Schlafly

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Hot Takes from the Busy Month of May

Favorite grub this month: the GBLT Crepe from Rooster (on Washington in downtown St. Louis.) Goat cheese, bacon, tomato inside the crepe. A bit arugula on top. Clever combo—tasty!


Spectacular cake for my birthday! My wife got it from the Duck In Market in Valley Park. Which also has great burgers and fries. 


Went to a Friday Fish Fry in Milwaukee—walleye was delicious—at a place that closed mid-month due mainly to upcoming road construction. They had 27 (!) different fish choices on their menu.


Got a birthday BOGO coupon from First Watch and took a chance on Shrimp and Grits from the Town and Country location. Shrimp nicely seasoned and the grits were good, too! Yum.


Finally went to a Texas Roadhouse. The one we visited was full at 4:30 on a Wednesday. Why? Good food, good service and good value. Impressive.


Disappointment: A local St. Louis area breakfast/lunch standby has slipped. My sausage patties seemed to have been cooked earlier and microwaved. Rubbery texture. Also the joint had new menus again. Why? Higher prices. Ugh.


Another disappointment: Schlafly’s Non-Alcoholic Pale Ale. Try again, folks. Not good. I was a fan of their regular Pale Ale since back in the days when it was brewed in New Ulm, Minnesota for bottling. But the NA version… not cutting it for me.


One more disappointment: the Fiddlehead Coffee Shop we stopped at in suburban Milwaukee did not have the Orange Cocoanut Muffins we got at another of their locations last summer. They were so good that we brought some home for a neighbor last year.


Speaking of non-alcoholic brews, the IPAs from Athletic are tremendous. Run Wild and Free Wave. Good hoppy flavors. They are running national TV spots now—saw a couple during NBA playoffs.

Had a Sunshine State Tropical IPA NA brew at that fish fry place. From Go Brewing in Naperville IL. Loved it!


Speaking of national TV spots, is it just me or does the food on those Panera spots NOT look as appetizing as food on TV should look?

A YooHoo candy bar? Saw one at Ace Hardware. Didn’t buy it because it was huge. But someday I’ll give it a shot.

One more quick note: Lunched at the Casa de Tres Reyes in Des Peres. It was…. okay. Fish taco good. Brisket taco fair. Chips were great. Beans and rice sides ordinary. Probably won’t try again. Too many other Mexican joints to check out.

Ivy In Charge
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Ivy In Charge

Veteran St. Louis chef Ivy Magruder has taken control of the kitchen at Panorama, the restaurant that opened last summer in the St. Louis Art Museum.

Panorama pic

A new summer menu has just been announced which includes, among other items:

Fresh Summer Pea Soup
pistachio gremolata, crème fraîche, shoots

Summer Kale Salad
avocado, strawberries, toasted almonds and
lemon-chia seed vinaigrette

Pan Seared Golden Scallops
creamy-pea-basil risotto, sherry gastrique

Basque Chicken
summer bell peppers, artichoke hearts, fresh basil,
tomatoes, grilled crusty French bread

Grilled Beef Tenderloin
onion ring, Foyot sauce, summer-tomatoes,
spinach, roasted fingerling potato

Ivy on TV

Panorama is also kicking off a monthly dinner series on Wednesday, August 27. For each dinner Panorama will partner with a local winery or brewery. The first event will feature a prix fixe menu of items paired with Schlafly beers. Cost is $75 (which includes tax and gratuity). Call 314-655-5490 for reservations.

Panorama is open for lunch Tuesday through Saturday, 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. and for dinner on Fridays, 5:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Sunday brunch is offered 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Click HERE to go to Panorama’s website.

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American Craft Beer Cookbook author visits STL

John Holl, author of The American Craft Beer Cookbook, will appear at Schlafly Bottleworks in Maplewood on Thursday, September 12 at 6:00 p.m.

AmericanCraftBeer

John will be signing copies of his book which contains 155 recipes using craft beer. List price for the book is 19.95. If you buy a signed copy Thursday night at Schlafly, you’ll get a free pint!

Missouri brewers featured in the book include O’Fallon Brewery (Cheddar Ale Soup), Schlafly Beer (Imperial Meat Pie), Urban Chestnut Brewing Company (Bavarian Sausage Salad) and Boulevard Brewing Company (Roasted Pheasant with Pumpernickel Bread Pudding and Cranberry Sauce).

According to his bio, John (pictured below) has visited more than 900 breweries around the world, conducting research for his beer-and-travel books as well as articles for the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Beer Connoisseur, Beverage World, and many other publications.

holl_john

Click HERE to listen to an interview (runs 12:46) with John Holl from earlier this week on WBUR radio in Boston. You’re likely to be impressed by John’s knowledge of and passion for craft beer. (Click HERE to go to John’s own website.)

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Free Brewfest Tickets!

On Saturday’s (6/9/12) Food Talk STL show, we will give away tickets to the St. Louis Brewer’s Heritage Festival. That event is set for June 15, 16 & 17 at the Ballpark Village site in downtown St. Louis.

Here’s another way to get a free ticket for the Brewfest: VOLUNTEER!  Anyone who volunteers to work one session receive a complimentary ticket to another session of their choosing.  You can sign up by going to www.stlbrewfest.com.

Joining us on Saturday’s show will be Stephen Hale, a brewer from Schlafly, and Jay Cunningham, chief organizer of the festival.