First photo by Cristina M. Fletes (Post-Dispatch); add'l photos sponsored by restaurant
Retreat Gastropub
One hundred restaurants seems like a lot, but narrowing the STL 100 down to that number is a difficult task, and there have been times over the past three years when I’ve wanted to say the heck with it (or language like that) and honor 150 or 200 places. But then I consider a restaurant like Retreat Gastropub, which in its first year and a half has made itself the standard-bearer for gastropub fare or modern American pub fare or whatever we’re calling it this week — you know, dishes like poutine (here with mushroom gravy), a burger with a fried egg (here with cheese sauce, too), a deeply satisfying but not budget-busting steak. Add in the strong cocktail program and overall enjoyable, if cozy, atmosphere, and Retreat made it easy to cast several similar restaurants into that mythical Top 200.
Hours: Lunch and dinner daily, brunch Saturday-Sunday (closed Tuesday)
Opened: 2015
Must order: Farmhouse burger ($14)