October 20--Happy Birthday, Dan Steffens!

This post is long overdue, but I can't think of a better time to get to it. During the last weekend of the NEH Jazz Seminar I was visited by Birthday Boy Dan Steffens and a coterie of Brooklynites. His love for beer, baseball, and nights out on the town are only exceeded by his love for travel to new places where the beer, baseball and towns are all new to him. So, when he first heard that I was coming to the Lou to listen to jazz records, he checked the Cardinals schedule and the flight departure times, called a few friends, and faster than you can say Bevo the Budweiser Fox, he was up in the arch.

The view from our hotel room...the arch, the Mississippi, Busch Stadium.

Kelly, meeting people wherever she goes.

Noreen famously said that if you looking to go on vacation but have no money, head to St. Louis. In the course of a few hours, we went from going to a bar/restaraunt that offered a ridiculous happy hour (prompting us to order every appetizer they could drop into a deep fryer) to walking into a place on Laclede's Landing where everything was free. Seriously. Food, drinks. Everything. Free! I am not exaggerating. Free, as in no cover charge, no nothing. I don't even think they had a cash register in the place.

I have posted before about the unusual and interesing fare that make St. Louis a destination for the regular-guy gormand: Friend Ravioli, Gooey Buttercake, BBQ Pork Butt, Fitz's soda, strange pizza. But this might take the cake.

Ladies and gentlemen, may I present the Tavern Egg. Hard boiled egg, wrapped in pork sausage, corn meal, and batter, then deep fried. Even the waitress tried to talk me out of ordering it. But what can I say? Not too bad, especially with a few A-B products. Tastes like Easter dipped in Scrapple.




Note: All pictures by Noreen Steffens.