Carondelet Diner

Soooo… your intrepid reviewer (god that sounds cool), how about “your insipid reviewer”, has been doing the St. Louis Diner Review for...some time now.  Places come and places go and I end up with kind of basic, smug knowledge of where to eat breakfast in St. Louis and always figure, if a place is not pretty new… I have been there.  So, it is with some extreme humbleness and embarrassment that I belatedly bring to you a gem, The Carondelet Diner.

When people ask where it is I describe is at south, south, south, south St. Louis.  This is in the area I think of as “The Real Confluence” which is not where the Missouri and Mississippi meet but instead where the Mighty River Des Peres disgorges it’s viscous content into the Mississippi.  There is a casino there, and some foundries and of course Lemay… on the bad side of River Des Peres.  I would like to say the area is in “resurgence” or even worse in “gentryfing” but that would be a lie.  Although Carondelet sports some fairly recent additions of note (including “Stacked” and Feraros” on Ivory, there is not a whole lot going on.  The place can be found on Davis, two blocks (east/south?) of Broadway at corner of Davis and Reilly..

I felt slightly better when I read this review and realized the place had been shuttered for a long time and was recently (2014) reopened by the Riverside people.  That represents a really fine commitment to food.  

https://www.stlmag.com/dining/carondelet-diner-now-open-under-new-ownership/

I went for breakfast on Saturday and immediately saw their white board of weekly specials which will demand a return for lunch.

It is hard to fault a good whiteboard full of specials.  This is Comfort food with a kapital K.  Fried chicken and mashed potatoes and jack salmon and sometimes catfish and french fries with brown gravy.  I might need to move.

The place has nice ambience and definitely feels working class but not in a broke down way.  The decoration and design are not opulent but instead veer towards comfortable.  Nice booths and spacious tables.  No broken furniture.  If I were to complain it would be that they do not have a counter where you can watch them cook but you can look back through the open kitchen door and see them working.  My waitress was polite and friendly and they had great brewed iced tea.  At the tables around me were primarily men, primarily older, at tables with several people and clearly there were some regulars (always a good sign for me) and a lot of polite conversation with no one talking politics or “Brexit” (whatever that is).  No one gave me the stink eye when I came in and that is as close anything gets to welcoming at 7:00 A.M. on a Saturday morning.

I perused the menu and saw that they had hash browns instead of the dreaded “breakfast potatoes” which as anyone knows are almost always an unforgivable sin.  They served a lot of plates “smothered” with gravy including a burger and breakfast.  They also offered a steak n egg breakfast for under 10 bucks and country fried steak which will need to be sampled along with a mess of breakfast sandwiches and omelettes.  Food was prepared and fast and served hot.  I got the smothered breakfast with only one biscuit (two seemed unhealthy) and it was...awesome.  Biscuits were a little heavy but perfect with the gravy which had an accessible amount of spice but allowed me to pepper it up to taste.

I can rate this as a 5 out of 5 Slingers as being worth the trip.  Sometimes it pays to drive around parts o town you don't frequent.  Get out of your silo and head south for some breakfast!

The Kingside: A Diner Review

Sooooo….If Only I felt that these had been missed but it is time for an actual DINER REVIEW!  Places open, places close and sometimes they open and close without comment but it shall not be the case with The Kingside Diner.  The Central West End has long been underserved by decent breakfast places.  For most of my extensive adult life you could choose between Koppermans and The Majestic.  Koppermans has always been an interesting choice but with limited seating and a staff that was and is...eclectic in regard to their service (sometimes fabulous, often dismissive) it became harder and harder and once I was denied the pleasures of a bagel and cream cheese with smoked trout (due to celiac) to choose.  The Majestic was of course the classic Greek diner, bustling, average food prepared sometimes carelessly but great ambience and alas, now closed.  You could grab a hotel breakfast at the Chase (pricey) and occasionally other places would offer breakfast service but it was always a half hearted effort.

So there was a need… there is a need and based on my first trip I think The Kingside is going to fill those needs.  Although I generally despise the politics and am suspicious of the motives of Rex Sinquefield (our very own, home grown Koch brother) he has done something very interesting and possibly fascinating with his St. Louis International Chess gambit and the devil, indeed must be paid his due… but do not loose sight of the likelihood that he is indeed the devil….but I digress.

The Kingside is a relentlessly interesting, high quality place to grab a little breakfast.  It sits next to the Chess club in the place formerly operated by Lesters (an interesting gambit for a BBQ sports bar location) and Lester Miller did spend some money on a nice build out, a great deal of which still remains.  High quality lighting, televisions, a full bar and modern bathrooms are part of that legacy.  The place over all is very pleasing to the eye and seems very clean and well maintained.  You could do a business breakfast here or bring out of town guests and be very confident of the choice.  You can also sit at the bar which serves as a de facto counter if you want to dine alone and do not want to take up a table.

