Blogs About Buildings and Food (OK... just food)

St. Louis has long had an exemplary culinary reputation based on wonderful restaurants and exquisite world-class cuisine. For example as far back as 1842, when an English travel writer of some note, Charles Dickens, visited St. Louis and stayed at the Planter’s House, he commented favorably about the meals, including one that his wife and he consumed in their room. Dickens was astonished to have “…counted sixteen dishes on our table at the same time.” Still, Dickens left no record of the contents of that meal. Rather, it was a local delicacy sampled on a side-trip through neighboring Lebanon, Illinois that seemed worth a specific mention: “…buffalo’s tongue – an exquisite dainty, by the way.”

Even in Dickens’s day, it wasn’t the fine dining but the oddball and quirky dish that set our region apart. Here are some of the St. Louis-centric foods you might – or in some cases might not - want to try when you are here for CONSTRUCT 2015.

Toasted Ravioli: Other than the golden brown exterior appearance of the pasta shell, there is nothing “toasted” about this legendary bar-food appetizer from St. Louis.  The t-rav allegedly was created when a plate of otherwise normal ravioli was dropped into a deep-fat fryer. Every Italian restaurant “on the Hill” claims credit for the genius invention or the happy accident. The former Oldani’s on Edwards Street provides a plausible history on their website. Traditional toasted ravioli has meat filling, although cheese filled is a common variation, it’s lightly breaded before frying, and it’s served with marinara dipping sauce and Parmesan cheese.

The St. Paul Sandwich has nothing to do with our Mississippi River upstream neighbor in Minnesota – it’s only available in St. Louis and some other Missouri cities, at Chinese-American carry out restaurants. The ingredients don’t vary: an egg foo young patty, pickles, onions, lettuce, and tomato, with mayonnaise, on white bread. Your only choices are the meat: pork, beef, shrimp, chicken, or “special” – a combination of some or all of the above, depending on the restaurant, the day of the week, and the mood of the chef. NPR’s opinion: “…truly, shockingly tasty. We fully expected to be grossed out by this thing, but it's amazing. And cheap.”

The Slinger: For my generation, the slinger is synonymous with the O.T. Hodge Chili Parlor. Alas, Hodge’s is no longer with us, a victim of an ugly internecine feud several years ago, although several other local diners serve versions of the slinger. The traditional slinger starts off simply enough: two hamburger patties, preferably topped with a slice of cheese. Cover these with hash brown potatoes, then with two eggs cooked any style (personal preference: sunny-side up). Drench the whole composition with chili - add grated cheddar cheese and chopped raw onions if you wish. It’s the go-to meal for those times when your cholesterol count is dropping lower than you’d like.

Brain Sandwiches, an old standard from when St. Louis was a major meatpacking center, became a lunch favorite of the generation that grew up during the Great Depression. Thinly sliced calves’ brains are mixed with milk, eggs, flour, and other spices and formed into patties that are deep fried and served on white or rye bread with raw onions, pickles, and spicy mustard. Surprisingly fluffy and delicately flavored, the fried brain sandwich fell into disfavor during the mad-cow disease scare in the 1980's, and the few taverns around town that still serve it now use pig brain instead of calf. Still, it’s worth seeking out if you are adventurous.

Pork Steak: This inexpensive cut from the shoulder of the pig is the staple of St. Louis style barbeque – pork steaks on the grille, a Budweiser in hand, and the Cardinal’s game on the radio were the three essential ingredients of a successful 1950’s weekend. The origin of the cut is explained in this magazine article, along with instructions for how we natives can improve our technique, although most of us won’t take kindly to suggestion. St. Louisans know the secret is in the sauce – lots of it – and what’s in each person’s special sauce is usually kept secret. Pork steaks are readily available in St. Louis, but almost impossible to find elsewhere.

St. Louis Style Ribs, on the other hand, seem to be ubiquitous everywhere but St. Louis. We’d seen them on menus in other cities, and had no idea what they were, until this newspaper article explained it all. It turns out "Pork Ribs, St. Louis Style" is an official USDA standard, and has been for years. But don’t try asking a native about St. Louis style ribs, because you’ll likely get a blank stare in return.

Gooey Butter Cake takes the toasted ravioli tradition of a lucky mistake to the dessert menu. A novice baker at a south St. Louis bakery in the 1930's botched a cake recipe. Fortunately for taste buds throughout the region, it was the Depression and the master baker didn’t condone waste. He put the mess in the oven anyway, and invented the gooey butter cake. Over the years, flavor variations evolved – pumpkin is a personal favorite – and true sugar addicts are not afraid to try it á la mode when the cake is fresh from the oven and still warm, along with your preferred beverage - in this case, coffee stout.

Ted Drewes: Founded in 1930, Drewes has served frozen custard to generations of St. Louisans and to visitors from around the world. The Chippewa location has been a Route 66 landmark since 1941, famous for its concrete, a milk shake so think it can – and will – be turned upside down before you receive it. Although you can buy prepackaged strawberry and chocolate Ted Drewes in grocery stores, at the custard stand everything is vanilla – the flavor comes from the plentiful and varied toppings. Full disclosure: it’s been decades since I’ve had a concrete – I usually get seduced by one of three favorite sundaes: the Dutchman, the Hawaiian Delight, or a “simple” hot fudge, marshmallow, and butterscotch.

So, that’s the story on St. Louis specialties – lucky accidents, misnamed oddities, economical cuts of meat, and mysterious origins. One thing these exquisite dainties have in common, they are all truly, and sometimes shockingly, tasty.  We’ll have a few of these treats on the menu at the Greater St. Louis Chapter’s “Night of Mirth, Mystery, and Mayhem” at City Museum on October 1^st, along with other St. Louis themed foods and drinks. Hope you can join us.