MISSION TACO JOINT

LUPE LOVES THIS PLACE!!!

Wait, that wasn't enough:

LUPE LOVES LOVES LOVES this place!!!

Okay, technically, she has only been there once, tonight, for a quick to-go of three of their tacos, but ALREADY they have completely seduced her.  She is pretty much making a list of peeps to take there for food and drinks and fabulous people watching, plus more live music, hopefully!

GREAT staff! Friendly, nice, and fast!!!  (And diverse!! And plenty of eye candy for all genders and orientations, although Lupe knows she is very naughty to mention it.)

GREAT decor!!! Nice mural in the back room, very warm and "beach" feel! Almost made Lupe forget she wasn't on the West Coast!

GREAT food!!!! Lupe had three tacos: duck, tofu and carne asada!!! Now she just wants to eat every single thing on the menu!

Now, this is not straight up Angeleno Taqueria.  You still gotta head over to Cherokee for that.  But no Mexicano would be unhappy here. 

In fact, no person from anywhere could be unhappy in this place. (Unless they had some sort of unhappy disorder that prevented them from enjoying great food in a great atmosphere.)

The tofu was excellent, with an avocado slice and Lupe added a salsa that was dark and tasted like roasted tomatoes were in it.  NO VEGANS WILL SUFFER AT MISSION TACO.  In fact, the tofu is so good carnivores will be tempted... and sated!!!!

The carne asada was delicious!!  Lupe wishes she had ordered more than one.  There was some sort of cheese and a deep green lettuce.  She will be going back tomorrow to get another one and maybe some crab taquitos.  She tried a hot red salsa with the carne.  It was very good, but Lupe preferred the other one she got.  (She promises to investigate the salsas as thoroughly as a sommelier would a wine list on her next visit.)

The duck was very good, however she felt it would have been better with some frijoles y arroz.  Duck fat likes to soak into starch, in Lupe's opinion.  But Lupe only "likes" duck.  She thinks if you love duck you will love these.  For one thing, who can resist the crunchy, melt in your mouth bits of grilled duck fat?

They have a full bar, and it was PACKED.  Diverse crowd, but mostly 20's-30's and mostly white, and a lot of students.  But it is only their fifth night.  This place is so attractive that Lupe is certain it will soon be a hot spot for everyone in the Loop.  Lupe doesn't think anyone of any culture or age would feel uncomfortable at Mission Taco Joint.

Live music tonight was One Take  (with a rocking hot chica singer and fiddler).

OH- and seriously, they need could charge A LOT more for the tacos! Each taco was about $3.  Wonderful!

And the to-go containers are not just eco-friendly, they are compost-able! 

Lupe's only complaint is that they are only open til 1 AM.  She hopes they will get that later liquore licence soon and be open til 3 AM. Lupe is on a Mission: to eat at this place again as often as possible!

C U in the Loop!!! AT MISSION TACO JOINT!!!!

TWO YUMS UP!!!!



EDIT: Mission offers a dish called "Street corn".  Kind of funny if you have ever bought "Elotes" (ee-LOW-tahs, from "ears" Lupe thinks) from a street vendor.  It's corn on the cob with butter, mayo, lemon juice, salt and hot sauce.  You can get queso too, usually a ground up kind of Mexican parmesan.  No Mexican restaurant in St Louis run by Mexicans would ever take her suggestion to sell it, since that would be like offering hot dogs at a steak house.

So Lupe is hoping that they will also begin offering her other favourite street food (no, not bacon and jalepeno wrapped hot dogs and sausages) Las Frutas.  Usually a blend of oranges, cucumbers, mango, jicama, cantelope, watermelon, and sometimes pineapple and sometimes coconut, with a squeeze of lemon or lime and salt and chili pepper sprinkled on it.  (Most of the Latino neighbourhoods have this, not just Mexican.)

Again, no restaurants here will sell it because it is just so common.  You can get a 2 lb bag of it on almost every corner in L.A. for about $5 and watch the vendor chop it up to your specifications (Lupe doesn't usually like the coconut, and always needs more chili pepper than they want to give her.)  You can also buy Mangos on a stick with the lemon juice, salt and chili pepper. 

