Sweet Basil Thai - 9th and Pine

bprop · PostJul 01, 2010#212010-07-01T17:01+00:00

Forgot to post this -
Sweet Basil is closed as of a couple weeks ago.
There was a flier circulating that says the following (copied verbatim)

Hungry, well come on in *

SWEET BASIL

903 Pine Street, downtown St. Louis

UNDER NEW MANAGEMENT
&

New serving all kinds of foodyou like (dine-in/to go)

A variety of entrees:
Chicken wings (traditional fried, buffalo style)
Catfish nuggets, Meatloaf
Parmesan Crusted chicken breat

A variety of sides:
Mac 'n' cheese, cabbage, French fries (seasoned or crinkle)
Green beans, mashed potatoes, AND MORE!!!!

***Father's day Special! 50% off Dad's Meal *** WOW!!!

*Sandwiches, salads, and soups coming soon during the wek*

Hours of operation:
Saturday 10:30 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Sunday 1:30 p.m. - 5 p.m.

Churches or groups with 10 or more receive 10% off your meal!

*Venue and catering available for your next private party/event

(314) 732-5146

But I have seen some evidence that it may not have been open during the weekend yet.

stlwriterman · PostJul 01, 2010#222010-07-01T17:09+00:00

Closed? Really? That's a bummer. Was kind of worried about them, though. Not the greatest location for foot traffic. I was in there for lunch a few weeks back and there were just a couple of other people. Only menu option was a rather uninspired buffet line. And they didn't take credit cards. Seemed pretty shoestring.

I just hope this doesn't negatively impact their (very nice) South Grand location.

bprop · PostJul 09, 2010#232010-07-09T17:41+00:00

So this is a strange development. After the flier (that I mentioned above) came out, this place didn't appear to open at all. Then, earlier this week, there was a new sign out front, something like "Starfire" or something. The hanging Sweet Basil sign had been removed. The new place had a grand opening special, "2 for 4.95". 2 of what, I don't know. Then it closed again. Today, the Sweet Basil sign is back up and Sweet Basil Thai is open again.

Bizarre.

lukethedrifter · PostJul 09, 2010#242010-07-09T17:50+00:00

If they are running the place like the now closed Thai place on Olive then it is easy to keep changing your mind. All they did was bring 8 or 10 pans of food from the U City locale down and keep them over a warmer. 1, maybe 2, employees.

bprop · PostJul 09, 2010#252010-07-09T18:50+00:00

I do know that Sweet Basil made their food on location.

What's odd is, not only has the restaurant changed, but each change brought a new crop of employees. The original staff is back after a one-day hiatus.

lukethedrifter · PostJul 09, 2010#262010-07-09T19:20+00:00

That is pretty odd.

the count · PostAug 13, 2010#272010-08-13T19:32+00:00

I have lunch at Sweet Basil Thai quite often. The food is great but it's never busy in there. They don't advertise and it's an invisible location. Hopefully they will be around for a while. If you like Thai food you won't be disappointed.

the central scrutinizer · PostAug 13, 2010#282010-08-13T19:41+00:00

The Count wrote:I have lunch at Sweet Basil Thai quite often. The food is great but it's never busy in there. They don't advertise and it's an invisible location. Hopefully they will be around for a while. If you like Thai food you won't be disappointed.

How does it compare to Sen Thai (which is very good)?

the count · PostAug 13, 2010#292010-08-13T19:51+00:00

I like Sweet Basil's food better than Sen Thai's. However, there is absolutely zero, zilch atmosphere in the place and the menu is very limited, so when it comes to a romantic dinner with Mrs. Scrutinizer or in my case the Contessa I'd go for the latter.

(Which reminds me of the fact that Sweet Basil Thai is open on weekdays from 11 AM - 5 PM. No dinner.)

ben1040 · PostAug 13, 2010#302010-08-13T23:31+00:00

The Central Scrutinizer wrote:How does it compare to Sen Thai (which is very good)?

At least for curry and pad Thai, the stuff from Sweet Basil & Basil Spice is probably the best in town, in my opinion. I'm assuming it's still operated by the same folks; the first time I went to Sweet Basil I was greeted by the waitress who knows me from coming to Basil Spice practically every week. I love how their curries don't come out with a half inch layer of grease on them as you might find at say, King & I.

