As a gateway to the West, St. Louis has gathered culinary ideas from all around the country. Some, like frozen custard and pork steak, aren’t St. Louis originals but were warmly adopted. Others, such as a thin, crispy pizza with provel, are 100 percent home-grown, beloved by locals, and haven’t really caught on anywhere else. Whether you have a sweet tooth or love barbecue, these are eight of the best things to eat in St. Louis.
St. Louis–style pizza
For a pizza to truly be considered St. Louis–style, the crust should be thin—an almost cracker-like crisp—and the pie should be topped with provel, not mozzarella. Provel, a St. Louis staple, is a processed cheese mix of cheddar, Swiss, and provolone—you’d be hard-pressed to find it anywhere else in the country. Thanks to its low moisture content, it melts beautifully across a pizza. However, because of the very thin, crisp crust, St. Louis–style pizza can’t be folded, so slices are often cut into three- to four-inch squares for eating.
Where to try it: Try a square of St. Louis-style pizza at Guido’s Pizzeria and Tapas, Faraci Pizza in Ferguson (a 15-minute drive from downtown), and Fortel’s Pizza Den a 20-minute drive from downtown.
Toasted ravioli
If one food could encapsulate the spirit of St. Louis, it might be toasted ravioli. These crispy pockets of meat and sometimes cheese are an ode to the city’s vibrant Italian heritage, concentrated in the Hill, about six miles southwest of downtown. Toasted ravioli—which St. Louisans may call T-ravs—are commonly filled with ground beef, but it’s not unusual to find some with pimento cheese, spinach artichoke, or buffalo chicken inside. The ravioli are covered in breadcrumbs and quickly fried—so they’re not actually toasted—then topped with a sprinkle of Parmesan and served with a side of warm marinara sauce.
Where to try it: Munch on toasted ravioli at local favorites such as Farotto’s, Trattoria Marcella, Monte Bello Pizzeria, and McGurks.
Pork steak
The idea of pork steaks may give some diners pause—after all, steaks are generally not made of pork. This particular thick cut is part of the pork shoulder or Boston butt and didn’t originate in St. Louis. The pork steak was first advertised in the Boston Globe in 1901, but wasn’t a hit in the Lou until the 1950s. Today, this plate of juicy, tender pork covered in barbecue sauce is a veritable symbol of St. Louis’s summer and backyard barbecues.
Traditionally, pork steaks are grilled and then finished off in the oven with a slathering of barbecue sauce (perhaps with Maull’s, a local favorite)—all that marbled meat and thick fat cap make for a tender eating experience. Because pork steaks are an unusual cut, they can be a difficult item for restaurants to source, so restaurants usually offer it as a special if they have it.
A few places in town sell them every day, like Hwy 61 Roadhouse. For 20 years, it’s been serving a mix of Creole, Cajun, and barbecue. After being slowly smoked, the 12-ounce pork steak is covered in house-made barbecue sauce.
Where to try it: Slice into pork steak at Big Mamma’s Express BBQ, Hwy 21 Roadhouse in Webster Groves, about 20 minutes from downtown, and Beast Craft BBQ in Belleville, a 25-minute drive from downtown but only 15 from MidAmerica St. Louis Airport, the city’s smaller domestic airport.
St. Louis gooey butter cake
Federhofers Bakery
Courtesy of Visit Missouri
Gooey butter cakes aren’t going to win any prizes for looks, but they might be the sweetest and most comforting cake you’ll ever taste. The flat, dense treats have a thick “filling” (it’s more like a baked icing) that sits atop a cakey bottom—don’t ignore those toasted edges where the filling has caramelized. The dish is often served as a coffee cake: The intense sweetness nicely offsets a strong cup of coffee.
The origin of the gooey butter cake is a bit of a mystery (Koppe Bakery, Danzer’s, and St. Louis Pastries all claim to have invented it), but it’s generally believed to have been the result of a happy accident. Legend has it that a 1930s baker (whose name has been lost to time) messed up the measurements while baking a traditional cake, but soon realized the deliciousness of the new creation.
Where to try it: Go for a slice of St. Louis butter cake at Russell’s on Macklind, Federhofer’s Bakery, Park Avenue Coffee (which has 70 options), and the Cup.
