Gioia's Deli is an italian deli restaurant in The Hill, St. Louis.
A James Beard America's Classics winner on The Hill, Gioia's slices its house Hot Salami onto fresh-baked bread, a sandwich St. Louis treats as a rite.
Must order: The Original Hot Salami sandwich.
Tip: The Original Hot Salami is the order, made from Gioia's own fresh sausage. The line moves fast at lunch.
Address: 1934 Macklind Ave, St. Louis, MO 63110
Andrew Trinh reopened his family's longtime South Grand Vietnamese in the old Pho Grand space, plating familiar pho and rice plates with a cocktail program.
Order: A large bowl of pho dac biet with a side of summer rolls.
Tip: Order the pho dac biet; the Trinh family ran Pho Grand here for decades before relaunching the room as Grand Bistro.
A Cherokee Street taqueria with a sheltered patio, La Vallesana serves tacos al pastor, tortas and aguas frescas, an anchor of the Mexican Cherokee strip.
Order: Tacos al pastor with a chicken chipotle torta.
Tip: The al pastor tacos and the chicken chipotle torta are the orders. The patio suits a warm afternoon.
An Art Deco soda fountain in Grand Center, The Fountain on Locust pairs retro sandwiches and salads with ice-cream martinis and over-the-top sundaes.
Order: An ice cream martini and a sandwich.
Tip: The ice cream martinis are the signature; pair one with a sandwich. A good pre-theatre stop.
Baileys' Range griddles grass-fed burgers and churns house ice cream for boozy shakes, a build-your-own burger spot that moved from downtown to the Shaw area.
Order: A grass-fed burger and a spiked shake.
Tip: Build a burger and chase it with a spiked milkshake. The house ice cream uses no artificial ingredients.
Sugarfire serves creative, award-winning barbecue across several metro spots, from brisket and burnt ends to daily specials, a casual counter-service chain.
Order: Brisket, burnt ends and a spiked shake.
Tip: Check the daily special board; the brisket and burnt ends are the staples. Save room for a spiked shake.
Bogart's smokes its signature apricot-bruleed ribs in historic Soulard, torching the sweet glaze to order, a counter-service BBQ joint that draws long lunchtime lines.
Order: The apricot-bruleed ribs.
Tip: The bruleed ribs are the order to try. Come at off-peak hours to skip the line.
