There is no shortage of spooky Halloween events around the St. Louis area. Whether you are looking for haunted houses, corn mazes, scary movie nights or a creepy theatrical performance, there are so many opportunities that you do not want to miss out on! If you have little children, do not worry! There are many kid-friendly options that will not leave them having nightmares.
/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo.png00Royal Car Service/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo.pngRoyal Car Service2018-10-19 05:01:052018-10-19 12:01:16Spooky Halloween Events You Do Not Want To Miss
Besides cooler weather and pumpkin spice lattes, there is nothing better than a fall concert. This fall, St. Louis concerts are sure making an appearance! From Blues, Hip-hop, country and Rock n’ Roll — there are an array of different concerts that will resonate with the entire family! For a full detailed list, check out this article!
Shakey Graves The Tour x9 World Tour with the Wild Reeds, 8 p.m. Sept. 30, the Pageant, $25-$28, ticketmaster.com
Shakey Graves. Photo by Greg Giannukos
Parkway Drive, the Devil Wears Prada, August Burns Red, Polaris, 8 p.m. Sept. 4, the Pageant, $28.50-$30, ticketmaster.com
Boy George & Culture Club, the B-52s,Thompson Twins Tom Bailey, 7 p.m. Sept. 6, Fox Theatre, 527 North Grand Boulevard, $49.50-$129.50, metrotix.com
NPRs Ask Another with Matt and Kim, Ophira Eisenberg hosts, 7:30 p.m. Sept. 6 the Pageant, $25-$55, ticketmaster.com
Brent Faiyazs Sonder Son Tour, 7 p.m. Sept. 6, Bootleg at Atomic Cowboy, $20-$25, ticketweb.com
Junior Brown, 8 p.m. Sept. 6, Old Rock House, 1200 South Seventh Street, $25, metrotix.com
Ringo Starr & His All Star Band with Colin Hay, Steve Lukather,Gregg Rolie, Graham Gouldman, Warren Ham, Gregg Bissonette, 8 p.m. Sept. 7, Fox Theatre, $40-$195, metrotix.com
An Evening withFirefall, 8 p.m. Sept. 8, Wildey Theatre, 252 North Main Street, Edwardsville, sold out, wildeytheatre.com
Punch Brothers, Madison Cunningham, 8 p.m. Sept. 8, Touhill Performing Arts Center, One University Boulevard, $37-$79, touhill.org
90s House Party with Vanilla Ice, Coolio, All-4-One, Montell Jordan, Young MC, Rob Base, Tone Loc, Naughty by Nature, 6:30 p.m. Sept. 8, Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre, $15-$149, livenation.com
The Temptations, the Four Tops, 8 p.m. Sept. 8, J. Scheidegger Center for the Performing Arts, 2300 West Clay Street, St. Charles, $49.50-$89.50, lindenwood.edu/j-scheidegger-center-for-the-arts/
Counting Crows 25 Years and Counting with Live, 6:30 p.m. Sept. 9, Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre, $17-$125, livenation.com
Greg Laswell, 8 p.m. Sept. 11, Old Rock House, $15, metrotix.com
JD McPherson (and his band), 8 p.m. Sept. 14, Off Broadway, $20 etix.com
RuPauls “Werq the World” with Aquaria, Eureka, Kameron Michaels, Asia OHare, Shangela, Kim Chi, Violet Chachki, Valentina and host Bob the Drag Queen, 9 p.m. Sept. 14, the Pageant, $55-$65, ticketmaster.com
Philip H Anselmo & the Illegals, King Parrot, Divine Sorrow, Article III, 8 p.m. Sept. 29, Pops, 401 Monsanto Avenue, Sauget, $20-$25, ticketweb.com
Eddie Izzards Believe Me Tour, 8 p.m. Sept. 29, Touhill Performing Arts Center, $39-$95, touhill.org
Green Velvet, Faded Sessions, Luke Hansen, Brian R, Just/G and Boomer, 9 p.m. Sept. 29, Ryse Nightclub, $10, ticketmaster.com
Dire Straits Legacy, 7:30 pm. Sept. 29, Family Arena, $35-$65, metrotix.com
/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo.png00Royal Car Service/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo.pngRoyal Car Service2018-08-27 07:05:002018-08-27 07:05:06St. Louis Fall Concerts You Do Not Want To Miss
Have you seen the viral lip syncing videos going viral across the country? These videos are especially intriguing when police stations make their own. The Wentzville police channeled their inner Top Gun and even used a drone to complete the video! This video has gone viral and you do not want to miss out on watching it!
As area police departments have joined the viral Lip Sync Challenge, we’ve been treated to all manner of creative entertainment.
What we haven’t seen: An adaptation of “Top Gun” featuring drone video, an officer called “that hottie in the green flight suit” in a Facebook comment, and drawn-on abs. Thanks to the Wentzville Police Department, now we have.
Wentzville’s video starts in familiar territory, with an authority figure laying down the law, saying it was time to get things under control. Then this production takes an upward turn, with officers coming out amid smoke to the opening strains to Kenny Loggins’ “Danger Zone.”
