Eat It, St. Louis

When you think of St. Louis food, the classics spring to mind: Provel, frozen custard, gooey butter cake. But there's more to St. Louis cuisine than that, as you can find out at this year's Budweiser Taste of St. Louis. More than 40 local restaurants offer samples of the savory, sweet, bitter and delicious styles of modern cuisine, from Italian to Thai and all points in between. New this year is the Beers of the World tasting area, which features a wide range of ales paired with food. And don't forget about the Chef Battle Royale competitions, as seven local chefs of note (plus one secret chef) duke it out foodie-style. The Taste takes over Soldiers' Memorial (Fourteenth and Chestnut streets; www.tastestl.com) from 4 to 11 p.m. Friday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday (September 27 to 29). Admission is free, but you'll need money for food samples ($2 to $7 per sample) and beer samples ($15 for five samples).
Sept. 27-29, 2013