The Train Shed at Union Station offers fine dining beside the St. Louis Aquarium
In the spirit of Union Station, the décor is grand in scale and style.
Photography by Kevin A. Roberts
Diver scallops with haricots verts and potato “hay”
On Christmas Day, the St. Louis Aquarium opened its doors and thousands streamed into the new attraction. (An estimated 200 people entered every 15 minutes.) Not more than 50 feet from the aquarium is The Train Shed, the restaurant that quietly opened a month earlier. “I feel like we’ve seen every resident in the entirety of the St. Louis region since Christmas,” says its general manager, Jenny Martin.
In the spirit of Union Station, the décor is grand in scale and style. Such industrial elements as black steel-framed windows are paired with tufted green leather, wooden booths, and gilded mirrors. At night, the lake reflects the colorful neon of the St. Louis Wheel.
As for the menu?
“We built this menu so that if you want something simple and straightforward like a steak, you can get that here and it will be really well-prepared and at a good price,” says chef Patrick Russell, formerly of The Chocolate Pig. “With our proximity to venues like Busch Stadium and Enterprise Center—and the venues on their way, like the soccer stadium—we’ll see lots of people coming for burgers and more bar-type food. We have that, too, but it’s great quality bar food. This is a place for people who want a great overall dining experience, whether that be just one of our hand-tossed cheese pizzas or seared tuna or the diver scallops. Add to that our terrific cocktails, and we have something great for just about everyone.”
More specifically, the menu offers a wealth of Prohibition-era cocktails, both classic and reserve. Developed by craft cocktail veteran Kyle Mathis, the bar program would satisfy even the most experienced tippler. The Last Word and Blood & Sand cocktails, for instance, provide ample evidence that the bar program is in capable hands.
Casual starters such as wings and pretzels with beer cheese are offered alongside green chili deviled eggs and beet poke. The marinated cubed beet has the exact pattern and color of ahi tuna. The appetizer’s ingredients—beets, edamame, a soy-mirin reduction, candied ginger—are so in tune with one another, the dish absolutely sings.
Photography by Kevin A. Roberts
Stuffed spuds with bacon and cheddar
The burger is served à la carte. Though fries are offered as a side, served with an umami rich black garlic aioli dipping sauce, don’t pass up the side of charred broccoli. Smoky and crisp, the stalks are dressed in a light vinaigrette of sweet soy and shishito peppers. Also offered as a side is a molten cheese crusted potato gratin. The thin layers of potato are wonderfully rich, having just soaked up all the heavy cream and aged cheese without being greasy and lacking the oily puddle that often lurks at the base of gratins. It’s such attention to detail that makes the otherwise everyday dish a standout.
Among the salads is the Fancified Caesar—Little Gem lettuce, candied brioche croutons, lemon confit, and white anchovies, garnished with Parmesan crisps. It’s well deserving of its name. Burgers and pizzas are perfect for those seeking something familiar but elevated. Those burgers, flawlessly prepared, are dressed with quality accompaniments: Tillamook cheddar, bacon, locally sourced hothouse tomatoes.
Entrées include a barbecued pork steak, a prime New York strip, and a Tuscan-style salmon. The generously portioned chicken-fried steak is satisfying comfort food. A tender, golden crusted steak, peeks out from beneath gravy made with pork drippings from the in-house smoker.
Diver scallops are a common but temperamental seafood offering, delicate specimens that challenge the average kitchen. The rendition here was gorgeous, with a deep mahogany crust on each side of the inch-thick scallop and delicate just-cooked sweet flesh—a testament to the restaurant’s sauté skills. Accompanied by brown butter and lemon and served with tender haricots verts and crisp potato “hay,” they make an outstanding dish.
Another seafood entrée, the salmon, is presented with finesse. Three smaller fillets are seared golden and crisp on one side, served with an elegant bed of sautéed olives and grape tomatoes. The dish is finished with citrus butter, basil oil, and a few thick slices of charred lemons. It’s the small but deliberate extra steps, such as charring the lemons so they burst with juice and a touch of caramelization, that you’ll find makes such dishes as the Tuscan salmon taste richer, rounder, and more delicious. Those extra steps, those extra opportunities taken to deepen flavors or make textures more interesting, are dotted throughout the menu.
Though most of the patrons of The Train Shed are aquarium visitors, this restaurant, with its expertly prepared dishes and local ingredients, may soon gain its own fame as a dining destination.
The Bottom Line: The Train Shed’s a worthy destination for classic cocktails and well-prepared contemporary dishes.
Photography by Kevin A. Roberts