The drone footage, scenery and creative moments outweigh the relatively sparse amount of lip syncing, which isn’t this video’s strong suit.
The unexpected moments include one officer diving into the sand during a volleyball game and then rolling over to reveal perfect abs hilariously drawn on with a marker, two kids’ perfect comedic timing while swooning over drone pilots and an amusing rendition of Ciara’s “Level Up,” which made up for no reference to Berlin’s “Take My Breath Away.”
/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo.png00Royal Car Service/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo.pngRoyal Car Service2018-08-23 07:04:392018-08-23 14:04:49Wentzville Police Lip Sync
The newest sushi restaurant makeover in St. Louis has to be on your radar! The original restaurant was owned by the same family, but revamped to cater to the growing St. Louis sushi scene. If you are in the market for affordable, yet delicious sushi and a wonderful night in the city, do not hesitate to book your ride with Chesterfield Taxi! Contact us for more info!
If you want the best value for your money in St. Louis dining right now, you cant beat the nigiri omakase at Nippon Tei. For $18, chef Nick Bognar prepares five immaculate pieces of nigiri sushi. Your selection likely will include a sushi standby like salmon, but even here Bognar might treat you to sake toro, salmons sweeter, more luscious belly meat. And Bognar doesnt mechanically affix this sake toro onto rice smeared with wasabi paste. Instead, he brushes the fish with nikiri (sweet soy sauce) and then garnishes it with grated real-deal wasabi root.
Or Bognar might torch the salmon belly and balance its now steak-like fatty richness with lemon zest. Hell set this beside whichever specials have arrived on the most recent flight from Japan: snowy, fleetingly sweet hirame; oily, intensely briny mackerel; shima-aji, its balance of body and sweetness the ideal midpoint between the hirame and the mackerel.
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Nigiri omakase with madai, saba, sake toro, maguro and Wagyu A5 at Nippon Tei in Ballwin. Photo by J.B. Forbes, jforbes@post-dispatch.com
J.B. Forbes
If youre lucky, there will be a luxurious serving of uni from Hokkaido, Japan, creamy as custard, its flavor pure, cold ocean distilled. Is that a sliver of A5 Wagyu beef from Japan, basted with tare, lightly torched and melting in your mouth like steak butter? It is, and it, all of it, whatever you receive, is $18.
If you prefer sashimi, Bognars sashimi moriawase, with 12 precisely cut pieces and accompaniments, including a rainbow of roe, is enough for two people and also a steal at $36.
For those of us who have despaired of the state of sushi in St. Louis, Nippon Tei is a revelation. Or, really, its two revelations. Not only is the 26-year-old Bognar trying to bring the St. Louis sushi scene into 2018, hes doing so at the restaurant his mother, Ann Bognar, opened in 2001, when he was 10, a place that years ago settled comfortably into the bland shopping-plaza-scape of Manchester Road near Ballwin.
Growing up as the son of a chef, Bognar felt pressure not to enter the restaurant industry himself, he told me in a phone interview. Inevitably, though, as a teenager, he worked part-time in his mothers restaurant, and he studied in the culinary-arts program at South Technical High School in Sunset Hills. He learned about preparing sushi at Nippon Tei, he worked catering gigs with his high-school culinary instructor, and he realized he loved cooking.
I had a drive to get really good at something, he said, and I was lucky to be at (Nippon Tei) and talk to the sushi chef.
(One of the Nippon Tei sushi chefs he learned from was his aunt, Whitney Yoon, who now opeartes Sushi Koi in the Central West End. Coincidentally, about a month ago, doing research for next years edition of the STL 100, I ate a fine meal at Sushi Koi and wondered how Id missed the place for so long.)
Bognar attended culinary school at Forest Park Community College and went to work as chef and manager at Tei Too, his familys Thai restaurant in Webster Groves. (Ann Bognar is originally from Thailand.) In 2015, he helped kickstart the areas ramen boomlet by opening Ramen Tei in what had been Nippon Teis bar. I was tough on Ramen Tei in my 1½-star review. In hindsight, the food notwithstanding, I didnt appreciate how appealingly ambitious the young Bognar was to undertake such a project.
(Bognar has recently revamped Ramen Teis operation. I didnt include it in this review, however.)
Meanwhile, one of Bognars childhood friends had moved to Austin, Texas, and was a server at the sushi restaurant Uchiko, where chef Tyson Cole, among many plaudits, had won the James Beard Foundations Best Chef: Southwest award in 2011. Bognar used his connection to land a job there.
Thats when the real learning began, Bognar said. They were doing things Id done before, but it was all being done in a better way.
Dishes didnt appear on the menu until they had been studied and tested for weeks. The ethos, Bognar said, was daunting: Anything can be improved. Anything can be pushed to its limits.
After a year, Bognar moved to Cincinnati to be with his girlfriend and oversaw a new sushi concept in that city. His mother liked the more contemporary style of sushi hed learned in Austin and showcased in Cincinnati and thought it was time for a change at Nippon Tei.
