Even though "Restaurant Week" began 20 years ago in New York City and has spread to many other US cities since, the term only entered the local vernacular within the last few years. The local iteration--called Downtown Restaurant Week-- is now in its eighth year and takes place this year next week, from August 20-26. Here are our Top 10 reasons why we think you should participate:
1. It's a chance to experience a new or newer restaurant (Blondie's, Rosalita's, Stadium Sports Bar & Grill, and the re-energized Harry's come to mind).
2. Or experience an older, off-current-radar restaurant (there are 20 participating restaurants this year).
3. Or a place, for whatever reason, you've just never been to (If you've never been to Mango, for example, go. A year ago the WSJ proclaimed Peruvian food as The Next Big Thing.)
4. Or a restaurant you've avoided because "it's just too expensive." (Cielo could fall into that category...but not this week).
5. It's a chance to observe how a restaurant woos--or fails to woo--a potential customer and gauge how it measures up to expectations. For us, one mark of a good restaurant is how it conducts itself at peak times.
6. You'll get to meet the GM, most likely the owner, and perhaps even the chef. Their personalities all good barometers of whether or not you'll become a regular.
7. You'll feel good about boosting the restaurant's sales...during a traditionally slow month where they appreciate such a boost.
8. And in the process, feel good about donating an "Extra Helping." (Over the history of DRW, the Extra Helpings program has raised over $50,000 for Operation Food Search, a St. Louis area food bank that feeds 150,000 people every month, nearly half of them children. Guests simply add $5 to their check to support the cause.)
9. It's an opportunity to take the family out to dinner and actually dine, rather than settling once again for a the handy, local feed-bag chain joint.
10. You can do all of the above for a reduced price--three (and in some cases, four) courses cost $25.
Bonus: Another important reason, and one that has nothing to do with food: DRW is the perfect excuse to simply experience downtown St. Louis (something we daresay most locals do not do enough).
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By all means make a reservation--and state that you're participating in DRW--as popular restaurants and peak times fill up quickly. Restaurant menus and reservation info can be found here.