I visited on Labor Day and it was quiet but several people were availing themselves to the outdoor seating which seemed perfect on a hazy, holiday Monday.  I would imagine it picks up pretty heavy traffic for brunch and certainly for lunch but, breakfast it our thing here at the Diner Review. My server was very polite and paid good attention though he might have had slight Brit affectations.  I think my wife would have found him charming.  I was seated by the window with a view of the street and sidewalk and watched a lot of dog walkers and morning people putting on the CWE show which is just different than anywhere else in the Lou.  They quickly brought me my iced tea and it was properly brewed and delightful.  The menu for breakfast is ample…

http://www.kingsidediner.com/menu/

...including a Piggies in Blanket Sandwich, Bagels and Lox and Quinoa Pancakes and “Cheddar Drop Biscuits” all of which seemed interesting.   They also sport the:

Kingside Slinger

Hash

chorizo chili, your choice of toast $10

I will definitely give that a try some morning.

But I was there to same my breakfast staple of two eggs over easy, hash browns (crisp) and sausage or bacon. The over easy eggs are always a good test and these were perfect.  Also, their hash browns were shredded (as God ordained for “hash browns”) and properly browned.  The portion was pleasingly small leaving me satisfied but wanting more.  The sausage was frankly like the relatively bland but unobjectionable sausage of the old Majestic (small tear in my eye).  The whole plate was hot and delicious and I think if you can do this meal well it bodes well for the rest of the menu.

I am going to urge you to try this place.  Bring a date, bring a friend and come before the parking on Laclede goes to hell (so come early).  There is a paid lot next store but it increases the breakfast cost dramatically.  Tip well and become a regular, I am considering doing the same.  I think with the quality of food and service and the deep pockets of the owner that this has the possibility of becoming a long St. Louis tradition.  We need more them.

The Peacock: Hipster Heaven...with Bacon!

Sooooo….The Peacock!

it is so rare for me to get to go review a NEW Diner in St. Louis.  Our breakfast scene is at best...sleepy and at worst...boring and unchanging.  Even when new places open like the new Courtesy on Laclede Station, it is just expansion of a proven formula.  So when I read about the Peacock I was elated. Although when I initially posted this review (and in my head) I kept calling the place the Flamingo (dementia) I believe I have it straight now.

Opened by the inimitable Joe Edwards in The Loop!  It is on first floor of a new building that I think is Wash U Student housing.  It is brand spanking new and it is open 24 hours a day which is pretty unusual, especially in that neighborhood.  I very admire Edwards.  I might look askance at his trolley but his unflinching efforts to make U-City a destination have really played out awesomely and along with the Pageant he is a civic treasure for the work he has done and he tends to do it all in a first class way.

Last week I could not sleep due to some issues related to my work and got up at 5:30 and headed over to the Loop.  I always like going there, just to drive up and down and with Mission Tacos and Salt n Smoke on the scene there are now more reasons than just hitting Vintage Vinyl to cruise Delmar.  The Peacock is toward the east end of the strip on the north side of the street.  There is...surprisingly...a  large neon Peacock on the outside of it which makes it hard to miss.  Street parking is ample at 6:00 A.M. and I don't think you need to worry about U City meters until 8 but check before you rely on me.

The place is...retro.  As you walk in they have a full bar which seems decidedly un-dinery but I would guess that in the business plan it will make up a nice little chunk of the revenue.  There is an internet jukebox but on this particular morning I did not check it out. it is all stark white and seafoam green.  There is about 40 stools which run along a snake like river of counter as well as ample booth and table seating.  the decor is a little hard on the eyes for the early riser and full of kitsch from Edwards ample nostalgia collection.  I think it will make for a great place to take people from out of town but the space is a little too big and cold and a little too “retro” and intentionally “cool”. The counters break up into three different areas of different height for counter and stool...gently rising as they move to the rear of the establishment. A light bar that occasionally and randomly changes color runs along the counter.

The wait staff was certainly more of that same theme.  My server was very pleasant and helpful and he was… pierced all over the place.  Just the visible piercings were in the teens and while not off putting it is once again, a lot for breakfast.  I saw two other servers who also both appeared to be typecast for hipster/waiter/waitress positions.  Still, the service was attentive, my iced tea glass was kept full and I have no complaints other than I started to get the feeling that this place was out hipping the pretentiously faux him City Diner which I have slandered in earlier posts.  When i read paragraphs like this I am always amazed that I am such an asshole but...well, there it is.  

