Food & Drink >>

• Best Food Festival
  Schlafly Stout & Oyster Festival
  Let's face it, nobody really wants to picture the burly dudes named Bimbo and Bubba peeling shrimp in the back of a restaurant kitchen. But stand six knobby-knuckled oyster shuckers in the middle of a restaurant and let 'em go to town? Wicked! Schlafly Tap Room owners Tom Schlafly and Dan Kopman... More >>
• Best Fried Chicken
  Café Lazeez
  OK, fine: Technically the fried chicken at Café Lazeez isn't fried — at least not in the usual sense. Instead, the chicken served at this tiny establishment (an odd but winning amalgam of traditional Pakistani dishes and American fast food) is "Broasted." Broasting — a... More >>
• Best Chicken Wings
  Geo's Wings and More
  It doesn't matter how masterful a wing sauce is if it's covering a hunk of pimply chicken skin that's been breaded to within an inch of its life. Who eats those slimy things? Breading them dilutes the flavor and steams 'em in their own flesh. Geo's Wings and More serves up meaty, unbreaded... More >>
• Best Pizza (Thick Crust)
  Black Thorn Pub
  Fans of the Black Thorn Pub know there are two rules to enjoying the Tower Grove South joint's incredible deep-dish pizza: 1) leave yourself plenty of time; and 2) listen very carefully. The first rule is pretty obvious. Deep-dish pizza takes time to cook; add in the crowds who throng this... More >>
• Best Pizza (Thin Crust)
  Laganini Pizzeria & Restaurant
  The only secret to the pizza at Laganini Pizzeria & Restaurant is where to find it: The restaurant occupies a nondescript former fast-food building in the Bevo neighborhood, and the pizza is tucked away at the back of its menu, after a tempting selection of dishes from Bosnia, Germany,... More >>
• Best Salad
  Stellina Pasta Café
  Pasta? Of course. It's in the restaurant's name after all. Sandwich? Sure. In 2007 this very newspaper tabbed them the best in St. Louis. Salad? Who picks a restaurant for its salad? But that's one more reason this cozy south-side eatery has developed such a following over the past few years:... More >>
• Best Pizza by the Slice (2 Comments)
  Feraro's Jersey-Style Pizza
  There is a slice of pizza, and then there is pizza by the slice. The former you can make from any ol' pizza: thin crust or deep-dish, round or square, topped with buffalo-milk mozzarella or smothered in Provel. Pizza by the slice is practically a religion. In New York City, adherents of rival... More >>
• Best Sandwiches (1 Comment)
  Winslow's Home
  Fans of the brisket sandwich at Winslow's Home lurk in the open, like paparazzi. They pretend to browse the wares of this throwback general store/café and dream of the tender, thinly sliced brisket roasted overnight, basted with a beguiling jus and piled high between toasted flaxseed... More >>
• Best Delicatessen
  LeGrand's Market & Catering
  LeGrand's Market, a deli, supermarket and sandwich shop, sells T-shirts that cite "22 Reasons Not to Be a Vegetarian" (there's one for each cut of beef). And they know how to put their lunchmeat where their mouth is. You can buy said lunchmeat by the pound or on a sandwich, or you can purchase a... More >>
• Best Food and Drink Blog
  STL Hops
  Homebrewer Mike Sweeney founded STL Hops in September 2007. In two years it has become the go-to site for the area's growing craft-beer community. You want the latest news on the latest brews? STL Hops has it. You want frequently updated lists of what's on tap at local brewpubs and beer-centric... More >>
• Best Use of the Worst Cheese
  "The Record Breaker"
  Provel, she is a divisive cheese. Some people stand beside her unflinchingly; others turn up their noses at her mere mention. Every so often, however, these opposing factions are able to set aside their processed-cheese differences — such as when they chow down at Callier's Deli &... More >>
• Best Calamari
  Mangia Italiano
  Mmmrfphmmmrfphmmmrfhmmm Oh. Hi. Hold on a sec. Lemme grab a napkin. OK. So, like, we're usually too busy eating the calamari at Mangia Italiano to talk about them and, let's be honest, what higher compliment could we pay? There's no secret. Just a simple — and simply delicious —... More >>
• Best Capsaicin Fix
  Mammer Jammer
  The "Mammer Jammer" sandwich at the restaurant of the same name defies description. Yes, it's essentially a cheesesteak: thinly sliced beef, cheese, onion, jalapeños and dried red-pepper flakes. But the heat from the chiles takes the sandwich to another place — or, rather, the... More >>
• Best Spring Rolls
  Little Saigon Café
