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Photographs by Katherine Bish
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Sherpas don’t do this much climbing.
We’re talking about the staff at Bridge, which treks up and down a steep, full flight of stairs about 346 times an evening, shlepping food and drink. Not that we’re complaining. We ascended, ate, drank, then descended. No problem. The second-floor dining space here is particularly comfortable—cozy, with just the right light and an atmosphere that makes one happy to spend a few hours nibbling and drinking with friends. Downstairs isn’t bad either, with that football field–length bar and lots of small tables suitable for the same thing: congregating to snack and drink beer and wine, which is what Bridge is all about.
From the etched glass doors to the suspended wineglasses that form a gently swaying kinetic sculpture, this downtown space makes an exceptionally beautiful restaurant. Admire it later. Get to your table and that Stephen King novel–sized menu first, because you’ve got some work to do.
The emphasis here is less on dinner than on smaller portions, best ordered one or two at a time as the evening unfolds. The menu is poorly designed, with pointless A, B, and C columns on one page and “boards” and “pots” on another, along with utterly misnamed “entrée salads.” Food takes up four pages; the list of drinks is twice that. It’s best to skim the latter and initially order a beer or glass of wine, then wade through the selection of beckoning comestibles.
The task is worth it, mind you. The food here’s delicious, imaginative, and satisfying. We tucked into a bowl—excuse us—a pot of roast chicken chunks with slivered crimini mushrooms and aromatic wild rice in a thick, glossy, herbed cream sauce spiked with an addictive jolt of pomegranate juice. Wonderful. A slab of beef braised in coffee sits atop a sweet potato–scented mound of orzo, the heady aroma of the coffee balanced with a light touch of cinnamon and orange in the braise that brings meat and starch together. A Cuban sandwich (the “Cuba, Missouri”) is excellent, its bread suitably crusty and buttery. The pork is marinated in a superior mojo, a pungent combination of garlic, pepper, oregano, and that essential element, a sourish orange juice that accents the flavor of the meat.
Snacks are a refreshingly different take on bar food, including chili-lime pistachios and pumpkin-seed pepitas dusted with cinnamon and cocoa. It’s a long way from the old Beer Nuts days of bar eats. Bridge also taps into an au courant trend, pickling everything from grapes to onions to roasted red peppers; they’re too piquant for most wines, but they go nicely with many of the beers here. Among the sides, our nomination for the year’s Weirdest-Sounding but Unexpectedly Great Dish goes to a gorgonzola-and-bacon bread pudding.
Enough with all of the very tasty food. Let’s get to the really good part: There is no better—or more varied—cheese selection in town. Wow. The selection is staggering, ranging from the comparatively pedestrian (but delicious and luscious) Camemberts, fontinas, and bries you know and love to cheeses almost never served in St. Louis. Among the must-tries you’re unlikely to be trying elsewhere: Idiazabal is a Spanish sheep’s-milk cheese that’s unforgettably nutty and creamy. A Gruyère de Comté is firm and salty, subtle and deliciously dense. Ubriaco is Italian for “drunk”—Ubriaco del Piave earns the name. This granular, sweet cheese is bathed in Chianti as it ages. Vacherin Fribourgeois comes from Swiss cows and tastes the way the air smells after midsummer’s hay is cut. Let some slices of it sit until they warm, releasing the full aroma, and match this cheese with one of Bridge’s cabernets. You will be transported. Served on a board with warm bread and dried fruits and nuts (you can mix and match varieties), these three cheeses alone make Bridge a definite dining destination.
Desserts here range from the ordinary—a “Tipsy Granny” with slices of the eponymous apple tossed in vodka and served with caramel that promises more than it delivers—to the way-above-average, like the macadamia nuts and pecans pressed into a sweet bar and paired with vanilla ice cream that delivers much more than its description.
With nearly 60 beers on tap, the bar looks like happy hour in Valhalla. The urge is to start at one end and work your way down. Your liver and the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department will thank you for being more judicious. You can’t even pronounce a Belgian Brouwerij Bavik Wittekerke, but it’ll taste dandy with some oven-roasted red peppers and a fresh loaf of focaccia. A Founders Dirty Bastard is more than the perfect drink for that jerk in accounting. It’s a heavy, Scotch ale–like brew, perfect with a meat board of smoked tenderloin slices, tomato jam, and gorgonzola atop slabs of crispy focaccia. In the mood to pop a frosty instead of pulling a draw? Well, pal, you turned down Lucky Street when you ambled into this place. From a British Old Engine Oil Ale to a Japanese Sweet Lacto Stout, more than 100 bottled varieties of sudsy love await. And with about two dozen wines available by the glass and almost four times that in bottles, the oenophile isn’t going thirsty here, either.
Service is efficient and friendly, but it can be slow, particularly as the night wears on. Bridge fills a much-needed dining niche. It’s an upscale bar, lively and a comfortable, convivial meeting spot. It’s a good place to snack and sip. It’s a beer connoisseur’s Neverland Ranch.
Just watch those steps.
The Bottom Line: Upscale snacks and nibbles, with a beer selection of Homeric (Simpson) proportions and a splendid wine selection to boot.
Average Main Course: There’s no such thing here, but figure you’ll drop $50 for food and drink.
Dress: Pressed Khakis & Leather Shoes Seeking Tailored Shirt & Solid-Color Knee-Length Skirt for Friendship, Possibly More.
Reservations: No dice. Go early if you want to be assured of a table, and call ahead for large groups.
Chef: Robin Murphy
1004 Locust
Downtown
314-241-8141
thebridgestl.com
