Meet St. Louis

Located in a storefront on Cherokee Street in South St. Louis City is a place where Reginald Quarles says all are welcome. Teatopia is a tea shop and café serving up nearly 100 varieties of tea. The business came out of tragedy, Reginald says he soon realized life is too short not to chase your dreams. So with the love of tea, and passion to create a safe space for all, he opened his doors in 2017. Seven years later and he’s still learning. But it’s all with the mission to serve his mission, brewing better lives one leaf at a time. https://www.teatopiastl.com/

When Steph Hampton started hiking with her kids, she never imagined she’d create an entire community of people who just want to get outside and explore. But that’s exactly what has happened. Her friends called her the park lady, now she inspires thousands to explore St. Louis and beyond. Her Instagram is Explore STL Parks, and she vividly remembers hitting 100 followers. Now she’s at almost 100K. We sat down with Steph, a mom of four, to talk about getting outdoors, the vast number of parks to explore in Missouri and Illinois and how to get over the fear or apprehension of taking your kids on a hike. You can learn more about the parks we discuss in this episode and how to join the family hiking group by heading to Steph’s Instagram page, @explorestlparks

Step inside Casa Don Alfonso at the Ritz Carlton in Clayton and your eyes are instantly drawn to the open kitchen. Inside, you’ll watch them craft and create fresh made pasta, on the walls are hand painted tiles. It’s all part of Mario Laccarino's mission to bring you to his homeland of Italy. To his family. The Italian restauranteur is in town from his home in Positano to visit his one and only restaurant in the US. And it’s right here in St. Louis. The Michelin-starred restauranteur sat down with us on the Meet St Louis podcast to share how he came to open Casa Don Alfonso in Missouri, where the recipes come from, and his favorite thing to hear from his customers when he visits.

Chef Mike Risk heads up the kitchen at Clover and the Bee and O + O Pizza in Webster Groves. He’s part of the O + O Hospitality family that’s found huge success with some of the best restaurants in town. But Mike got his story early in life, starting off in his first kitchens as a teenager. It was the iconic Trattoria Marcella that changed his life. Italian is his passion, and it’s what inspires his work at O + O. But a recent diagnosis with multiple sclerosis is changing everything. We sat down with Mike to talk about what it means for him in the kitchen, how he’s found balance over the years as a chef and a father and why food sparks so much joy for him.

Soulard Farmer’s Market is one of the most treasured and historic spots in St. Louis. It’s been in operation since 1779, when farmers would gather in the area to sell their goods. Fast forward to now and there are 146 stands with a waitlist of dozens of people who want to sell at the market in the heart of the city. This week, we sat down with the market manager Bob Ray and the co-owners of Soulard Spice Shop, Miriam Schnur and Dana Frenzel. The spice shop is one of the long-time vendors, selling spices since the 1920 and it’s always got a line on weekends when Soulard Market sees 10 thousand shoppers. We talk about the past, the present and the future of the market. The Soulard Farmer’s Market is open Wednesday – Saturday.

If you’ve driven down Manchester Road recently in The Grove neighborhood you might have noticed a new building with a big N-G on the outside. Inside is a unique greenhouse using hydroponic farming to grow the freshest lettuce around. Neon Green just opened, and owner Josh Smith hopes to make some big changes to the way we eat, think and grow our food. The St. Louis native moved to New York to be a set designer for television and movies, but the pandemic created a pivot. The pivot eventually brought him home to St. Louis to open Neon Green, a made-to-order craft salad eatery. We’re taking you behind the scenes in this week’s episode of how they’re taking farm-to-table to the next level.

