I didn't see a topic specifically on this subject. I was just reading about St. Louis inspired fast food that has gone national without direct credit back to our town. Freddy's Frozen Custard and Steakburgers was founded by three guys in Wichita that all said they missed St. Louis/Ozarks style frozen custard. One of the founders grew up in South St. Louis and specifically references Ted Drewes. Last May, St. Louis based Thompson Street Capital Partners bought the company.
Similarly, Danny Myers credits the business model of Ted Drewes where lines are long but move very fast. And he cites the burgers, fries, and custard he enjoyed while growing in St. Louis as the model for his Shake Shack cuisine.
Panera -- St. Louis Bread Co. -- started here and effectively defined fast casual and is still the best at fast casual dining. Panera just went national with the small pizza and creative salad combo started here by Crushed Red.
We always cite toasted ravioli, St. Louis pizza, gooey butter cake, etc. KC has declared themselves the US BBQ restaurant mecca. Here in St. Louis, when we say BBQ, we mean doing it outdoors. Grilled or slow cooked. "In St. Louis, BBQ is a verb." Versus a noun in KC. We buy more BBQ sauce than any metro in America. We are the US outdoor gilling mecca of the US in the same way New Orleans is the creole food capital, but nobody knows it. Can we market ourselves that way? St Louis style ribs is a cut used nationwide.
Are there new cuisines unique to St. Louis we can package together with our current famous foods? The marketing campaign can tout the Danny Meyer origins, Seoul Taco, Vicia successful new recipes, Balkan Treat Box new foods, Pi Pizza, Mission Taco, etc. At the center of the country, we get hit with new recipes and chains from all over the country that converge here.
What other cuisine / delivery / fusions, or whatever are unique to St Louis now and will eventually spread from here. How can we market to rest of the country that St. Louis is the national food test kitchen We're not seen as a national foodie city now, but with marketing...? And maybe a national SWSX for food integration / experimentation from all parts of America....? That is effectively what happened when we invented/popularized ice cream cones, ice tea, hamburgers, etc. in 1904 fair. We're the natural N/S/E/W central site for it to happen again.
Or how about at least going national on Pi day -- 3/14 -- a national pizza festival on the Hill, say? We could be the national pizza variety town from our own Little Italy.
Similarly, Danny Myers credits the business model of Ted Drewes where lines are long but move very fast. And he cites the burgers, fries, and custard he enjoyed while growing in St. Louis as the model for his Shake Shack cuisine.
Panera -- St. Louis Bread Co. -- started here and effectively defined fast casual and is still the best at fast casual dining. Panera just went national with the small pizza and creative salad combo started here by Crushed Red.
We always cite toasted ravioli, St. Louis pizza, gooey butter cake, etc. KC has declared themselves the US BBQ restaurant mecca. Here in St. Louis, when we say BBQ, we mean doing it outdoors. Grilled or slow cooked. "In St. Louis, BBQ is a verb." Versus a noun in KC. We buy more BBQ sauce than any metro in America. We are the US outdoor gilling mecca of the US in the same way New Orleans is the creole food capital, but nobody knows it. Can we market ourselves that way? St Louis style ribs is a cut used nationwide.
Are there new cuisines unique to St. Louis we can package together with our current famous foods? The marketing campaign can tout the Danny Meyer origins, Seoul Taco, Vicia successful new recipes, Balkan Treat Box new foods, Pi Pizza, Mission Taco, etc. At the center of the country, we get hit with new recipes and chains from all over the country that converge here.
What other cuisine / delivery / fusions, or whatever are unique to St Louis now and will eventually spread from here. How can we market to rest of the country that St. Louis is the national food test kitchen We're not seen as a national foodie city now, but with marketing...? And maybe a national SWSX for food integration / experimentation from all parts of America....? That is effectively what happened when we invented/popularized ice cream cones, ice tea, hamburgers, etc. in 1904 fair. We're the natural N/S/E/W central site for it to happen again.
Or how about at least going national on Pi day -- 3/14 -- a national pizza festival on the Hill, say? We could be the national pizza variety town from our own Little Italy.