Lupe is still waiting to see if a common herb "espoto" (? not sure about the spelling) shows up in any Mission dishes.  And more cilantro.  But this restaurant continues to be a delight!

(If you are in "Hell A" best Mexican street food is in Boyle Heights-- and best Mexican Taqueria too, Carnitas Michoacan.  Also you can go down Soto and look at some of the famous murals.  Soto and Caeser Chavez is a kind of Chicano/Mexicano Delmar Loop and full of heritage and culture.)

NOIR BAR TONIGHT

Noir at the Bar is tonight! And this one promises to be spectacular!

Graphic Noir at the Bar!!!!!

http://store.subbooks.com/event/noir-bar-tim-lane-matt-kindt

Live readings by two LOCAL creators-- a graphic novel aka comic book and neo-pulp fiction--- at the Delmar Lounge, plenty of mystery and noir, no cover (but you will want a cocktail), books for sale through Subterranean, starts at 8 PM... Of course you will be there, right?

I'm sorry, was there something else you wanted???? A fabulous femme fatale, perhaps? Well, Lupe will be there... ;o)

See you in the Loop!!!

MONDAY MUSIC AND MYSTERY

Tonight in Heman Park it is the Electric Funk Band. It's free and it's within walking distance of the Loop. (Walking distance for Loopies and urbanites, a bit far for the car culture and suburbanites, but still close.)

Also, tonight is Noir at the Bar with Jed Ayres and Scott Phillips. The Noir is Dennis Tafoya. The bar is the fabulous Delmar Lounge!

http://www.riverfronttimes.com/events/noir-at-the-bar-1020173/

Listen to some music outdoors, then some stories inside... a perfect Loop Monday!!!

See you in the Loop!!

"U"-NIQUE HAPPENINGS IN THE LOOP THIS WEEK

EDIT: The film was 74 minutes, not 7. The flyer had a typo. The film was very good and well-attended! Best of luck to the filmmakers!


As usual there are WAY too many great things going on in the Loop to keep up!

Here a few things Lupe wanted to be sure you know about.

A local St. Louis filmmaker will be presenting his indie short film at the Tivoli tonight and Sunday. IT SOOTHES MY SOUL. Lupe met the writer/director, Michael Larnell and was very impressed. She will be attending the Sunday screening. (Lupe is going to see L.A. ska stalwarts Fishbone at City Museum tonight.)

Screening times are 7 PM both days. Tickets are $7, which comes to about one dollar a minute for a seven minute film.

(7/7/7, hope this is lucky for the filmmaker!! The cost of an indie film to make is about $10,000 a minute. So the price to see this is worth every penny!)

Also tonight is Noir At The Bar, the monthly meeting of St. Louis crime and mystery writers at the Delmar Lounge. (Writers like Jedidiah Ayers.) Again, Lupe wishes she could be in two places at once!

Two other quick comments: the drum circle has vanished. Pushed out perhaps by the expansion of the Market Pub House. Or perhaps all things Bohemian and "cultcha" are leaving the Loop and migrating to the lower-rent South Grand area. She is very sad that this decades long tradition is leaving the Loop!

Finally, it appears that the Horse and Carriage rides were for that one weekend only. Which is really a shame. Because Lupe would like to ride from the Loop through Forest Park. Maybe it will become a regular feature soon!!!

SEE YOU IN THE LOOP!!!

GROCERY STORE OR CO-OP IN THE LOOP

(EDIT 2013: This post gets a lot of hits from people looking for a grocery store in the Loop.  There isn't one.  The closest one is Schnucks on Olive. Then there is also the produce stand in what used to be the old Loop market.  They are open year round Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.)

Now, Lupe has heard that Trader Joe's has looked at the old Blockbuster site. That would be perfect!

There are business owners in the Loop that would fight it. They say any store that sells package liquor will contribute to people drinking alcohol and getting drunk in the Loop! What they really mean is that people will be getting drunk but not buying liquour from one of the many bars on the street.  The Loop promotes and paves the way for intoxication-- including millions for a planned trolley to take drunken Loop goers to the metro, so they don't have to drive home!

