By Joe Pollack,
Relish: Food, Wine & Spirits in St. Louis, www.stlmag.com

Thursday, January 13, 2011 / 10:04 AM

Thirty-some years ago, when I was working and lunching downtown, a favorite spot was the grungy, tumble-down saloon known as the Broadway Oyster Bar, one of the most truthfully named places I ever patronized. After all, it was on Broadway, it served amazing oysters, and it certainly was a bar, frequented by newspaper types and others who could be considered equally grungy and tumble-down.

Dennis Connolly was in charge then, and the budget was grim enough that he hung a piece of carpet inside the front door to keep the chillest of winter winds outside. It didn't work very well, but the minuscule kitchen turned out the best oyster poor boy I've ever eaten. The secret was that the oysters were not battered and fried, but simply sautéed in butter and garlic, sometimes with some chopped green onion. The bread, hollowed out, was stuffed with the oysters and the liquid, the open end plugged with the chunk of bread that had been removed. When the sandwich was served, the juices were busily soaking through. The result was sloppy but glorious, especially for those who really like oysters and really don't care much about breading.

Fast forward a generation or a little more:

John Johnson is in charge now, an outdoor area has become a fixture on the south side of the building, and there's a real storm door. A few new posters have been nailed onto the walls, adding another layer of insulation, but the old days remain supreme, like a yellowed newspaper clipping from 1984, with my name on it. Mostly, however, it remains tumble-down and grungy, two of its finest attributes. In truth, the building is one of the oldest in St. Louis, site of many legends; there are stories that tie most of its history to the liquor trade. It also had upstairs rooms for weary travelers and sometimes offered companionship for the lonely.

But times change; the Broadway Oyster Bar has more kitchen space for chef Brad Hagan, along with a slightly expanded menu. Johnson has instituted festivals. A crayfish boil has been quite popular. In December, he had a Po' Boy (his spelling) Festival that offered nine different kinds of sandwiches including - shudder - a Thanksgiving po' boy that packed the entire traditional dinner onto a baguette, including roasted turkey, sausage stuffing, gravy, cranberry sauce and pepper mayo. It was quite a mouthful, but every part of dinner, except Uncle Charley's annual tales about his Marine Corps adventures in World War II, could be experienced in a single bite, and no one has listened to Charley since 1955.

If the Thanksgiving sandwich is an example of the Kitchen Sink school of po' boy ingredients, a companion is the Pot Roast po' boy, which included pulled pot roast, mashed potatoes, onions, carrots, celery and gravy. Roast beef, certainly related to pot roast, arrived with gravy that added sour cream, garlic, and horseradish to the beef, then was topped with caramelized onions, lettuce, tomato, red onion, pickle, and pepper mayo.

By the way, Johnson brought the authentic Leidenheimer bread from New Orleans, which certainly added splendid texture and flying crumbs to the event.

We believe that po' boys are best with seafood, but we made an exception for the Hot Andouille Sausage po' boy, which showed community with The Hill in that it combined sausage, peppers, and onions with the other fixin's, and added Monterey Jack cheese's wealthy cousin, "Monetary Jack," as the menu described it. That one was extremely tasty, with a nicely fiery pop from the sausage a fine companion to the onions and peppers (sweet ones).

We sampled several seafood po' boys, too, including BBQ Shrimp, with tasty shrimp soaking in the traditional Worcester sauce, butter, and cream. Perhaps not up to the classic from Pascal's Manale in New Orleans, but a worthy disciple. Shrimp also showed up on the NOLA sandwich with fried green tomatoes, house-made remoulade sauce, lettuce, onion, and pickle.

Deep-fried soft shell crab, always a favorite, was a delicious sandwich, the crab crisp outside, juicy inside, and topped with the same ingredients that arrive when you order a po' boy "dressed," meaning lettuce, tomato, pickle, and mayo. Marinated, fried alligator chunks, with remoulade sauce and blackened redfish completed the selections, though when we learned that the old-fashioned, sautéed oyster po' boy is available on request, we requested and oh, boy! was it superb.

Johnson said he was satisfied with attendance at the inaugural po' boy festival, and plans to repeat it, but not necessarily in December. "I'd like to have one every month," he says, "except in February, when Mardi Gras is all the festival we need."

Copyright 2011 St. Louis Magazine

March 21, 2011 5:10 AM

ST. LOUIS (KMOX)- While the Cardinals are trying to build a winner in Florida, some downtown bars are building additions in time for the new season.

The largest is at Paddy O's, where owner Chris Dorr says the $ 2 million expansion, including eight thousand covered square feet, topped by an eight thousand foot patio, will allow him to serve more Cardinals' fans, "We're definitely bullish on Cardinal baseball. The Cardinals draw from a multi-state area and those are our customers."

