Food & Drink
New Bakery, Enchanté, Joins French Culinary Corner at Main and Westport
By Kevin Collison The one-woman Frenchification of the angled intersection where Westport Road meets Main Street has an enticing new aroma, this one drifting from The Bakery, Enchanté. Heather White opened her French brasserie Tailleur at 3933 Main in August 2021 and her Parisian dessert bar Cheval at 3940 Main in September. Now, Enchanté has…
Historic Muehlebach Hotel Bar Reopening After 40 Years
By Kevin Collison The former Rendezvous bar in the historic Muehlebach Hotel, a luxurious watering hole where Truman Capote once worked on “In Cold Blood” and bygone businessmen talked deals over whiskeys and cigars, is reopening soon as the Voo Lounge. The old bar at 1214 Baltimore has been largely dormant since 1983, but thanks…
Aloft Hotel Opens at Plaza; Strang Food Hall Coming Next Door
By Kevin Collison The new Aloft hotel has opened on the north edge of the Country Club Plaza, bringing a contemporary vibe to the venerable shopping district that includes a spacious “re-mix” lobby anchored by the WXYZ Bar. “We very much believe in the unique environment of the Plaza, the experience is unlike anything else…
Jim’s Alley Bar Adds Cozy North Woods Vibe to East Crossroads
By Kevin Collison Jim’s Alley Bar, the new creation by the owner of King G, is about celebrating family roots and chilling in a cozy North Woods-feeling place with an ice cold yard beer served in a koozie. “It’s demographic is totally mixed at this place,” said Eric Flanagan. “We’ve had everyone from an older…
Wolfepack BBQ Sets Up Smoker in Columbus Park
By Kevin Collison A well-known Columbus Park landmark is reopening this spring as Wolfepack BBQ and its owners first order of business is soothing the neighborhood indigestion caused by its previous operator. “We want to have a neighborhood welcoming day to start things off on the right foot,” said co-owner Sam Parker. He and his…
Kata Nori Hand Roll Bar Coming to East Crossroads
(Editor’s note: This article was published originally March 1, 2022. The owner now hopes to open by early March 2023.) By Kevin Collison A new sushi place is in the works for the East Crossroads, this one specializing in hand rolls, a newer trend for serving the popular cuisine. Nam Phan and his partners plan…
River Bluff Expands River Market Craft Beer Scene
(Editor’s note: This article originally was published Feb. 2, 2022) By Kevin Collison River Bluff Brewing, the latest addition to the greater downtown microbrewery scene, expects to open in mid-February on a cozy street near the Town of Kansas Bridge at the foot of Main. “We feel like with Second Street, we’re in the heart…
Savoy Tea Brings ‘Tea Culture’ to Crossroads
By Kevin Collison The Arkansas owners of the new Savoy Tea Co. shop in the Crossroads are looking forward to brewing more interest in a beverage they believe remains relatively unappreciated and unfamiliar to many people. “We had traveled and had tea at different places and realized there was no place at home in Fayetteville…
The Parisian Café Life Comes to Westport and Main
(Editor’s note: This article originally was published on June 13, 2022) By Kevin Collison A Parisian-style cocktail and dessert café has arrived at the corner of Westport and Main, the latest creation by Heather White of Tailleur. Like Tailleur, which was inspired by a visit to a famed New York brasserie, White’s latest concept, Cheval,…
East Crossroads Welcomes Another ‘Artisanal Beverage,’ Hard Cider
By Kevin Collison Russ John of Brick River Cider Co. has a modest goal for his new place in the East Crossroads. “My mission is to support the fruit industry in the Midwest,” he said. And considering it takes about five apples to make a pint of hard cider, he’s going to need a lot…