A Friday forecast of "75 and sunny" means one thing to me...time to fire up the motorscooter. At 75 MPG, I can scoot all around the city for about a buck. Here's more than a dollar's worth of updates, plus my 2 cents worth of commentary:
In Dogtown: Tony and Kelli Almond (of Almond's Restaurant) have taken over the former Chuy Arzola's space at 6405 Clayton Ave. It's a fact that Chuy's left a spicy void in Dogtown and the Almond's believe that TexMex is still the way to go. A sidewalk-blocking total facelift is underway. Look for "Latitude 26---Where Tex Meets Mex" to emerge in late May. The fare will reflect the clever name-both Mexican and mainstream items with entrees ranging from $10 to $20, the same value-driven, white-tablecloth-for-less pricing philosophy that has allowed the Almond's to expand their empire in a down economy.
In Midtown: Robbie Montgomery has secured space for her third Sweetie Pie's, this one to be located in Grand Center, just across the street from Powell Hall. The final piece of the financing puzzle is not yet in place. (Alas, I had to decline. You don't have to.)
In Richmond Heights: A new bar in the Heights? One with a ton of beers and more wines than any bar in town? Bar Oliver--it's actually a 65-seat restaurant & bar--is scheduled to open next Friday night at 1135 S. Big Bend. The pigeonhole: a cozier Bar Louie, one with more upscale food and a broader demographic. The pricing structure is--fortunately and finally--beginning to sound familiar: the same quality-on-the-cheap $9 to $19 strategy that keeps the seats full in places like Almond's. Ok, so where is this place? It's inside Starr's, in the room that hosted many a wine tasting, the room that hosted pharmaceutical sales dinners for the last 10 years, the room that became a "weekends only" restaurant when those medical dinners waned, the room that will become Bar Oliver since those medical dinners are now on life support. On the menu are the most popular dishes from those transformations: Pinot Noir Salmon, pheasant wraps, blackened tilapia, plus a relatively unknown but excellent pizza. I'm guessing that with a sazillion wine bottles a few feet away, Bud Starr will establish a convenient "buy and pour" policy. Oh, and about that name: Bud's real name is Oliver.
In Frontenac: The construction permit for the will-it-ever-open Talayna's Ol' Blue Eyes has been extended and to wit there's fresh terra cotta paint on the exterior of the former Coco's/Reuben's at Lindbergh and Conway roads. Owner Mike Faille has a history of taking a let's just say leisurely approach with his construction projects (remember his house on Lindell)? I was told last summer Blue Eyes would open in the fall. Yeah, maybe this fall.
In Kirkwood: A letter of intent has been inked for the takeover of the former Blue Water Grill space on Kirkwood Rd. Details are sketchy but the concept appears to be Casual Italian. Judging by the early success of Sugo's Spaghetteria and the soon-to-open Spaghetteria Mamma Mia, maybe the reasonably-priced, value-riffic, pasta-centric joint is this year's makes-sense concept. (Makes you wonder what the PHC is planning.)
Friday's last challenge: locating a fish fry...but one with an outdoor patio. I was set straight by a parish padre: "I believe we call that the schoolyard." - George Mahe