Baseball is back, St. Louis. There’s nothing quite like Busch Stadium, and there’s no greater fans in baseball than Cardinals fans. And for 10 years, Ballpark Village has been the next-door neighbor to the one and only St Louis Cardinals. In celebration of the start of the season and to commemorate 10 years, we sat down with Mike Lamartina, the Chief Operating Officer, to talk about it all. We discuss the significance of the work-play-live concept of BPV, how they’re preparing to celebrate a decade in business and how they continue to grow and expand. Ballpark Village lives and breaths Cardinals, as well as sports in general in St. Louis, but they also have to think beyond baseball for many months of the year. You can find local favorites like Salt and Smoke, Katie’s Pizza and Pasta and Arch Apparel. The full calendar of events can be found: https://www.stlballparkvillage.com/events

Sugarfire is a BBQ staple in St. Louis. From their brisket to their wild named specials, there’s a reason they’ve been winning awards for over a decade. Now we had owner Mike Johnson on the Meet St. Louis podcast way back in the beginning. All the way back on episode 50. So now, on Episode 271 we’re revisiting the beloved BBQ spot. But this time were talking to the woman of Sugarfire. The 14th location just opened in Florissant, and it’s the first with a majority female ownership group. Corporate Chef Kat Wallace, Director of Hospitality Veronica Schuster and Operations Manager Montana Patterson. The three sat down to talk about working in a male-dominated industry, how they work together as a team and the launch of the first Sugarfire location in North County.

Jackie Price found a love of cooking when she was a young teen. And while she loved working in a restaurant, her true passion she found was teaching others. She saw a need in the St. Louis community for more hands-on cooking classes, and the Fennel Cooking Studio was born. Little did she know just how much of a demand there would be. Classes sell out and people are setting alarms to secure a spot when the new batch opens each month. We sat down in the bright and cheery classroom space of her Midtown St. Louis studio to talk about building her business, her favorite things about teaching, and a new partnership she has with the Tower Grove farmers market helping St. Louisians learn how to cook what's in season each week.

If you've been to the Tower Grove Farmer's Market, you've likely seen the line wrap around one of the booths. At the booth, you'll find bread, donuts, and hand pies. That's what Madeline Hissong started with when she launched her business Damn Fine Hand Pies. Despite the popularity, she still recalls with clarity her first customer. Now, Madeline and her business partner Gene Bailey are gearing up to open their brick-and-mortar bakery in the Shaw neighborhood of South St. Louis - just a few blocks from where it all began at Tower Grove Park. The two joined us on the podcast to talk pies and bread, the dreams and the challenges, and what you can expect from their shop. You can learn more and order from the bakery through their Instagram page: Instagram.com/DamnFineHandPies

Ice – it’s water frozen into a solid state. Seems pretty basic. But Jordan Goodman, who’s spent much of his career behind a bar, will tell you it can make or break drink. We sat down with Jordan at his soon-to-open cocktail bar and restaurant Good Company in the Grove Neighborhood of St. Louis. But we start the conversation with a focus on Good Ice. That’s the name of his company that crafts artisan ice for some of our city’s best bars and restaurants. A special process that creates crystal-clear ice. You might be thinking, how can you make a whole business out of ice? Well, you’re about to find out.

The idea 'Stay Civil' is one we could all use a little more of in today’s day and age. That’s the motto at the South City brewery Civil Life. Founded in 2011 by Jake Hafner, Mike Bianco and Dylan Mosley, the brewery is known for their malt-driven beers. Their best seller and crowd favorite is the Civil Life Brown. It’s a beer head brewer Dylan never imagined would take off in the way that it has. Dylan and Mike sat down with us inside the wood-filled cozy pub to talk about how it all began with home brewing and how it’s transformed into what it is today – a brewery with a solid food menu, classic beers and one of the best outdoor patios around. You know we love a good chat with St. Louis’ best brewers, we’d love to know where’s your favorite brewery in town. Let us know on social media – find us on Facebook and Instagram at Meet St. Louis podcast. And let us know what brewery we need to visit for our next podcast.

James Beard Award Winning Chef Kevin Nashan isn’t from St. Louis but after working at some of the best restaurants around the world, this is the city he chose to plant roots and open his restaurants. He took over Sidney Street Café in 2003 and incorporated his vision into the beloved Benton park restaurant. Now it’s synonymous with special occasions and considered one of the best restaurants in town. He opened Peacemaker down the street in 2014 with a different vibe and very different menu. Now he continues to grow his concept, partnering with 4 Hands Brewing and expanding to other states. Kevin Nashan shares his journey from a teenager working in his family’s restaurant to becoming a mentor to chefs in St. Louis.

