My husband and I don’t like the same food. This causes some consternation when it comes to picking pizza toppings (Him: Anchovies, Me: Onions) or making pastas (Me: garlicky, simple, American spaghetti, Him: fancy cream sauces, thick noodles, and often covered in my nemesis, the caper). While other couples we know can split meals at restaurants, this usually is an impossibility for us. Which is acceptable, I get to eat what I want and have leftovers the next day. However there is no adorable, dual straw in a malt happening (no difference of opinion here, except that we both want the whole malt). There is one notable exception to the embargo on sharing though, and that is the ham & egg soup at St. Louis Bubble Tea.
(I wasn’t lying about the egg infatuation.)
The soup is so simple. Ham, white onion, green onion, simple noodles, bok choy, the egg and a peppery broth. So simple, but for some reason rather difficult to replicate in the home kitchen (still good, but not the same) and thus we sorely missed it when we were banished to Ohio. Because it is so thick with hearty ingredients, Ryan and I can pick at the bits we want until only broth is left. Not crazily romantic, but as close to lovey dovey, intimate dining that we are going to get. As a bonus St. Louis Bubble Tea makes the best crab rangoon; the cream cheese heavy St. Louis version is made extra delicious with the addition of pepper.
Bubble tea was sort of faddish at the beginning of the decade. It’s basically little balls of tapioca (boba) in cold, flavored teas (milky, traditional, and frozen). I love the stuff, but the experience can be a little off-putting to the first timer. The wary can avoid it all together by ordering their drinks boba-free.
I sucked most mine down before I remembered to snap a photo.
We used to frequent the location up in the Delmar Loop, but since we are temporarily West County dwellers we opted for the location on Olive that is located in an old Dunkin’ Donuts store. While the experience isn’t quite as swell since it can’t be capped off with a stroll down Delmar (and the requisite trip to Star Clipper), everything tasted just as delicious. Those looking for entertainment could cross the parking lot to the antique mall where Ryan bought my (lost but not forgotten) engagement ring, or head to the Asian Market for Japanese candy and giant bags of rice.
