Casa don Alfonso (Ritz Carlton STL) 1-7-2023

I think I'd give this place a 4/5 just for the experience.  

A little background on this restaurant.  This restaurant started in Sorento, Italy.  It is a Michelan star restaurant there.  The owner/chef collaborated on what dishes they could make in America, and they opened this restaurant in STL.  

OK, the Ritz Carlton Hotel is like a different world.  The people who go in an out of there are the jet-setters of life.  They buy their coats in Switzerland and they come back here to see family and friends.  I had read a bunch of reviews of this place that said you go for the vibe.  You go to feel rich and special.  Actually the young people write that you go to feel "bougie."

Mike and I eat to early (6:00ish) to rub elbows with the really affluent people.  They were all coming in at about 8:00 p.m. (as we were finishing up).  

The interior of this place was stunning.  You could tell it was decorated by a very legit interior designer.  The entire ceiling over the open kitchen area was entirely brass.  It had to be some kind of special brass that doesn't need polishing.  It was metal but you could tell that they didn't have to polish it every day.  It was lovely.  Then they used brass as accents to everything.  The tables were a variety of small tables for 2 that look like they'd be in someone's breakfast nook to bigger tables for 4/6 that looks like 2 small curved couches pushed together with an oval coffee table (but not low) in between them.  It gave a warm, living room feeling.  There were accents of Italian tile and one whole wall was done in the tile of Sorento.  There are fun glass sculptures hanging from the ceiling and funky hanging lights and even though it is one large room (you can look over and watch the fancy chefs in their large white chef hats toiling away on homemade pizza crust or homemade pasta) you and your tablemates feel rather close and intimate.  Super cool!

The china they used I found odd.  It was plates and platters with a wavy edging.  The first thing we saw was when they poured pure Italian olive oil to go with our bread basket.  I thought it looked hilarious...it looked like an fried egg!

I am often disappointed when I order a cocktail that has unfamiliar contents.  But the Amalfitana (named for the Amalfi coast off of Italy) was super good.  It had fresh grapefruit juice, fresh lime juice, campari, tequila and fancy San Pellegrino orange soda.  They even bottle it and you can buy bottles of it and take it home (I didn't do that...but it was THAT yummy).  

The menu is probably one of the things Mike and I had the biggest problem with.  It was a small menu.  We are used to an Italian restaurant having a wide range of choices...like 30-40.  This was more like a dozen.  There were no super traditional items like toasted ravioli, arrancini ball for appetizers or spaghetti and meatballs, fettucini alfredo or veal parmesean for entrees.  

Mike had some barley and vegetable soup for an appetizer.  He expected pieces of vegetables.  They had all been pured into the soup and it was a mostly smooth soup.  He said it tasted good, but he would have liked something to chew.  It was also odd because it came in a little brass pot with a ladel (like you were supposed to dip it into a bowl, but no bowl was given).  Mike was given a spoon, so he ate t out of the pot.  I know...that seems wrong to us, too.  You can tell we are out of our element when we don't want to look like we are eating with the wrong utensils.  

I was just going to get the eggplant parmesean appetizer and eat it as an entree.  Our waitress assured me that it was too small for an entree.  So, I ordered an entree, too.  I disagree with her.  It was plenty big enough.  It was good.  It was probably one of the most traditional things on the menu.  

This restaurant, like some others in St. Louis is one of the "Wine Spectator" restaurants that owns the best wines in this city.  They also employ a sommelier.  When I asked for the wine list...they brought me an ipad.  That is always intimidating...there are SOOOO many wines to look through.  They hadn't had the list online.  Also, like so many of these fancy restaurants, there are only a half dozen wines (out of HUNDREDS) that are in our price range.  I chose an Italian one that had good reviews online.  

When we first tasted it, we thought it was OK...pretty good.  It has a slight sour taste...I read online that it has hints of sour cherry.  Well, THAT was a game changer.  It was fine to drink alone, but when you drank it with food...it was not very good at all.  I ended up drinking water with the end of my meal and then drinking the rest of my wine after the food. Super weird. 

For our entrees, Mike got a Sorento, Italy style lasagna.  It had very little read sauce to it and included peas and eggs.  It had liquid (pureed basil) over the top.  He said it was good and he'd eat it again.  

Remember, I was good with my eggplant and I didn't know what to have for my entree, so I just chose some fried seafood (calamari and shrimp).  I had no idea what it would be served with.  It had been lightly dusted with a seasoned flour and flash fried.  The seafood was very good.  It was accompanied with 3 mayonnaises:  garlic, beet, and lemon.  I liked the garlic the best, but actually I liked the seafood without any mayo.  It was served with a bitter field green salad that was dressed with almost straight lemon juice.  It was bitter and sour.  It actually worked to cut through the fried/mayo taste in your mouth.

