Greg Rannells
Examples of the vegetable-forward fare at Vicia (clockwise from left): stuffed baby eggplants, grilled tomatoes on the vine, grilled Berkshire pork, ratatouille gratin, new potatoes with sungold tomato sauce
The owners of Vicia, the buzzy new restaurant in the Cortex district, recently received a delivery of a “really unique variety of broccoli” from Bohlen Family Farms, located in Perryville, “in the middle of service, and we just threw them out on the grill and served them very simply, with olive oil and lemon,” says Tara Gallina, who owns and operates the restaurant with her husband, chef Michael Gallina.
That quick turnaround is something the Gallinas would like to do more often—and they plan to, with the debut of their tasting menu on July 11.
“It’s an opportunity to showcase things that we are working on, new dishes, or when we get just a handful of something from farmers, we would reserve that to celebrate on the tasting menu,” explains Tara, who opened the restaurant in March, after moving from the famed Blue Hill at Stone Barns in New York, where she and Michael met.
Tasting menus—in which chefs improvise from night to night—are popular around the country and in St. Louis at such restaurants as Sidney Street Cafe, Elaia, Five Bistro, and The Crossing.
"I think the first tasting menu I saw was at a [Michelin] three-star in Paris about 20 years ago," Newsweek food columnist Bruce Palling told public radio show Marketplace. "I thought, at that point, it seemed rather novel. But now I think it's become the routine way of young chefs to show off their talent."
The downside of tasting menus? They can be expensive and often last only three to four hours. At Vicia, "it will be more like two hours', says Tara, "about the same time as an a la carte dinner for four people." The cost for approximately 15 dishes (divided into five to seven courses) is $85 per person, and participation by the entire party is required.
One course, she says, “could be four different dishes all at once—this rapid fire of different tastes. We are just starting to hit tomato season, and we are starting to get some really incredible tomatoes, so there will most likely be a course with several different tastings of tomato, whether completely raw with some kind of accompaniment or more composed with dehydrated tomatoes skins or even just a shot of tomato water with bread that we make here.”
The tasting menu is not printed, Tara says, because "a course could change on the fly, in the middle of the meal," but is sent to diners after the experience, as a remembrance. The menu can be also customized to accommodate common dietary restrictions—vegetarian, pescatrian, nut allergy, gluten free, dairy free—with advanced notice.
Greg Rannells
As for wine pairings, Vicia will offer two different tiers. For $45 per person, Tara says, the “adventurous” offering will feature wines made from “lesser-known grapes” and “natural wine-making techniques—things that we are really excited about in terms of new styles of wine.”And for $65, the “classics” level will be “a celebration of incredible wines from great producers and classic regions and varietals.”
Reservations for the tasting menu are not required but are encouraged to ensure availability. “It’s an experience that we don’t want to just be reserved for special occasions,” says Tara. "We want it to be something you can enjoy on a whim."
