The intimate dining room at Pepe Kehm’s latest Mediterranean-inspired restaurant has a nightclub-for-grownups feel. Coastal regions of France and Italy like Provence and Calabria inform the menu’s affection for seafood. There are crispy smelt, escargot sauteed in bone marrow butter and baked oysters, but we enjoyed the octopus, slow braised with fennel sausage and bathed in a saffron broth, and admired the bouillabaisse being shared at a neighboring table. Traditional pizza is an option, but the pissaladières (“puffs” on the menu) offer a fun, puff-pastry based alternative with toppings including ratatouille or spinach and ricotta. The temperature-controlled wine system allows for wine pours starting at 2.5 ounces, inviting you to try several wines rather than committing to one.
1463 S. 18th St., St. Louis, 314.405.8500, rosestl.com
This article appears in May 2023.