Sample some of the city's best restaurants at two festivals this weekend

Taste of St. Louis returns to downtown, and The Taste of Black St. Louis comes to Tower Grove Park.

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Roll into the weekend hungry, friends. The best of St. Louis eats await at two festivals that are close enough to each other, it's easy to catch both.

Kicking off Friday at 4 p.m., Taste of St. Louis is back for its 15th year—and back in the city, at Soldier’s Memorial Park, after a five-year sojourn to Chesterfield.

 “People say, ‘It’s about time!’ It belongs downtown,” says festival executive director Chuck Justus. “We expect it to be a big weekend.” 

The 38 eateries on Restaurant Row present a “vast variety,” says Justus. Among the offerings: Mission Taco Joint, Pappy's Smokehouse, Kimchi Guys, Clementine's, The Midwestern, Sameem, Crispy Edge, Hi-Pointe Drive-In, Ice Plain & Fancy, Poke Doke, Sugarfire Smoke House, Shake Shack, and many more. And drinks? Choose from Anheuser-Busch offerings and a range of local microbreweries, as well as cocktails, many featuring St. Louis Distillery’s award-winning artisanal vodka.

Playing out over the course of three days, the Chef Battle Royale will be bigger and better than in the past, situated on a stage that Justus describes as “more Hollywood-like.” New this year, four aspiring chefs from Big Brothers Big Sisters will be paired with the accomplished chefs for a showdown of their own.

Another new feature: “Healthy@Home,” with presentations about healthy eating, growing food, and getting kids to develop good eating habits. Dance off those calories in front of the Gaslight Music Stage, where a host of local musicians will play throughout the weekend. 

On Saturday from 10 a.m.–7 p.m., a newer festival will offer more appetizing options in Tower Grove Park's southwest area, near the Kingshighway entrance. The Taste of Black St. Louis will celebrate the contributions of African-Americans to the city’s culinary scene. There will be 25 food vendors—including seven food trucks—and another 25 retail or informational vendors. 

The festival's founder and creator, Aisha James, first shared a video about the The Taste of Black Chicago, in 2017. After she tagged local chef and foodie friends, nudging them toward creating an event, “it grew legs,” she says.

Last year, the festival drew about 7,000 visitors in its inaugural year, and James expects it will continue to grow.

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