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The signage (backlit with blue LED's) is especially impressive at night.
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A wooden inlaid fish at the "Fish Table."
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Another glass tile mosaic
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One of two additional dining rooms, privatized with glass doors. This one seats 14.
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The wave wall is realistic, but you can leave the Dramamine at home.
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The rooms have pull-down screens for added privacy.
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Order this side dish: the grilled jalapeno and sweet potato gratin with honey mascarpone.
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Another dessert, the Chocolate Bombe, with caramel mousse, chocolate sable, and caramel corn.
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Booth seating meanders through the main dining room, an uncommon detail.
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Blown-glass globes (made by Rock Cottage Glassworks) hang above booth seating. One guest (admittedly, a bar guest) said they looked like "bubbles in the ocean."
The often-asked question of “Where’s a really good seafood restaurant in St. Louis?” may now have an answer: 801 Fish, the sister (and neighbor) restaurant to Clayton’s 801 Chophouse, opened softly last night and officially tonight at 5 p.m., with lunch service beginning next week.
The space is spectacular, beginning with the stainless steel entryway that faces the Carondelet Ave roundabout. Across the plaza, 801 Chop is almost hidden behind a wall of black louvers. Here, it's impossible to miss the boldly lit signage and fin fish mounted above the revolving door.
Inside, the first detail that stands out is the 12-foot high wine wall that divides bar from restaurant. Staffers enter the space via a skinny door and access temperature controlled wines via a rolling ladder.
Look down to see imported, nautical-themed, glass tile mosaics inlaid into the wood floor, a feature repeated throughout.
Then look up and pay homage to the guardian of these waters: a giant tuna bathed in blue light, suspended above the 14-seat, 801 table (aka the “Fish table”), the best (and most visible) table in the house.
Passing through the space, the blue glass chandeliers will stop you quicker than a fin in the water.
Stand underneath and observe the detail in the overlapping blue plates resembling sand dollars. (We were curious, you will be too: The pendants and chandeliers were created by Dierk Van Keppel of Rock Cottage Glassworks in Kansas City.)
Curved ceilings and walls will not go unnoticed, nor will the patinaed copper “scales” that line the kitchen soffit.
A stroll to the restrooms—which in this case more resembles a sea voyage—is recommended, regardless of need.
Guests have a choice of four seating areas: the bar (or at a window side booth in the bar); the main dining room (with tables and free-standing upholstered booths accented with sea blue piping); the eight seat raw bar (below, that overlooks the open kitchen); or the action-packed, four seat chef’s counter (with running commentary from exec chef Michael Sullivan).
Sullivan might recommend the Chilean sea bass (below), the biggest seller at the Fish in Leawood (which to date is the only other 801 Fish in the country).
Chilean sea bass topped with fresh kimchi, served with asparagus, black garlic, wild mushrooms, and miso glaze.
Or the Hawaiian swordfish (below), with polenta, escarole and romesco sauce.
Another popular staple is the sea scallops, this season served with a parsnip puree, butternut squash, oyster mushrooms, and pancetta, ringed with a cranberry gastrique.
You’re sure to hear that the menu changes daily, in keeping with Fish's mantra of “24 hours from water to table,” and that seafood arrives at Fish’s Clayton dock every day.
This level of freshness comes at a price: seafood entrees average in the mid-30s, but that’s for “a composed plate,” as Sullivan put it in this recent Q&A with SLM. Yet Fish doesn’t have to be expensive. An order of Thai Style PEI mussels paired with a $7 glass of Gruner-Veltliner and the tab is $20. And a Happy Hour is in the works as well.
Sommelier Jorie Taylor (formerly of Cielo) wrote the wine list, categorizing wines by New World/Old World and light to heavy. What impressed us is its broad range and reasonable price points, like $8 for a glass of Picpoul de Pinet, a no-fail, light white.
A split fish, one of our favorite details
There are (inexplicably) only a handful of seafood restaurants St. Louis, and we’ve never understood why. One reason often given is that, especially in a meat and potatoes-loving town, “seafood is too limiting.” Sullivan and company counter that criticism with a handful of USDA Prime steaks. If there are requests beyond that, 801 Chop is mere steps away, with a full roster of land proteins that could also be served if the need arises.
It would be mistake to a pass on Fish's high-bar desserts, all of them unique to this location, and all created by Jenny Grob (Chop’s talented pastry chef) and Sarah Mispagel, who wears that toque at Fish.
Try to resist Key Lime Pie with coconut sorbet (above) or the Seasonal Macarons (with equally seasonal “anchors,” below).
Or the Figgy Toffee Pudding, with a sunburst of caramel (below). Grob noted that “desserts sell well at Chop even after a big steak dinner, so we're pretty confident they’ll also be big sellers at Fish.”
Owner Jimmy Lynch spared no expense in outfitting the 200-seat space (the former home of Brazikat and before that, Luciano's). GM Pierre Chambrin (whose father is exec chef at the St. Louis Club) pointed out details that might otherwise have gone undiscovered, like AC power and USB ports tucked into every seating area, including perimeter booths. And mahogany finishes everywhere, including inside an unobtrusive server cubby. Even the cabinet hardware is first-rate.
A restaurant like 801 Fish is a spectacular addition to the local dining scene and a long time coming. We salute its arrival...no bones about it.
801 Fish
172 Carondelet Plz
314-875-9636
Dinner Mon-Sat
Lunch Mon-Fri (begins 11/24), Sunday brunch in early 2016
