Tree House

I finally had a good reason to go to Tree House as it is the perfect place for a vegetarian birthday dinner. I figure on your birthday, you shouldn’t have to worry about what’s in each dish, but then again, it’s a lot harder to narrow down your choices from the menu!

The restaurant is in a great location off of South Grand and has an intimate feel to it. Yet, due to the wood floors and high ceilings, it still feels spacious as well. While the décor may be simple, the flavors in the dishes we tried were quite complex.

I thought it was a little funny that there were no typical “salad section” on the menu since that is often what vegetarians are stuck ordering in most restaurants. Although, my date did get quite a bit of cabbage in the “Brussels Sprouts Salad”, she mostly picked out the Brussels sprouts and got a spicy surprise by eating a habanero!

I actually had no trouble making my picks and immediately chose the Fried Green Tomatoes off the “small plates” section as my starter. The crunchy breading and firm tomato flavor was delicious with the goat cheese on top. (You can also order it with the vegan boursin cheese! Several of the dishes had a vegan option so I thought that was cool.)

Fried Green Tomatoes and Brussel Sprouts Salad

 There are only a handful of “large plates” on the menu so it really is easy to make a decision and the “Street Tacos” stood out for me. Each taco had a unique flavor that really stood out and altogether quite filling.

I also got to try the “Raw Noodle Bowl” and while I loved the texture of the bean noodles (just like Vietnamese noodles!), it wasn’t quite as satisfying served cold with raw vegetables. The heat of the dish actually came from the seasoning and was a bit too overpowering for my taste.


Raw Noodle Bowl and Street Tacos

The largest section of the menu is actually the “Snacks” section and you could probably make quite a meal out of sharing several of these dishes. We actually started our dinner off with the “Red Curry Deviled Eggs” and the “Tree House Sliders”. The sliders were stacked pretty high with the mushroom tempura piled up so we had to squeeze them down just to take a bite. But the deviled eggs were by far the best dish of the night due to the creamy curry that served as the filling.

Now I’m just curious if they’ll change up the menu according to the season so as to tempt me to return. And whether or not they’ll add some desserts as well?

The other section I forgot to mention were the cocktails. The cocktails and wine list actually covered one side of the menu as well as on the chalkboard next to the bar. As you can see in the picture above, we went with a sweet lemony drink, Rhubarb Rickey, which was very refreshing with the spicier dishes!

Resources:

Tree House = http://treehousestl.com/

RFT review = http://www.riverfronttimes.com/2013-10-31/restaurants/tree-house-south-grand-vegetarian-seitan/

Libertine for Lunch

Unfortunately, the Libertine has closed.

Thanks to a fellow foodie coworker, I finally got to try Libertine after hearing so many wonderful things about Josh Galliano’s new restaurant. Since I work in Brentwood, it was easy to get to the restaurant in the heart of Clayton and got lucky with a parking spot on the street only a block away.

The restaurant was smaller than I had thought, but there was some outdoor patio seating and several spots at the bar, so it was no problem at lunch time to find a spot, but I bet a reservation would be necessary for dinner.

For lunch there was a much smaller menu, but in a way it worked out better because it was so hard to choose. Several items under the “Bowls” section caught my attention and my coworker ordered the Fried Chicken Salad. I was intrigued by the Creamy Waldorf Dressing, which matched up well with the fried chicken crispiness.

I went with the Chicken & Gnudi Dumplings which was served as a chicken thigh on the bone surrounded by a handful of dumplings. I could have devoured an entire bowl of gnudi by themselves since that was the best part of the dish. While the chicken was tasty, the darker, greasier meat is not my most favorite section and I probably would have ordered something else had I known there was deboning work to do.

Even though the lunch menu is short, I was also interested in the “Boards” selection since I saw small sandwiches served up on planks with French fries piled high. This is certainly a place I would love to try a few times since the dishes sound so interesting and there is even twice as many items listed on the dinner menu!

What I couldn’t ignore was the dessert section due to the “Libertine Candy Bar”. Salted Caramel Semifreddo, Hazelnuts, Ganache, and Chocolate Dacquiose. This was just like a frozen Snickers ice cream bar with wonderful melting chocolate going everywhere. It was worth getting messy for!