THE CO-OP

So Lupe's idea, for anyone that is interested, is to open a neighbourhood Co-op. (You don't have to include Lupe, except to give her a free membership!) The fee would be small for anyone that lived in the area-- perhaps slightly higher cost for Parkview residents (they can afford the higher cost, and they are less likely to use the Co-op) and Wash U students in student housing (ditto and they aren't really "residents").

You could purchase some items without being a member, but only members could purchase alcohol. Members, in fact, could order anything and pick it up at the Co-op. (Possibly there could be a delivery service as well.) Alcohol could be ordered, but it would not be sold to the public or on display.

It would be nice if the Co-op had local produce when the Market in the Loop isn't open. Fresh local, organic dairy would be good as well. Fresh, local, organic everything would be fabulous. And if the Co-op was set up properly, some of the farmers (like Earthdance) that are already supplying the more conscientious restaurants could come on board, as well. (Riddles is particularly well known for this. Also the Delmar Lounge. )

Lupe is "French-obsessed" as any regular reader of this blog knows, but the comparison to a Parisian neighborhood grocer is not completely out of left field. Lupe remembers a wonderful little market with a rotisserie and freshly made yogurt (in a porcelain cups that had to be returned the next day) in the 1st arondissment a few blocks from the Champs Elysees. Right next door was a bakery and patisserie. *sigh*...

The Co-op would not require the same start up money as a grocery or convenience store, and wouldn't even require a storefront! Although customer pickups, and walk-ins, would benefit from a storefront. A storefront would also support something like a salad, soup, and juice bar, and/or deli sandwiches.

If anyone is interested in doing this, feel free to contact Lupe. She is looking into this pretty thoroughly. The East Loop, under St. Louis governance, would be better. Also fewer residents would be able to protest it, as most East Loop properties aren't as near residential neighborhoods like Parkview, that would block the business from opening.

See you in the Loop!!!

Edit/PS-- Does anyone remember the deli that used to be where Pizazz is now? They always had a barrel of big pickles. Lupe thinks they were a quarter. The Co-op should have big pickles in barrel. Let's bring back 'em back!

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2010!

Lupe feels that wherever she is, on ANY day of the year, that is just where the party is happening, or about to happen. Therefore, usually she does not celebrate "Amateur Night."

This year, Lupe got all dressed up at 11 o'clock in the morning. Hopefully her premature costuming will help overcome the lack of holiday cheer. She understands not celebrating the consumer frenzy of America's cultural holiday, Christmas. But she is not sure why so many people are ignoring tonight's annual Bacchanal?

Three months from now you probably won't remember the reason that made you decide to not do anything for New Year's. In three months you will remember, however, the stunning get up you pulled together out of nowhere, the invitation you accepted at the last minute... and perhaps the hangover you had, coyote ugly "date" you woke up with... okay, well, go out and be fabulous, but don't overdo it!

It's not too late to put on a crazy New Year hat, throw together something dressy, or a full-on masquerade ball costume. Then, come on down to the Loop-- there are plenty of places to join the party!

Lupe thinks it is even more important to celebrate when times are lean than it is to celebrate when times are fat!!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

EDIT: What a fabulous celebration at the Delmar Lounge!!! Yummy garlic fries, jerk chicken, and those delicious grits! No cover, free glass of champagne, plus plenty of red, white and blue hats, noisemakers and tiaras. (I won't say "leftover Fourth of July" if you won't ;o) Rail drinks were $3 and the place was well attended. Everyone was merry and bright and there was much laughter!!!

Lupe did not get as bedazzled and bejeweled as she had planned, as the evening turned into a night more about relaxing and enjoying the company of friends and loved ones, and texting Happy New Year's wishes to Los Angeles and other parts of the known and unknown universe.

It was a wonderful and promising night here in the Delmar Loop!!!

BACK IN THE LOOP

Lupe is finally back in her beloved Loop after a 16 month absence!!!

So much has changed! The Moonrise for one thing!! Lupe loves it and cannot wait to eat at the Eclipse restaurant! (Everyone says the lobster pot pie is delicious!!!) Lupe has spoken with a number of Missouri "tourists" who have chosen the Moonrise as their weekend romantic, getaway destination. So it is nice to know that it is bringing lots of people to enjoy the Loop, as well as giving seasoned visitors a close place to stay.