  Not just any spring rolls at this veteran Central West End Vietnamese restaurant, but the cha giò chay, or crisp vegetarian spring rolls. Don't let the term "crisp" trick you. These aren't battered, deep-fried monstrosities. Rather, a light, soft spring roll is given a quick frying so... More >>
• Best Falafel
  Kabob House
  In your hand the falafel at Kabob House feel as dense as a neutron star, yet these deep-fried chickpea fritters — the unofficial fast food of the Middle East — are a shockingly light dish. Inside the crisp brown exterior, the seasoned chickpea mash is moist, nearly airy, with the... More >>
• Best Enchiladas
  Taqueria el Jalapeño
  The enchiladas michoacanas at this hole-in-the-wall taqueria aren't your run-of-the-mill enchiladas. Take corn tortillas, top with chopped onions and queso de Monterrey, fold into wedges and fry on a flattop to a light golden-brown crisp. Top the wedges with more cheese, lettuce, tomato, potato,... More >>
• Best Guacamole
  Garduño's Mexican Food
  Available in four- and twelve-ounce servings, Garduño's fresh and flavorful guac provides endless possibilities. Start off with the simple approach — grab some tortilla chips and dig into the lovely, chunky (but not too unwieldy to scoop) treat. Note the dominant... More >>
• Best Taco Cart
  Juan's Taco Cart
  Cherokee Street is great, but if you really want an authentic Mexican dining experience, visit DeSoto Park on a Sunday afternoon. From April to September, the tiny patch of grass in North St. Louis' Carr Square neighborhood hosts La Liga Latino Americana de Futból, the most diverse (and... More >>
• Best Takeout Counter (Grocery Division)
  La Tropicana Market
  Fidel Castro may have stepped down, but it doesn't appear likely that U.S. citizens will be able to travel to Cuba anytime soon. Oh well, we'll always have Miami. And, a lot closer to home, La Tropicana Market, purveyor of what is quite possibly the finest Cuban sandwich this side of the... More >>
• Best Takeout Counter (Gourmet Division)
  The Market at Busch's Grove
  The decadent décor is intact and the non-union staff still fawns. But in its re-rebirth, Busch's Grove, the legendary landmark of seeing-and-being-seen in Ladue, has adopted far more democratic airs — and the Market at Busch's Grove is all the better for it. Busch's takeout-counter... More >>
• Best Barbecue
  Pappy's Smokehouse
  What's the best time to arrive at Pappy's Smokehouse? Well, the midtown barbecue joint opens at 11 a.m., so if you arrive by, say, nine o'clock in the morning, you should be OK. We kid, of course — but only a little. Arrive sometime between 10:30 and 10:45 and you'll be close to the head... More >>
• Best Grocery Store
  Local Harvest
  With a goal to source 50 percent of its products from within a 150-mile radius of St. Louis, Local Harvest won't be the biggest grocery store you set foot in. Nor will it have the widest selection, but it will leave you feeling good about the choices you're making. Whether you're a carnivore... More >>
• Best Meat Counter
  Baumann's Fine Meats
  Jim Lucas knows meat. The former stock trader used to stop at Baumann's Fine Meats on his way to the lake to buy what he felt was the best in sirloin, hamburger, ground chuck, sausage (you name it, really) so he could blow away his friends at the barbecue. He liked the butcher shop so much, he... More >>
• Best Fresh Seafood Counter
  Bob's Seafood
  For better or for worse, the days when Midwesterners in love with seafood were out of luck are long gone. Thanks to the wonders of modern-day shipping, fish are hauled in and shipped around the globe at record speeds; sometimes literally a day out of the water. And in St. Louis, there's no... More >>
• Best Sausage Shop
  Piekutowski's European Style Sausage
  In 1999 Pope John Paul II paid a visit to little ol' St. Louis. He saw the Arch. He saw the cathedrals. And then he made a special pilgrimage to north city's Hyde Park neighborhood and grabbed some sausages at Piekutowski's European Style Sausage. He bit into a slice of Krakow sausage and... More >>
• Best Cheese Counter
  The Wine & Cheese Place
  In belt-tightening times, fine cheese might not be at the top of the average shopper's list, but for those of us who don't have room in the fridge for Kraft singles, great cheese is an affordable luxury. And when we shop for cheese, we want the assistance of a staff that knows the way around its... More >>
• Best Farmers' Market
  Maplewood Farmers' Market
