Photo by Katherine Bish
Cielo
Cielo Restaurant & Bar, on the eighth floor of the posh Four Seasons St. Louis, switched chefs during the first half of 2014, though as far as these things go, this change wasn’t at all dramatic. Fabrizio Schenardi, the Italian native who’d received much acclaim since taking the reins of the Cielo kitchen in 2008 (including a three-star review from the Post-Dispatch), left to open a new Four Seasons property in Orlando, Fla. His replacement? Italian native and Four Seasons veteran Gian Nicola Colucci, who even hails from the same Italian town as Schenardi. The menu continues to reflect a modern, upscale-rustic approach to Italian cuisine — though, this being a Four Seasons restaurant, the emphasis is on the upscale: ravioli stuffed with duck that has been braised with citrus and herbs; eggplant Parmesan served with Australian lamb chops; a $65 dry-aged rib eye. The grilled octopus with white-bean salad and sun-dried-tomato relish is one of the better local treatments of that recently uber-trendy seafood.