And it looks like Joe Edwards will finally get that Loop trolley, and Lupe can't wait to see it. The maquette in Blueberry Hill's window is very promising. And it will certainly cut down on drunk drivers leaving the Loop. The trolley will go the Deballivere Metro stop, so that either train can be caught after enjoying a late night in the Loop.

The street looks so pretty-- all dressed up for the Holiday Season! Lupe heard a rumour that decorations will be replaced next year, as this year's budget did not allow. But even though they have seen many a solstice, the street looks wonderfully cheerful and festive.

The Loop is definitely a woman, if neighbourhoods had to choose a gender, and like a woman she likes to get dressed up! The new (but retro-looking), uniformly placed, green streetlights from the University City Hall all the way to the Delmar metrolink station, add to the beauty of the street!

Yummy Loop meals that Lupe has enjoyed since returning include a type of samosa or rangoon appetizer at the Thai pizza place next to the Delmar Lounge, and a "grits" dish at the Delmar itself. (Lupe would have used the word "polenta" instead, but the recipe is sooooo delicious no matter how you nameit. ) Also the wonderful pies at PI have been keeping Lupe satisfied.

Light Up The Loop is this Saturday, December 5th, all afternoon, and Lupe sure hopes that everyone is coming! All the stores are dressing up their windows, and it promises to be as beautiful as the Champs Elysee's!!!

See You In the Loop!

MARGHERITA SALAD

The weekly specials at the Delmar included a really delicious Margherita salad. A mix of aristocratic greens like bibb lettuce, frisee, radicchio, topped with fresh mozzarella, tomatoes, and drizzled with a yummy balsamic vinaigrette.

Lupe enjoyed it so much on Sunday she went back to have it again on Tuesday, but they had taken it off the menu because of the salmonella-infected tomato scare. Lupe offered to sign a waiver. The salad was worth the risk. Alas, they turned Lupe down, so she had a Kingsland salad. Yummy, true, but not the delicious Margherita she was yearning for.

The bartender assured Lupe that he was campaigning to get the Margherita put on the menu permanently. Hopefully after the tomato scare is over they will offer it again. It is the perfect summer salad.

A PERFECT LOOP DAY

The sun is shining but it's not too hot. Down in front of Ben & Jerry's a sax player is tooting out Dave Brubeck's TAKE FIVE. On Westgate next to Blueberry Hill the St. Louis Symphony Street Team is spray painting a street mural. (And you thought that only hip hoppers and indie rockers had street teams.)

The sidewalk tables at Blueberry Hill, Meshuggah, El Maguey, Brandt's, and even the neglected Starbucks are filled. (Lupe's random, sporadic, and unscientifically conducted poll has statistically determined that the Starbucks customers are not usually Loop locals or regulars. If you are in the Loop, skip the homogenized, bland chain and head on down to Meshuggah for some real coffee.)

Plenty of bare legs and bare arms as summer weather finally makes it's debut. You don't have to walk far to hear someone laughing. Or come across a chess game (mostly at Bread Co.) or a really interesting conversation, or see someone reading a book you've never heard of.

Lots of beautiful and stylish young muchachas are out shopping. Let New York keep Fifth Avenue, and L.A. can have Rodeo Drive. Loop ladies have something you can't buy from a designer: fearless personal style. (And if you do need to buy it, or at least be inspired, go to Ziezo's. You won't find one on Fifth Avenue, or on Georges V in Paris, or anywhere else on the planet.)

The world is here in the Loop, and the Loop is "u"-nique in all the world. There is no other neighborhood like it. New York has it's Greenwich Village, Los Angeles has Melrose and Venice Beach, Chicago has Belmont, New Orleans has the French Quarter, London has King's Road and Mayfair, Paris has Rive Gauche and Champs Elysee. But those places are like a rich man having money to spend.

