10 Questions with...

Joe and Ann Pollack, St. Louis' most experienced food writers, run the excellent St. Louis Eats and Drinks blog. They are well-traveled and spend a lot of time in my old haunt, Washington, D.C. So I'm partial. Anyway, they were nice enough to take the time and answer ten questions for us.

SME: There's been a lot of talk about eating locally over the past couple of years. What are you seeing along these lines in St. Louis?

J&AP: For several years, some places have been working with local producers. Larry Forgione of An American Place, says he thinks Prairie Grass Farms' lamb is the best American lamb he's ever tasted, and AAP uses local suppliers and credits them on the menu, something which surprised a bunch of California winemakers when we had dinner with them a couple of years ago. (And we were surprised at that.)

But before AAP opened, Andy Ayers of Riddle's Penultimate was doing the same thing, and continues to scour the area for sources. The late, lamented King Louie's featured local food suppliers, and so does Cary McDowell at Revival, which is in the same space as Louie's. Other restaurants do the same thing from time to time on a single item or a daily special, but the trend seems to be growing; some of the farmers make note of the fact at their booths at local farmers' markets.

SME: J. Viviano's or Volpi?

J&AP: Both good, but Volpi's prosciutto and salami are the great reason for its fame, and the majority of its stock, whereas Viviano's has a wider selection. And don't forget DiGregorio's, whose expansion has helped a lot. At all three stores, you may need to peer into corners or on bottom shelves to find the obscure stuff, but that's part of the adventure. Also worth a visit is Bertarelli Cutlery, www.bertarellicutlery.com, which moved to the Hill and is another fascinating spot for foodies. It's not just knives.


SME: What has happened to Rigazzi's? Where should we be eating on The Hill?

J&AP: Well, neither of us ever was wild about Rigazzi's, so we can't address much on its decline. The two Hill places we usually suggest to folks who want a short answer are Gian-Tony's for traditional Italian, where you should try the eggplant rolatini and pray they have osso bucco as a special, and Lorenzo's Trattoria, for a more modern take on Italian.


SME: What's the most interesting area/neighborhood for food in St. Louis right now?

J&AP: Hmmm. Good question. Kirkwood may be becoming the new Clayton, with moderate-to-slightly-upscale restaurants opening there, and South Grand is clearly the new University City Loop, with increasing numbers of ethnic restaurants. Manchester Avenue in Maplewood has some interesting bars and restaurants, and farther east on Manchester (roughly from Vandeventer to Newstead) there are an increasing number of eating places in an area called the Grove. And then there's Olive Boulevard in University City, with lots of Asian restaurants and grocery stores.


SME: When you get to Columbia, where do you eat?

J&AP: Booche's, of course, and Ernie's for breakfast. Used to be (when Joe was at Mizzou) that one went to Ernie's on Sunday morning to see how many folks we knew had spent Saturday night together.


SME: Which of these two premises do more restaurants violate? A) Pick one thing and do it well, or b) quantity over quality?

J&AP: B. St. Louis servings are so large they shock visitors from either coast. As someone once said, lauding a restaurant, "The food's not real good, but you sure do get a lot of it." Not a good philosophy.


SME: You're at Busch Stadium and it's hot. Is it a Bud Light in your hand or a Shock Top?

J&AP: Neither. Schlafly, thanks, preferably a Hefeweizen.


SME: Food-wise, what would you like to see more of in St. Louis? Less of?

J&AP: Less of is really easy: Chain restaurants, which pull traffic away from our local businesses. It's scandalous that Olive Garden, for example, prospers in a town with so many far better Italian restaurants at all price points. And by the way, we'd point out that one of our "insider secrets" is how good the pasta is at many of the more upscale Italian restaurants in town. People seem to think they ought to order a hunk of veal or swordfish, but the pastas are often downright thrilling. We've never had the feeling that servers are disdainful of such orders; usually they smile knowingly. And chefs and proprietors are thrilled when guests enthuse over the pappardelle with game sauce or pasta carbonara. (Often, the response from the worker is, "I had that for dinner last night.")

More of? Imaginative breakfast menus. Customers who don't think having a restaurant surrounded by a parking lot is the most important factor in their choice. More restaurants open for meals after concerts or baseball games or the theater. And more places for dessert in the same time frame.


SME: Washington, D.C. has seen an explosion of development and restaurant excellence downtown in its Penn Quarter area north to the Convention Center. Do you see anything like that happening in downtown St. Louis?

J&AP: Not yet. You're right; Penn Quarter is a beehive, and we'd point out that it's not just restaurants, it's theaters, too, as well as the Verizon Center. Things are coming along, but what's going to be vital is a change in St. Louisans' attitude about venturing into downtown.


SME: It's 9:15 am Sunday morning and we had one too many at Llywelyn's. Do we go to Rooster or Uncle Bill's?

J&AP: Rooster, no question. See remark about imaginative breakfast menus. But the buckwheat pancakes at Uncle Bill's are tasty. Besides, with a hangover, who wants to wait in line with a bunch of yakking people and, uh, active children?