Dining tours were a big trend last year, and it looks like there's another one on the scene. F&D Prime Culinary tours will launch this weekend with several sessions with Comet Coffee (5708 Oakland Avenue; 314-645-7158).
See also: Dinner Lab Experiments With Underground Dining in St. Louis
"We have been friends for quite some time, and one of the things we bonded over was our love of food," Evan Jones says of his cofounder, Adrian Walker. "We wanted to be able to share different food experiences with our friends and the community and St. Louis as well."
For the first "tour," you'll sit down with the staff of Comet Coffee and enjoy four seasonal brews paired with seasonal fruit and pastries. It's perfect for the coffee novice -- yes, coffee has different flavors that can change based on external factors, just like wine. It's good for the coffee nerd, too: F&D and Comet will discuss harvests and beans and brewing.
"Coffee's one of those things where I think people gloss over the fact that it is a fruit, it's not just a flavor. I got really excited to show people what coffee can be and what the differences [are] depending on where it's grown, the altitude, etc. coffee," Jones says.
Jones wouldn't spill what the next F&D showcase will be, but he says he and Walker are trying to incorporate media somehow, since they both have a background in it. As for the name? It was inspired by the iconic FDA Prime beef labels -- F&D stands for food and drink, of course.
There are six sessions with six spots each this weekend, beginning Friday, September 12. Tickets are $15 each for four seasonal coffees, fruit and pastry, available here.
"We both grew up in St. Louis, and we're really excited about the city and the food scene that is here," Jones says. "We're looking forward to sharing that with other people in the city."
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