Review: Monarch Restaurant & Wine Bar in St. Louis
Like most of you, I have noticed many St. Louis chefs playing musical stoves lately. Yes, it’s commonplace in the frenetic restaurant world. And yes, given the competitive nature of that world, restaurateurs work hard to lure good chefs. It’s true even at that Maplewood bastion of fine dining, Monarch Restaurant: Brian Hale left his head chef duties at Monarch this summer to oversee culinary operations at the Chase Park Plaza. Earlier this year, Chris Hoel, Monarch’s sommelier, left for Napa’s The French Laundry. Then Matt McGuire, of the erstwhile King Louie’s, joined Monarch as general manager. In September, Josh Galliano, the talented chef de cuisine at An American Place, took over Monarch’s kitchen. It seems time for another look.
Joe Pollack liked Monarch when he reviewed it in 2003 for this publication. So did I when I reviewed it for The Riverfront Times. After a couple of recent visits, I like Monarch even more. The restaurant still offers a number of dining options: the theatrical main dining room with its flowing drapes running across the ceiling, a private room adjacent the wine cellar, the chef’s table above the kitchen, and the more casual wine bar and bistro with separate menu (although you can order off the main dining room menu). So far, Galliano – known for his creative and sophisticated cooking using local ingredients – has made some big changes, including an ever-changing menu based on the availability of certain ingredients.
He reinvents oysters Rockefeller as two deep-fried oysters resting in brown-butter foam with shards of crispy bacon scattered atop. With a nod to the classic appetizer, the accompanying little round spinach sponges were soft but bursting with concentrated flavor. For Mrs. Beeton’s beef consommé, Galliano takes the 19th-century English recipe and brightens it with star anise and cinnamon (think Vietnamese pho bac). To the clarified beef broth he adds a couple of small glazed turnips, a dollop of creamy roasted bone marrow and floats crispy parsley leaves on top for a delicate yet complex elixir that enlivens the soul with its simplicity.
Both of these dishes display Galliano’s sense of balance regarding flavors and textures. The honey-roasted pork belly also riffs on a standard favorite: thick strips of belly atop a succotash of pattypan squash and crowder peas with basil cream and locally grown sprouts. Then there was the bowl of outstanding winter squash chowder laced with pumpkin seed oil, accented with sweet, crispy duck cracklins and anchored by a big hunk of duck meat. The only drawback was its lukewarm temperature.
When I was particularly indecisive one evening, the server suggested I try the tasting menu and then summoned Galliano to explain a few dishes he could put together. I stopped him at the roasted pheasant. Forget the tasting menu, I was now jonesing for an entire roasted pheasant! He had just procured a few of the birds to feature over the next few days, but said he could certainly roast one for us. Because my dining companion is not a bird eater, Galliano was gracious enough to serve only half the pheasant for me, saying he could eat the other half after work. Arriving first was a golden, succulent breast on top of a savory base of quinoa and salsify followed a bit later by the thigh served with a crunchy frisée salad. Such glorious serendipity! The non-bird eater enjoyed the grilled Illinois pork chop, a thick cut of pork accompanied by brussels sprout slaw, caramelized apples, Lacinato kale and dollops of mustard seed sauce. The server asked how she wanted her pork cooked, thankfully a trend that is catching on in area restaurants (she ordered it medium, perfect for the cut).
Monarch serves yellowfin tuna and diver scallops, but the walleye and barramundi were the fish a group of us sampled one night. The former, a clean-tasting mellow fish, was pan-roasted and came with a pancetta and salsify gratin, mushrooms from Ozark Forest and a bit of red-eye gravy. Barramundi, also pan-roasted skin-on, has a delicious mild-tasting white, flaky flesh. True to the Galliano style, the barramundi came with two versions of the same ingredients: Romanesco cauliflower and cauliflower purée, and Spanish Marcona almonds and almond milk foam. The farro risotto, with its slice of maple-glazed pumpkin, fondant leeks and pepitas, garnered lots of praise for its rustic good taste. Farro, a rarely seen whole grain from Italy, adds a delightful chewiness that rice just can’t provide.
Galliano has other plans for Monarch’s kitchen, giving us even more to look forward to. Sometimes when playing musical chairs, you hit the music just right.