Party Hop is sort of a one-stop shop for the big celebrations in your life. The owners – Ashely Detweiler and Ashley Roberts, started the company because they saw a need. They were moms planning tons of parties, and there wasn’t a super easy way to get all the fun products. So while their initial idea for Party Hop started with pre-made kits, it soon ballooned into something more. I say that because they’re really known for their balloons now. Something both will admit they had no experience with. In our conversation, that becomes a theme. These are two entrepreneurs that never let the idea of no experience stop them. They learned along the way and now teach others.

A desire for more is what launched Cathy Jenkins into a new career later in life. She was in the kitchen one day and decided she wanted to open a restaurant. It started right there, and now she’s about to open her second location of Cathy’s Kitchen. The first is a staple in the Historic downtown Ferguson area. It’s survived protests and shattered windows and a pandemic. Cathy says none of it would be possible without the love and support of the community and her family. That decision more than a decade ago has led to once-in-a-lifetime opportunities and celebrity friends. She shares the journey and some funny stories with us on this week’s episode.

St Louis loves fried chicken. It’s a lesson John Perkins learned years ago when he held a pop-up for a Southern concept that would eventually inspire Juniper. Last year he closed Juniper, the acclaimed Central West end restaurant and transitioned it to Sunday Best. Walking inside the restaurant, the changes might be subtle, but it's meant to be a more casual spot with the opportunity to expand and grow across the region. It’s not a change John made lightly, but it was one initiated by necessity. From starting off with underground pop-ups to the changing restaurant business and the perspective he’s gained over the years, we get candid in this week’s episode.

Stanley Brown and Frank Romano go way back. They’re long-time friends, former co-workers, and fellow Webster Groves restaurant owners. So it felt like a perfect fit when the corner at Gore and Lockwood, which housed CJ Muggs, became available. Stanley owns Robust Bistro and Wine Bar, and Frank owns The Parkmoor; both have worked in the hospitality industry in St. Louis for decades. They decided to bring their expertise together to create an upscale casual Italian restaurant. But they wanted to take Italian back to what it was meant to be, where everything is made from scratch and takes a more traditional approach. The result was Madrina which opened its door in November and is finding its rhythm in Webster Groves, a dining destination in the St. Louis region. We talk food, wine, design and longevity in this episode.

Hello Juice is a health-focused smoothing and juice bar with locations in The Grove and Kirkwood. Husband and wife duo Jen and Jon Maness took over the company in 2019. They’ll be the first to admit they jumped in without any real background in the health and wellness scene. Jon says he doesn’t really like fruits and vegetables. But the couple dove in head first, and despite challenges, they’re working to help people in St. Louis live a healthier life. With the start of the new year comes new year’s resolutions and we sat down at Hello Juice to talk about tips for finding a healthy balance, their advice for eating better and how their new food delivery service could help. Plus they get candid on the challenges of doing it all.

Happy New Year from the Meet St Louis Podcast. We can’t wait to continue sharing the stories behind the places you love in our region. It’s a new year, and there’s so much to look forward to. Including the opening of new spots around town. This week we sat down with Steven O’Loughlin, the president of Lodging Hospitality Management. LHM is the team behind many of your favorite spots in St. Louis and they’re expanding west. The company was behind the revamp and restoration of St Louis Union Station – bringing the aquarium and The Wheel and soon a few new attractions. They brought you 360 in Downtown and The Soda Fountain, and now both of those concepts will expand to Westport Plaza in Maryland Heights. We sat down with Steve to talk about the expansions and take us back to the beginning of his hospitality career, which started at Stouffers, a name many in St. Louis might recall and know now as the vacant Millennium Hotel. He’s been in the hotel and restaurant industry for decades and shares the ins and outs in this week’s episode. The new Soda Fountain at Westport is now open, and the new 360 is expected to open later this month.

From all of us at the Meet St Louis Podcast and First Alert 4, we wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy Holiday. We will be back in the new year with brand-new episodes. Thank you for listening!