Slinger
Sometimes you need a sensible breakfast. And sometimes you need a breakfast consisting of eggs, meat, and potatoes swimming in ladles of chili, naturally. All hail the mighty slinger, a staple in St. Louis diners.
Much like the gooey butter cake, the origins of slingers are murky and several restaurants (including the now-closed Eat-Rite Diner and Chili Mac’s Diner) claim to have created it. Supposedly, a truck driver in the 1970s stopped by a diner and asked the cook to “sling me up some eggs and chili.”
There are variations of slinger, but at its core, the dish should have meat (usually hamburger patties) and crispy hash browns, topped with a couple of eggs and cheese. All of that gets covered in chili and garnished with raw onions. Slingers may not fall under the category of fine dining, but they are the epitome of a Midwest home-cooked meal.
Where to try it: Chili Mac’s Diner downtown serves a delicious, no-frills version of the original, with the restaurant’s famous chili as a topper.
St. Louis–style ribs
If there’s one thing on this list you may have heard of before, it’s likely St. Louis–style ribs. Without a doubt, St. Louisans love their barbecue. The defining feature of St. Louis–style ribs are their unique rectangular shape, which is created by removing the sternum, cartilage, and rib tips from a set of ordinary spareribs. St. Louis–style ribs are slathered in sweet, tomato-based barbecue sauce and then grilled rather than smoked over low and slow heat.
Where to try it: Head to Pappy’s Smokehouse in Midtown or to one of Salt + Smoke’s locations for its Cherry Smoked St. Louis Cut Ribs.
Red Hot Riplets
Few things go better with an outdoor barbecue than potato chips. Enter the Red Hot Riplet, a salty, sweet chip that combines smoky barbecue flavor with spicy hot sauce.
The Red Hot Riplet chip was invented sometime in the ’70s. In 1996, the company dissolved and was reborn as Old Vienna LLC. Today, Old Vienna of St. Louis is still producing its iconic chip, whose ridges help hold onto the unusually high concentration of seasoning. In 2017, the company started bottling the spice blend for devotees to use on, well, everything else.
Where to try it: All grocery stores, such as Schnucks, and even some gas stations carry Red Hot Riplet chips.
Frozen custard and “concrete”
Ted Drewes
Courtesy of Visit Missouri
Frozen custard—ice cream’s denser, richer cousin made with egg yolks—was invented on Coney Island, New York in 1919 before being introduced to the Midwest at the Chicago World’s Fair in 1933. Local company Ted Drewes Frozen Custard has been a mainstay in St. Louis for 95 years. According to the family, Ted Drewes Sr. started making custard in 1929 while wintering in Florida, then soon opened a store in St. Louis.
Every summer, thousands of St. Louisans line up for their first “concrete” (a custard milkshake so thick it can be served upside-down) of the season. In addition to a build-your-own option, there are over 20 specialty combinations to choose from, like the Hawaiian, which comes with pineapple, banana, and macadamia nuts.
Where to try it: Ted Drewes South Grand location has been open since 1931; Silky’s Frozen Custard is also popular.
Where to stay in St. Louis
You’re going to need somewhere to lay your head between meals. The city has 79 neighborhoods—but don’t let that overwhelm you. Most of the buzz is happening in the downtown area, and it’s a great spot for first-time visitors. This is especially true if you aren’t renting a car, as many spots are within walking distance of each other. The Gateway Arch, the Mississippi River, the National Blues Museum, the Anheuser Brewery, and Busch Stadium are big itinerary hot spots.
The 142-room Hotel Saint Louis, Autograph Collection features a wealth of historic architectural details (check out the two-story lobby and its opulent upper cornice). St. Louis Union Station Hotel, Curio Collection by Hilton is located in a former railway station and has a lounge (the former Grand Hall) with a 65-foot-high barrel-vaulted ceilings, art nouveau mosaics, a long white marble–topped bar, the original terrazzo floor, and a large Tiffany glass window. Also downtown are a Four Seasons on the banks of the Mississippi River and a 21c Museum Hotel.
The Grand Center Arts District is another contender for your home base. Just north of the Midtown neighborhood, this is where you’ll find the city’s best theaters, art galleries, and museums. If that caught your attention, check out the Angad Arts Hotel St. Louis, Tapestry Collection by Hilton. Each floor is washed in a different color and the rooms are full of local art and a monochromatic palette.
This article was originally published in 2022 and most recently updated on February 9, 2026, with current information.
