Photograph by Katherine Bish
Dining out in St. Charles County? The experience tends to be like Madonna’s bedroom: crowded, predictable behind a veneer of glitz, and with the unsettling presence of chains. Then there is BC’s Kitchen, Bill Cardwell’s first new venture in 15 years. Designed as a draw to the ritzy new Meadows at Lake Saint Louis, the place is a splendid dining success. The experience captivates from the moment you step inside. The two-story ceiling makes a cathedral seem cramped, but space is controlled through attention to the layout. Lighting is attractive. Tables and booths are nicely spaced on tile and carpet floors; seating’s comfortable. European ad posters and tasteful artwork provide restrained decoration. It’s simultaneously quiet and convivial, relaxed and stylish. A large bar is off to one side, separated from the main dining area by a towering, glass-fronted wine closet.
BC’s Kitchen specializes in quality ingredients worked into enjoyable, satisfyingly adequate portions. Begin with an order of crispy Saratoga chips and golden-fried threads of lightly breaded sweet onion—with delicious bleu cheese and piquant barbecue dips, it’s enough for four. Fork duels over an iceberg lettuce wedge? You’ll be defending yours here: A softball-sized head is split and spackled with an aromatic bleu cheese–buttermilk dressing, chips of applewood-smoked bacon, and crunchy, garlicky herbed croutons. It’s one of the best salads from a local eatery in years. A peppercorn vinaigrette works nearly as well on a salad of mixed greens. Five kinds of onion go into a soup of beef and chicken stock where big croutons replace the usual bread, and a buttery skin of melted Emmanthaler and Parmesan cheeses keeps in all the heat, releasing the flavor with each spoonful. (Yes, we asked: Vidalia, red, sweet Imperial, cipollini, and Bermuda.) Spicy andouille, shrimp, and chicken enliven a thick, dark roux gumbo with a big hunk of sweet corn bread on the side.
Main courses are uniformly tempting, with a nice balance of chicken, red meat, and seafood; it’s the sort of menu where you’re already planning what to try on your next visit. The light brushing of an anchovy sauce dresses a petite filet; the beef’s surface is crusty brown and sweet, the interior juicy and fork-tender. Ribs that could be spared from Duroc pork—it’s a hybrid breed, with intramuscular fat that translates into flavor—are smoked to meaty perfection. A glossy scoop of baked cheese macaroni on the side doesn’t hurt the ribs; neither does a crispy, lightly vinegared slaw. A handful of spinach gnocchi nuggets, emerald-green and with just the right sponginess, accompanies a way-above-average chicken Marsala. Mushrooms and the sautéed breast, buttery brown and tender, are slathered in a complex sauce of the sweet wine and the bird’s juices and topped with enough fontina cheese to lend another level of flavor.
A slab of king salmon is grilled and presented with wild rice pilaf and sautéed spinach. King is the fattiest of salmon and consequently the best choice for grilling, all that luscious, omega-3 goodness melting into the meat. The pecan-studded butter sauce blanketing a golden trout is pure New Orleans cookery, though the coarse panko bread crumbs crusting the delicate fish are a worthwhile innovation.
Count the seconds until the Whiny McMiser at your table gasps, “Ten bucks for a Reuben sandwich?” Tell him you’ll buy if he doesn’t like it. Niman Ranch pastrami, caraway seed–scented Bavarian kraut, Swiss cheese, and a dollop of Thousand Island on rye. Like it? He’ll adore it. Bill’s Burger Meister Burger is a little too preciously named, and the fries that come with it are ordinary; the burger, though, is excellent, a thick patty topped with bleu and cheddar cheeses and crisscrossed rashers of applewood bacon. BC’s Kitchen is also one of the few places locally where you can get that peculiar open-faced turkey and cheddar cheese sandwich, the justly famous Kentucky Hot Brown.
Daily specials are just that: On Sunday, for instance, the half a fried chicken, with cream gravy, mashed potatoes, and biscuits, has numerous devotees making regular pilgrimages here. Monday is always red beans and rice in New Orleans; it shows up that day along with a grilled pork chop and French bread. On Friday, it’s cioppino, a tomato-and-garlic broth splashed over mussels, scallops, shrimp, and clams, along with grilled Italian bread and a side salad.
Desserts, such as a deep-dish apple pie, peanut-butter cheesecake, and lemon-custard pie, tend toward the fearsomely rich. Unless you’re a professional like us, consider splitting one. A wine list does the job and is fairly priced. It’s tough to go wrong with a Castle Rock, still one of the best wine values around. The ’07 pinot noir is a purply, herby palate party that’ll wash down the burgers and sandwiches nicely. Loaded with creamy vanilla and a wonderfully delicate aroma, the ’06 Steele Californian is friendly enough with the chicken. True connoisseurs, of course, will go for the Kitchen’s “grown-up” ginger ale. Demand a wine glass so you can swish it around and release that fabulous bouquet as you sip.
Service at BC’s Kitchen rates a special mention: They know what they’re doing here. Appetizers arrive exactly when they should: 10 minutes after ordering. The rest of the meal was also expertly paced and friendly. An aboyeur—expediter chef—gives a final check on every plate. He found time to come to our table and make sure the burger was cooked rare as ordered. A final suggestion: After dinner, stand with your back to the wine racks and watch the open kitchen to which the aboyeur returned. It is a lesson in how a superior restaurant runs. And BC’s Kitchen is just that: superior.
The Bottom Line: Easily among the best new restaurants around—a handsome, upscale place with great service and even better, largely American-style food.
Address: 11 Meadow Circle, Lake Saint Louis
Phone: 636-542-9090
Website: billcardwell.com
Average Main Course: $16–$22
Reservations: Officially, only for four or more. However, if it were date night and I were trekking to Lake Saint Louis, I’d ask to be cut a little slack.
Chefs: Bill Cardwell, chef and owner; John Kennealy, executive chef and partner
Dress: Think Nick and Nora after they’ve moved to the suburbs.
