ST. LOUIS (97.1 FM TALK) - Restaurants have struggled through 2020, with more than 50 local food joints closing for good due to the pandemic. Three places that are still fighting to stay open were spotlighted on a new list by Esquire magazine, called "100 Restaurants American Can't Afford to Lose."
St. Louis native Madison Vain was one of the writers putting the list together and she included Blueberry Hill, Cunetto House of Pasta and Pappy's Smokehouse.
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Here's why she picked them:
Blueberry Hill, in The Loop, will always have a special place in St. Louis' history thanks to its connection to the legendary musician Chuck Berry, who "played a monthly show here for 200 months in a row," writes Vain.
She calls Cunetto House of Pasta the "crown jewel of The Hill neighborhood. Although there are many locally famous Italian restaurants in the area – which the idea of losing any of them "fills me with dread" – she picked this one because of their toasted raviolis seem to stand out.
Pappy's Smokehouse, which has two locations in the St. Louis area, is relatively new but often named the best BBQ in the area. Vain writes that its food "most tastes like home" for her and says America needs its smokehouses and pitmasters more than ever!
Check out the full list on Esquire, here.