A Passing and a Birthday Dinner in Webster Groves Missouri...

The second part of our Thanksgiving family road trip was our three night stay in the St. Louis Missouri area.  The goal was to visit with a variety of Laurie's family members including sisters Glenda and her husband Ken, Karole and her husband Bob and of course, Bonnie and her husband Bill.

On a very sad note, we also visited with a number of Laurie's cousins...at a hospice care facility.

Cousin Johnny Templeton had been fighting cancer for quite a long time and he'd recently been admitted to hospice care.  His wife Rose, his brother Alan, his best friend, his children, our little group of 6 and a number of other family members paid him a visit on 12/3/24.  He passed on 12/4/24.  Rest in Peace Johnny... He would have been 82 on 12/16/24.

While in St. Louis, we celebrated Laurie's birthday.  Although it was a couple of days before her actual big day, we were headed home before then.  Bonnie and Bill had selected an upscale restaurant in Webster Grove Missouri for Laurie's birthday bash.  The timing was right for both Laurie and I as we both were a bit under the weather.  When we got home we determined that we both had bronchitis.  Just lovely...

This is Madrina.  The restaurant offers a 'modern take' on classic mid-century Italian-American dining, providing handcrafted cuisine in a casual atmosphere.  The menu is contemporary but its inspired by traditional recipes.

The atmosphere at Madrina can best be described as a contemporary throw-back version of an older Italian steak house straight from the Frank Sinatra/Rat Pack era.  Dark wood, burgundy leather banquettes, relatively low lighting, etc., all part of the restaurant's 'feel'.  FYI, Madrina translates to "Godmother" in Enlish. 

A thoughtful server volunteered to take this photo of our little birthday group.  From the left, Bill, Bonnie, the birthday girl Laurie and yours truly.

While I'd heard of beer 'flights' and wine 'flights' and even moonshine 'flights', I'd never heard of martini flights.  The first grouping was coffee and chocolate orientated "Espresso Flight" and it's a standard item at Madrina. ($20.00) The second grouping is Madrina's "Holiday Flight" and it included peppermint, latte, etc. ($25.00) We all shared portions of this adult martini extravaganza experience.

Our primary server actually was the sommelier or professional wine steward at Madrina.  She was probably frustrated in that we didn't consume a couple bottles of her finest wines.  Laurie gave her a little satisfaction when she described a type of wine that she liked.  Then Alisha showed her the bottle of wine she believed fit the description, provided a taste, and then filled Laurie's wineglass.  This was Farro Falanghina Campi Campi Flegrei. ($13.00 glass) Laurie really enjoyed her wine...

As is our norm when dining with Bill and Bonnie, we went a bit overboard with the appetizers.  This was the Beef Carpaccio, very rare chilled beef with arugula, frisee, capers and fresh parmesan. ($22.00) It came with the little toasted slices of baguette.  It was good, but I would have preferred it with lemon, a little olive oil as well as a bit of salt and pepper.

FYI... Carpaccio was invented by Giuseppe Cipriani, founder of Harry's Bar in Venice Italy.  He originally prepared it for a local Countess who's doctor had recommended that she eat raw meat.  The dish was named after Vittore Carpaccio, a Venetian painter known for the characteristic red and white tones of his work.

Our next appetizer was a real winner with the whole table.  This is Madrina's Whipped Ricotta, smooth ricotta cheese, drizzled with local honey and sprinkled with eatable blossoms and served with two types of warm grilled bread. ($14.00) The only problem was that it was very filling and we practically licked the serving plate clean...

As has been noted many times before, Bill loves seafood!  We all like it but it's a passion with Bill.  So our third appetizer was Mussels Alla Crema...Gulf of Maine mussels in a garlic cream sauce and served with warm toasted bread for dipping. ($18.00) There were a lot of mussels...all good...and we all agreed that the garlic cream sauce was just about the best shellfish sauce we'd ever had.

At this point, we were getting full...but we still had salads and our entrees coming up!  Three Mayfair Salads were served.  They included Little Gem lettuce, Pecorino, prosciutto, croutons and Mayfair dressing. ($12.00 each) 

Fortunately, the service at Madrina is slow paced allowing diners to enjoy their various courses and beverages...as well as providing time for chatting.  This also allowed up to pace our food intake!

I was the outlier who veered off course, choosing an alternative salad.  This is Madrina's House on the Hill Salad.  It features iceberg greens, tomatoes, red onion, artichokes, mozzarella and a creamy vinaigrette dressing. ($11.00) It was a satisfying break from our appetizers.  I left the onions off the salad.

Now onto the entrees... While a number of steaks were available, only one of us wandered onto the "Secondi" or meat portion of the menu.  Among the steaks are a 16 oz. prime ribeye as well as Bistecca Florenina, a three-finger-thick porterhouse steak that comes with 2 side dishes and up to 3 sauces.

I wanted to try something different...something other than the norm for me in an Italian themed restaurant.  So I ordered the Spaghetti Chitarra Carbonara, with crispy guanciale, creamy eggs, pecorino and black pepper. ($25.00) Sadly, my entree was too sweet tasting and salty for my liking.  It turns out that guanciale is Italian salt-cured meat prepared from pork jowls or cheeks.  You can't win them all!  I should have ordered the Shrimp Capellini.  

Laurie loves veal and despite a number of other tempting possibilities, she ordered Madrian's Veal Parmigiano, with crispy veal, pomodoro sauce and fresh mozzarella. ($40.00) It was good but she had expected thinner more, tender slices of veal.  The 'crispy' designation might have been a forewarning.  I ate a bite of it and I agreed that it was OK but not great.

Bill once again did his 'seafood thing'.  For his entree, he went for the Shrimp Capellini, roasted shrimp with artichokes and a mustard creme sauce over capellini noodles. ($33.00) He also chose the Roasted Mushrooms, shown just above his shrimp, as a side dish. ($12.00) Not only did this entree look appealing, but he really enjoyed it too!  He did share some tasty roasted mushrooms with Bonnie and Laurie...

Bonnie ordered the most intriguing listing on the 'primi' portion of the menu.  Her giant Raviolo was stuffed with ricotta, mascarpone, Ozark forest mushrooms and duck egg and it was slathered in a rich hazelnut butter sauce. ($24.00) With the mushrooms, it wasn't for me but everyone else tried it and they raved about it...just how rich and fantastic it tasted.

The atmosphere at Madrina is outstanding and our service was fitting given the setting.  Opinions on the food ranged from amazing to OK, but let's face it, it's often a matter of choice and personal tastes.  Given the prices for this upscale restaurant, to us it falls into that 'special occasion' type of dining venue.  One upside for Bonnie and Bill was that they were able to take home a portion of everyone's entree!

Madrina Restaurant is located at 101 West Lockwood Avenue in Webster Groves Missouri.  Phone: 314-963-1976.  Madrina is open Sunday through Thursday from 4 PM until 9 PM and they stay open on Friday and Saturday until 10 PM.  Website: https://madrinastl.com.    

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them...

Thanks for stopping by to help celebrate Laurie's birthday!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave