By Matthew Halverson
Five, the sleek new bistro in the Grove, makes reference, in both name and concept, to the standard quintet of senses: See the Tamara de Lempicka Art Deco reproductions that hang from the sand-colored walls, hear the bar chatter echo off the concrete floor, smell the braised lamb shank ... you get the picture.
But an altogether different power of perception—call it the dish sense—tunes in to the dining intangibles. (I see a spread, people.) You’ll only find five entrées on the menu on any given night, a constantly revolving lineup made necessary by chef Anthony Devoti’s daily search for local meats and produce. (A disappointingly excessive turnover if you’re coming back for those impossibly tender beef and pork tenderloin medallions you
had last time, but a welcome change if you need to be nudged out of a rut.) And the prescient decision to set up shop in Forest Park East suggests one of two things: Either the rent was too cheap to pass up or Devoti knows a neighborhood on the rise when he sees one.
4317 Manchester, 314-535-5553, www.fiveinthegrove.com. Hours: 5–9 p.m. Tue–Thu, 5–10 p.m. Fri & Sat; bar open until 1 a.m. Fri & Sat
