Favorite Restaurant GONE???

[Stewey]

When we first got to town, my wife and I tried countless chinese restaurants in town until we found THE chinese restaurant that was nearby AND was delicious. And that became OUR chinese place for the past 5 years.

Well, tonight we drove to it to pick up some food for a nice and quiet Saturday night at home AND GD IT!!!! It was GONE! Closed down! No warning...no signs explaining anything! In fact, it was already in the process of being converted to a BBQ place.

There have only been a few restaurants in my life that I truly mourned when they passed on. This was one of them.

It just stinks because there were a number of dishes that they prepared so uniquely that it will be near impossible to find acceptable replacements. Yes, we will miss the tight-knit group of workers there. BUT we will miss even more their food.

In fact, after discovering it was closed and after we both pouted for about 20 minutes, we stopped at 3 different chinese places ordering the same things at each in the hopes of finding a suitable replacement. No luck.

Isn't it strange how a restaurant can become a part of your life?

[phatch]

I've had this experience with a number of restaurants.

Dean's Hungry i (greek--they catered my wedding)

Bachus (Mediteranean--Chef moved to Cape May)

Great Wall (Chinese--shut down and disappeared just like yours did)

[castironchef]

Had the same thing happen to me (and MORE THAN ONCE!)

At least there was a building left in your favorite's wake.

There was a wonderful Chinese restaurant in Oakland, CA that I would shift my errands and meetings around so as to be able to visit. Excellent dim sum and off the menu dishes. It was always crowded and had almost exclusively Chinese patrons.

When I tried to return last time, all I found was a giant hole in the ground!!

Seriously, the two story building had been torn down and huge hole excavated. Must be for a parking garage or something. GRRRRRR!!!!!!!!

[Mezzaluna]

I had a recent experience like that. We had an excellent Greek place in Wauwatosa called Greek Village. They made homestyle food; my favorite was a stewed lamb with artichokes in avgolemono sauce. I drove past it one day a couple of weeks ago, and POOF! The place is now Mexican. Bummer!

[Ninja_59]

Poor you

Restaurants leave us without warnings

We had a nice pub here, now gone


It hurts loosing those nice places

[nofifi]

Maybe Shroomgirl will remember this one....O.T. Hodge's Chili Parlor, lol. New development downtown St. Louis took this famous chili parlor. I don't think you could classify it as a "restaurant" but it sure was good. A place where you saw all kinds of people, Judges, Lawyers, Business people and Street Bums. You would smile at the waitress (who looked like Lucy Ricardo) who would yell "two dogs a walkin'" and a few other memorable ways to call in an order to the kitchen. I would always order the same thing...A Nightmare. It consisted of fried potatoes with onions, chili, a tamale, more chili then topped off with a sunnyside up egg. O.T. Hodges went upscale into Union Station but I don't think it was ever the same. At the old O.T.'s you sat at long tables and everyone ate together. The new place had individual tables and was clean, lol.

Another St. Louis hangout was the Grecian Village owned by two brothers, Ted and Sam. They would let me sit in thier kitchen for hours and teach me about Greek food (I owned the business next door to their little restuarant). They opened their restuarant on their day off, the day my mother died, just for me and made me all my favorites just to make me feel better. They are long gone but their kindness and food will never be forgotten.

[shroomgirl]

nope, I never made it to OT's, isn't there one in Clayton on Central Ave?
Nightmares, slingers.....lordy I havn't been drunk enough to order one of those, moved to STL as a mom.....old enough to know my digestion limit.

I miss Cafe Provencal in Clayton. Ed Neill made real country french food....from the epi's and charcuterie to the beef daube and chicken mirabelle (YUM YUM YUM) to the tarts and brulees.....pissonolet was memorable. And a fav after work was a simple roasted chicken 1/2 with real mashed potatoes and haricot verte.

I miss the old Pita Plus....gyro salad with their handmade pitas....

AS to your chinese place....follow the chef....we've had a really great chinese chef bop through a couple of restaurants. Call the restaurant reviewer and ask if they know who the chef was and where he's currently cooking.

[nofifi]

Shroomgirl, I was in my 20's and 30's when I'd eat those "nightmares" but I doubt I'd be able to gulp one down now without calling a cardiologist.

OMG, you're right about Cafe Provencal..the food there was to die for!! That was the first time I ever ate real french food. I would just ask them to surprise me and let them bring whatever to the table because it was always good.

Do you remember a restaurant named "LIMS" on I think, N. Lindbergh? It was the best chinese food ever! I know they are long gone.

Maybe you can help me with the fact that you're in St. Louis. Years ago, there was a place called "The MammerJammer"...made the best sandwich. It wasn't in the best of neighborhoods but I would love to know how that sandwich was made (another cardiac moment, lol).

Also, only in St. Louis can you get a St. Paul sandwich (made with egg) in a Chinese restaurant. I can't find one made like that anywhere else and even my chinese friends never heard of it (it must be a St. Louis thing). Have you ever had one? Thanks.

[shroomgirl]

I moved to STL from Baton Rouge in 1994. So alot of those predate me.

ST. Paul's was developed in STL.....cheap eats Chinese joints....egg foo young patty on white bread with mayo, lettuce, american cheese......usually around $2.

STL has some bizarro food.....gooey butter cake: breakfast dish of partially cooked vanilla chewy cake.

Above St. Paul Sandwich....enough said.

Provel Pizza with cracker crust, this one you have to be born here to like.....and if in fact you were born in STL you will crave this whereever you are because no other place would think it edible. Provel...cheese food that sticks to your teeth, slopped on median priced Italian food in red sauce restaurants or above pizzas. Funny story, one of my young acquaintances externed at Le Bernadin and craved this pizza, had his mom send the cheese then beg the pizza shop to make cracker thin crispy crust......that my friends is devotion.

Pork Steak....shoulder cut with bone, pretty much only found in STL, I think it's a big waste of shoulder meat that could be smoked and pulled. But hey there's enough pork to go around.

Toasted Ravs.....deep fried usually meat filled, breaded raviolis served with red tomato sauce. Standard ap, found in abundance at grocery store freezer bins.

Concretes, actually this is a decent one....take a Sundae and grind the fool out of it, at Ted Drewe's they turn um upside down to show you they are that dense. Been around 60+ years apparently mega fast food chains latched on to the idea.

slinger.....not sure if this is STL....hamburger patties topped with hash browns, chili, raw onions, cheese, fried eggs.....

Ed Neill is a close friend of mine.....

[nofifi]

Not all St. Louis people like gooey butter cake (I'm included in that list, find it disgusting).

Not all St. Louis people like Ted Drew's (I'm included in that list, find it awful)

but we do love our Provel, lol. (Ok, I'm alittle embarrassed about this one)

Only make homemade toasted Ravioli, never storebought.

St. Paul "special" is actually pretty good without the cheese.

and last but not least, YOU ARE SO LUCKY TO HAVE THIS CHEF AS YOUR FRIEND, HE IS AWESOME!!! It has been a few years since I've eaten in St. Louis but will be there in August for a week. Thanks for all the info you gave on St. Louis restaurants to go to, I will follow your advice.