  Where's the toughest place to park in St. Louis? Downtown for a Cardinals game? Try Schlafly Bottleworks on Wednesday afternoons when hordes of hungry St. Louisans descend upon the Maplewood Farmers' Market for the freshest, tastiest produce in town. Arrive after the market begins at 4 p.m.... More >>
• Best Asian Market
  Global Foods Market
  St. Louis is chock-a-block with Asian markets. Two things separate Global Foods Market from the world-grocery pack: organization and produce. Aside from the major divisions — fruits and vegetables, meat, deli, dairy — aisles are arranged by country of origin. And even within each... More >>
• Best Mexican Market (1 Comment)
  El Torito
  When you first set foot in El Torito, you're greeted by a little candlelit shrine to the Virgin Mary. Take a right and you move into a massive, auténtico Mexican supermarket that stocks everything from masa and mole to an impressive selection of candles bearing the likenesses of saints... More >>
• Best Cupcakes (3 Comments)
  SweetArt
  Cupcakes are good for you. OK, well, maybe not as good as a plateful of kale, but SweetArt uses no mixes, no trans fats and no high-fructose corn syrup, so you've got that going for you. And make no mistake: SweetArt's 'cakes taste every bit as sinful as their less-wholesome counterparts.... More >>
• Best Pie (2 Comments)
  Carolyn's A Matter of Taste
  Cupcake shops are popping up all over town, and, of course, St. Louis loves its gooey butter cake, but Carolyn Dickens of Carolyn's A Matter of Taste asks, "Is there anything better than apple pie à la mode?" It's a rhetorical question, but the answer is an emphatic no! if we're talking... More >>
• Best Fast Food (2 Comments)
  Five Guys Burgers and Fries
  Given the general crud on-the-go Americans shove down their gullets, this category should be a sop, the best of an unimpressive bunch. Thankfully, the arrival of Five Guys Burgers and Fries into the St. Louis market negates the need for any apologies. Over the past twenty-plus years, the chain... More >>
• Best Bakery
  Sugaree Baking Company
  Sugaree Baking Company opened in Dogtown in 1996. For much of its history, only those fortunate enough to attend or plan a wedding with a cake from the husband-and-wife team of Jim Pettine and Pat Rutherford-Pettine knew how wonderful their baked goods were. Finally the rest of us can partake:... More >>
• Best Doughnuts
  LaMar's Donuts & Coffee
  Doughnuts seem to be one of the easier foods to make. You take some batter, throw it in boiling oil, glaze it and voilà! How could someone possibly screw that up, right? Well, the answer is out there. The world is full of mediocre doughnuts. You won't find any imperfect confections at... More >>
• Best Bagels
  The Bagel Factory
  "My name is Tony. I don't give my last name," says the voice on the other end of the line before confirming that the Bagel Factory has been making bagels the same way in the same location for the past 38 years. What's so special about these bagels? Rather than steaming its bagels, Tony... More >>
• Best Scones
  La Dolce Via Bakery & Café
  Precious little separates a scone from a stone. There's that one pesky letter. And something else that has caused so many otherwise-competent bakers to put a tray of scones in the oven and pull out a tray of stones. What is it? Over-kneading? Subpar ingredients? Bad karma? Whatever the... More >>
• Best Breakfast Pastry
  The Morning Bun
  Some things are worth waking up early for. Not a heavy, glutinous muffin, certainly, or a plate of rubbery scrambled eggs. The Companion Bake House & Café is no slouch when it comes to muffins or eggs, but the thing that should really get you excited about setting the morning alarm is... More >>
• Best French Toast
  Crème BrûléeFrench Toast
  After a long hard night, all you want is a little love, a little sweetness, a lot of comfort. You want something to smooth out all of life's sharp edges. So you head to the Shangri-La Diner on Cherokee Street, plunk down your sorry ass in a comfy vinyl booth and order a pot of coffee and the... More >>
• Best Bread
  Companion Bake House & Café
  Bread is life. Bread is hearty, elemental, basic and necessary. Bread, though, does not grow on trees. The late '90s saw this nation begin to slowly back away from mass-produced white bread fortified with chemical preservatives. We have a slew of good bakeries in town, each one staffed by... More >>
• Best Pretzel
  Dressel's Public House
  The pretzel at Dressel's is hot. Like, steam-engine hot. You have to wait for it to cool. Which, frankly, is good discipline. After all, good things come to those who wait — consider the properly poured Guinness. While you wait, consider the medieval history of the pretzel, its dubious... More >>
