Photography by Kevin A. Roberts
At Ivy Café in Clayton, a handful of dramatic, signature tartines take their names from the neighborhood’s graceful boulevards: Hillside, Kingsbury, Teasdale, Meramec. (The Meramec tartine, by the way, is the bestseller.) The common element is co-owner Julie Keane’s prized sourdough bread—“the queen of Ivy,” she calls it. Its genesis is a 10-year-old starter nourished by high-gluten wheat flour that’s fermented for 24 hours. The finished product boasts a chewy crust, large air bubbles, and thick crumb. It’s garnered its share of “the best sourdough in my life” accolades, Keane says. The bread is cut about three-quarters of an inch thick for the optimum toppings-to-bread ratio. The slices are toasted and topped with heirloom cherry tomatoes from Tony’s Family Farms, thin-skinned English cucumbers, crumbled Midwest feta, sprigs of local dill, and pan-seared Norwegian salmon (marinated in Dijon, dill, and olive oil), and a local honey/organic apple cider vinaigrette. “I really want everything to be fresh and local,” Keane says. Ivy’s grab-and-go case also includes salads, bento-style boxes, and mini charcuterie boards. Keane suggests grabbing “a tartine, something fun on the side, and a half bottle of wine” before heading to nearby Shaw Park. 14-A N. Meramec.
