Well, let’s see.
Where were we..Somewhere in Kansas City I believe.. and finally and at last we find the Feeders
at home in the digs after our annual Christmas Odyssey. This one was just over 2500 miles, with 40
hours of hard windshield time. All of
which were with MFO at the controls and the Feeder snapping pictures and making
inane comments along the way. We stuck
to our normal route of (mostly) I64 avoiding I70 and the trucks and turnpikes
and the like. Weather was again kind to
us, with only one instance of the white stuff, and that on our last road day,
in West (BG) Virginia, just as one loyal reader predicted.
It never really provided a travel hazard, just made for some
pretty scenery
But, I digress… Let’s go back to our pre Christmas time in
STL, where we had four excellent meals, two via restaurants and two courtesy
of FOJTE, including the annual Christmas Eve, dinner.
Restaurateur Phase
On the commercial side we ate at “The Crossing” which some
quarters rate as among the best in St. Louis.
It’s in a “Store Front” in Clayton (fast becoming a culinary
“destination”) on the main street, Forsyth Boulevard. If you click the link you can see they
describe their cuisine as “French and Italian” cuisine, and was described in
some review as blending “French and
Italian influences to provide "imaginative" yet "elegant"
New American cuisine”. Covering all
the St. Louis bases there… Anyway we
joined the FOJTE’s there for dinner. It
is not large, and although the word “bistro” doesn’t seem to appear anywhere it
has that feel
Our server arrived at the table (with no canned speeches)
with a lovely little Blue Cheese soufflé as an amuse bouche which was very
good. He quickly ran through the
specials and asked if we would care to have something besides water to
drink. I asked what Gins he had and
without checking with the bar keep ran through a number of them. One was a “Ford’s Gin” which I never had
heard of, and asked if it was floral or more on the London Dry side. To his credit he said he thought it was lean
and crisp but would feel better if he did check with the bar staff. He took the other guest’s drink requests,
disappeared and returned shortly assuring me that Ford’s Gin was not overly
imbued with botanicals.
Fortified with drinks and the blue cheese we turned at last
to the menu’s. Superlative food comes at
a cost, such as the “Grilled Rain Crow Ranch Beef Tenderloin: Pomme purée, green beans, Chanterelles,
marrow, sauce bordelaise” which you can enjoy for forty bucks. And perhaps that appetizer of a Caesar Salad
for sixteen dollars, properly described as “Caesar Salad: Crisp romaine, croutons, Spanish
anchovies, Parmigiano-Reggiano cream”.
Most a la carte entrees were well into the thirties.. Now, I have stated before that I don’t mind
those prices if the food measures up…
Anyway, besides the a la carte menu they offer three levels of tasting
menus, starting at a four course (two choices per course) “Classic” menu for
thirty five dollars; a Premium (three or
more choices per four course) menu; and a “Grand Tasting” edition for
eighty five which is created for your table.
Wine flights are available at extra cost. These proved to be an excellent value, as
most of the a la carte entrees found their way into the tasting menus. So a judicious choice of tasting items could
provide the table with almost a complete array of dishes.
We did that, and were really rewarded with great food. I had the Premium tasting with the soup of
the day, the Foie Gras (at a slight up charge but what the hell, it’s Foie
Gras!), the scallops, and Chocolate Mousse.
Others did all over the map..
All of which would confound a wine choice (we did a bottle for the
table)
A luscious Chateauneuf (Drink Whatever the Hell you Like
time). One minor, minor, nit, our server
opened the bottle and poured the taste for the host, but I observed the
sommelier at other tables (our selection didn’t rate his attention) who would
open the wine and pass it under his nose to assure that no corked aromas were
detected.
Service remained attentive (he would walk by, cast an eye
and keep going) without “How is everything” harassment. Eventually the food arrived, ladies first of
course. I was particularly taken with my
Foie Gras, which was prepared with blue and black berries (and the “dots” were
a coulis of same), which provided a wonderful compliment to the sweetness of
Foie Gras. Lousy picture
Better picture of the scallops which were creamy and just
right with mushrooms and wilted greens
Presentation was impeccable for all dishes, right temperature, pace, everything as it should be..you get the idea.
Dessert?
So, I would easily
recommend The Crossing for any visit to STL…
And, speaking of STL and Clayton, Café Napoli has been a
fixture there for as long as I can remember, according their site, since
1989. I have always enjoyed visiting them. It is one of those places where you just feel
comfortable. There is a bit of “seen and
be seen” mentality, there are always people who must go there frequently, as
they are greeted (and sometimes hugged) by staff, often on a first name basis. We of course do not enjoy that status, but
are treated well none the less.. We
decided to meet some friends for what is becoming our annual Christmas dinner
when we go to STL. Schedules didn’t
mesh until shortly before our travel, so a request for booking on the 23rd,
resulted in a choice between five thirty and eight thirty. Since we just arrived from the eastern time
zone, the earlier slot wasn’t as onerous as one might think.
Valet parking is pretty much a must in Clayton, so we turned
the MOMSTER over to a minion and went inside.
There were several tables occupied by parties of varying size and age
celebrating the holidays as a family. Fortunately
the youngsters were well behaved and didn’t create a detraction. Our server was very polite and treated us
like regulars pretty much with no hint of “early bird” treatment. No speeches as I recall…
Part of the comfort of CN is the fact that they follow the
same procedure time after time, and over the years nothing has changed. Well, that’s not quite true, they have
introduced handing you an iPad of some sort that serves as the wine list. Stodgy old me, I prefer a nicely leather
bound list, because goodness knows I deal with enough touch screens without
having to deal with one in a restaurant setting. I have griped about this in the past, and it
does offer some possible advantages, like (conceptually) being right up to date
with the inventory in the cellar.
But the show goes on, he comes to the table with a platter
of meats and fishes of the day, explains each one, how it will be prepared and
presented. Then if any specials are
available, those are enumerated.
Outside of that, the menu is pretty much the same (a good thing), with
all the standard Italian dishes you expect.
So no surprises, and in accordance with Missouri State law
in St. Louis, we began with an Antipasti order of Toasted Ravioli.
I started with a Caesar salad, and without asking, looks
what is on top!
Entrees around the table were Salmon, Chicken Marsala, a
special of Scallops, and I went with old reliable Veal Piccata. Everything was delicious, but I was
disappointed in my favorite veal dish.
Most recipes call for veal medallions, “pounded thin”, dredged in flour,
etc. Here is how mine was served:
Are those “tenderizer” marks? Is is ground veal? Flavor was good, but couldn’t quite get over
the presentation (and the fly away parsley bits). I didn’t gripe it. The Chicken Marsala was quite pretty
Finished off the meal with a cappuccino
Nice evening, always a pleasure to spend it with good
friends..
Private Chef
And, our final two meals in St. Louis were provided by
FOJTE. He has for a long time hosted a
Christmas Eve dinner, and this year was no different..festive decorations,
(a well consumed) Charcuterie Plate
Followed by a lovely dinner which included the traditional Lasagna
course
Christmas Day dinner finished our culinary adventures for
Christmas I, a great steak dinner again provided by FOJTE and his friend the
Big Green Egg!
So next morning the MOMSTER pointed further west and we
headed for the city where everything is up to date!
More to come, and we packed the necessities to be
DFD
