Well, we finally left the friendly confines of FOJTY’s Southeast Missouri,
and headed north to STL to see our financial guy, and visit the “Y” branch of
the family.
We arrived in town just in time for our financial planner
meeting which is always enjoyable because we like him, and he’s done well by
our 401’s and stuff. Plus he is quite a
foodie in his own right and we somehow always manage a lunch after the
meeting. This time was no different and
we quite enjoyed our lunch of a Cobb Salad at an “undisclosed location”.
A long time ago, and far away as they say, one of our
favorite restaurants in was a place called “Painted Plates” with a guy named
Greg Perez at the helm. In fact, I still
use a picture of him on my notebook of prized recipes. Anyway, we got to know one of his servers,
Jamie Kormorek, pretty well. Like all
restaurants, Painted Plates made its run and then vanished. Jaime eventually teamed up with his brother
Steve and opened their own place in South St. Louis Trattoria Marcella. It achieved quite a reputation for Italian
food, which is not easy in St. Louis and we have visited them several times in
the past. A couple of years ago they
opened a sister restaurant called Marcella’s Mia Sorella in fashionable West
County. We decided to give that a try as
neither of us had been there before.
Unfortunately, the expert food photographer failed to notice
the little “Storage Card Full” note on his point and shoot camera so I don’t
have any photos to share. It was a
modern design, unlike its sister in south county. They didn’t take reservations but that wasn't a problem on a Wednesday night. The menu
was on one of those large one page affairs which I am growing to dislike, and
contained all the usual suspects on an Italian menu. Veal Piccata was there, and also the STL
trademark Toasted Ravioli. We tried to
juggle the menu and cocktails, which, given the size of the menu becomes a
chore sometimes.
I suppose it is a management dictate, but I think we heard
every stock server phrase over the course of the meal. Starting with the standard “Hi I’m and….. of
you” and pretty much the whole gamut thereafter. I will say, however I don’t remember the “are
ya still werkin’ on that?” at least at this more upscale place it was replaced
by “may I clear?” which I don’t object to.
Another disturbing trend I have noted lately is that a drink order
question (in whatever form) is followed shortly by “Can I get an Appetizer
started for you?”, sometimes before you had a chance to look at the menu. No, we will decide when we want to get something started thank you
Whew. Anyway, we did
order drinks, and eventually we settled on some Toasted Ravs and Beef Carpaccio
(a sucker dish for “E”), which were all very good. Dinner selections were Fusilli pasta for MFO,
chicken dishes each for the “E” family, and I got an off the menu Swordfish
dish. Each was quite nice, but I didn’t
appreciate the swordfish preparation. It
came in the form of “chunks” of swordfish that were probably floured and sautéed,
but they didn’t brown and were kind of gummy.
I believe they were in a cilantro sauce.
Just didn’t work (to borrow that phrase) for me. I wish I had the photo. (Editor’s note – FOJTE may have a better
memory for detaiis than his father, so I hope I am not telling unintentional
untruths). As for wine, they have
followed the trend of offering “by the glass” in several different sizes (Bicchiere
– Quartino – Mezzolitro – Bottiglie), ranging from the 5 oz. glass, to the full
bottle, which I think isn't a bad idea. I don’t know about you, but one glass never
cuts it for me, so some intermediate sizes are appreciated.
As we were finishing up Steve came to the table and I mentioned
the old times, and although he wasn't a part of it, he said he would remember
us to his bother. Definitely a return
for the food, but just be prepared to endure the taped messages.
The next afternoon, we met our grandson and his friend at a
place in West County Mall for lunch. He
selected a place called Bravo situated on the periphery of the mall (new SD card in camera!)
It is a nationwide chain, with its feet in many states but this
is the only one in STL (nearest to Pax is in Frederick)
It’s kind of a large space and they carry the Italian theme
to the max
Complete with …
I don’t know what to call it.Maybe faux ruins?
Anyway, more standard stuff on the menu, wait staff was
efficient and had to be shooed a couple of times before ordering. I got a daily special of a Chicken Caprese,
which in fact looks like caprese which i don't have to describe to the alert readership
MFO got a flatbread which was very good (we kept "sharing")
And grandson got, what else, a
And his girlfriend got a Fra Diablo.. she questioned the server about the heat
level, and eventually thought it was just on her side of the line. Like that girl!!
3275
It was fun to see them, we don’t often get a chance to
talk. Another reason to road trip to STL
Plunging on...
That evening we had a lovely dinner at FOJTE’s digs and were
treated to a Big Green Egg steak with suitable cocktails before hand
And we continued to milk our (now 51st) anniversary
by accepting a glass of ’07 Silver Oak which he graciously donated from his cellar.. Another great evening with family...
Well, I had intended to make this the last travelogue, but
continuing to the next day would make it longer than either of us care to
endure at one sitting. Besides, the crowning
meal awaits..
DFD
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