This place has been a long time in the making, with a lot of fanfare during the process, so expectations were high. The chef, Michael Gallina, originally of Brentwood (co-owner with wife Tara), has an impressive résumé that includes key roles at a James Beard-awarded restaurant (Blue Hill at Stone Barns in Tarrytown, New York) and one ranked No. 5 in the world (Eleven Madison Park, NYC). The Gallinas’ restaurant and menu illustrate that those accolades mean something: talent and skill in the culinary arts. A place like Vicia celebrates the bounty that comes from the earth, the way our planet sustains us, and a reverence for what that means. Dining here is going to be about how a dense vegetable reduction can massage the flavor and texture of buttery soft Berkshire pork. Or how sautéed trumpet mushrooms temper the tangy bitterness of winter cress.
The wait staff will tell you the restaurant is ‘vegetable forward.’ Veggies are featured prominently in nearly every dish. On a first visit, the ‘entrees’ were complete plates of food. My Berkshire Pig ($24) had been slow-roasted to yield meat so tender, I simply cut it with a fork. A creamy spinach preparation was on the plate along with a wine-red vegetable reduction that extracted intense sweet and salty elements. Tangy turnip flowers, the green tops, were also part of the composition, adding texture, taste and visual appeal. It was indeed an elevated culinary experience.
Gallina has subsequently changed the format, focusing even more on vegetables and grains. Now all dishes are for sharing, so a table of two might choose three to share. That, plus a starter, would be enough food. Especially if you order the bread ($5). House-made, it contains Turkey Red wheat, a heritage grain that yields a spongy texture—hearty, moist and satisfying.
Our starter was the The Purple Top Turnip Tacos ($12), which are finely sliced rounds of turnips as the taco ‘skins’ filled with a mash of black beans, ‘nectarine hot sauce’ (a tangy, citrusy element) and crunchy bacon. We also sampled the Goose Egg ($6), creatively nestled among straw in a basket. Inside the egg shell is a scramble of white asparagus, bits of shiitake mushroom, cheddar and of course, the egg, which appeared to be a mix of poached and scrambled.
The Beef ($14 for a bowlful) was very tasty, arriving as a shredded stew of slow-cooked flavors, most notably salt and vinegar. It paired well with the Missouri Rice ($12), which had a lovely nutty texture and came dotted with ramps, bits of asparagus (it’s asparagus season) and onion flowers (yes, the tops of onion plants).
The Grilled Asparagus ($14) was prepared on the restaurant patio, where chefs work on made-to-order items over a wood-burning fire. Grilled alongside them were scallion-like ‘young shallots,’ and both greens sat near a small pool of fresh goat cheese and a puree of lovage (an herb). The idea is to present the vegetables in a starring role, but $14 for asparagus spears seems high, even for a shared dish. Our dessert, by pastry chef Summer Wright, was its own culinary journey, a combination of sweet, salty and savory. A buttery financier cakelet ($12) sat in a pool of salty caramel sauce with a slight onion flavor. A small scoop of ‘parsnip ice cream’ nearby was topped with a few sweet potato shavings. These were dried, salty and sweet, and very crunchy. It worked exceedingly well.
amuse bouche
the scene | Sleek, hip, urban restaurant
the chef | Michael Gallina
the prices | $8-$20 starters, $20-$26 entrees, $12 desserts
the favorites | Berkshire Pig, Hazelnut Financier, Missouri Rice, Beef, Bread
4260 forest park ave. | 314.553.9239
Pictured: Pastured chicken, a salt-crusted breast with strawberries and beets
Photos: Bill Barrett