The clientele were much more racially diverse than my typical haunts.  Lots of different folks and it skewed younger.  Perhaps some of the hipsters and college students don’t sleep when I sleep.  There was a couple sitting at the bar having cocktails which at 6:00 A.M. is impressive.

The Menu is… interesting.  But mainly because it lists a lot of options with V (vegan) or GF for gluten free.  This would be first 24 hour diner in the city to provide such information.  Among other options they present their version of the slinger “The Loop Sling”.  Although an abomination of a real slinger it is 2 eggs, meat, Waffle, potatoes with chili and cheese.   They also offer a waffle sandwich , chicken fried steak and biscuits and gravy, none of which are gluten free. Other than that it is a pretty standard breakfast menu along with a full dinner menu heavy on soups and salads. The back page gives you an “About Peacock Diner”

http://peacockloopdiner.com/about/

Which tells you everything you need to know.

The Food was really good.  I just had bacon and eggs with breakfast potatoes.  The potatoes were pretty average and offered in an O'brien variety as well.  I am a favor of the hash brown and eschew the “breakfast potato” but these were fine.  The eggs were I am sure free range and from well loved chicken but they tasted fine.  The lighting in the place is a little off for breakfast food but as I said...fine.  On my initial visit I also ordered the sausage which was good and nothing special. But...it was breakfast. On my second trip with my frequent breakfast companion we both ordered the "Sunrise" with bacon and it was excellent and came with a little roasted tomato slice that mixed nicely with my eggs. On the second trip on a Saturday morning at 8:30 they started slow but got pretty crowded by the time we bailed at 9:30. Once again a lot of diversity of clientele, and a VERY high hipster quality to the serving staff.... almost over whelming.  

They also served gluten free toast.  For those of you which have not had the pleasure gluten free toast is...not much.  On the other hand you almost never see it.  It is bland but like I said, a treat...of sorts.  It was not toasted enough but it came with good butter so I liked it.

The bathrooms...although I only visited the mens room it was very clean and family friendly with a changing station and a single handicapped stall that was slightly larger than my first home. No hand towels and a hand drier. As an old man I appreciate the clean bathroom.

The Prices are pricey.  Bowl of Cheerios or Raisin Bran $3.50.  An egg is $2.00.  Potatoes $3.00.  The complete breakfasts $8.50.  So breakfast with a tip for the hipster is 11 to 12 bucks with an iced tea.  All in all this was an interesting trip.  I can see taking out of towers here for a late breakfast and a walk around the loop. On my initial trip I was worried about viability but on my second trip i have concluded that Edwards has another winner.

The Buttery Revisited

Sooooo…. The Buttery.  I “discovered” (like I am  Columbus or something) the Buttery well over 20 years ago.  It is on the part of South Grand no one goes to anymore and everyone is hoping is just about to come back and in my life is has been a trash heap with pockets of brilliance.  It is the area between Gravois and Carondelet Park.  My dad’s “people” used to live around here.  The formidable castle that is Cleveland High School is a dominating part of the area along with the iconic Ted Drewes (the other one) and Giuseppe's which is sometimes still open.  On the North side of Gravois their is the bustling Tower Grove South/So-Gra hipster/ethnic collective where people sometimes get murdered but is otherwise a bastion of decent food, cocktails and music and the original, hated, hipster City Diner.  When I head south on Grand I have to pass it and their big banner “VOTED #1 DINER!” banner but I pass it and I curse the RFT under my breath….But I digress.

The Buttery, (I love that name) is the iconic, shotgun diner.  Exposed kitchen and counter with stools overlooking the action and then a scattering of booths flanking the counter.  It has a jukebox.  The bad kind with CD’s you can flip through.  It has a no smoking sign but it looks (and feels) like you should be smoking when you are in there.  The booths are the original faux wood veneer and always look as if the veneer is just about to peel off but is not quite peeling off.  

While doing the extensive research that you have come to expect from this fine, fine, journalistic, intellectual endeavor I found this on line.  Dont watch it with small children.  I only tend to visit these fine establishments at around 6:00 A.M. when things are pretty quiet but any Diner worthy of the name is open all night long and personally I thank the lord that they are because people like this don’t come to my house.  They have a place to go.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1G1bBdA79dw

In the hopes of being a more diligent reviewer I visited the Buttery twice in the last month.  On my first visit I pulled up about 6:30.  there are a few parking spots in back and there is street parking on Grand but in any kind of off light it feels sketchy.  You can also park in the rent A Center lot next door which warns you it is for Rent A Center customers only.  The door advises you of a lot of things:

1. CASH ONLY

2. NO SMOKING

3. NO PUBLIC RESTROOMS.

I think these are all excellent disclosures.

