Review: The Scottish Arms in St. Louis

Scottish cuisine, compared to that of say, France or Italy, may be a humble affair, but The Scottish Arms has a way of making traditional fish and chips, pasties and even chicken soup affairs to remember.

The Leek Shall Inherit the Earth
Coming into the warm interior of The Scottish Arms from the frigid outdoors is like a bear finding its den. Nothing offers more comfort here than the cock-a-leekie soup. Butter-poached chicken, sauteed leeks, barley and carrots couldn’t get along more harmoniously than in this mélange of hearty, smoky flavor. My companion and I agreed – we have never been happier to part with $7 for a bowl of soup.

4 things scrumptious this way come
If you order the Highland Gathering smorgasbord, make sure your iPhone camera is working. The highly photogenic spread of four apps serves two to four, even sufficing as a complete lunch for two. The baby Forfar bridies are “baby” in name alone. The delightfully buttery, savory pastry pockets are stuffed with beef, onions, garlic and carrot. The Scotch egg is a hard-boiled egg coated in ground sausage, breaded and baked and served with a tangy honey mustard sauce. Smoked salmon, slick with irresistible fish oils, comes with chopped shallots, capers, egg, creme fraiche and crostini. Some of us prefer bagels and cream cheese to cradle this prince of fishes, but the Scottish way ain’t bad.

The fourth item, haggis fritters, will assuage your American terror of the sheep organ delicacy. The Scottish Arms grinds the lamb, oats and spices into a fine meal, rolls them into hush puppy-sized balls, breads them, and deep-fries them. These dense nuggets are served with a thin, sweet whiskey dipping sauce with orange and pepper notes that stack up well against the meat. Fair warning: The haggis possesses a greasiness that may rile sensitive taste buds.

Signature lunches
Shepherd’s Pasty, a twist on shepherd’s pie, is typical of the wintertime fare here: Braised lamb and vegetables are enclosed in a buttery puff pastry and served with mashed potatoes, gravy and seasonal veggies on the side. The gravy unites the meat and potatoes in savory matrimony. Bangers and Mash is a similar dish. House-made bangers, or pork sausages, have a sweet breakfast-sausage flavor and are served alongside a blend of roughly smashed potatoes and sauteed onions, cabbage, mustard and caraway seeds. More sauteed veggies to liven up the taters would have been welcome, though the rosemary and veal stock demiglace gravy still managed to unite all the players. The fish and chips stars tender haddock fried to a golden crisp in ale batter, the light touch of which was reminiscent of tempura. It was accompanied by an exceptional lemon-caper sauce akin to tartar, though much creamier and more subtle than the usual mayo clotted with relish goo. However, the chips, known stateside as french fries, needed a boost; they arrived pale and underdone.

The Afterparty
Cranachan, a dessert for scotch lovers, offers berries macerated in single malt layered in a parfait with Grand Marnier whipped cream and candied oats. It’s very sweet, very crunchy and very boozy. If you can get away with a wee dram during lunch, the scotch menu here leaves no stone unturned.

The Takeaway
Like the whiskey selection behind the bar, the Highland fare at the Scottish Arms will fortify you for the cold months ahead. Chef Carl Hazel’s hand in the kitchen is as bewitching as Macbeth’s three sisters, yielding a menu – including that cock-a-leekie soup – that sings like a chorus of bagpipes.