Now I just can’t wait to go back on a Sunday night for his famous fried chicken! I just might have to write up another review…

Resources:

Libertine = http://www.libertinestl.com/

Taste

I had an event to go to in the city and was by myself so I figured I would take advantage and hit up the last Gerard Craft restaurant that I had yet to go to. I have been there once for a drink before but like always, I was dying to trying their menu!

Taste is definitely a place that lived up the hype and I recommend sitting at the bar if there is room. The bartenders put on quite a show! I really don't know how they learn all the incredibly complex cocktails that are available between the uniquely created ones and all the classics listed on the menu!

Since the cocktail menu is quite lengthy, I would just let the bartender know what kinds of flavors or spirits you prefer and they'll point you in the right direction. I knew to select something with citrus, which was right on the top of the list: Curious Flowers. This ended up being perfect for me since it was plenty sweet with a floral scent and very little booze taste!

The food menu is much more reasonable in size, but yet I still suggest studying in advance because the focus is on small plates and I had difficulty choosing just a couple to try. I did notice a lot of piggy options so that helped me narrow it down, and I must also confess that the two items that I selected were not on the menu listed on the website. I always appreciate a restaurant that tailors their menu to the season.

I started with a heirloom tomato salad with a light balsamic dressing. Nothing too fancy or exciting and perhaps a bit overpriced, but still delicious. As for the Cioppino with Fetticini noodles...only a couple dollars more and it was amazing. The noodles helped to soak up the flavor and were every bit as tasty as the mussels. I even made friends with the customer sitting next to me and I almost offered to help her finish her Cioppino as well...

Like I said before, Taste really lived up to the hype and it's a great romantic spot. Certainly better for smaller parties. The restaurant is very small so be sure to get there early or be comfortable dining at the bar. Luckily, it is patio weather, so that really is the best spot of them all.

Resources:

Taste = http://tastebarstl.com/

Square One Brewery

I am definitely late to the party when it comes to Square One Brewery, but it is not all that often that I am down in the Lafayette Square area. I have heard wonderful things about their patio, Macaroni Mondays, Build A Burger Tuesdays, as well as their top notch beers. AND there’s a distillery?! But I was most curious about their menu…

Little did I realize that they had a lengthy menu and I was quickly overwhelmed! I did not have time to prepare or study! On one hand, this means that everyone is happy…there is SOMETHING on the menu for everyone as well as a good variety on the beer and cocktail list too. This only made me wish it were closer since it will definitely require repeat visits.

I was easily tempted by some of my favorites such the Nicoise salad and the Pan Seared Crab Cakes but since I was in a brewpub, I went with a more traditional choice and tried their Beer Cheese Soup as an appetizer. The soup is actually delivered with the beer in a separate container so you can mix in as much as you like. The beer helped to cut through the thick cheese soup, so I ended up dumping the whole thing in…way more flavor that way!

Yet, I’m not sure I made the right selection with the Mahi Mahi Tacos. There was a good amount of heat from the chipotle marinade, and a lighter beer (I had an Oh Hawaii since the Oh Honey was already out) was a good pairing, but probably not crisp or sweet enough to cut through the heat. Since I wasn’t too hungry, I appreciated the list of “micro plates” so I didn’t have to order anything too heavy.

I have a feeling anything heartier on their “macro plates” or “pub sandwich” list would definitely be a better match for a beer. 

Since it was one of the last sweltering days of summer, I didn’t get to enjoy the beer garden either. I will definitely have to go back…

Resources:

Square One Brewery = http://www.squareonebrewery.com/

Milwaukee Revisted

Last year I posted about my "cheese" adventures while visiting Milwaukee. In case you forgot, you can check it out here: http://www.stlcheesegirl.com/2012/08/milwaukee-cheese.html

Thanks to those adventures, I finally got the chance for my first guest blog post on "I am Meg", where I talked about my trip in addition to all the cheese that I ate.

Check it out!

http://iammegandsocanyou.com/2013/09/around-world-milwaukee.html