Dorr says the expansion also allow the bar to open on non-game days, "We can be a private venue for large private parties, graduation parties or birthday parties."

A few blocks to the east John Johnson is expanding his Broadway Oyster Bar's patio and kitchen to better serve the sea of red, "We're going to have two, three, four tables we didn't have before. And with a bigger kitchen we can expand our menu."

Johnson says after two strong years, despite the down economy, "Since we have been fairly successful in a down economy, I don't think it's going to get any worse in a growing economy."

To the north of the stadium, at The Hilton St. Louis Ballpark, work continues on a roof-top bar 26 stories up, that should open in July. General Manager Erich Smith tells KMOX, "It's going to be spectacular. A third of it's outside looking directly into the stadium. You'll be able to see the entire field except the very, very corner of left-field. We're bullish on downtown. We're bullish about the hotel and the success we're having, about the summer season and about the Cardinals too."

Copyright KMOX Radio

(AP): No matter where you live in the country, you've probably had the pleasure (and sometimes privilege) of tasting really great Cajun or Creole foods, whether eating shrimp ettouffee in New Orleans or warming up with gumbo at your favorite local restaurant; the regionally influenced cuisine has such heart, soul and flavor that it is crafted and enjoyed all around the country, including the lovely city of St. Louis. I found some great Cajun/Creole places around the city and highlighted some of their wonderful dishes.

With Cajun on my mind, I had to begin my journey with Broadway Oyster Bar, one of my favorite establishments that hosts New Orleans bands, crawfish boils, oyster festivals, and everyday fare from "The Big Easy." Having been to the Broadway Oyster Bar on a number of occasions, I had to admit to owner John Johnson that 90% of the time at his restaurant, I simply enjoyed raw oysters (and beer of course)... they're so good I could never get past them on the menu, even when I arrived with a plan to try something else. Well, this day was a new day... I had some fantastic Cajun and Creole dishes and learned a lot about their Louisiana philosophy. John frequents New Orleans, staying in tune with the food, music and culture, and I knew I was in good hands through a tour of their menu.

I started with their char-grilled Gulf oysters. Like I mentioned, I have very rarely made it past raw oysters, but I was excited to try these. They are shucked and put directly onto the grill, then flame grilled with garlic butter, spices and grated Parmesan cheese for just enough time to suck in that smoke and melt the components. Their rich smell enticed me to taste these slightly firm and meaty oysters; they were mildly briny, a little smoky and slightly indulgent because of the touch of garlic, butter and cheese. Even though I'm a diehard fan for oysters on the half shell, I am convinced that this is the bridge between raw and cooked and I will definitely be sure to fit these into my oyster rotation. And for those of you who can't get past the decadently smothered Rockefellers, this may be your bridge to the raw side.

Next on the menu at Broadway Oyster Bar was a shrimp Po'Boy, a simple dish but thought out to the last detail. Lightly battered shrimp sat among lettuce, tomato, red onion, pickles and mayo on Leidenheimer bread, the authentic Po'Boy bread brought in from a New Orleans bakery that specializes in French bread. The large sandwich, though intimidating in size, was delicious and surprisingly light between Leidenheimer, which was crispy and flaky on the outside and soft and delicate on the inside. It had that perfect crunch, including the lettuce and onion, and the lightly battered shrimp allowed a sweet meaty taste that came through the crispy fried coat. Their house made chips (a mix of yellow and sweet potatoes) were a delightful treat that also proved not to be too heavy or salty: they were thickly cut, expertly fried and a great accompaniment to a smart sandwich.

Next at Broadway Oyster Bar, I tried an off-the-menu (and an apparently soon to be on-the-menu) appetizer: an alligator sausage and shrimp cheese cake. Influenced by the recipe at Jacques-imo's in New Orleans, Broadway makes this savory appetizer with their slightly spicy alligator sausage, shrimp, gouda, Parmesan and cream cheeses. The dish looks like a quiche, but melted, allowing the cheese to ooze the ingredients out the sides of the pie slice of indulgent goodness. It was cooked to a beautiful golden brown, the cheeses were rich and the sausage added just enough zing; I definitely didn't come close to finishing it - so bring a few friends to help you out.

Lastly at Broadway Oyster Bar, I not only got to try some delicious, freshly boiled crawfish, but I also got a little tutorial on how to eat it "the right way." As crude as it may sound, the best way to eat a crawfish is to break off the head, suck the warm butter and juice out of it, then break away the shell around the tail meat, dab in butter and enjoy! The meat was sweet and delicate, and getting to it was actually easier than I thought it would be. Although a little bit of tail meat might not fill you up, the act of eating it is an experience in itself and proves to be very tasty.