Bognar hasnt changed the look of his mothers restaurant. It remains a pleasant retreat from the strip-mall hustle, its ambiance part generic sushi restaurant, part hotel-lobby bar. Bognars menu isnt expansive: a few salads, excellent versions of familiar starters like gyoza ($7) and crab rangoon ($7); rice bowls and pork tonkatsu.
Im generally ambivalent about the multiple-ingredient sushi rolls popular at American restaurants. At Nippon Tei, I recommend looking for what Bognar himself seeks in assembling his nigiri omakase: the best fish, the fish in season. So on one visit I enjoyed a spider roll ($14) with tempura-fried soft-shell crab and, for a potent seasonal accompaniment, asparagus. The gorgeous sake toro is the heart of its self-named roll ($14), its richness doubled with avocado and cut with lemon zest, ponzu and the heat of togarashi.
You can order nigiri sushi and sashimi a la carte, though youll be hard-pressed to assemble the balance of quality and value that the omakase and moriawase selections do. And if the value doesnt tempt you, know that Nick Bognar hasnt just made Nippon Tei the biggest bang for your dining buck; hes also transformed it into one of St. Louis most exciting restaurants.
Where Nippon Tei, 14025 Manchester Road Three stars out of four More info 636-386-8999; nippon.teistl.com Menu Sushi and other traditional Japanese fare Hours Lunch Tuesday-Friday, dinner Tuesday-Sunday (closed Monday)
Go! Sneak Peek from St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Go! Magazine’s go-to guide for the weekend’s best entertainment in and around the Lou, delivered weekly to your inbox.
/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo.png00Royal Car Service/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo.pngRoyal Car Service2018-06-27 03:17:002018-06-27 03:17:08St. Louis Sushi Restaurant Takes City By Storm
As popular artists age, the announcement of “farewell tours” seems almost inevitable. Most artists choose the most popular cities to visit for their last tour ever. In country artist Shania Twain’s case, her farewell tour ended up not being her final one. Twain visited St. Louis in early May for another concert tour. What are your thoughts on farewell artists? Check out this article for a list of “farewell” artists!
Shania Twain
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Shania Twain performs on NBC’s “Today” show at Rockefeller Plaza on April 30, 2018, in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)
Charles Sykes
For many of todays veteran performers, a farewell tour doesnt actually mean goodbye.
Often, the tours are marketing gimmicks. Theyve been successful for big-name acts such as Cher, whose many retirements from the road epitomize the farewell fake-out. (I cant do another one because Ill be dead, the 68-year-old Cher joked at her 2014 stop in St. Louis. Im really not coming back this time, I swear to God.)
Shania Twain, who comes to Enterprise (formerly Scottrade) Center on Wednesday, could fall in line with Cher if she isnt careful. The Canadian country-pop singer in 2015 talked up the fact that her Rock This Country tour would be her farewell.
At the time, she was significantly younger than most performers who call it quits. She said then that her retirement would be from touring and not from making music.
I love music so much. But the performance side of it I feel is a phase in my life, she said at the time in a Q&A with reporters. Ive been doing it for so long. Ill be 50 this year (shes 52 now) and been onstage since I was 8 years old, and Ive put my fair share into performance. The timing is right to do other things musically.
The Youre Still the One singer said she missed making records and needed to get back to that. Her last album at the time was Up! (2002).
If Im distracted by all facets of the tour, how much music am I really going to be able to write, and how many albums am I going to be able to make? I cant do them both at the same time.
Apparently, Twain figured out how to do both, releasing her Now album in 2017 and deciding she wasnt finished with the road after all. Twains reps declined an interview request for this story.
What Shania Twain, Bastian Baker When 8 p.m. Wednesday Where Enterprise (formerly Scottrade) Center, 1401 Clark Avenue How much $22-$395 More info 1-800-745-3000; ticketmaster.com
Elton John
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Sir Elton John performs at Chaifetz Arena on Nov. 24, 2013. Photo by Sarah Conard
Sarah Conard
If theres one farewell tour that needs to stick, its Elton Johns. His Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour is making lots of noise, instantly selling out several dozens of dates. John will be on the road with this tour for three years, with more than 300 shows on five continents. Its time to come off the road so I can fully embrace the next important chapter of my life, John, 71, said in a statement. Performing live fuels me, and Im ecstatic and humbled to continue to play to audiences across the globe. I plan to bring the passion and creativity that has entertained my fans for decades to my final tour.
When 8 p.m. Oct. 30 Where Enterprise Center, 1401 Clark Avenue How much $46.50-$221.50 More info 1-800-745-3000; ticketmaster.com
Anita Baker
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Anita Baker performs at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival on Saturday, May 5, 2018, in New Orleans. (Photo by Amy Harris/Invision/AP)
Amy Harris
The R&B songstress (Caught Up in the Rapture, Sweet Love, You Bring Me Joy) announced last year that she had retired. The following year, she returned with a Farewell Concert Series, which essentially meant she had come out of retirement to perform farewell shows. Who does that? Doesnt matter. Its one of the soul music events of the year.
