Was there any good dining news in St. Louis during the past week? — Martha S., St. Louis
The questioner was reacting to Tuesday’s far-reaching bombshell announcement that indoor restaurant dining in St. Louis County would be suspended for at least four weeks. (Patios may remain open.) Many county restaurants felt unfairly targeted, setting off a chain of events that included a lawsuit being filed and, in some cases, restaurants defying the order.
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There have been other positive dining developments recently, though.
Last Friday, the area welcomed two of the largest restaurants to open this year: the 9,400-square-foot Brett Hull’s Junction House in Wentzville and the 16,600-square-foot Ruth’s Chris Steak House in Chesterfield, which will seat a whopping 450 guests when the current crisis subsides.
Over the weekend, John Dalton, a chef and director of sales at Moulin Events, pulled off a most unusual pivot. Having been informed that the three rehearsal dinners booked at Moulin on Friday night were all in need of a last-second wedding venue due to surprise cancellations, he offered to turn the rehearsal dinners into wedding dinners. All three clients accepted. Dalton, who had honed his baking skills and also become an ordained minister during the pandemic, was the officiant for one of them and baked the wedding cake.
Renowned St. Louis restaurants indo and Balkan Treat Box received additional national recognition this week, both being named to Esquire magazine’s list of Best New Restaurants for 2020, landing at No. 6 and No. 16, respectively.
Three new eateries were announced this week: a Super Smokers coming to Affton, a Boardwalk Waffles shop in Soulard, and Cedar Mediterranean Grill in Edwardsville.
Regarding seasonal edibles, we discovered that La Pâtisserie Chouquette is once again offering its Thanksgiving turducken croissants. For the entire month, St. Louis Kolache is selling turkey, dressing, and cranberry sauce–stuffed kolaches. Gioia’s Deli takes the yuletide log idea for a spin with its Hot Salami Holiday Log.
And Clementine’s Creamery has partnered with Amy’s Cake Pop Shop and Boozy Bites to create a line of unique Hot Chocolate Bombs. Available in seven varieties in both naughty (with alcohol) and nice (without alcohol) flavors (for $12 and $10 each, respectively), the Hot Chocolate Bombs explode in a mug when hot milk is poured over them. The colorful and beautifully packaged novelties are available at all four Clementine’s shops through December 31.
Local restaurants continued to make adjustments and charitable donations. Katie’s Pizza & Pasta plans to donate 500 frozen pizzas in one day, before Thanksgiving, to five local area food banks. Mark Hinkle, co-owner of several restaurants in Webster Groves, began in-house delivery at Olive+Oak, partly to keep front-of-house employees on the payroll. O+O Pizza has begun offering pizza by the slice during the day via a walk-up window at sister restaurant The Clover & The Bee, where cook-at-home items will be available over the weekend.
Considering the blow dealt to many restaurants this week, St. Louisans might consider ordering their Thanksgiving meal from one of many restaurants providing the service—and dessert from another. (Both lists can be found here.)
In University City, several restaurants joined forces to provide meals for front-line workers. Diners ordering online can pay it forward by donating a meal to those in need. For details, refer to the Loop Giveback page on University City’s website.
And speaking of paying it forward, another movement gaining traction this season is “tipping the check,” in which diners tip an establishment/server an amount equaling or exceeding the amount of their bill. While this level of munificence may not be affordable for some, any additional generously will be appreciated this season, as will the purchase of restaurant gift cards, merchandise, and signature specialty items.
Circling back to the closed-dining-rooms conundrum, a group of restaurateurs organized the “Saving STL Restaurants From Extinction” campaign, with the hope of creating a meaningful dialogue with St. Louis County Executive Sam Page.
Just yesterday, St. Louis County announced that it will distribute $3 million in federal funds to eligible restaurants and other small businesses affected by the pandemic. The funds will be in the form of $5,000 Small Business Rapid Deployment Fund grants.
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