Photo by Robert Cohen, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
HandleBar
HandleBar has been slinging food and drinks in the Grove since 2010, but in 2015, owner Tatyana Telnikova freshened up the menu of Russian fare (with assistance from chef Chris DiMercurio, who worked there briefly), and if you haven’t been in a while — or ever — you should stop by for a bowl of the pelmini, pork or vegetable dumplings in a buttery, complex vegetable broth accented with dill and, if you want heat, sambal. Other Russian fare includes both classic dishes (the crepelike blinchiki, pierogi) as well as fun mashups (a banh mi with smoked whitefish as the pâté, a flatbread with salmon, crème fraiche and caviar).
Last year's ranking: New
Opened: 2010
Must order: Vegetable or pork pelmini ($7 small, $10 large)