When 7:30 p.m. July 22 Where Fox Theatre, 527 North Grand Boulevard How much Sold out More info 314-534-1111; metrotix.com
Slayer
From left: Paul Bostaph, Tom Araya, Gary Holt and Kerry King of Slayer. Photo by Martin Jausller
The metal band, whose last album was Repentless (2015), is hanging it up with a final world tour that includes a second leg kicking off July 26. The band is said to be thanking fans for their support over the last 3½ decades. But signing off now just feels premature. Well see how this one plays out.
What Slayer, Lamb of God, Anthrax, Testament, Napalm Death When 4:30 p.m. Aug. 9 Where Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre, 14141 Riverport Drive, Maryland Heights How much $29.50-$59.50 More info 1-800-745-3000; livenation.com
Lynyrd Skynyrd
Lynyrd Skynyrd
No one can be mad at Lynyrd Skynyrd for signing off with its Last of the Street Survivors Farewell Tour. Its a real measure of strength that the Southern rock band known for Sweet Home Alabama and Freebird was able to last so long, much less weather tragedy at the height of its popularity, when three of its members were killed in a plane crash in 1977. The current lineup features Gary Rossington, Johnny Van Zandt, Rickey Medlocke, Mark Sparky Matejka, Michael Cartellone, Keith Christopher, Peter Keys, Dale Krantz Rossington and Carol Chase. Its hard to imagine, after all these years, the band that Ronnie Van Zant, Allen Collins and myself started back in Jacksonville, would resonate for this long and to so many generations of fans, said founding member Gary Rossington. Im certain they are looking down from above, amazed that the music has touched so many.
What Lynyrd Skynyrd, Hank Williams Jr., .38 Special, the Steel Woods When 6 p.m. Aug. 18 Where Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre, 14141 Riverport Drive, Maryland Heights How much $39.50-$219.50 More info 1-800-745-3000; livenation.com
Ozzy Osbourne
Ozzy Osbourne performs in 2011 at Scottrade Center. Post-Dispatch file photo
Erik M. Lunsford
Weve definitely been here before with Ozzy Osbourne. In 1992, the Prince of Darkness embarked on his No More Tours tour. Now hes saying farewell with his No More Tours 2 tour, which will keep him on the road until 2020. Hell be joined by Zakk Wylde (guitar), Blasko (bass), Tommy Clufetos (drums) and Adam Wakeman (keyboards). Ive been blessed with an amazing life, Osbourne said in a statement. Im looking at this final tour as being a huge celebration for my fans and anyone who has enjoyed my music over the past five decades. He will revisit his classics along with some of his work with Black Sabbath, which already has disbanded. The tour is not scheduled to visit St. Louis.
Paul Simon
Paul Simon performs May 16, 2018, in Vancouver, British Columbia. (Jimmy Jeong/The Canadian Press via AP)
Jimmy Jeong
Legendary singer-songwriter Paul Simon is in the early stages of bowing out with Homeward Bound The Farewell Tour, capping a performance career that goes back to the early 1960s. Hell focus on his solo output as well as his work with Simon & Garfunkel. Ive often wondered what it would feel like to reach the point where Id consider bringing my performing career to a natural end, Simon said in a statement. Now I know: It feels a little unsettling, a touch exhilarating and something of a relief. I love making music, my voice is still strong and my band is a tight, extraordinary group of gifted musicians. I think about music constantly. I am very grateful for a fulfilling career and, of course, most of all to the audiences who heard something in my music that touched their hearts. The tour is not scheduled to play St. Louis.
Third Day
Mac Powell with Third Day performing as part of Fish Fest with Third Day and Friends at The Arena at Gwinnett Center on Saturday, May 31, 2014, in Atlanta. (Photo by Robb D. Cohen/Invision/AP)
Robb Cohen
Christian band Third Day known for songs such as Cry Out to Jesus, Mountain of God, Call My Name and I Need a Miracle quietly announced a farewell tour thats currently underway. Its not slated to play St. Louis. In addition to the hits, the group will perform songs from its members new projects. We know this is a season that is coming to a close, and we wanted to give our fans one more chance to see us perform live, lead singer Mac Powell said. The live show has been the core fan experience, and this tour will give us an opportunity to go out and say thank you to the fans who have always been so supportive of our music.
Vans Warped Tour
Vans Warped Tour
The artists on the Vans Warped tour are nowhere near retiring, though the tour itself is after 20 years. Packaged tours like this one have fallen out of favor, with fans preferring destination festivals such as Coachella, Bonnaroo and Lollapalooza (which itself started as a packaged tour). This years lineup includes the Used, Story of the Year, Waterparks, Simple Plan, 3OH!3, Reel Big Fish, Falling in Reverse, We the Kings, Motionless in White, Assuming We Survive, Chase Atlantic, Crown the Empire, Dead Girls Academy, Deez Nuts, Doll Skin, Don Broco, Every Time I Die, Farewell Winters, Four Year Strong, Hail the Sun, Ice Nine Kills, In Hearts Wake, Knuckle Puck, Mayday Parade, Phinehas, Picturesque, the Amity Affliction, Unearth, Wage War, With Confidence, Twiztid, Sharptooth, Lighterburns, Senses Fail and the Maine.
