Review: An American Place in St. Louis

When Larry Forgione came to St. Louis to open An American Place in the elegant space that had served as the lobby of the Statler Hotel in Downtown St. Louis, it was a first for River City – the first time a chef with a national reputation had moved here to open a restaurant. The Guru had enjoyed superior meals on several occasions at the first An American Place, now located on Lexington Avenue in New York City, and had happily sampled some mail-order jams and other items from the catalogs of American Spoon Foods, another of his projects.

I was looking forward to the opening of his Downtown restaurant, in the beautiful Ninth Street Lobby of the old Statler Hotel (now the Renaissance Grand Hotel), a room with high ceilings, a lovely bar and a general feeling of warmth.

And I was not disappointed.

Several visits brought excellent, imaginatively designed and prepared meals, all served properly and with the aromas and flavors of the American Heartland. In the style set for St. Louis by Andy Ayers and Dave Owens, and continued by others, Forgione has an appreciation for American fare. In a generous touch, his menu lists those who grow the food, raise the cattle, catch the fish and make the cheese, and the suppliers range from Maine to Hawaii, though most are from Missouri and Illinois. For those who are interested, most of the farmers and ranchers have Web sites and offer their treats for sale. It's a list that will undoubtedly change with the seasons, and I'm looking forward to spring.

Speaking of cheese, one of the things that sets An American Place apart is the excellent cheese selection, and the knowledge and skill of the servers. A dinner companion one night asked about cheese, and a server spent ten or fifteen minutes discussing the many types, answering questions and serving them. A splendid course, served properly and highlighting a couple of varieties from the Cowgirl Creamery in Point Reyes, Calif.

Entrées at An American Place are more than just a piece of meat or fish and a starch and a vegetable to go along. Between Forgione and John Griffiths, his executive chef, there's a world of flavors and textures to fill out the dish, where the meals always are delightfully displayed.

On one visit, the menu showed mushroom ragout, wilted greens, sweet onions, chestnuts, beets, savoy cabbage, sunchokes (also known as Jerusalem artichokes), Swiss chard, lentils, carrots, butternut squash, parsnips, Brussels sprouts, corn pudding, runner beans, spinach and celery root as accompaniments to a variety of entrée selections. Each was selected to complement the meat or fish, but I'm certain that a polite request could have brought a sample of something else. Oh yes, the potato varieties included baby new potatoes, fingerlings, baked Yukon golds, mashed German butter potatoes and gnocchi. It's an impressive list.

Forgione prepares St. Louis spare ribs, which are a special trim of the rib and not a sauce or a cooking style, and they were delightful, served boneless in Bibb lettuce leaves to keep the fingers less messy. The ginger-plum glaze added the proper note of piquancy, and an apple-fennel-radish slaw was another pleasing contrast. The ribs themselves were tender and delightfully smoky.

Roast oysters were another winner, arriving hot on the half shell, yet still plump and juicy and with a smoky flavor that was unusual and delicious. A tamale stuffed with barbecued duck was outstanding in ground corn flour and topped with a tangy adobo sauce. A mixture of calamari and rock shrimp, fried lightly and still crisp and dry, arrived piping hot. Oysters of various types are available, and a splurge of osetra caviar from California is available for that special date.

Soups arrive hot and tasty, with butternut squash bisque showing delicate, light flavor, and the soup of the day on one visit with a glorious eastern European borscht, dotted with chunks of duck and bison meat to add to the hearty warming quality.

Main courses were equally varied and delicious, though we found the kitchen timing a little off in terms of dishes showing up at different times. Unless I'm in a hurry, or have a later appointment, that's not a big deal for me. Dinner is a social event, no matter what the size of the party, and good conversation always comes first. There were a few delays in the car-parking arrangements, and cars waiting for valets cause some moments of panic in the midst of Washington Avenue traffic, especially when the buses come along. Parking is free, however, which makes problems easier to face.

The Missouri strip sirloin was elegant, cooked to the perfect point (the point where you want it cooked always is the perfect point) and accompanied by a potato-bleu cheese dumpling and a mushroom ragout that were glorious companions. Alaskan halibut was another winner, as was lobster ravioli, delicate as a cloud and threatening to float right off the plate. A duck breast, topped with a cherry-maple glaze, suffered a bit from the maple adding a bit too much sweetness, but the bird was flavorful and tender. A pork chop arrived full of flavor and splendidly cooked, and a hit of juniper gave the pan juices a slight hint of gin.

The wine list is good, with enough selections and a good range of prices. There is so much wine out there these days, at such a wide range of prices, that it's almost criminal not to have a wine list that is satisfactory in all respects.

Dessert – especially the pumpkin brûlée and the apple crêpes – was right in line with the rest of the meal. An American Place is a welcome addition to the list of high-class Downtown restaurants, and our city needs more of them. There simply is no excuse for not feeding a visitor to River City in superb style, and even if it's on the high end of the price scale for St. Louis restaurants, An American Place is well worth it for a celebratory dinner.