I've only had the curry and pad Thai at Sen. I found the curry to be aiming more for outright spiciness rather than flavor, and the pad Thai was really pretty miserable.

innov8ion · PostOct 12, 2010#312010-10-12T17:56+00:00

http://twitter.com/#!/countondowntown/s ... 7158773357

@countondowntown
Unfortunately, Sweet Basil Thai on Pine seems to gone. Finito.

moorlander · PostOct 12, 2010#322010-10-12T18:26+00:00

Are you sure? Because this is their Facebook update from 4 days ago...

Downtown employees & residents THE DISCOUNT CONTINUES!! Sweet Basil 903 Pine Street will have 50% of our chicken wing and catfish nugget lunches on Friday. Call your orders in early! That's right, your choice of a heap of catfish nuggets or chicken wings with 2 sides for only $5!!* WOW*drinks are $1 sides include spagh...etti, mac 'n'cheese, green beans, cole slaw (314) 732-5146

and

Friday October 29, 2010 1st movie starting promptly at 9 p.m. (Horror Night - You'll be Shakin' in your boots!) Sweet Basil Restaurant 903 Pine Street. Big, clear projection picture with an intimate setting. only $3 entry!! Food and soft drinks sold separately-please no outside food and soft drinks!*BYOB*

the count · PostOct 12, 2010#332010-10-12T21:34+00:00

They were closed yesterday and today. The sign hanging from the building is gone. Will keep checking. If their status changes I will update. They are (were?) one of my favorite places for lunch. I want them to come back!

moorlander · PostOct 12, 2010#342010-10-12T23:52+00:00

pretty sure all you gotta do is call the number listed above..

the count · PostOct 13, 2010#352010-10-13T15:49+00:00

Moorlander, I am feeling lazy today. Can you call them and find out?

innov8ion · PostOct 13, 2010#362010-10-13T16:17+00:00

I just called Sweet Basil. They're closed for now and under new management. I asked what was coming next, but she wasn't at liberty to disclose more information.

boombox · PostOct 14, 2010#372010-10-14T20:08+00:00

According to Sauce they will be reopening as early as next week as an "American fast food" type place. Seriously?

http://www.saucemagazine.com/blog/

the count · PostOct 15, 2010#382010-10-15T02:24+00:00

Grrrrrrrr.

psychotim · PostOct 15, 2010#392010-10-15T13:45+00:00

They truly had some of the worse "Thai" food I've ever attempted to eat, not to mention atrocious service. Can't say I'll miss them at all.

stlwriterman · PostOct 20, 2010#402010-10-20T03:15+00:00

It's too bad, because their place on South Grand is actually quite nice. Only ate at the downtown location once, and was pretty unimpressed. And the catfish and chicken wing specials really don't sound like a good idea.

bprop · PostOct 22, 2010#412010-10-22T01:28+00:00

There was a sign in the window, announcing the pending arrival of "Sir's BBQ" with BBQ and other fine "cooking's".

PostOct 22, 2010#422010-10-22T01:31+00:00

PsychoTim wrote:They truly had some of the worse "Thai" food I've ever attempted to eat, not to mention atrocious service. Can't say I'll miss them at all.

Was this during the buffet phase or the sit-down/carryout phase? I really enjoyed their individual dishes. I'm not a huge Pad Thai fan, but I had coworkers who liked Sweet Basil better than Sen's Pad Thai.

That said, the proprietor is super nice. I never had bad service.

bonwich · PostOct 22, 2010#432010-10-22T17:02+00:00

bprop wrote:There was a sign in the window, announcing the pending arrival of "Sir's BBQ" with BBQ and other fine "cooking's".

Sir-B-Que? Expanding to downtown, or moving?

the central scrutinizer · PostOct 25, 2010#442010-10-25T16:03+00:00

bonwich wrote:
bprop wrote:There was a sign in the window, announcing the pending arrival of "Sir's BBQ" with BBQ and other fine "cooking's".
Sir-B-Que? Expanding to downtown, or moving?

Hopefully their BBQ is better than their web design skils.

psychotim · PostOct 27, 2010#452010-10-27T16:12+00:00

bprop wrote:
PsychoTim wrote:They truly had some of the worse "Thai" food I've ever attempted to eat, not to mention atrocious service. Can't say I'll miss them at all.
Was this during the buffet phase or the sit-down/carryout phase? I really enjoyed their individual dishes. I'm not a huge Pad Thai fan, but I had coworkers who liked Sweet Basil better than Sen's Pad Thai.

That said, the proprietor is super nice. I never had bad service.

It was during the sitdown phrase, but also within a week of them closing -- basically, after 70 minutes, we still didn't have our entrees. Which didn't really matter, because the appetizers were horrible.

Sweet Basil Thai - 9th and Pine

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