When Noon July 3 Where Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre, 14141 Riverport Drive, Maryland Heights How much $30-$45 More info 1-800-745-3000; livenation.com
/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo.png00Royal Car Service/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo.pngRoyal Car Service2018-06-13 03:17:002018-06-13 03:17:07Farewell Artists Last Stop in St. Louis
It seems that every big company these days is having some sort of data breach or personal information being made public of their customers. One of the better parts of not being such a massive corporation, is not being the target of these hackers, so our customers information and credit card payments are not at risk:
Best Buy said on Friday that some of its customers’ credit card information may have been compromised in a data breach that also hit Sears and Delta Air Lines.
All three companies use a third-party firm, called [24]7.ai, to provide online and mobile chat services for customers.
Best Buy said in a blog post that [24]7.ai told the company that an “illegal intrusion” occurred between September 27 and October 12, 2017.
“As best we can tell, only a small fraction of our overall online customer population could have been caught up in this [24]7.ai incident, whether or not they used the chat function,” the post said.
Best Buy says it was hit in the same time period when Sears Holding Corp. and Delta Air Lines customer data was exposed in a cyberattack.
Sears and Delta were the first to say they were impacted. The companies said Thursday that some of their customers’ payment information might have been compromised during online chat support.
Related: Sears and Delta customer data might be exposed in cyberattack
Sears said that data from “less than 100,000” customers might have been exposed, but Sears-branded credit cards were not affected. Delta didn’t say how many people were affected.
[24]7.ai said, in a statement after the Sears and Delta cyberattack was revealed, that it was “confident that the platform is secure.”
Business Briefing from St. Louis Post-Dispatch
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/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo.png00Royal Car Service/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo.pngRoyal Car Service2018-04-25 09:38:002018-04-25 09:38:07Best Buy says it was hit by same data breach as Sears, Delta
Parking around the city has always been a pain in the neck, and the rules and regulations that surround it has always been fuzzy. Now with this new ruling, it becomes even more confusing on who is in charge of the duties when it comes to monitoring the parking. Instead of trying to make money, parking should be easier.
ST. LOUIS A circuit court judges decision to void two state laws governing parking operations in St. Louis has some city officials celebrating what they deem a victory for home rule, one with broad implications for the millions of dollars generated by the citys parking meters, garages and lots.
The St. Louis treasurers role overseeing the parking division is an unusual one, and it has drawn ire for years from city aldermen who have sought to tap into more of the citys parking revenue.
A lawsuit filed in January 2017 by James Wilson, a former city counselor under Mayor Vincent Schoemehl Jr., sought to bring St. Louis parking operations under municipal control.
The total operating revenue from parking meters, violations, city-owned garages and lots and rental property for fiscal 2017 was roughly $18 million before expenses were paid, but under the state statutes challenged in the lawsuit, only a portion of that money about 40 percent, after expenses makes it into the citys coffers.
St. Louis Treasurer Tishaura Jones has already vowed to appeal, but if the ruling ultimately stands, it marks a long-sought victory for city officials who want to spend more of the money residents and visitors fork over to park in St. Louis.
We desperately need it, to provide the best quality of city services we possibly can, said 22nd Ward Alderman Jeffrey Boyd, who joined the effort to sue the state and city in August. What it means in a nutshell is the city of St. Louis will finally be able to govern its own parking operations.
Implications of ruling
Before Thursdays ruling, there were parallel provisions dealing with parking in St. Louis: state laws and city ordinances.
In February, the Board of Aldermen passed a contingency plan: a board bill sponsored by Boyd, stating that if the state parking statutes were held unconstitutional, the Parking Commission as established under city code would assure the commissions functions continue without interruption, and that the Parking Commissions financial obligations are timely met and satisfied.
Mayor Lyda Krewson signed that bill into law this month.
The effect of this decision is, the (state) statutes fall away, and its all regulated by city ordinance, City Counselor Julian Bush told the Post-Dispatch.
The ordinance and laws are similar, Bush said, but the city rules boost the amount of money from the parking meter fund that can be transferred to the citys general revenue fund.
Under city code, the treasurer is still the chairman of the Parking Commission. But that could change, Boyd said.
The broader impact of the ruling is that the St. Louis Board of Aldermen now has the power to change that formula, or the composition of the Parking Commission, as it sees fit. Bush noted that the city would never be able to access 100 percent of parking revenue due to bond obligations.
With no state laws applicable to these subjects, the power to reconfigure the parking operations is now vested in the Board of Aldermen, Bush said. Thats substantial.
Jones has warned, however, that that power comes with expensive responsibilities.
