St. Louis Area Recommendation Needed
 

Mrs. Postnobills and I will be flying out to STL later this month for a surprise visit to our daughter who is in college there and celebrating her 21st birthday. We are looking for suggestions for a nice upscale restaurant, preferably in the Clayton/Ladue/Univ. City area, although something in St. Louis proper would also work.

Daughter is not big into beef; I believe she prefers seafood/fish/chicken, etc. Perhaps a nice Italian or French place with a decent wine list?

TONY'S. Nuff said. http://www.saucecafe.com/tonys/

One of the best Italian restaurants in the country.

Based on the location you're trying to stay near, I assume she goes to Wash U. Tony's is downtown but still only about a 10 minute drive from Clayton.

Tony's is awesome. If she's into Italian, it would be hard to pass up anything on "The Hill" (Cunnetto's being a personal fav. there).
Check out the Saint Louis threads in the Destinations forum of FT, and you'll find tons of comments on St. Louis eats that may prove insightful for you. Enjoy! And, of course, you HAVE to grab Ted Drewes for Desert.

Try Niche
 

I would go to Niche or Terrene. Niche is wonderful - a new restaurant downtown. $30.00 price fix...and terrene lins towards vegetarian...

Portabella
 

Portabella in Clayton is an independent restaurant with an award-winning wine list with an Italian & French cuisine. There are plenty of other elegant restaurants within walking distance. Or, try Harvest for seasonal menus with fresh meat and seafood.

Alternately, there are plenty of good restaurants in The "Italian" Hill area - like Cunnetto's and Charlie Gitto's. There are also some decent French-influenced and trendy restaurants in the Central West End area (near Jewish-Barnes hospital). All are a short drive from St. Louis downtown.

I assume that you are talking about Wash U. I was just out there the other day taking a look with my son. We stayed at the Ritz-Carlton and had dinner (twice actually) at the Crossing (in Clayton). It was quite good, albeit relatively high priced. I would recommend it. They have a website.

The restaurant at the Ritz-Carlton in Clayton is also good. Especially taking price into account, I would say that it rates as an average R-C dining room at best, but it's a pretty spot, the service is good, and you'd be satisfied.

I had breakfast there...not bad at all. In fact, it was far superior (my pancakes a la carte, that is) to the G'Town RC which one would think would be one of the best they have. I wrote a rough review of the hotel up in the Lux Hotels Forum though...not that impressed; very Marriott like.

Although I never went, my friend raved about Trattoria Marcella in The Hill area.

I second the Central West End as a very nice area to spend an evening, although it's a little on the chilly side this time of the year to walk around.

<-- Wash U alum :)

Interesting. I had dinner at the Georgetown R-C last week and have had drinks there a few times, and have been extremely impressed with the decor and atmosphere, while marginally impressed (I would say that it met, but did not exceed, my high expectations) with the food. I know that this is not the purpose of this thread, but I was considering staying there, so I appreciate the review!

All mentioned in earlier posts are great - Tony's, Tratoria Marcella, The Ritz, Harvest, the Crossing.

Another nice one is Sydney Street Cafe. It is in Soulard, near the Anheuser Busch Brewery. The menu changes nightly and is recited by the wait staff. It is diverse and the dishes are unique, but still something you want to eat.

The great thing about Sydney Street is that it is nice but not too stuffy for a college kid. The atmosphere is great.

You will need reservations and it is never too early to make them. Everyone I have ever taken there - work or family - has loved it.

Thanks for all the great suggestions - right now we are leaning toward either The Crossing or Tony's. I doubt there will be room for Ted Drewes afterwards, but we have had several prior occassions to enjoy that delicacy!

BTW, those of you who surmised that she is a WashU student are correct. aa4ever - I hope you and your son liked the school. Our daughter is getting a fantastic education there (as well she should be given the price of it!!).

Those are two great choices. if you are iDine people, The Crossing is on the plan, weeknights only. I have earned a ton of miles there!

I went to Wash U, and went to Tony's for almost every special occasion. Graduations (only one was mine), birthdays, formals, any excuse to eat there. I never had a bad experience there, and everyone who went with me was always impressed. You can't go wrong with any of the restaurants mentioned in this thread, but IMO Tony's really stands out from the rest.

At the very least, your daughter should eat at Tony's once before graduating from Wash U.

Great to know. I'll pass on your compliments to him! Thanks