[romantic rendezvous]
Did you know that Wash U. has a bonafide fancy restaurant in its Danforth Center on Forsyth Boulevard? Named for former Chancellor William Danforth’s wife, Elizabeth, Ibby’s Bistro is offering a dynamite four-course Valentine’s Day feast on Feb. 14. Concepted to toast alumni who found the love of their lives on campus, the event also is open to the public, with two seatings and a $33 charge per person ($48 with wine pairings). To prevent a broken heart, reserve a table early at diningservices.wustl.edu or 314.935.3940.
February’s hottest ticket for chocoholics is Hermann’s Annual Chocolate Wine Trail (Feb. 21 and 22), featuring signature wines from seven wineries paired with decadent delights, including Chocolate Lasagna and Ginger, Pistachio and Chocolate Ganache Wontons.
[beyond the beads]
Foodies, grab your beads and indulge at the Soulard Mardi Gras signature food events: Wine, Beer and Whiskey Taste (Jan. 30), Lumiere Place Cajun Cook-off (Jan. 31) and Southern Comfort Taste of Soulard (Feb. 7 and 8). Mardi Gras revelers also can plan to party at Lake of the Ozarks Mardi Gras Pub Crawl (Feb. 21), Mid-Missouri’s largest Mardi Gras gathering.
[kudos]
Kaldi’s Ethiopia Dama, and Kakao’s Turkish Coffee Truffle captured top honors in their categories at the 2015 Good Food Awards held in San Francisco. The awards spotlight the best of American small-batch foods.
Pappy’s Rib Combo was annointed the tastiest BBQ in North America by the blog Chowtzer.
[the revolving door]
Business is booming with the opening of Insomnia Cookies’ second location on Delmar Boulevard, where it delivers cookies to the sleepless until 3 a.m. El Burro Loco now is bringing Mexican plates to the CWE, while Chef Tony Hilker oversees the eclectic menu mix for Winfield’s, the latest venture (in Kirkwood) by former Cardinal Jim Edmonds and partner Mark Winfield.
Trattoria Branica has closed in Frontenac. The smoke is clearing for WildSmoke, which is set to reopen soon with a new concept.
[bar food]
Perhaps you’ve noticed the new, all-natural, gluten free snack bars at Whole Foods with the unusual name: This Bar Saves Lives. Indeed, this is true because for every bar sold the company donates a lifesaving nutritional packet to help feed a malnourished child across the world. The initiative was started by actors Ravi Patel, Kristen Bell, Todd Grinnell and Ryan Devlin.
