Meet St. Louis

Chef Mike Risk heads up the kitchen at Clover and the Bee and O + O Pizza in Webster Groves. He’s part of the O + O Hospitality family that’s found huge success with some of the best restaurants in town. But Mike got his story early in life, starting off in his first kitchens as a teenager. It was the iconic Trattoria Marcella that changed his life. Italian is his passion, and it’s what inspires h...

Soulard Farmer’s Market is one of the most treasured and historic spots in St. Louis. It’s been in operation since 1779, when farmers would gather in the area to sell their goods. Fast forward to now and there are 146 stands with a waitlist of dozens of people who want to sell at the market in the heart of the city. This week, we sat down with the market manager Bob Ray and the co-owners of Soular...

If you’ve driven down Manchester Road recently in The Grove neighborhood you might have noticed a new building with a big N-G on the outside. Inside is a unique greenhouse using hydroponic farming to grow the freshest lettuce around. Neon Green just opened, and owner Josh Smith hopes to make some big changes to the way we eat, think and grow our food. The St. Louis native moved to New York to be a...

Baseball is back, St. Louis. There’s nothing quite like Busch Stadium, and there’s no greater fans in baseball than Cardinals fans. And for 10 years, Ballpark Village has been the next-door neighbor to the one and only St Louis Cardinals. In celebration of the start of the season and to commemorate 10 years, we sat down with Mike Lamartina, the Chief Operating Officer, to talk about it all. We dis...

Sugarfire is a BBQ staple in St. Louis. From their brisket to their wild named specials, there’s a reason they’ve been winning awards for over a decade. Now we had owner Mike Johnson on the Meet St. Louis podcast way back in the beginning. All the way back on episode 50. So now, on Episode 271 we’re revisiting the beloved BBQ spot. But this time were talking to the woman of Sugarfire. The 14th loc...

Jackie Price found a love of cooking when she was a young teen. And while she loved working in a restaurant, her true passion she found was teaching others. She saw a need in the St. Louis community for more hands-on cooking classes, and the Fennel Cooking Studio was born. Little did she know just how much of a demand there would be. Classes sell out and people are setting alarms to secure a spot...

If you've been to the Tower Grove Farmer's Market, you've likely seen the line wrap around one of the booths. At the booth, you'll find bread, donuts, and hand pies. That's what Madeline Hissong started with when she launched her business Damn Fine Hand Pies. Despite the popularity, she still recalls with clarity her first customer. Now, Madeline and her business partner Gene Bailey are gearing up...

Ice – it’s water frozen into a solid state. Seems pretty basic. But Jordan Goodman, who’s spent much of his career behind a bar, will tell you it can make or break drink. We sat down with Jordan at his soon-to-open cocktail bar and restaurant Good Company in the Grove Neighborhood of St. Louis. But we start the conversation with a focus on Good Ice. That’s the name of his company that crafts artis...

The idea 'Stay Civil' is one we could all use a little more of in today’s day and age. That’s the motto at the South City brewery Civil Life. Founded in 2011 by Jake Hafner, Mike Bianco and Dylan Mosley, the brewery is known for their malt-driven beers. Their best seller and crowd favorite is the Civil Life Brown. It’s a beer head brewer Dylan never imagined would take off in the way that it has....

James Beard Award Winning Chef Kevin Nashan isn’t from St. Louis but after working at some of the best restaurants around the world, this is the city he chose to plant roots and open his restaurants. He took over Sidney Street Café in 2003 and incorporated his vision into the beloved Benton park restaurant. Now it’s synonymous with special occasions and considered one of the best restaurants in to...

Party Hop is sort of a one-stop shop for the big celebrations in your life. The owners – Ashely Detweiler and Ashley Roberts, started the company because they saw a need. They were moms planning tons of parties, and there wasn’t a super easy way to get all the fun products. So while their initial idea for Party Hop started with pre-made kits, it soon ballooned into something more. I say that becau...

A desire for more is what launched Cathy Jenkins into a new career later in life. She was in the kitchen one day and decided she wanted to open a restaurant. It started right there, and now she’s about to open her second location of Cathy’s Kitchen. The first is a staple in the Historic downtown Ferguson area. It’s survived protests and shattered windows and a pandemic. Cathy says none of it would...