1. DONT TRY AND USE YOUR CREDIT CARD HERE!  WE DONT LIKE IT TO

CUT INTO OUR MARGINS And WE DON'T REPORT ALL OF OUR INCOME!

2. YOU CAN NO LONGER LIGHT UP IN HERE!  OSTENSIBLY GOOD NEWS

FOR THE SENSITIVE BUT PEOPLE SMOKED IN HERE FOR 40 YEARS

AND OUR CEILING TILES ARE STAINED WITH IT. ALSO, THERE IS NO

VENTILATION AND BECAUSE WE USE OIL AND BUTTER WHEN WE

COOK THERE IS ALWAYS A “SMOKY’ SMELL….GET OVER IT.

3. IF YOU ARE NOT EATING HERE YOU CANNOT POOP HERE.

On the first visit there was one gentleman eating at the counter but when I walked in the employee who appears briefly in the video above came in.  We exchanged pleasantries and he brought me an iced tea.  A pitcher of it was sitting on top of the ice machine and it was fresh brewed.  He offered me water as well which I declined.  On my second visit there at about 7:30 on a Saturday the place was hopping with about 7 patrons and two woman working the place.  In each case their ended up being a diverse group of people in the place which I added to.  You have the feeling when eating there that you are eating with “the people” rather than hated City Diner feeling that you are eating with the hipster/privileged.  

The waitress came quickly and took care of my iced tea and was very pleasant when taking my order.  In my celiac phace I can no longer partake of the chicken fried steak and such I ordered what is sadly becoming my standard of two eggs over medium, suasage and hash browns.  No toast (for religious reasons).

On the first trip it came it came quickly and looked like this:

The second time it looked like this.  Pretty nice consistency with different cooks.  The hash browns properly shredded (as God intended) and cooked as you can see to a light golden brown.  While not being certain I believe their staff could crisp them up for you very easily.  On both trips they had similar consistency.  The sausage was standard grade and nothing special but had a nice flavor and the eggs were cooked nicely for over medium.  If you can no longer enjoy the pleasures of toast, over easy is just too sloppy so...over medium it is.

The Bathroom

The Menu at the Buttery is simple, no frills laminated.  Breakfast on the front, and lunch on the back.  Everything is numbered which I assume would assist me when ordering drunk at 2:00 A.M. (Maybe on the next visit).  The menu items are “unremarkable” yet solid providing everything that a true connoisseur would demand.

The next time I am in I am ordering a steak and a pork chop and as always...I will report on my findings.  

Jukeboxes should be mandatory for all diners.  There is a romance to them and once again there is the drunk at 2:00 A.M. factor when you just need to hear some Bad Company.... and not feel particularly embarrassed about it (you should be embarrassed by it, by the way). I like it because it has CD’s in it still.  Not quite as cool as the really awesome ones with 45’s but still… and although I love “Touchtunes” and being able to pull down a lot of songs from “the cloud” there is something about flipping through that limited selection of CD’s to find “the good one”.  When I came in Hank Williams was playing…”Your Cheating Heart”.  Perfect.

There is a bathroom and you can use it if you are a patron.  You go through an unmarked door in the rear and there is a door to the ladies room, a door to the mens room and an open door to the back part of the kitchen.  It also is warm and unventilated.  But it was clean and very serviceable.  A little graffiti on the hand drier but other than that probably cleaner than my bathroom at home.  The door had a serviceable lock and if nature was making its ever more incessant demands, I believe I could find solace there for a few minutes and not feel like I was at risk for Ebola.  Good bathroom.  Please wash your hands.

Additionally I always enjoy the deep history of a place like this and indeed, although we do not know if St. Louis greats like Lou Brock or Stan the Man ever used this bathroom, we are certain that BJ did!

The Staff really is what makes the place.  Seriously.  On both visits, totally different staff.  They probably alternate Saturdays.  You do not get the feeling that they just drove in from Wildwood.  Nor do you get the feeling that they are “artists” living in the SoGrand “walk up” (pretending they live in Brooklyn) that their parents are helping to pay for.  This is their job.  They do it competently, politely and professionally.  There is a reasonable amount of age and tattoos on the staff and they might look gruff, but they are not.  Polite and professional they have a demeanor which says I am here to get whatever you want but please do not give me a lot of shit because I work hard.  At least that is what I got.  I like this place.  The Buttery is St. Louis South Side at its best.  Unpretentious.  Not a lot of money.  Trying to make it day after day.  Not ashamed of anything.  Not asking anyone for a handout.  Trying to get along and not spread any grief in the world and certainly not trying to pretend for the benefit of anyone to be anything other than what it is.  A place to eat.  Maybe to talk.  read the paper.  Gather your thoughts, and get some food that is quick, and hot, and good.  Long live the Buttery!  

