Last weekend, Stan Garfield, Worldwide Consulting & Integration Knowledge Management Leader, Hewlett-Packard, provided an extensive coverage of the Detroit area. This weekend he takes on St, Louis where he grew up. Looking at his list I can see that this was a great place to grow up. Stan says that St. Louis is very strong in Italian restaurants. Its Italian neighborhood is known as the Hill, where Yogi Berra and Joe Garagiola grew up. Here is Stan’s best of St. Louis:
Fancy: Tony's (St. Louis downtown) Tony's is the only restaurant ever to receive the AAA five-diamond award in Missouri. There are only 34 restaurants in North America to receive this recognition. It is upscale Italian and other good stuff. The pictures on their site are quite inviting. Tony’s is located at 410 Market Street St. Louis 314-231-7007.
Fancy Italian: Dominic's (on the Hill) It started in 1971. The menu includes a large selection of upscale Italian dishes such as Scalloppine Alla Crema Wild Mushrooms, Piccata Al Limone, Osso Buco with Risotto, Saltinbocca Alla Romana, T-Bone Chop with Truffles Sauce and that is only a few of the veal dishes. It is located at 5101 Wilson Avenue St. Louis, Phone: ( 314) 771-1632 and also in Clayton at 200 South Brentwood Blvd. Clayton, Phone: (314) 863-4567
Informal Italian: Cunetto's House of Pasta (on the Hill) It was started in 1972 when the Cunetto brothers gave up their drug store and wanted to stay in the community. Their site, says, “Using tested family recipes, they developed a menu of not only pasta, but seafood, chicken, beef and veal!” It is located at 5452 Magnolia St. Louis, MO 63139 (314) 781-1135
Pizza: Lou Boccardi's Restaurant (on the Hill) The restaurant has been family-owned and operated since it opened in 1972. It is located at 5424 Magnolia Ave. St. Louis, MO 314-647-1151
Sandwiches: Amighetti's Cafe and Bakery (on the Hill) . Their site says that there special is often called the best sandwich in St. Louis. It was first made by in 1921 by Louis Amighetti. The original location is at 5141 Wilson Ave St Louis, MO 63110 314-776-2855. There are other locations on their site.
Hamburger bar: O'Connell's Pub (near the Hill) First opened in 1962, O’ Connell’s has been serving the same popular menu for over thirty years. Their 9oz charbroiled Hamburgers have won first place many times in the Riverfront Times restaurant poll. It is located at 4652 Shaw Avenue at the intersection of Shaw and Kings Highway 1/2 block south of Interstate 44m Pub Phone (314-773-6600)
Chili: OT Hodge Chili Parlor (chain) Roadfood.com says that this three-store chain of chili parlors that dates back to 1904, “O.T. Hodge is heaven for lovers of diner culture. The restaurants are not diners in the beautiful chrome-streamliner sense of the word, but they are diners through-and-through in spirit. Our favorite one, on South Jefferson, features the proprietor’s homemade Rice Krispies squares, a staff of pugnacious waitresses who are masters of cross-counter repartee, and a hash-house menu with several dozen ways to serve chili.” One of the locations is 1622 S. Jellerson, St. Louis, 314-772-1215
Root beer stand: Carl's Drive In (Brentwood) The St. Louis City Guide says, The fare at this authentic, '50s-era diner is mostly hamburgers, hot dogs and sandwiches, with all of your greasy favorites on the side: fries, cheese fries or onion ring.” Carl’s is located at 9033 Manchester Road, Brentwood, MO 63144
Barbecue: Super Smokers BBQ (Eureka) BBQ is very serious in St. Louis. Their online menu looks like the first place I would try on the list. It is located at 601 Stickell Drive (1-44 and Hwy 109 (636) 938-9742
Café: Café Balaban (St. Louis Central West End) It also opened in 1972, apparently a good time to be eating in St. Louis. They have live music. And the menu looks eclectic but very good. It is located at 405 Euclid St. St. Louis (314) 361-8085.
Frozen custard: Ted Drewes (St. Louis) Ted openned his first St. Louis store near the Natural Bridge and the South Grand store in 1931. In 1941 the family opened a second south side stand which is the current Chippewa location, old route 66. You can now buy their stuff online. There are several locations on their site. The Chippewa store is located at 6726 Chippewa St. Louis, 314-481-2124 to order on the phone.
Old-style ice cream parlor: Crown Candy Kitchen. City Seacrh gives it top ratings and says, “Crown Candy's malts in question are the best in town; try the popular chocolate-banana or butterscotch. The hot fudge sundae is so gooey that it carries a tongue-in-cheek warning for denture wearers. Try a phosphate or any of the special ice cream confections on the menu; you can't go wrong. It is located at 1401 Saint Louis Ave, St Louis, (314) 621-9650
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