stlbites.com – st. louis food blog of bill burge

Erato, A Tale of Sea Bass

Nov 5, 2007 Illinois, restaurants, reviews

Ian seems to like it, Bonwich felt mostly the same, and Sauce gave their chef an awfully nice write up/interview. Add to that the suggestions by Wayno on Chowhound and Matt at 222, and at last, so as to break up my apparent love letters to 222 Artisan Bakery, I will skip clean over their open house and mention that we got around to something we’d been meaning to do for a long time.

Saturday night we finally went to Erato. And while I must preface this with the fact that it certainly didn’t hurt that Matt slyly called before we headed down to tell Chef Kevin Willmann to take care of us, I’m definitely inclined to agree with all of the above people. There is a clear effort by Erato to raise the bar of St. Louis dining, and although it was a bit of a whirlwind as we were already somewhat stuffed full of pastry when we arrived, I will quickly tell you about our meal.

First we had the Fresh HOUSE MOZZARELLA bruschetta. Simple house made mozzarella was topped with fresh tomatoes and a reduced balsamic drizzle. While I like my bruschetta a little thicker and as a result less crunchy and crostini-like, the house made mozzarella was a nice touch, and brought back memories of my having to make it at Truffles. Theirs was awful, never salted enough, and filled with dried herbs. Kevin’s was really nice. Salt is key when making cheese, and he knows it.

Sweet potato “NACHOS” + blue cheese, hickory back lardoons, & red pepper ketchup were incredibly hearty for what really amounted to a finger food. The ketchup had a bit of a barbecue sauce like flavor as most non-Heinz ketchups generally do and I’m curious to know if it was exclusively red peppers. I didn’t think to ask. Also, I’ve no idea what kind of blue cheese they used, but it was incredibly potent and had a real Roquefort or gorgonzola like grit to it. If you’re not a fan of really strong blue cheese you might be put off by this as it was the dominant flavor followed by the ketchup. Even I, a big fan of strong blue cheeses, felt it would have been perhaps a touch better with a less pungent blue like Point Reyes. Overall though, it was an interesting and fun riff on an American standard and one I’d happily eat again.

Next we had Roasted PEAR, PROSCIUTTO, & Hartland Creamery goats cheese crostini + local mizzuna & balsamic reduction. This was my second favorite thing of the night. I really like the simple clean flavor combination of salty prosciutto and sweet fruit. I wish more people would be confident enough to serve such simple fair. I did feel the pear was maybe a touch undercooked for my personal taste, but it wasn’t like the ridiculously raw one from Lumiere Place at the taste of St. Louis and didn’t particularly detract as they were very flavorful pears. (it’s actually Heartland Creamery though)

Fennel pollen seared SCALLOPS + grilled corn ice cream & bacon dust was the first of the two items that really impressed me as they are a clear indication that Willmann is definitely trying to raise the previously mentioned bar by adding to the mix a little adventure. Ellie really enjoyed the play on hot vs. cold. I’m personally not sold on it, but it had nothing to do with this dish, and more to do with my not quite buying into the hot/cold savory courses just yet. They honestly weird me out a little as the cold immediately brings down the warmth of the hot food so quickly that in my opinion, it takes something away from those elements.

Stepping away from my own prejudice, however, I can definitely say this was well executed. I’ve never knowingly had fennel pollen, and the bacon dust was a thoughtful addition as it incorporated a subtle bacon flavor rather than overwhelming the dish the way many would with bacon bits.

Our last savory dish was the Oven Roasted SEABASS + collard greens & ham hock – cabernet sauce. This alone was worth the drive. I had commented to Ellie when I saw it that I’d decided, when last I had it, that sea bass was probably my favorite fish. If you’ve never had sea bass it is a mild flavored flaky white fish. While that might describe something like halibut too, while halibut has a soft giving texture, sea bass is much firmer offering a lot more bite.

Just as I was asking our server to bring this out for our last item, she said Willmann had already started one for us. Fantastic!

What they failed to mention on the menu –and I don’t know if this was just an addition for our sake as we will eat just about anything– but there was a house made habanero jelly on the rim of the plate. It was, without question, the single hottest thing I have ever eaten in an upscale restaurant. The sensation of the burning heat, followed by the sweetness of the sea bass, and the hearty smoky flavors of the ham hock collard greens was stunning. As you repeated each step — jelly, sea bass, collard greens your mouth was on a roller coaster ride of taste sensations. Ellie doesn’t really do hot food, and try as I might to get her to take the tiniest bite of the habanero jelly, she just wouldn’t do it. She missed out; because this was one of the best things I’ve ever eaten in St. Louis.

Regretfully, we didn’t have room for more than that, as I’d have really liked to try the Missouri LAMB CHOPS + smashed sweet and Yukon Gold potatoes & stone ground mustard demi.

For dessert we shared the gooey chocolate cake with basil ice cream. It was the standard molten chocolate cake that was all the rave in the late nineties. While I find it a bit ho-hum on the whole, there’s was prepared nicely, with the basil ice cream adding an interesting contrast. Plus, when you see the size of the kitchen they’re working out of, you are definitely more than willing to cut them some slack for not pulling all the stops on the desserts.

We look forward to going back.

Here is the 2007.11.03 Erato Menu.

Note: Please keep in mind that while I believe my opinion to be correct, there are some establishments that I am close enough to that my opinion is personally biased. This is one.

Tags: 222 Artisan Bakery, Edwardsville, Erato on Main, Kevin Willmann, Matt Herren