Parking enforcement and revenue officers were city employees before the treasurer took them on, Jones said in a previous sit-down with the Post-Dispatch. We take on about $15 million in expenses out of the general revenue fund per year. They talk about how they want more (parking) revenue, but theyll have to take the expenses too. And the debt. Which last time I checked, was about $65 (million) and $70 million.
The ruling
Boyd and Wilsons lawsuit centered on the argument that the state laws dealing with parking in St. Louis were unconstitutional because they imposed additional duties on officials in a charter city.
St. Louis operates as both a city and a county, and its treasurer is an independently elected county office, deriving authority under state laws.
The treasurers office contended that the Parking Commission wasnt a municipal entity at all but a county office.
Stelzer disagreed, noting that the laws in question clearly require the city director of streets, the chairman of the Board of Aldermens Streets, Traffic and Refuse committee and the city comptroller to serve on the Parking Commission, therefore creating and fixing duties of municipal officers, which is unconstitutional.
The judge also took issue with the defendants push to simply remove those three city officials from the Parking Commission, rather than striking down the laws, leaving only two members: the treasurer and the director of parking operations. Without the other officials, Stelzer wrote, the two remaining members would be approving their own budget and policies.
The supervisor of parking meters and the parking division would have no oversight as intended by the statutes, and would become the citys authority for overseeing public parking, he said. It is clear the legislature intended the Parking Commission to have oversight over the supervisor of parking meters and the parking division.
Politics
Jared Boyd, Jones chief of staff, said in an email that the treasurers office was still getting up to speed on the ruling and its implications.
We are still reviewing our options, but we always knew this case would be decided by an appellate court, he said. The citys cross-claims was brought against the state of Missouri, so they will also have the opportunity to appeal this ruling.
A spokesman for Attorney General Joshua Hawley could not immediately provide a comment. Hawley had asked the judge to uphold the statutes governing the St. Louis treasurer and the Parking Commission, echoing Jones argument that both were county entities.
From the beginning, Jones has maintained that the lawsuit is politically motivated, stemming from sour grapes over her near-victory in her campaign for mayor against Krewson and Boyd last year, and her win over Boyd to become treasurer in 2012.
In February, Boyd and Jones feud spilled into a hearing room at City Hall, when Boyd subpoenaed Jones to discuss parking operations. She accused Boyd of harassment and questioned why no other county office, such as the sheriff or record of deeds, faced the same level of scrutiny.
If theres one thing about politics Ive learned since running for Mayor, its never be surprised at what people who are afraid of you will do to try to destroy you, Jones wrote in a social media post on Friday.
Boyd said he felt vindicated by Thursdays ruling.
I feel like I won the lottery personally, he said. There were so many people suggesting I was just being petty, that it was all personal, and its never been personal with me. Its always been about good government.
Its unclear whether the treasurer or the state will ask the court for an injunction pending appeal. But in the meantime, Boyd says hes meeting with the city counselors office next week to work on a transition plan.
We have an opportunity to right a wrong, Boyd said. Now we will operate parking like other municipalities across the world. It just made no sense the way it was set up.
/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo.png00Royal Car Service/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo.pngRoyal Car Service2018-04-11 09:38:002018-04-11 09:38:18Judge’s ruling on St. Louis’ parking operations sends jolt through City Hall
This past year, many new restaurants opened their doors in St. Louis. Restaurant critics in the area have rated the top 10 and they are mentioned in the article below. They all range in type of cuisine, price and environment. We think you should go to a few and try them out! What’s better than finding new spots to eat?
St. Louis’ 10 Best New Restaurants of 2017
By Cheryl Baehr
Vicia: Critic Cheryl Baehr’s pick for the best new restaurant of 2017.
It was a very good year for the St. Louis food scene, if nowhere else. The year 2017 saw the city’s chefs, bartenders, owners and restaurants staking their claims and finally coming into what they were meant to be. It also put St. Louis on the national map, pushed into the spotlight by two restaurants in the conversation for the best new restaurant in the entire country.
These places don’t play it safe. One comes from a hometown son who realized that striking out on his own meant coming home and reclaiming the soil. The other took ownership of what it means to be a Mexican restaurant in 2017 America by brazenly throwing off preconceptions.
They weren’t alone. The city also saw immigrant restaurateurs boldly gamble on Midwestern diners’ willingness to embrace modern Chinese food and Bosnian chefs who, after years of seeing their cuisine fly under the radar, finally got the respect they deserve. A tenacious grocer and burger cook made it his mission to redefine the food system, while a James Beard Award-winning chef reclaimed the joy he felt in cooking.
We have a lot to look forward to in 2018 (including a handful of restaurants that opened too late to be reviewed and included in this list). But if there is any one thing the new guard can take away from the class of 2017, it’s that knowing who you are and being fearless in showing it is the path to success. And it tastes pretty damn good too.