The M-22 Grilll: Onekema Michigan

Sooo...what in all the blathering has been missing from “The St. Louis Diner Review”?  Well aside from interesting writing or topics when thing suspiciously missing would be the reviews of Diners.  Specifically St. Louis Diners.  While I cannot make up immediately for the lack of St. Louis Diners I can do a long distance dedication for the M-22 Diner in Onekema Michigan.  

We go up to Arcadia Michigan which is on M-22.  Onekema is about 9 miles south of Arcadia and 9 miles north of the fabulous Manistee.  Onekama sits on Portage Lake which has an outlet to Lake Michigan.  It is...scenic.  The Diner has had a couple of different incarnations but this new one seems to be sticking.

It is hard to find a decent place to eat up here.  Hubble’s Bait Shop over in Bear Lake is an excellent choice and you have The Lighthouse in Elberta to the North and slightly north in Frankfort, The Bayview.  But they all have their faults and you want to find a “go to” place.

A couple of things.  M-22 is a road that runs from Manistee, generally following the coast up and around and down to Traverse City.  It is “a thing” up here and we all have stickers on our cars, hats, t-shirts and what not. To learn more:

http://www.m22.com/story/

Although the outside of the place might not seem like much (Landscaping Wise) the place is very well maintained and clean and the service is excellent.  They have kept some of the old fisherman’s place motif but it is a big, open restaurant with a view of Portage Lake.  If the weather is nice you can even sit out on their deck but I have found for solo dining and newspaper reading, being inside is the best.

On a recent visit there were 2 or three tables with several people in them.  Based on the conversation they were all locals or at least long time property owners and I do think there is much to be said for going where the locals go.  The discussion was of real estate, construction work, fishing and a recent car accident.  Between that reading the Traverse City Eagle I felt like the faux Michigander I am.

I have become an eggs over easy person.  This is after years of not eating eggs at all and then with the Celiac, no longer being able to experience the joy of toast, cream gravy or chicken fried steak, I needed to step out.  After a year long affair with the scrambled egg I have now moved on to “over medium”.  This is a big deal.  Anyway, as you can see above they do a nice job with:

1. Over medium eggs

2. Ham

3. Bacon (crisp)

4. The ever important “hash brown”, shredded and properly browned yet still useful for sopping up your runny egg.

This is a good breakfast place.  They pride themselves not on their regular breakfasts but on their pancakes.  This day it was peach pancakes and the reviews from the other tables were that they were “excellent”.  They also sport about a dozen high quality omelettes.

You can check out the entire menu here:

http://www.m-22grill.com/page9.php

The iced tea was average.  Nothing special but it was served in pint glasses and topped off twice.  The service is attentive without being annoying.  At no time was I wanting for anything and twice I was asked by the manager  and another waitresses if everything was OK and/or could they get anything for me.  I was impressed.

Whether you eat at the counter, or a booth or out back at one of the tables I strongly recommend the M-22 as a fine establishment.  Next summer the goal would be to get a team together and visit all the diners around us and provide a nice guide for those coming our beautiful little neck of the mitten.

The Break n Egg Diner: The Review

Cream GravySoooo.... I know I promised that the Diner Review was dead but... I lied.  What are you going to do.  Due to my disabling, heinous, life threatening (well very inconveniencing) Celiac disease my dining career, or at least my diner , dining in diners, career.  Over.  Or at least side tracked.  I mean I can eat there but... I cannot eat...
Pancakes
Biscuits
Toast
A Slinger
Chili Mac
Basically anything I really liked to eat other than meat and potatoes.  So, I eat a lot of breakfasts at home.  I eat a lot of lunches at home.  I eat at home... a lot.

But my family has been on a church hunt.  A new place to gather on Sunday and our daughter was in town from college and we went to church in Clayton.  As you might or might not know, my family hates me.  Not just my wife but my children as well and because they hate me they decided to take me to First Watch.  I dislike First Watch.  I would just as soon eat at Dennys but everyone likes First Watch.  It seems painfully generic to me and the cheerful, well groomed young people they hire they make me tired.

The good news is that at 11 on a Sunday morning they had at least a 30 minute wait.  My wife explained to me that "you always wait at First Watch".  Not this guy.  I remembered a place I had gone with Mogerman some time ago also in Clayton and right on Forsythe called the "Break n Egg Diner"  There was a table for 6 open and unguessed.  We appeared to be at the end of the mornign rush and there were several unbussed tables (unlike First Watch where breakfast Nazis clear your table before you could sop up what was left of that runny egg) and it was pretty clear there were two waitresses and one guy in the kitchen. Perfect.  The place was packed.

