Cevapi are small grilled beef-and-lamb sausages served in fluffy somun flatbread with raw onion and ajvar. They are the heart of St. Louis's large Bosnian food scene around Bevo Mill.
Where to eat it: 1 restaurant across 1 city.
Cevapi arrived with the tens of thousands of Bosnian refugees who settled St. Louis in the 1990s, building the largest Bosnian community outside Bosnia. Centred on Bevo Mill and Gravois Avenue, Bosnian kitchens and bakeries made cevapi, burek and somun everyday local food. Balkan Treat Box in Webster Groves later earned national attention baking wood-fired somun for its cevapi, bringing the dish to a wider audience.
Common allergens: Gluten
Tip from the editors. A little baking soda in the mix gives cevapi their characteristic springy, juicy texture.
This is the TableJourney editorial recipe, modelled on the canonical bistro / counter version. The first place to try the dish in its city of origin is below.
Why locals love it: A suburban Webster Groves counter rather than a downtown name, Balkan Treat Box bakes wood-fired somun and cevapi worthy of a James Beard nod.
Tip: The wood-fired somun-based plates are the way in; lines build at lunch. A short drive from the city centre.
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