1. Vicia
If you want to know why Vicia(4260 Forest Park Avenue, 314-553-9239) is the best restaurant in St. Louis, you have to look beyond the food, the hospitality and even the environs. All are, of course, impeccable. Chef Michael Gallina’s mastery of flavor and texture can make you feel like you are eating a beet for the first time, even as, under his wife Tara Gallina’s thoughtful direction, every last person on the staff treats your dining experience as if it is of the utmost, personal importance. Then there is the design, a light-filled room that feels modern and warm at the same time. All of these elements make Vicia great. What makes it the best can be summed up in a scene I witnessed on one of my visits. It was a busy dinner service, and the restaurant was bustling, but chef Gallina not only made time to meet with one of his purveyors, he called all the staff members he could find to gather around his chef table to examine and learn about their wares. It wasn’t just his sous chef and line cooks who got in on the fun. He had servers, bartenders, servers’ assistants and even a dishwasher there, empowering them with a sense of a shared ownership that, in turn, translates to the guest experience. There is national buzz about this restaurant; it’s even a serious contender for USA Today‘s best new opening of 2017. If Vicia takes home the top prize, it’s because the Gallinas have created more than just good food; they’ve created a culture.
2. Nixta
With Nixta(1621 Tower Grove Avenue, 314-899-9000), restaurateur Ben Poremba and chef Tello Carreon did not just defy the cliche of what a Mexican restaurant should be; they basically created a culinary fusion never before seen. Playing around in the kitchen of Poremba’s flagship Elaia, the Israeli restauranteur and the Mexico-born chef came to appreciate how beautifully Mediterranean and Mexican flavors work together. From that realization came Nixta, a tangentially Mexican restaurant that refuses to be pigeonholed by preconceptions. Just consider the one of the restaurant’s most exciting dishes, the tlayuda, which pairs pomegranate molasses with guajillo chiles for a “Mexican Pizza” that is just as much Middle Eastern as it is Central American. Though he is no longer with the restaurant, much credit must be given to Carreon, who used the cuisine of his native land as a jumping off point for global culinary exploration. The flavors are riveting, and the restaurant pulsates with a sultry energy. It’s no wonder the national press took notice of this thrilling spot.
3. Sardella
If Gerard Craft’s Niche made you feel like you had to sit up a little bit straighter in your seat, its successor, Sardella(7734 Forsyth Boulevard, Clayton; 314-773-7755), gives you permission to sink back into it. The difference is intentional, born of the James Beard Award winning chef’s desire to shake off the heaviness he felt at his former flagship in favor of something lighter, breezier and more accessible. He’s achieved that in Sardella, not just by breaking free of Niche’s self- imposed hyper-local confines, but by giving diners, his staff and himself permission to have fun. You would have never sat in the old dining room for a burger, a whole roasted chicken or lasagna, but Sardella proves that you can have all those comforts while still enjoying the polish you’d expect from Craft and his team. “We open the restaurants we want to eat at,” Craft said when he announced Sardella. It turns out, we want to eat there too.
4. Cate Zone
In the not-so-distant past, St. Louis diners had basically two options for Chinese food: The cloyingly sweet Americanized stuff that bears no resemblance to actual Chinese cuisine or the old guard traditional restaurants and dim sum spots that line Olive Boulevard. Recent years have seen a striking change to the Chinese culinary landscape as a crop of young, often first-time restaurateurs have given St. Louis a peek into what it’s like to dine out today in the bustling metropolises of their homeland. Bing Bing, Corner 17, Yummy 17 and last year’s honorable mention Tai Ke have all disrupted our ideas of Chinese food, and perhaps none more so than Cate Zone Chinese Cafe(8146 Olive Boulevard, University City; 314-738-9923), the quizzically named eatery from Daniel Ma and Quincy Lin. Both had toiled away at Americanized spots after first moving to town from China, dreaming that they could one day open a fiercely authentic yet thoroughly modern place of their own. They’ve achieved that in Cate Zone, with a menu of flawlessly executed and complexly spiced dishes that run the gamut of Chinese regional cuisine. One taste of the mouth-numbing Sichuan peppercorn-coated “Hot Crisp Fish” will have you realize what St. Louis has been missing.
5. Nudo House
When they started their journey into the world of ramen over three years ago, Qui Tran and Marie-Anne Velasco weren’t just looking to develop a good bowl of broth and noodles: They were on a mission to bring to St. Louis the absolute best. Their quest took them across the country, from New York to Los Angeles, where they learned from top chefs, including famed Japanese ramen chef Shigetoshi Nakamura. After teaching them his craft, he looked at them and said, “I have no doubt you will be successful.” The man knew what he was talking about, as Nudo House(11423 Olive Boulevard, Creve Coeur; 314-274-8046) has set the standard for ramen in St. Louis — if not the entire Midwest. St. Louis waited what seemed like an eternity to taste the duo’s classic pork tonkotsu, schmaltz-laden “Hebrew Hammer” and shockingly luscious vegetarian “Shroomed Out”; Tran and Velasco show that good things come to those who wait.