• Best Beer
  Black Sky Stout Porter
  Black Sky Stout Porter's name is a throwback to the old English nomenclature when "stout" was a synonym for "strong" rather than a style unto itself, according to Drew Huerter, Mattingly's brewer. The beer, Huerter imparts, clocks in at a robust but not overpowering 6 percent alcohol and uses... More >>
• Best Coffee
  Kaldi's Coffee Roasting Company
  Long a St. Louis institution, Kaldi's is hardly a dark (roast?) horse for the title of Best Coffee. There's something to be said, though, for a roaster that doesn't rest on its laurels. The classic French Roast, Natural High and Café Kaldi are available year round, but it's the seasonal... More >>
• Best Burger
  The Royale
  The Royale's signature burger is called, fittingly enough, "the Royale." You know what they call "the Royale" in France? No, really — what do they call it? (We dropped French after one semester.) According to Yahoo!'s Babel Fish app, you'd ask for huit ounces de boeuf de Wagyu d'Australie.... More >>
• Best Smoothie
  OR Smoothie & Café
  Mai Truong, owner of OR Smoothie & Café, believes that smoothies are like puzzles: Every component must fit perfectly or the smoothie doesn't work. The fact that a juice is organic isn't enough for Mai. Rather than taking the easy path of using the same brand for each type of juice,... More >>
• Best Milkshake
  Crown Candy Kitchen
  Some comfort foods are challenging, aggressive. Buffalo wings are valued by their oral incendiary abilities. Nachos and T-ravs have sharpened their edges. The slinger wants you dead. Other comfort foods are passive and more, well, comforting — such as the milkshake. It takes a hell of a... More >>
• Best Ice Cream Parlor
  The Fountain on Locust
  Step inside the Fountain on Locust and Norman Rockwell visions of happy families sipping ice-cream sodas in a simpler time come to mind. With its high ceilings, vibrant paint job and old-fashioned soda fountain, it could snag an award for Best Ice Cream Parlor Décor (if there were such a... More >>
• Best Snow Cones
  Tropical Moose
  It's all in the ice, the perfect snow cone. How you shave it and then how you shape it in the cup. Get it right, and a snow cone is the best antidote to the steamy, stinky St. Louis summer. Get it wrong, and the tastiest syrup in this or any other universe won't rescue a cup filled with ice so... More >>
• Best Chocolate (1 Comment)
  Patric Chocolate
  Very few companies in the United States make their own chocolate from scratch — i.e., starting from a cacao bean and ending with a chocolate bar. We're fortunate to have two such companies in Missouri: Askinosie Chocolate in Springfield (a close second in this category), and Patric... More >>
• Best Gooey Butter Cake
  Gooey Louie
  You wouldn't think the rules of nutrition would apply to dessert, but they do. For example, anything containing fruit, such as an apple pie, will always be better for you than anything containing chocolate. By the same token, a gooey-butter cake that is made from fresh butter and cream cheese... More >>
• Best Burger (Non-Beef Division)
  Veggie "Boudin" Burger
  What makes a good burger is subjective, but it's safe to say that heft is always a plus. That's not always easy to find when dealing with non-meat alternatives, which is why the Bleeding Deacon's Veggie "Boudin" Burger is such a treat. A wheat bun can barely cushion the thick, hearty patty,... More >>
• Best Hot Dog
  Frank's N Brats
  Busch Stadium sells more nachos — 120,000 pounds of chips and 32,000 gallons of cheese sauce a year — than any other ballpark in baseball. This gut-busting statistic can probably be attributed to the fact that the hot dogs available inside the stadium are overpriced and... More >>
• Best French Fries
  The U
  The U has a winning reputation for slinging up hot sandwiches into the wee small hours (witness last year's pick for Best Place for Late-Night Dining), but the midtown joint does more than just sizzle sammies on its flattop grill. The fries at the U come with a bevy of options: plain, with... More >>
• Best Whole Roast Chicken
  Nachomama's
  The myriad charms of Rock Hill Tex-Mex establishment Nachomama's are not hard to understand. It's easy to fall under the spell of the joint's unassuming but spot-on ambiance: the vintage country & Western on the radio, the beer- and soda-logo tabletops, the rainbow of fruity Jarritos sodas.... More >>