We got our table after a short and much apologized about wait.  While our waitress was helping other people we were able to peruse the menu and we were ready to order.  They have the whole variety of breakfast products specializing in Omlettes.  I have personally, in a past life, sampled their biscuits and gravy which were very solid and well represented the genre though otherwise unremarkable.    Our wiatress could not have been more pleasant and kept water and tea filled up.  I would have to give her the dining review highest rating of CHARMING.

Everyone got bacon and eggs.  I had ordered crisp bacon and hashbrowns with my eggs.  They give you a plate full of foodMy scrambled eggs were a little over done (it is hard to screw up scrambled eggs and they were fine) and my wife's eggs were too runny.  My daughter in laws french toast looked good and the hash browns (shredded as God intended) were still not really brown enough though the portions were plenty.

Break n Egg is just what it should be.  Not a destination diner but a clearly reliable place where you can grab a little solid, rib sticking food when needed.  I did not originally think it would last (with the former chili mac diner still open as something right around the corner on Central) but the Break n Egg is clean, the food is hot, the service is respectful and it serves a need when you just CANT go to First Watch.  6 1/2 Slingers on the Ten Scale

Diner Review: Southwest Diner

 Sooooo... As i have have often stated I have a relentless, voracious appetite to bring new and exciting culinary delights to my several loyal readers.   No one is historically more impressed with my dedication than...well...me.  No one that is other than my loyal mates in the FFL (Fantasy Football League).  The league is made of ner do well plaintiff lawyers, a investment guy, a guy who does unspeakable things at a Catholic boys school and a deeply mentally and spiritually impaired private investigator.  It is a good group.  But they are not really people.  Certainly not people with "regular jobs" so the discussion of lunch, breakfast, dinner, drinks and food tend to take up a great deal of time on the email thread.  Recently the PI guy told me about this place and I was intrigued.  It was formerly a small, dark bar in  a "neighborhood" that nothing to offer but the 7-11 on the corner of Southwest and Mc Causland.

I have been there three times now.  Once for breakfast and twice for lunch.  The verdict is still out on it as  breakfast spot but for lunch it was... unstoppable.  They have a limited menu that is a southwest themed menu but they have all the standards of eggs, sausage, biscuits and what looked like some awesome pancakes which i will need to try on my next trip based on their look on the next table.
The lunch has been a killer.  The first time I got a green chili cheeseburger with onion rings, iced tea and a chocolate malt. My companions got an enchilada and some thing with beans and chicken and everyone was very pleased with their food.  The second time I changed it up by getting a green chili cheeseburger, fries and a tea.  My guests got that but one of them ordered a burrito which he said was awesome.  It looked "toasted a little brown on the top and was slightly bigger than a babies head.  All of the food was fresh and hot.  The service was more than adequate and the third time in one of the waiters recognized me and remembered me for breakfast.  The green chili has a great flavor and is not too hot.  With the cheddar it is outstanding and the burger itself is really fresh and juicy and the next time I go back.... I will get it again.  I first had one of these out in Sante Fe at a place called "Bob Cat Bites" that Road Food and Diners, Drive Ins and Dives had reviewed and spoke glowingly of.  It was good.  But not this good. The onion rings were way above average and the fires fresh, hot and crisp.  they like their malts, milk shakes and pies for desert but I will try those another time


I have only been once for breakfast.  I got the biscuits and gravy with chorizo pictured below.  The biscuits seemed really excellent but the gravy tasted more like chile to me and I thought it would make a great slinger for the slinger lovers among us (you know who you are).  I will report more on breakfast another time but I want to tell you there will be another time.  Go there.  it is off the beaten path.  It is unreviewed to the best of my knowledge in the RFT or Post Dispatch.  They serve all menu items all the time but are only open for breakfast and lunch.  Go there now.  Eat there now.Order that green chili cheeseburger, NOW!

Diner Review: Original Fried Pie Company

Sooooo....according to the Rolling Stones “You can’t always get what you want”... but if you want a fried pie, I got the place.  As you are aware your intrepid diner is always on the lookout for high quality, out of the ordinary dining experiences.  These take me far and wide in the service of the fine dining public, but I cannot complain... I do it out of love.

Recently I had the occasion to dine with afine Lutheran Pastor on a run to Springfield Missouri and we ate ate Super Smokers in Eureka Missouri.  That of course is a well established location and needs no props from The Diner Review.  More importantly I spied while in Eureka The Original Fried Pie Company.  I have a fairly deep passion for fried pies.  Normally served as “pastys” and done poorly like most Irish food (they really know how to boil their meat) but when done properly, there is nothing more tasty than a pasty.  

