Valley Park

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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.

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Beer, Glorious Beer!

The Centennial Beer Festival happens this weekend at Moulin Events and the Malt House Cellar at 2017 Chouteau in St. Louis. Sadly, I’ll be out of town and will miss the fun.

If you’re going, my advice is to take lots of pics with your phone of the beers you taste. Later, after you’ve sampled dozens of beers, you’ll better be able to recall more than just a handful of standouts.

During the last 12 months, I have drunk less beer than in other recent times, but I have enjoyed the beer I did drink quite a bit more. Here are a few fave beers from my Instagram account. (If I hadn’t taken these pics, I might’ve forgotten a few.)

First, Lazy Magnolia Southern Pecan…

Lazy Mag

Lazy Magnolia is brewed in Kiln, Mississippi. I enjoyed this tasty brew at Jim ‘n’ Nick’s BBQ in Birmingham last fall. This beer is not, to the best of my knowledge, available in St. Louis city or county, but is available throughout Jefferson County, Missouri.

Next up, Left Hand Good Juju…

GoodJuju

This beer was served at The Shack in Valley Park. It has a bit of ginger flavor. Left Hand comes from Denver.

Oktoberfest #1—Schlafly…

Schlafly OKT

Loved this beer! Drank it at the Wing Ding at Queeny Park in August, then enjoyed it at the Bottleworks in Maplewood in September.

Oktoberfest #2—Goose Island…

Goose OKt Biergarten

 

Another delicious fall brew. This one from Goose was poured at the Biergarten at the A-B brewery. I also enjoyed this brew at VB’s Chocolate Bar in Cottleville this fall.

From my hometown of Birmingham comes Good People Coffee Oatmeal Stout…

Good People Coffee Oatmeal

Had this at Saw’s Juke Joint in Birmingham. It brings a ton of flavor but doesn’t overdo it (like some stouts do).

From Nashville comes Yuengling lager…

Yuengling

Had this one with my pulled pork at Saw’s BBQ in Homewood, AL. Not my favorite, although I know many who love this brew.

Another favorite from Left Hand, their Milk Stout…

Left Hand MS

I still recall my first LHMS, poured at the recently closed Plush at a Pecha Kucha night in 2012. I’ve enjoyed it at home and at bars and restaurants every since. I like the foamy head! I turned my cousin Randy on to this one at last year’s Centennial Beer Festival but he did not love it.

My favorite Urban Chestnut brew…

Schnickelfritz

This is Schnickelfritz. I had it at the newer Urban Chestnut location in The Grove last summer and just last week at the 21st Street Brewer’s Bar. Hard for me to describe, except to say that it tastes really good!

Here’s one you may have never heard of…

Phin and Matt's

As you can tell from the frosty glass, Phin and Matt’s Extraordinary Ale was enjoyed at PW Pizza (in the same building where the Beer Fest is held). Brewed by Southern Tier in Lakewood, NY.

The old standby…

Pale ale

For many of us in St. Louis, Schafly Pale Ale was our gateway craft beer. I had Sam Adams earlier, but Schlafly Pale Ale had more going on than did the early Boston brew. This cup was enjoyed on a warm spring day at Paddy O’s, just south of Busch Stadium.

And a new favorite…

Honkers

Goose Island Honker’s Ale is now, following Goose’s takeover by A-B/InBev in 2011, available in more places than before. Less bitter than Schlafly Pale Ale and great with a burger.

From Italy…

Menabrea

At Acero in Maplewood, more people order wine from the Piedmont region of Italy. (As do I much of the time.) But I really like this Menabrea brew from the city of Biella.

Like Belgian beer?

Mikkeller

This Mikkeller was among a mixed six-pack I got at the new Craft Beer Cellar store on Maryland Avenue in Clayton. I liked it but doubt that it’ll enter my regular rotation.

From back in the day…

Stag

Yep, had a Stag at a gathering at Spoke Marketing on Locust back in the summer. Hey, after a round of salty snacks, it hit the spot.

Another local brew…

Marzen Kirkwood

From Dave and the crew at Kirkwood Station, their delicious Marzen beer.

And from a year ago at the Beer Fest…

Jah-Va

Another from Southern Tier in Lakewood, NY. Their Jah-Va Coffee Stout.

If these beer pics made you thirsty and/or curious, you’ll want to hit the Centennial Beer Festival this weekend. Sessions are set for Friday night, Saturday afternoon and Saturday night. Click HERE for a link to all the info.

As the Dos Equis guy says, “Stay thirsty, my friends!”

—–David Craig

By the way, I invite you to follow me on Instagram at @davidcraigstl. Not just beer, but also food, animals (including humans) and outdoor scenery.