/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo.png00Royal Car Service/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo.pngRoyal Car Service2018-02-27 15:00:532018-03-05 15:22:23New St. Louis Restaurants to Try
In the next few months you can look forward to several events related to beer and brewing (if you’re of age and enjoy this category of beverage, that is). There is no need to feel the wintertime blues when you can plan on attending at least one of these six events. Read about each beer festival happening around St. Louis in the article below, and if you end up going to one don’t drink and drive! Rely on a safe ride from a taxi/car service like Chesterfield Taxi or a designated driver!
Mark your calendar for 6 upcoming St. Louis beer festivals
By Ian Froeb | Feb 15, 2018
Yes, it’s only February. But spring training has begun, we’re tired of being housebound and we’re already drinking a beer. So why not preview some of the beer festivals taking place over the next few months?
Centennial Beer Festival
When Thursday through Feb. 24 • Where Moulin Events & Meetings, 2017 Chouteau Avenue • How much $40-$43 • More infocentennialbeerfestival.com
The 10th annual Centennial Beer Festival promises some 200 beers available for tasting from local, regional, national and international breweries.
The tasting event is divided into three sessions: 6-9 p.m. Feb. 23 and 2-5 p.m. and 6-9 p.m. Feb. 24. The Feb. 23 session is $40; each Feb. 24 session is $43. (Prices do not include tax and ticket fees.)
Each session features live music, and Feb. 23 includes a home-brew competition.
A VIP ticket, which includes tastings of rare and limited-release beers, is $25 in addition to the general admission ticket.
Other Centennial Beer Festival events include a five-course dinner at 6 p.m. Thursday with beers from Cathedral Square Brewery paired with dishes by chef Ryan Luke. Tickets are $65 (plus tax and a 20 percent service charge).
From noon to 1 p.m. Feb. 24, the Local Brewers Brunch will offer three courses paired with local beers. The cost is $40 per person. Make reservations by calling 314-241-8989.
Old Bakery Beer Buzz’d Beer Festival
When 1-5 p.m. March 4 • Where 400 Landmarks Boulevard, Alton • How much $30 • More infooldbakerybeer.com
The Alton brewery honors its third anniversary with a celebration of pollinators, with beers featuring honey, flowers and fruit. More than 20 local breweries will offer tastings. There will be food available for purchase and live music.
Festivale
When 7-10:30 p.m. March 23 • Where The Midway at St. Louis Union Station, 1820 Market Street • How much $65-$85 • More infofestivalestl2018.eventscff.org
The 10th annual Festivale is slated to feature tastings from more than 40 local, regional and national craft breweries to support the Gateway Chapter of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. A $65 ticket includes beer and food tastings as well as a tasting glass. The $85 VIP ticket lets you begin tasting an hour early at 7 p.m.
Schlafly Stout & Oyster Festival
When 5 p.m. to close March 23, 11 a.m. to close March 24 • Where Schlafly Tap Room, 2100 Locust Street • How much Free • More infoschlafly.com
Tens of thousands of oysters are shipped to the Schlafly Tap Room for this beloved annual event pairing the bivalve with several variations of stout. Admission to the Schlafly Stout & Oyster Festival is free, with food and drink available to purchase. However, for $150 you can get the Pearl Pass, which includes unlimited oysters and beer (with private restrooms) from 5 to 9 p.m. March 23. There will be live music throughout the festival.
St. Louis Microfest
When May 4-5 • Where Forest Park • How much To be announced• More infostlmicrofest.org
The annual St. Louis Microfest features more than 100 beers for tasting over three sessions: 6-10 p.m. May 4 and 1-5 p.m. and 6:30-10 p.m. May 5. Tickets for these sessions and VIP packages (including tastings of rare and limited beer, a plate lunch or dinner, and a private hospitality area) go on sale March 1. Other activities include a home-brew competition, live music and the Goose Island Beer Co. demo tent.
4 Hands Brewing Co. Lupulin Festival
When Noon-4 p.m. May 19 • Where The Midway at St. Louis Union Station, 1820 Market Street • How much $55 • More infolupulincarnival.com
4 Hands’ annual carnival celebrating the release of the brewery’s War Hammer IPA returns to Union Station for the second year. The event features tastings from several breweries (the exact list has yet to be announced) as well as live music and traditional carnival entertainment. Designated-driver tickets are $15.
/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo.png00Royal Car Service/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo.pngRoyal Car Service2018-02-20 14:46:492018-03-05 14:57:42Future Beer Festivals in St. Louis
Yesterday, country music artist Luke Bryan announced he will be headlining a stadium tour across the United States this summer. One stop will be at Busch Stadium, home to our Cardinals, in August! We know this will be a popular event for Missouri residents, so plan to buy your tickets and arrange transportation early. Get more details on the tour below.
Luke Bryan headlines the “What Makes You Country Tour” heading to Busch Stadium on Aug. 25. Sam Hunt, Jon Pardi and Morgan Wallen are also on the bill.
Information regarding ticket sales is coming soon.
/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo.png00Royal Car Service/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo.pngRoyal Car Service2018-01-31 15:23:002018-01-31 15:23:08Luke Bryan Stadium Tour Coming to St. Louis