St Louis loves fried chicken. It’s a lesson John Perkins learned years ago when he held a pop-up for a Southern concept that would eventually inspire Juniper. Last year he closed Juniper, the acclaimed Central West end restaurant and transitioned it to Sunday Best. Walking inside the restaurant, the changes might be subtle, but it's meant to be a more casual spot with the opportunity to expand and...

Stanley Brown and Frank Romano go way back. They’re long-time friends, former co-workers, and fellow Webster Groves restaurant owners. So it felt like a perfect fit when the corner at Gore and Lockwood, which housed CJ Muggs, became available. Stanley owns Robust Bistro and Wine Bar, and Frank owns The Parkmoor; both have worked in the hospitality industry in St. Louis for decades. They decided to...

Hello Juice is a health-focused smoothing and juice bar with locations in The Grove and Kirkwood. Husband and wife duo Jen and Jon Maness took over the company in 2019. They’ll be the first to admit they jumped in without any real background in the health and wellness scene. Jon says he doesn’t really like fruits and vegetables. But the couple dove in head first, and despite challenges, they’re wo...

Happy New Year from the Meet St Louis Podcast. We can’t wait to continue sharing the stories behind the places you love in our region. It’s a new year, and there’s so much to look forward to. Including the opening of new spots around town. This week we sat down with Steven O’Loughlin, the president of Lodging Hospitality Management. LHM is the team behind many of your favorite spots in St. Louis a...

From all of us at the Meet St Louis Podcast and First Alert 4, we wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy Holiday. We will be back in the new year with brand-new episodes. Thank you for listening!

Driving down Kingshighway in South St. Louis City, you can’t miss the purple neon sign welcoming you to The Royale. The bar has been a St. Louis staple for almost two decades, but the building itself dates back to prohibition. It’s always been a place for people to gather, and that’s the vibe owner Steven Smith has fostered at his establishment. A place where all are welcome and feel comfortable....

Nyshaun Harvey developed a love of coffee at a young age. Her entrepreneurial spirit led her to open up her first coffee shop in 2020, now just a few years later the 26 year old has three shops. The original Latte Lounge in Florissant just underwent a remodel and her other two locations, one in Downtown St. Louis and the other in Ferguson are bringing the viral latte flights to a large audience. I...

The slogan at McArthur's Bakery is great mission, even better food. The bakery has been a St. Louis staple since the 1950s, but it almost ceased to exist. That's where Scott Rinaberger came in. He calls himself a serial entrepreneur, and he saw an opportunity when the beloved bakery went up for sale. To ensure its survival, changes has to be made. The historic nature of the business didn't work in...

The Scarato brothers own Anthonino’s Taverna on The Hill. It combines both their heritages: Greek and Italian, and even after 20 years in business, they're still the new guys on the block when it comes to this historic neighborhood. But they’ve made their stamp on St. Louis and beyond... in part thanks to Guy Fieri; His episode of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives still brings people from across the cou...

Tis the season for shopping, and this podcast is always about shopping local. Whether it's on Small Business Saturday or any day of the year, your effort to purchase from a local business can make all the difference. That’s the message John and Kelley Barr share on this week’s episode. The couple has slowly been renovating and revitalizing the Old Orchard neighborhood in Webster Groves. They own F...

The holidays are here, and you don’t have to do it alone. This week, we headed to Webster Groves to talk to Ann Marie Lemke and her daughter Kate at the Art of Entertaining. Ann started the company almost thirty years ago when she noticed a missing need in St. Louis: a place to buy prepared meals for friends who had a baby or for a sick relative. And decades later, while there’s a lot more options...

Bella Milano opened its doors 20 years ago in Edwardsville with family at the heart of the Italian restaurant. Two families joined together to fill a void in their community for a restaurant where anyone would feel welcome. 20 years later and two more locations, they’re still going strong, even as the food scene in the Metro East has expanded more than ever. We sat down with Craig Kalogerou and To...

Earlier this year, we went to St. Charles and sat down with the owners of Grandma's Cookies. Now we're revisiting this listener favorite.