has the faint smack of AmberBock beer. 48 Maryland Plaza, 314-367-2200, scapestl.com

12. Country Fried Frog Legs
Franco ($9)
“Manger la grenouille” is French slang for skipping off with ill-gotten gains, but Kermit and a pal aren’t going anywhere: Their legs are a signature starter at Franco. A trio of grenouille is sautéed, the ivory meat cooked tender, then splattered with an ironically green dressing of chopped garlic and shallots and a curry dash that accents the delicate fish-chicken taste of the legs. Even the finicky eater will enjoy this presentation of a French classic. 1535 S. Eighth, 314-436-2500, eatatfranco.com

13. Prawns With Chianti-Infused Spaghettini
Cielo ($26)
Like you, we assumed chocolate-dipped Oreos to be the apogee of civilization’s culinary achievement. Then Cielo kneaded a splash of Chianti into pasta dough. The results: house-made spaghettini strands, almost sweet and redolent of the wine, swirled into a purple, exquisitely al dente bed for big, curled prawns, sautéed just al dente themselves, drizzled with the pan’s simple sauce of garlic and olive oil. A near-perfect combination of flavor and texture in a meal. 999 N. Second, 314-881-5800, fourseasons.com/stlouis/dining.html

14. Corn Bread Stuffed Rabbit
The Shaved Duck ($18)
Cute woodland creatures always seem happiest to us sitting on a plate. Maybe we’re biased. Here, Thumper is adorable, the saddle and loin roasted, wrapped around an herb-scented corn bread dressing, served on a hill of wilted spinach. The dish is both rustic and sophisticated. The meat, cooked so not a drop of its juices is lost, is marvelously moist. The taste is glorious, better than the most delicately flavored, big-eared, cotton-tailed chicken you’ve ever had. 2900 Virginia, 314-776-1407, theshavedduck.com

15. Bouillabaisse
Vin de Set ($20)
With every constituent working to create perfect, balanced harmony, the steamy, overflowing bowl of bouillabaisse at Vin de Set is the Chi-Lites of seafood dishes. A silky broth fragrant with butter, saffron and fennel sings bass. Tenor and alto notes are provided by chunks of white-meat turbot, corvina and swordfish, along with perfectly sautéed tomato and leek. The backup melody, contributed by crusty, toasted bread slices topped with an extra-garlicky aioli, brings it all together. 2017 Chouteau, 314-241-8989, 1111-m.com/vindeset