For a city of two million to have such a wealth of culture and counter-culture, fashion and style, interesting and interested people; to have so many unique and one-of-a-kind businesses, and in a stretch of city pavement that barely measures a mile- well, that's like a poor man who knows how to spend a hundred bucks like it's a million dollars.

Stroll down past Napps Hair Salon and you will hear the lyrical tones of African women talking as they take a break from dreadlocks and braids. At El Maquey you will hear food ordered in staccato Spanish. Down Westgate and there is the Lebanese grocer and falafel restaurant.

Have a yen for some japanese sushi? There's Seki's. How about delicious garlic laden Middle Eastern food and belly dancers? Right across the street at Saleems. Want some Ethiopian? There's the Red Sea. Greek gyros, an abundance of Thai restaurants; toasted ravioli and St. Louis Italian style pasta at Cicero's.

There are American cheeseburgers and root beer at Fitz's, and plenty of eclectic choices at Blueberry Hill. (Mmmm, Lupe loves BH's mac and cheese. They have good jerk chicken, and BBQ beef sandwich, too. ) And fine dining is available at the Delmar Lounge and Riddles.

You have hippies, rappers, bohos, hip-hoppers, punk rockers, fashionistas, emos, rastafarians, trend-setters, collegian grungers, and enough tourists from the county to remind all the rebels what they are rebelling against. You can hear jazz, classic rock, reggae, soul, r&b, and indie rock at the different clubs. And you can find all these different kinds of music, and more, at Vintage Vinyl for a reasonable price.

Whenever Lupe shops at her favourite bookstore, Subterranean Books, she is always amazed at how refined it is. Every book Lupe wants is there. And a thousand she never would have found at a big chain- even if they'd carried it. Because Sub Books, like the Loop, has sifted through the fluff and down to just the best, the most interesting, the most provocative. There is no excess, just counter-culture excellence.

The City Planning Association was wrong. The Loop isn't one of the ten best neighborhoods in the U.S., it is the best neighborhood in the world!

And one of the best thing about the Loop, that is not true in any of those other places (except Paris), is that any restaurant will be happy to give tired doggies a complimentary bowl of water.

See You in The Loop!

DELMAR LOUNGE

As of August 2012 the Delmar Lounge is Closed.

The Delmar has two really great dishes Lupe likes a lot. The Delmar Penne: delicious penne pasta with shrimp and spinach, and the Blackened Tilapia. Lupe has a hard time trying new things when she eats at The Delmar. Both items are so good.

The Ravioli di Portabello is delicious but really rich. The salad with goat cheese, walnuts, and raspberry dressing is a great accompaniment to any entree. The scallops are a good appetizer for one person (only three scallops). The regionally popular spinach-artichoke dip appetizer is above average. The pizzas on the after hours menu are really yummy.

Some of the tables and the bar are smoking, but there are enough fans that the room never gets smoky. (This is one of the reasons many locals migrated from long-time Loop favourite Riddles. Riddles has jazz and great food,too, but Riddles can get "make your eyes water" smokey.)

The Delmar has great jazz bands several nights a week, and on weekends they have dj's after midnight. The music they play during the dinner hour is very eclectic. One night Lupe heard David Bowie's Low, a Scissor Sister song, the "u"-biquitous Nelly, and Jeff Buckley's Last Goodbye.

Girls, this is a great place to have your Sex In The City movie after-party. Cosmopolitans and Manolo's fit right in at The Delmar. The atmosphere is very Greenwich Village, and all of the tables and booths are comfortable. The crowd is always very diverse, and usually a mix of Loop locals, West County tourists, and jazz lovers from all parts of Saint Louis. Even on weekend nights it manages to satisfy the intimate outing, the family and/or friends gathering, and serious party-ers that don't turn into drunken buffoons.

The only drawback is the wine list. They need a decent sommelier to seriously re-do their wine selections. But that isn't a big enough flaw to keep Lupe away.

The Delmar is actually located in St. Louis city, not University City. (U. City ends at Limit Avenue.) Therefore, they are able to stay open every night of the week until 3 AM. They don't open until 5 PM, though, so no delicious Penne for lunch.

Delmar Restaurant and Lounge
6235 Delmar
St. Louis, MO 63130
314.725.6565