It is hard to find a quality reason to travel out to Eureka.  Something about proximity to 6 Flags, Times Beach, the Legends and other disasters.  Before I go too far this is a chain.  Not a very good chain or a very expensive chain (you can get a franchise for 25k).  There are pieces that are missing.  They have the dreaded Lipton Iced tea System which like the hated North peak System claims to be fresh brewed when actually it is a mix run through tubes behind the bins.  This is insidious because they make it look like it is a reular urn which they fill with fresh product, but it is actually a fountain system that when you open the top of the urn reveals a lot of plastic tubes mixing undrinkable product.  Also, the decor is not much and you eat out of wax paper lined basket (but I like that).

http://www.theoriginalfriedpieshop.com/Locations.html

it is at best a non-pretentious place with a cement floor.  The counter has the pie making area and deep friers directly behind the counter and in plain site (“In Sight It Must be Right”... could Steak n’ Shake be wrong?)  The menu contains a number of different meat pies and then they also have a number of cheese, cream and fruit desert pies.  A combo can be purchased for about 7 bucks with one of each and a drink.

We arrived at about 7 on a Saturday and there was one table there.  We were able to take it in and placed our order with a very pleasant, solicitous young lady who explained the menu and how all the pies were made and also that they were all fried in peanut oil in case we had any allergies or “what not”.  I ordered a “comfort pie” which was a light cheese sauce and polish sausage and a blackberry desert pie with some icing on it.  Sandy got a chicken and vegetable pie (which was similar to the traditional “pot pie”.  She got a cherry pie for desert.  

We ordered and got our drinks.  I think it is a Pepsi/Dr. Pepper place and engaged some small talk with the night manager.  I asked if they were doing well and he said very well.  They had opened last fall and did box car business during the Six Flags season but survived the winter and they were now “killing it” again.  That was good to hear.  The place was clean and non descript and we were anxious to taste the product which came up after about 5 minutes.  Since there was no one else there we asked to have the desert pies put in later.  Our pies were fresh, hot and delicious.  Arguably they could have had a little more meat but it was plenty to eat all by itself.  The desert pies were filled with fruit filling rather than fresh fruit which was a little bit of a bummer and they gave you a little cup of icing to pour over the hot pie.  Though i was hesitant the result was decadent and excellent.  We gobbled them up with our plastic knives and forks.

This place is not a destination for great food.  It is really good and it is off beat and worth a trip just to do something a little different.  And that is what summer is all about.

Diner Review: The 11 Mile House

Sooooo...The Eleven Mile House! I used to live in Warson Woods, right down the street from theplace. I enjoyed going there for years mainly to see old people drink Manhattans. I ate theKirkwood Burger and the Kirkwood Klucker. They are a burger or a piece of chicken with baconand rarebit sauce. It was easily chewed and tasty. I was there a week or so ago with aluncheon companion when I noticed that they were open for... wait for it....BREAKFAST!

From The Website:

OUR HISTORYTHE ELEVEN MILE HOUSE WAS ORIGINALLY ONE OF MANY "MILE" HOUSES AS ONE TRAVELEDWEST FROM DOWNTOWN ST. LOUIS. FOR MANY YEARS IT WAS A FREE STANDING BUILDING ATTHE CORNER OF MANCHESTER ROAD AND WOODLAWN; IN 1946, THE "ELEVEN MILE HOUSE"OPENED AS A RESAURANT IN THE BUILDING, COMPLETE WITH A POPULAR BEER GARDEN.THE ORIGINAL BUILDING WAS RAISED WHEN GREENTREE CENTER WAS DEVELOPED AND NOWOCCUPIES PART OF THE SHOPPING CENTER'S STOREFRONT. THE DECOR OF THE CURRENTRESTAURANT IS REMINISCENT OF THE CORNER BAR & GRILLS OF YESTERYEAR.MANY GENERATIONS HAVE SINCE PASSED THROUGH THE ELEVEN MILE HOUSE, WHILE OTHERSCONTINUE TO FREQUENT THE ESTABLISHMENT, AND CONSIDER IT TO BE A SECOND HOME. ASTIME CONTINUES TO CHANGE, SO DO WE. OUR GOAL IS TO SEE ANOTHER 62YEARS AND MOREFAMILY GENERATIONS. WE, THE FAMILY OF THE ELEVEN MILE HOUSE, WANT TO THANK YOUFOR YOUR CONTINUED LOVE AND SUPPORT.

