Indo blends Thai flavors and Japanese techniques in Botanical Heights

Sauce 75: the essential St. Louis restaurants right now

Sauce’s Best New Restaurant of the year in 2019, Indo in Botanical Heights blends a unique combination of signature Thai flavors and classic Japanese techniques with a wild sense of fun. The Isaan hamachi – arguably Indo’s signature dish – is a useful cipher for understanding the restaurant’s genius. Salted hamachi (yellowtail) sashimi with coconut naam pla (a sauce made with chile, garlic, fish sauce, fish caramel, coconut milk and a lot of lime), roasted chile oil, Thai kosho (a paste of Thai chiles, Thai basil, lime, palm syrup and fermented fish paste) and candied garlic is a feast for the eyes and senses. The cabbage salad is another favorite: funky, sweet and savory at the same time with tamarind dressing and candied peanuts. The long list of temaki (sushi hand rolls) and creative bar menu are not to be missed. This juggling of the simple with the bold, the elegant with the aggressive, is the red thread tying Indo together. 

1641D Tower Grove Ave., St. Louis, 314.899.9333, indo-stl.com

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The Sauce 75 is a photomosaic of the best in St. Louis dining in 2024. This list is a celebration of the diverse skills, techniques and culinary traditions that meet across our region. In sum, it tells a story about where St. Louis has been, where it is now and where it’s going next. Many great and good St. Louis restaurants have not made the cut. (Seventy-five is a lot fewer than you think!) Restaurants are constantly growing and evolving and go through ups and downs. Newly opened restaurants can take time to find their feet: There are a few exciting new places we’re cheering for, but which we feel haven’t yet fully hit their stride. Read the entire list here.