I love St. Louis Food

I'm sure many of you know, but last Monday was the first night of Passover, and I was home in Memphis. Before the seder, for lunch, I wanted pizza. Now I don't actually keep kosher for Passover anymore, but it was still really important to me to have my favorite chametz (food with flour) dish before the start of this holiday. My mom entrusted me to go pick something up. I love frozen pizza. All kinds really. But that Monday I decided to go for the more upscale Digiorno. When I got home, immediately it went in the oven. Then as my mom started to smell it cook, she came into the kitchen and this is the conversation that transpired.

Mom: What kind of pizza did you get?
Me: It's not delivery it's Digiorno!
Mom: Good, I was worried you would get some of that Kroger shit.
Me: I love Kroger pizza! You know, I don't think I have any quality control when it comes to pizza.
Mom: Yeah, I think that's because you're from St. Louis.

Ok, so people either love or hate St. Louis style pizza. I am one of its ardent lovers. So much so that whenever I want pizza, I usually want it to have a crisp, thin crust (this is why I love Domino's - really good thin crust and Pete and Sam's pizza. They're originally from St. Louis). For those of you who have never had St. Louis style pizza before, let me describe. It has a very thin, crisp crust with a sweet tomato sauce and an amazing cheese concoction that you'll only find on this pizza. Provel cheese. Provel cheese is a combination of chedder, swiss, and provolone that was designed about 50 years ago specifically for St. Louis style pizza. According to wikipedia, "Provel was developed to meet perceived demand for a pizza cheese with a 'clean bite': one that melts well but breaks off nicely when bitten." And that's totally true. Haters of St. Louis style pizza often criticize the cheese the most. But I love it.

See just look at that beautiful, gooey wonder. At the end of February, I got a chance to go to St. Louis for admitted students day at Wash U Law School. Where I'm going next year! My mom made a business trip out of it, and my little cousin Danielle took the bus down from Chicago to visit. So the three of us got to play in St. Louis for the weekend! St. Louis is my birthplace and though I barely lived there, I remember the food distinctly. And eating the food again brought back so many memories. Immediately, I remembered summers in St. Louis playing in the backyard sprinklers. Anyways, the place to get this pizza is Imo's. There are other places. But I think Imo's is the best. We went for lunch and their lunch special is such a deal! Small salad, 8 inch pizza, and a drink for only about $7. You can't beat that.





And then we went to Ted Drewe's. If anyone has ever spent more than 2 days with me, they will quickly learn that I not only love frozen dairy products but have to eat them. Frozen yogurt, ice cream, gelato, you name it, I love it. But I think that love all began here in St. Louis with frozen custard. Ted Drewe's is on historic Route 66 in St. Louis and maintains that kitschy 50s feel. During my St. Louis summers, my dad and I would drive here in his '67 Ford Fairlaine and eat Ted Drewe's on the hood of his car. The custard alone is delicious, but the best treats are their concretes. Similar to a Dairy Queen Blizzard or TCBY shiver, Ted Drewe's concretes mix various toppings in the custard. My favorite combination is oreo mint. As soon as we got to St. Louis, we went to eat at my mom's favorite Italian restaurant then I begged like a 5 year old to eat at Ted Drewe's. And then I did that every single day. Hopefully, I'll have a little more self control when I actually live in St. Louis, but this frozen custard is to die for.