So I am pretty excited about the place. It is dark. It opens at 7 which although no good for aweek day but it is a perfect time for Saturday breakfast. Fortunately they are only open forSaturday Sunday breakfast. Did I mention it was dark? Dark is good in the morning and I havebeen looking for a place to perhaps start a regular Saturday breakfast with my retardedacquaintances. Just a 7-8 thing. I think it might be perfect. Tables, booths and did I mention it isdark? They also have drinks! In the MORNING! Anyway, I went. it was not life changing. For the first half hour I was the only one there. The waitress was chatting up the guy who was mopping the floor, doing the dishes and carrying thebread in. She might have been a little too chatty but the iced tea was good, made fresh thatmorning and not dragged out of the walk in from last night. The TV was on but the volume wasoff and it looked like “Head of the Class” or some other excellent show was on.

Taking a seat farenough away from the door but facing the door to watch all the action unfold. It was no unlike thedive bars that serve breakfast in south city and south county. The fact that they serve booze atbreakfast hours is a prominent factor on the menu with them encoujraging you to that morningBloody Mary or Mimosa.I opted for an alcohol free breakfast this morning (patting myself on the back). As a service tomy readers, here is the breakfast menu which is at best basic. Basic is good.

BREAKFASTThe Eleven Mile House Two eggs, two bacon strips, sausage patties, two buttermilk pancakes and toast7.95
Steak & Eggs Six ounce charbroiled strip steak, two farm fresh eggs, golden hash browned potatoes andtoast. 10.95
Bases Loaded Ham, sausage, bacon, two country fresh eggs, golden hash browned potatoes and toast.7.75
Pancake Breakfast Your choice of three regular or blueberry pancakes, served with bacon or sauasagepatties. 7.75
Country Ham & Eggs Served with golden hash browned potatoes and toast. 8.25
Eleven Mile High Breakfast Two farm fresh eggs, golden hash browned potatoes and authentic southernstyle biscuits andgravy. 6.95
Three Egg Omelet your choice of any three: bacon, ham, sausage, mushrooms, onions, green pepper,tomatoes, swiss, jack,american or pepper cheese, with golden hash browned potatoes and toast. 8.95
Egg Sandwich Fried egg, cheese, and bacon or sausage on Your choice of white or whole wheat bread.4.95
Bagel Egg Sandwich Scrambled egg, cheese and bacon or sausage on a bagel. 5.85Two Egg Breakfast Your choice of eggs any style served with golden hash browned potatoes, and yourchoice of a biscuitor toast and jelly. 5.65
One Egg Breakfast Your choice of eggs any style served with golden hash browned potatoes and yourchoice of a biscuit ortoast and jelly. 4.95
HOT OFF THE GRIDDLEServed with your choice of bacon, sausage or hamRegular and Light Syrups AvailableBlueberry Pancakes. 6.15
Hot Griddle Cakes. 5.65
Short Stack. 4.95
French Toast. 6.25
ALA CARTEBacon or Sausage. 3.75
Hash Browns. 2.75
Country Ham. 4.25
Biscuits & Gravy. 4.35
Hot Oatmeal. 3.95
Bagel with Cream Cheese 2.65
English Muffin 2.05
Toast white or wheat with butter & jelly. 2.05
BEVERAGESFresh coffee. 1.95
Hot Tea. 1.95
Milk 2% or skim sm 1.65 lg 1.95
Hot Chocolate. 1.95
Fresh Chilled Juice
white or wheat with butter & jelly. 2.05
BEVERAGESFresh coffee. 1.95Hot Tea. 1.95Milk 2% or skim sm 1.65 lg 1.95Hot Chocolate. 1.95Fresh Chilled JuiceOrange, grapefruit, apple, tomato,and cranberry small 2.50 large 3.50Iced Tea. 1.95Green Tea. 1.95
ADULT BEVERAGESBloody Marysmall 2.50 large 3.50Iced Tea. 1.95Green Tea. 1.95
ADULT BEVERAGESBloody MaryTomato juice, vodka, and celeryBloody BullTomato juice, beef broth, vodka, and celeryMimosaChampagne and orange juiceBaileys and Coffee.ScrewdriverOrange juice and vodka.

Biscuits and gravy were fresh and hot with a nice textured biscuit and a very acceptable whitesausage gravy. The sausage patties were of the thinner variety but tasty and not requiring anyconcern about done-ness (no one likes pink pork). The hash browns were shredded as Godhimself intended and were perfect.I have been looking lately for a place to gather the faithful on Saturday mornings. Many friendsstill have small children (never a welcome addition to breakfast revelry) but there is certainly agroup of people who I could gather with on Saturday, read my paper and verbally abuse thatwould make Saturday morning more palatable before work. Consider yourself invited. I willtrying it out for each upcoming Saturday in February.I have high hopes for the 11 Mile House.Not too far out of the way. Dark. They also have a jukebox and I will look forward to crank thatup some Saturday morning, nursing a hangover and order a bottle of Busch and see what theday has to offer. What could go wrong?