The Copper Pig, the newest eatery to open on Macklind Avenue, brings a distinctly worldly flavor to the Southampton neighborhood restaurant scene. The menu combines the travels and imaginative taste of owner Nhat Nguyen and the cooking chops of Chef Tudor Sesserman for food with wonderfully assertive flavors, beautifully presented, and thoughtfully served.
The Bi Bim Bap Bowl from the large plates section of the menu includes bulgogi beef and Chinese sausage slices over garlic rice. Add some kimchi, cucumber and bean sprouts. Top it with a sunny side up egg, fried crispy on the bottom, and you’ve got comfort food, Asian style. (CP offers a vegetarian version with jackfruit bulgogi as well.)
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Our server explained that the chili paste, served on the side of the bowl in a small glass jar, packed some heat, so we could add it as we liked. We liked. The condiment starts off sweet but quickly transitions to a wallop of hot, a sensation mitigated only by the cool cukes and sprouts.
We didn’t start with the large plates, however, rather two intriguing items from the starters section, Beet Fries, served with whipped goat cheese, and Chao Tom, shrimp meatballs on sugarcane skewers, grilled and hot. We piled picked daikon and carrot on the butter lettuce leaf to wrap the meatballs, sans sugarcane. Add a drizzle of the fish based condiment. nuoc cham, Vietnamese fish sauce and enjoy.
Now, the beet fries. There’s some kind of magic going on with those fries. Cut from fresh beets, lightly roasted, tossed with rice or potato starch then fried crispy— so good. The whipped goat cheese takes this dish over the top.
From the sandwiches section, we chose avocado tacos with sweet chili sauce (below). The avocado slices get lightly battered and fried, set into a soft warm flour tortilla on a bed of crisp shreds of red cabbage and carrot that the menu calls sweet chili cole slaw.
Desserts include house-made paletas (Mexican popsicles), in flavors that change regularly, like strawberry-balsamic, and churro ice cream sandwiches, an intriguing thought. Choose from a rotating selection of Clementine’s Naughty or Nice ice cream. We went straight for the tres leches chocolate cake covered with whipped cream flavored with orange and loved it.
Nguyen was the former owner of Urban, a now-shuttered bar on South Grand and also was RFT’s best bartender in 2009. At the Copper Pig, he brings cocktails, wine, and beer to a stunning copper-clad bar that gleams in the daylight and sparkles under the lights at night.
In fact, the coppery bar and other custom-crafted pieces throughout speak to Nguyen’s understanding of good design. The sophisticated space changes from night to day. It works for early dinners with families as well as for cozy date-night drinks and conversation.
Nguyen sought out St. Louis artists and craftsmen for unique pieces that elicit double-takes, like the coppery pig mosaic in the entryway by artist Kathy Rickermann.
The pendant lights by Amy Schafer of Urban Matter glow like fireflies when the sky turns dark. The glass windows carry pinpoints of light out from the dining room over the street and the effect is stunning.
Decorative woven wooden panels by John Ingoldsby force the diner’s eyes upward. Round and elliptical wooden sculptural light globes by Albie Mitchell of Collab enliven and delineate spaces throughout.
The cool greens and greys of the wall coverings are offset by warm, honeyed wooden tabletops by Chris Calvin, made from repurposed wooden columns salvaged from Cupples #7 warehouse. “This is old-growth wood, a hundred years old or more,” he said. “It’s dense and finely grained, not something you find in new wood.” He used rugged, repurposed wood for the base of the bar, the perfect foil for the smooth expanse of copper wrapped over the top.
Isaac Nalick of South City Construction handled the build out of the space. The art on the walls is local as well. The Copper Pig offers unique menu items in a handsome setting in SoHa. It’s well worth seeking out.
Copper Pig
4611 Macklind
314-499-7166
Mon – Sat: 11 a.m. – 10 p.m.
Sun Brunch: 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Facebook: Copper-Pig
