Charlie Gitto Jr. may have expanded the Gitto family restaurant business into three locations, but it’s the original Italian eatery in The Hill neighborhood that remains the spicy heart and soul of the enterprise.

An authentic taste of old Italy is a staple ingredient of the Charlie Gitto legacy: pastas, breads and desserts that are made in-house and cooked to order; fresh ingredients that are either raised on the premises, brought in frequently or seasonal in the Midwest; and care and attention lavished on every dish.

There are more than 17 million Americans who claim Italian descent in the United States. Italian cuisine ranks near the top among the over 640,000 restaurants operating in the U.S. Italian dishes have an amazingly broad appeal well beyond the aforementioned Italian-Americans. If the above aren’t enough, another reason that Italian cuisine is so ubiquitous in America is that it pairs so well with wines from all over the world.

    Nathaniel Reid is a world-renowned chef. He was named the U.S. Pastry Chef of the Year in the 2010 Paris Gourmet Competition. Then in 2012, Dessert Professional Magazine ranked him in the top 10 of American pastry chefs. Reid has been all over the world honing his craft, and now he has returned to his roots and opened Nathaniel Reid Bakery in Kirkwood.

When interior designer Krista Howard of KH Interiors took on the renovation of nurse Stacy Strode’s St. Louis house, it was important to accommodate entertaining, added storage and meaningful décor. It’s a tall order for any home, but Howard did it all while making Stacy’s meager 900 square feet look larger than its tiny footprint.

Seventeen stories above street level, this spectacular penthouse offers panoramic views of the city’s skyline, Mississippi River and the historic Saint Anthony Falls.  Wait a minute…Where are we? Well, in Minneapolis, but the links with St. Louis will soon become apparent.

Why did the chicken cross the road? There are as many variations to that old riddle as there are trick or treaters on Halloween, who always seem to come up with a few new versions. But these days there are some new takes that even kids looking for a new joke to trade for candy haven’t dreamed up.