We each only ate about 1/2 of our entree because we always leave room for dessert and Mike's cappucino.  

So,  just like dinner, the dessert menu was small and vague.  When it listed gelato it said: vanilla, dark chocolate and hazelnut.  I assumed those were the 3 flavors.  So, I ordered one flavor.  No, no...the waitress said, you just order gelato and you get all 3 flavors.  

Mike wanted a cannoli.  Their cannoli were highlighting the Amerena cherries.  They are small bitter, sweet and sour cherries grown in Italy.  It was mostly a small cannoli with cannoli and chocolate cannoli cream on the inside with 2 of these little cherries on the ends.  Mike took off the cherries and gave them to me.  They were not as bad a maraschino cherries, but they weren't good.  The shell of this cannoli was thinker and harder to eat.  Mike couldn't cut it with his fork, he had to pick it up and use his teeth.  It was good, but expensive for the 3 bites he got.

Mike's cappuccino was super cute with a little penguin in a sweater on top:

I agree that this is a place you go for the EXPERIENCE.  The food was fine but nothing was the best thing I've ever have and I want to go back and have it again.  It was fun to go here and if I see they have seasonal changes to their menu, I'd probably come back.  But I have no need to come back now.  

They do have a restaurant bar AND a lobby bar that would be fun to go to and have a snack without all the effort of a full on reservation and dinner.   That might be something to try.  

 

Sportsman's Bar and Grill in Clayton 1-6-2023

 I'd give this a 3/5 but I think Mike would give it a 4/5

On the suggestion of Nina O'Daniels (one of the librarians at our school, who is also a foodie type person) we tried this place.  She said it was so good that she and her husband went two times in one week!  

We had been to Lester's Bar and Grill across the street a couple of times but didn't know about Sportsman's.  Both places are sports themed, but there is a definately more old, established vibe to Sportsman's.  Lester's feels like it could be a chain.  Lester's feels like maybe Albert Pujols could have actually come here and signed the big painting of him.  It has a Ladue/Frontenac feel to it.  

It was full when we arrived at 6 pm.  We were very lucky to get a table (very close to other tables...I could've easily entered their conversations) against the back wall.  I know waiting for a table is a typical thing.

The menu is mostly burgers, sandwiches, and some local style pizza.  It is bar food.  Mike got a cheeseburger and tater tots and I got a fish sandwich.  

Mike was surprised when his cheeseburger came that it had absolutely nothing on it...no lettuce, tomato, pickle, onions, etc.  There were ketchup and mustard on the table.  He doesn't know if it was a mix up or if you have to ask for those things.  But even lacking these items, he said his burger was really good.

BTW, Mike is wearing his new Battlehawks sweatshirt!

My fish sandwich (I asked for it with no tartar sauce) also came with no lettuce, tomato, pickle, etc.).  It was fried and it was a little dry.  It didn't have a great batter, so there really wasn't much taste to it.  It was OK but not great.  

There must be some reason this place is so packed.  I think we may have to go back and I'll have to try something else.  I will say the service is good.  The waitress was "on it" and made her way deftly through tables that are too close together.  

Tiger Soup Dumplings in Fenton 1/1/2023

I'd give this restaurant a 3.5 out of 5. 

I had read that this was one of last year's best places to eat in St. Louis.  So, today, New Year's Day, Jacob and Mollie rode with me down to Fenton to try it out.

It is VERY like the soup dumpling place called Soup Dumpling STL on Olive.  I wonder if maybe they are the same family.  This one seems to be run by a bunch of young people (in their 20s).  

The menu is small (beef, chicken, or pork soup dumplings).  The dumplings can be steamed or fried.  Then there are a few sides.  Mollie got a cucumber salad that she really liked (cucumber in a soy, sesame sauce).   The cup was full when she got it...I just forgot to take a photo until it was half gone!

We ordered chicken steamed, pork steamed, and pork fried dumplings.  This Fenton location also has fancy (rather expensive) smoothies.  Mollie got one that was dragon fruit and mango (it was $10).  Jake got a strawberry one (it was $7).

The dumplings were good.  We liked the pork better than the chicken.  We liked the extra crunch and how the dumpling had a little more structure of the fried.  There are 6 in an order for $10.  An order was enough for 1 person, but we found that we were hungry in a few hours.  

The smoothies were really good but Mollie and Jacob said they were almost too big.  They were trying to give you your money's worth since they were expensive, but you need to somehow split them.  They don't have any other drinks except bubble tea and water.  Even water costs $1 (bottled).

I don't think this is any better or worse that Soup Dumpling STL on Olive.  The smoothies are a nice addition, but not enough to drive to Fenton for.