This week, Niche Food Group is celebrating ten years of feeding and serving St. Louisans at Brasserie (4580 Laclede Avenue, 314-454-0600) and Taste (4585 Laclede Avenue, 314-361-1200) with cocktail pop-ups, kitchen takeovers from alumni chefs, specials and more.
“We really wanted to celebrate the people that have helped keep our doors open for so long,” Brasserie general manager Jennifer Masur said in a release. “Brasserie is a really special place for so many of us, and we love that our guests choose us for their important moments and celebrations. I, as well as the rest of the staff at Brasserie, work hard every day to cultivate the unique relationships we have grown within our community as well as with each other.”
Since Niche Food Group will be hosting a different event every day this week, we've broken out the schedule here by day.
Monday
The weeklong celebration kicks off tonight with Brassiversary Dinner, featuring a number of the restaurant's former chefs returning to collaborate with current executive chef Alex Feldmeier and executive pastry chef Elise Mensing. Familiar faces hopping on the line tonight include Niche Food Group chef-owner Gerard Craft and former Brassiere executive chefs Perry Hendrix (now chef de cuisine at Avec in Chicago), Michael Petres (corporate chef for Niche Food Group) and Brian Moxey (executive chef at Sardella). The talented team of chefs have worked to create a menu showcasing Brasserie signatures both past and present. Tickets to the Brassiversary Dinner are available for $150; an optional wine pairing costs an extra $50.
Tuesday
The week of anniversary festivities continues on Tuesday, November 5, with Taste's former executive chef Matthew Daughaday returning to the kitchen to recreate some of his famous menu items (tentatively the barbacoa and pork bánh mì).
Thursday
On Wednesday, November 6, Taste will host an industry-only cocktail reception for loyal friends and guests of Niche Food Group. Everyone can get in on the fun on Thursday November 7, though, when Taste's original bar manager Ted Kilgore — now owner of Planter's House in Lafayette Square — returns to Taste for a bar takeover. Kilgore, working alongside bartenders Kyle and Corey Mathis, will serve a special menu of their favorite cocktails from the bar's past and present menus.
Friday
On Friday, Taste will unveil its fall/winter cocktail menu, which will feature unique shrubs and tinctures created using kitchen scraps to eliminate food waste at the restaurant.
Saturday and Sunday
The celebration concludes with a bang on Saturday, November 9 and Sunday, November 10, with special-edition beer releases from Rockwell Beer Co., which houses BrassWell, a Brasserie food window, inside the brewery. A dry-hopped blond ale brewed especially for the anniversary festivities will be available on draft at Brasserie as well as its sister restaurants in Clayton, Sardella and Pastaria. Commemorative ten-year anniversary pints will also be available with beer purchases at Brasserie while supplies last.
To learn more about the weeklong celebration or buy tickets to the Brassiversary Dinner this evening, visit Niche Food Group's website.
