Katie’s Pizza & Pasta at Ballpark Village hosts seven-course wine dinner on September 14

Few tickets remain to Katie Lee Collier's inaugural wine dinner, which will feature Italian fare and La Spinetta Wine.

by

When Katie’s Pizza and Pasta opened its massive Ballpark Village location (751 Clark) in May, owner Katie Lee Collier said one of the goals was to expand capacity for private events and special meals. Now, she’s bringing in La Spinetta from Italy for a seven-course wine dinner on September 14, with cocktails beginning at 6 p.m. and dinner at 6:30 p.m. The menu, curated by Lee Collier and longtime Katie’s executive chef Jake Sanderson, is inspired by Italy’s Piedmont region. Tickets are $250 per person (including tax, gratuity, and three hours of validated parking).

The Food

  • The meal begins with crunchy Italian breadsticks called grissini, served alongside an antipasto course of soft-ripened Robiola cheese, prosciutto di Parma, and fig mostarda.
  • Next is a dish from the Ballpark Village location’s current menu: lobster in a rich broth flavored with Contratto bianco vermouth and topped with salmon caviar, dill, and tarragon. “The lobster fumet blanc is incredibly beautiful,” Lee Collier says.
  • The third course features agnolotti—one of the typical pastas of the Piedmont region—stuffed with ruby-red Crespone salami.
  • It’s followed by Castelmagno risotto with fresh herbs.
  • The fifth course will be a menu highlight: Katie’s classic pizza crust topped with Bra sausage made with Piedmontese pork and beef plus mixed greens and a red wine vinaigrette, paired with a 2021 Cà di Pian Barbera.
  • Another typical Piedmont pasta is tajarin. The long, thin noodles are made using only egg yolks, ensuring a rich texture that makes them perfect for simple preparations such as the one that Lee Collier and Sanderson have chosen: butter, Parmigiano Reggiano, and shaved white truffles. Lee Collier says she's especially excited about this dish, both for the hand-made egg pasta and because Piedmont’s white truffles are in season now.
  • Finally, dessert is a hazelnut chocolate torte with Crema Gianduja (the original Nutella), vanilla gelato, and black sea salt.

The Drinks

The award-winning La Spinetta Winery will be represented by Elisa Musso, who travels worldwide to showcase the vintages from the third generation of the Rivetti family.

  • La Spinetta also owns Contratto, a renowned Piedmotnese sparkling wine house known for its aperitifs—which is why the experience begins with a welcome cocktail featuring one of Contratto’s spirits in an aperitif spritz.
  • The meal opens with Contratto’s Brut “Millesemato” 2019, a single-vintage rosé Prosecco, to accompany the antipasto.
  • There’s another rosé for the third course, Brut Rosé “For England” 2019, paired with the agnolotti.
  • To cap the evening, guests will enjoy Contratto Torino Americano, a unique combination of wine and brandy with a delicate infusion of herbs and botanicals.
  • The four featured wines from La Spinetta highlight the grapes and terroir of the Piedmont and Tuscany regions of Italy. They use estate-grown fruit from La Spinetta’s vineyards, some of which date back to its founding by the Rivetti family in the 1970s. The wines will be available for purchase at the event.

Lee Collier was initially surprised that some loyal Katie’s customers who've embraced a sober lifestyle had purchased tickets for the wine dinner, though the guests expressed excitement about savoring the rare seven-course meal. “For those who don’t drink, food becomes a really big deal to you,” Lee Collier says, adding that memorable mocktails will be available in lieu of the spirits and wines.

The Collaboration

Lee Collier wanted her restaurants’ inaugural wine dinner to be memorable. In collaboration with longtime supplier Bommarito Wines, she decided on La Spinetta. Katie’s carries some of its wines and uses Contratto vermouths in cocktails—including a popular new spritz at the Ballpark Village location—so Lee Collier was familiar with the winery’s quality and legacy.

Although the Ballpark Village location has only been open for a couple of months, Lee Collier says it’s already her busiest restaurant, thanks to the established team and solid brand. “When you have all of those things in place, it’s easier to grow,” she says. Hosting this inaugural wine dinner gives her an opportunity to close the restaurant for a night and celebrate that success along with her guests.

Sign up for St. Louis Magazine's 'Dining In' and 'Dining Out' newsletters to keep up with the latest in the local restaurant and culinary scene.
Or, check out all of our newsletters.