A few important notes:

1. The STL 100 is, by design, an egalitarian list. Yes, the restaurants in the upper reaches of the Top 25 are expensive, but most of the STL 100 honorees are not. Alongside special-occasion splurges, you’ll find barbecue, fried chicken, pizza, Mexican, Thai and Vietnamese cuisine.
2. Newer restaurants received as much scrutiny as older establishments. Maybe more. Case in point? Of the 10 restaurants on my list of 2013’s best new spots, three missed the STL 100 cut. One had already closed, but the two others — both of which were among the top five of 2013’s top 10 — have suffered after chef changes.
3. There are no legacy points, either. Just staying in business, building a loyal customer base and a local reputation, wasn’t enough to earn a spot on the STL 100. I dined at more than a few well-known restaurants that, while not bad, are clearly on auto-pilot.
4. No vast gulf exists between the restaurant ranked No. 25 and the Rest of the Best. At a certain point, choosing which restaurant would be No. 37 or No. 51 or No. 83 seemed arbitrary and unnecessary.
5. Restaurants that opened after Oct. 31, 2014, weren’t eligible for this edition.