BBQ chicken salad Archives - Good Food St. Louis

It was hard to narrow down this selection to just a handful of the “Best Things I Ate Last Year.” This was a good food and travel year for me. But here are a few things that delighted my palate at home and abroad. Some are old favorites and others are new.

Figs in Sicily

Pietro, owner of a small town restaurant in Sicily, talks with Robin in his kitchen while sampling a bowl of freshly picked figs—the most delicious I’ve ever eaten!

Café Provencal Onion Soup

This delightful French onion soup is a specialty at Café Provencal in Kirkwood. More than a warm bowl of goodness, it’s a game you play with the cheese.

Hiro Kale Salad with Lemongrass-Citrus Dressing

& Braised Pork Belly Buns

How do you create a kale lover? Order this salad with lemongrass and citrus dressing at Hiro in downtown St. Louis.

The Hiro braised pork belly bun is so fluffy and flavorful.

Bahn Mi So Tilapia Spring Rolls

These Tilapia Spring Rolls are so doggone fresh because they’re made-to-order by the owner when you arrive.

Fountain’s Chocolate-Dipped Orange Peel

I once had to wait ten minutes at Fountain on Locust for these to cool. It was worth every minute.

Sheesh Falafel

The chickpea and parsley combination perfectly prepared at Sheesh. The restaurant on Grand gets my “Chair of Approval” for some of the most comfortable seating in town.

Olio’s Roasted Cauliflower

They say we taste with our eyes first. No one understands that better than Chef Ben Poremba with this pyramid of Mediterranean flavors encircling a Roasted Cauliflower dish at Olio.

Pasta alla Norma

I fell in love with Pasta alla Norma in Catania, Sicily, this summer. ” The classic dish, described as a “big hug in a bowl, is made with tomatoes, eggplant and ricotta. You don’t find it on every Italian menu locally. I’m still looking to find one that compares to my memories. So far Anthonino’s and Giovanni’s have come very close.

Caramelized Pears and Gorgonzola Sausage

The sausage on the right is the Caramelized Pear and Gorgonzola; on the left is the Curry Sausage (also quite good, not spicy) from Wurst Haus in Hermann, MO. Sausages can be purchased on line; mine were deivered the next day.

Sicilian Caponata

A tasty Caponata. This wonderful eggplant dish was one of the fond treats I made myself this year. Hmm. . . time to do this again.

Cardwell’s BBQ Chicken Salad

This healthy, colorful, well-season salad is a big favorite at Cardwell’s in Frontenac shopping center and one I ordered often last year.

Nixta’s Taco de Carnitas de Borrego (Lamb Tacos)

This pulled lamb taco on a cauliflower-based tortilla made its debut at the pre-opening of Nixta, Ben Poremba’s newest restaurant.

Gus’s Fried Chicken

My first bite of Gus’s Fried Chicken was perfectly cooked and good to the bone.

On to the New Food Year!

Cardwell’s BBQ Chicken Salad, my lunch favorite.

One of my favorite salads is served at Cardwell’s in Frontenac Plaza. It’s their Chinese BBQ Chicken Salad with crispy greens, broccoli, daikon sprouts, peanuts, fried noodles and a marvelous peanut dressing. For those of you who like this sort of melange, you probably know that Panera Bread has a similar item on their menu. They jazz theirs with roasted corn salsa, tomatoes, and French fried onions.

But say you drop into Cardwell’s for lunch—though it’s best to make reservations for dinner. You have a variety of seating options: booth, table, bar, high table, community table, patio, small alcove, or private room. I know of no other place in town that offers such an array of choices. The menu is equally as varied running the scale from their flash-fried calamari to Fresh Peach Pie. This is a place where you can meet up with friends for lunch, grab a bite before a movie, or entertain out-of-towners.

A Food Sampler

The restaurant located in the mall just outside Neiman-Markus still looks smart and the food trendy though it’s been around more than two decades. Chef-owner Bill Cardwell continues to earn kudos for consistently serving fine food, much of it locally sourced.

Here’s a photo sampler of what friends and I have enjoyed at Cardwell’s recently. As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words. And, yes, these dishes were every bit as good as they look.