Robust Wine Bar MX

I have actually been to the Robust Wine Bar in Webster Groves several times, but have never sat down to dinner there. So I jumped at the chance to visit the new location downtown on Washington Avenue for a wine tasting with the American Wine Society, ran by Jeff Callahan.

Willamette Winery, from Oregon, brought a few wines for us to taste, and of course they brought a pinot gris and two pinor noirs. The pinot gris was crisp and refreshing as expected, but I was surprised by the multiple flavors of pinot noir...one made with the whole cluster, causing a fruitier nose and finish, and the second one was more of traditional pinot with a bolder ending. Willamette also let us finish with a dessert Riesling as well but it was far too sweet for me, believe it or not.

I was happy the wine tasting hour went quick because I had really been looking forward to dinner.

We got to stay in our private dining room, although I didn't get to check out the large dining area. The Robust menu was lengthy enough that our server had to walk us through the pages, although most of it was various wine selections and flights. On the dinner page, we still had a large amount of choices and went with a combination of small plates and main course.

Almost as an appetizer, we started with two sea scallops, which was the usual “melt in your mouth” flavor.

The Shrimp & Grits were more of a side dish size than a small plate and the course was very filling. The grits were smooth and creamy, more like a risotto than crunchy grits like you normally think.

We went with the special, a skate wing, as our main course, and I was quite surprised by the smoky flavor that doesn't typically come with a white fish. Quite excellent and unique flavor!

Sea scallops, shrimp & grits, and skate wing

Definitely a place to take out of town guests and wine lovers, where everyone wins.

Resources:

Robust Wine Bar = http://www.robustwinebar.com/