Photography by Kevin A. Roberts
Ask George: What is your favorite restaurant in St. Louis? Ollie U, St. Louis
Of all the questions asked of dining scribes, this one is the thorniest, for two reasons:
1. It's a no-win exercise: for some reason, responses are rarely well-received, resulting in an incredulous look and/or a retort of something along the lines of, "Really? Are you serious? Well, how about XYZ restaurant?" [their favorite]
2. It's too vague: there are too many options to consider. We scribes are very good at this game if the parameters get narrowed. Ask our fave place for a couple on a date, a group of 10, a celebration, our favorite ethnic place, best restaurant on a Monday, best in a certain zip code, etc, and we'll have a damn good answer, or several.
But none of that matters because the questioner usually persists, often shifting gears, and asks what is the restaurant we dream about, the place we crave, the place that's worthy of our very last dining dollar. "No parameters, no rules, just pick a place, George..."
Ok, then, I will.
But not without an explanation. The restaurant I pick today may not be the one I pick tomorrow or would have picked last week. There are just too many stellar dining options in this town right now.
That said, my answer today would be Pastaria.
It's a restaurant that appeals to families, groups, and couples. The number of menu items is the right size--manageable, not overwhelming--plus there is proper authenticity, and for me, the right balance--I just so happen to like pasta, pizza, salads, and gelato. Chefs Gerard Craft, Adam Altnether, and Brian Moxey change the menu seasonally, and then some, which for this concept is the right frequency. The price point is affordable--even on a whim. The staff is affable and well-trained, the beverage lists well-curated, and it's open everyday, at the times I like to eat--lunch, dinner, and weekend brunch. It's new, it's hot, it's hip, and precisely what it was conceived to be.
So Pastaria gets the nod as my current favorite restaurant. Really... And yes, I am serious...
