Yen Ching

          “What’s next?” You ask. Well, now it’s time to take a look at my FAVORITE Chinese restaurant in St. Louis, Yen Ching. With a great atmosphere and even better food, this family-owned restaurant tops them all.

            When you first walk in you’ll immediately feel welcome. There’s no wait for tables, so you will get seated and quickly served. For a starter, I got the sizzling rice soup. On my first sip, I was stunned. It’s perfectly flavored with green onions and an amazing broth that’s too good to put in words. I also had a cup of herbal tea to go with the relaxing atmosphere. It was a great, and not too stuffing appetizer that kept you anxious for the entrée.

            I ordered something that I had never tried before, but really wanted to. Smoked and deep fried duck. My dad went with the Mongolian Beef (Thumbs up!). Our food was served not too long after we ordered. Well, at my first look, I knew it would be different from anything I had ever tasted. My first bite and… Wow! It was almost indescribable. I had a thick, juicy taste that I think related to the taste of turkey. You’d have to try it to get a good idea of what it was like. I recommend trying it next time you go to Yen Ching. Now, of course I had to try the Mongolian Beef. Definitely worth trying! It had a thick and juicy texture, sort of like the duck, but had a distinctive and great teriyaki taste that made your mouth water. As we finished up our one-of-a-kind meals we got to meet the owner of the restaurant, Jay. He told us all about the business, and how it had been running. It was a great way to wrap up our meal.

            In a nutshell, Yen Ching is easily one of the best Chinese restaurants in St. Louis. It’s always welcoming and, of course, serving great food. So next time you’re looking for an awesome meal, lunch or dinner, Yen Ching will always be a wise option.

Spaghetti with Roasted Onions and Clams

Sillyfamily homemade!  Sillybro chopped the olives, oregano and cherry tomatoes.  :)

Exceptional Dining in Cottleville, MO--Stone Soup Cottage

In an unassuming little restored 1850s farm house in the heart of Cottleville is a treasure.  This is a full-on, polished, sparkling jewel of a place that seats under 30 diners a night, only a few nights per week.  The exclusivity is, of course, part of the appeal.  You can't just walk in--you can't even make a reservation this week--or this month.  You generally need to plan three months out for your visit to Stone Soup Cottage.  We made our reservation in April for mid-June--and it was absolutely worth the wait.

The interior is cozy, intimate and candlelit.  Only seven tables were set the night we visited.   It's as if you're visiting a friend's home for a lovely dinner--only your friend happens to be a gifted gourmet chef with a vision.  Chef Carl McConnell's vision includes only the freshest, seasonal ingredients which he composes into a 6-course tasting menu each night.  The concept is genius.  One menu, one seating=no waste.  Every beautiful bite is savored and enjoyed as it should be.

We chose a wine-pairing to compliment our meal, which began with an Amuse Bouche and a flute of champagne--bonus!  The first (official) course was a chilled lemon-basil soup finished with blue crab.  It was the perfect light refreshing summer starter.  The blue crab was rich and delicate.  The soup was paired with a 2009 Stellenbosch Chenin Blanc from South Africa.

Next up: a warmed eggplant and smoked tomato tartlet, featuring locally-grown produce.  It was served with micro-greens and shaved gouda.  The portion size was perfect, just enough to fire up our appetites for the next round.

The third course was pan-seared Digby Bay scallops--oh heaven--served with a champagne sabayon.  Scallops are a weakness of mine and these were perfectly fresh and perfectly prepared.  They were paired with a 2009 Paul Mas Picpoul de Pinet from France.  Chef Carl came out to serve the course and received our rave reviews.  By this time we were absolutely enchanted with Stone Soup Cottage and by the end of the meal, I was planning our next visit.

Our fourth and fifth courses brought potatoes mousseline with shaved black truffles (pure indulgence) and tournedos of beef with bearnaise and summer vegetables, paired with equally wonderful Sonoma valley wines.

And I have to mention the perfectly tangy, light and sweet lemon curd with Chantilly creme, that was presented in a dark chocolate shell for dessert.

Nancy and Carl McConnell were the perfect hosts and clearly have a passion for food and take so much pride in what they do--as they should.  By 10 pm, we were fed, relaxed and happy and I was once again struck by the brilliance of this concept.  One seating allows the small staff to know exactly when the dinner service ends--there are no hangers-on, no parties waiting for a table--they've perfectly streamlined the operation.  We were perfectly impressed.

With that said, I suppose it won't surprise you that we have THREE more reservations on the books for Stone Soup Cottage--two in September and one, to celebrate our 15th anniversary, in November.  This is my highest recommendation for your next special occasion, celebration, or when you just want to treat yourself to one of the most exceptional meals in the St. Louis area.  Check out their website right now and pick a date--tables are filling up fast!

www.stonesoupcottage.com

Fried Candy Bars!

Now THAT'S SILLY!
Sillybro requested a fried Snickers bar for his upcoming b-day.  We thought it would be even better on a stick, because...what food ISN'T more fun on a stick??  So, we dipped a Fun-Size Snickers in tempura batter and fried that bad boy up.  We decided it tasted a little like a Snickers in an ice cream cone.  We also dipped some Fun-Size Milky Ways.  They come out with centers like molten lava--delicious. molten. lava.  Mmmmm...

Turkey Club--Satchmo's Bar And Grill

Looked so good in the menu picture, I had to order it!  Happy to say, it did not disappoint!  Sillymom gives Satchmo's the Silly Seal of Approval!

PLACES WE LOVE: Young's Restaurant and Ice Creamery

This review is a long-time coming.
If the Sillyfamily had a Top-10 List, Young's would definitely be on it.  We visit the family-owned Valley Park restaurant about once a month.  Here's why:

*It's family-friendly.  You can bring the kids, bring your friends, bring your friends' kids...you never worry about whether your baby is fussy or the kids want to walk up to the counter and order their own ice cream. The trains that pass by regularly are a bonus--the kids love to hear them, see them and count the cars.

*The chicken is AMAZING.  I challenge you to find better fried chicken in St. Louis.  They were recently voted "Best Fried Chicken" in the Riverfront Times.  The coating is perfectly crispy and the chicken is perfectly juicy.  I'm told that the fried fish is also yummy, but I never stray from my favorite chicken!  The french fries are equally golden-brown and delicious (GB&D in chef Alton Brown-lingo).

*The ice cream is WONDERFUL.  My *personal* favorite is a little treat called a "cherry chip concrete".  I can't find it anywhere else in town.  It's a cherry shell topping (like Magic Shell, but cherry) mixed into their vanilla ice cream and topped with more cherry shell.  Let me say this...during one of their battles with eminent domain, when Young's had to close their doors and eventually move across highway 141 to their current location, I called, several times a year, for 2-3 years, hoping to find they had re-opened so I could get my fix of cherry chip.  No lie.  :)

*The family is WELCOMING.  Grant and Sibyl Young are always behind the counter and behind the fryer.  They're always glad to see you & there's a real sense of small-town familiarity.  It's a nice change, in a chain-restaurant world, to find a family that has kept a legacy going for over 50 years and really seem to love what they do.

Young's also caters--we order fried chicken, pasta salad and a gorgeous fruit platter with chocolate dip every year for our Indy 500 party and it is always a hit!

This is a Sillyfamily favorite indeed--and you should make it one of your own silly family favorites!

Sillymom wants you to know: Whatever you do, DON'T put this in your nightstand! You'll eat it all before bed!

The "Mom's Mix" is a diabolically delicious little snack.  OMG.  You can find it, among other places I'm sure, at Sweet Be's on Manchester in Des Peres.  You're welcome.


http://www.momsoriginals.com/