Tuesday, May 3, 2011

St. Louis Foodie Finds: Five Bistro

When my parents were in town, Greg and I decided it would be fun to do a fancy dinner out one night.  Well, let me tell you, St. Louis is a serious foodie city.  After calling several restaurants that were already fully booked for Saturday night, I was starting to think we were going to have to eat at 5:00 with the early bird crowd or at 10:00 when all the servers were ready to go home for the night.  Then I struck gold with a call to Five Bistro.  Although Greg and I eat out quite a bit, this place was a real treat for the holiday weekend.

Nestled in a corner lot in The Hill neighborhood of St. Louis, Five Bistro was a welcomed escape from the recent string of torrential downpours and tornadoes that had been tearing through the area for over a week.  The atmosphere was upbeat and chatter filled the room - I think everyone was just happy to be out for once!  The one and only downside of our experience was the very loud and overly obnoxious group of six drunks dining next to us - you know the ones that want to relive every funny thing that ever happened to them and just how funny it was.  Anyway, I digress.

We were greeted with our very knowledgeable and friendly server, Nancy.  She walked us through the menu, describing Five's mission to use locally sourced, in season ingredients.  In the end, my mom and I both decided to go with the four-course prix-fixe option while my dad and Greg chose their own entrees and shared everything else with us.

Our meal began with a complimentary amuse bouche of a savory cream puff filled with smoked trout mousse.  It was the perfect way to start off our meal.  Next came our appetizers.  The table shared the salmon tartar with crispy water crackers and the paper thin beef carpaccio.  Both were delicious and the servings were just the right size.  For the next course, Greg and I shared the nettle soup and my parents shared a salad made with local greens.  Next came our entrees.  My mom and I both ordered the veal with polenta which was excellent.  Greg devoured the trout special which came with roasted sweet potatoes and mixed veggies, and my dad enjoyed the roasted half chicken with vegetables.  I should have taken notes on what everyone got because the menu changes on a daily basis, but just know that it was good!  Finally, we ended the meal with a four layer chocolate dessert and my personal favorite, sweet honey goat cheese sandwiched between crisp sugar cookies, a perfect end to the perfect meal.  We had a great experience at Five Bistro.  The food was excellent but I believe having a great server that really knew the menu and treated us as if we were her only table really elevated our dining experience.  Thank you, Five Bistro, for a wonderful night out in St. Louis!     

Five Bistro
5100 Daggett Avenue
Saint Louis, MO 63110
(314) 773-5553

8 comments:

  1. I have heard great things about Five - glad to know you had a good experience. I'll have to get there soon!

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  2. sounds like a great night! i hate going to restaurants when the servers are ready to go home. makes me feel rushed!

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  3. That sounds delicious! Out of curiosity, what were the first places you tried? I need to build up my list of restaurants to visit when parents are in town as well :)

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  4. Hi Katie, I'm still new to the area so my list is limited but I've heard Niche is really good. I also tried a place called Farmhaus and they were completed booked too! I think I googled "best st. louis restaurants" and went from there. Hope this helps! Let me know if you find any hidden gems:)

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  5. Sounds like a very unique and varied meal! Thanks for sharing!

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  6. i've been wanting to use shaved asparagus too! must try that out!

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  7. We've been there for lunch! http://www.thesweetslife.com/2011/02/best-of-2011-five-bistro.html I enjoyed it--you should go back for lunch and try the burger, I still need to do that!

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  8. Ohh, Natalie, I loved your review, I am still getting up the courage to take pics when dining out, I am such a wuss, haha!

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