Photo by Laurie Skrivan (Post-Dispatch)
Cafe Natasha's
Cafe Natasha's is a cornerstone of the vibrant South Grand dining corridor. The Persian restaurant founded by Hamishe Bahrami and her late husband, Behshid, and now overseen by Hamishe and her daughter, Natasha Bahrami, is so essential to its neighborhood and the broader St. Louis dining scene that you might forget it isn't the original location. From the original Little Kitchen to today, the Bahramis' cooking has entwined itself in the fabric of St. Louis. Even for a newcomer to Cafe Natasha's or Persian cuisine in general, a meal here — kebabs, ghormeh sabzi, fesenjoon, beef tongue in broth — feels like a homecoming.
Hours: Dinner daily, lunch Thursday-Sunday (closed Wednesday)
Last year's ranking: Rest of the Best
Opened: 1983 (as the Little Kitchen)