On the advice of a work colleague we decided to try Wholly Mackerel and cannot say enough good things about the restaurant; the food, service and ambience are just wonderful.
We visited on a Friday night with no reservation (a no-no, but the friendly hostess accomodated us) and our gregarious waiter was at our table immediately to pull the chair out for my wife, light our candle and get us "settled in". He was very knowledgeable about the wine selections and offered a taste of a sauvignon blanc which started the evening off nicely for my wife (a generously-poured single malt did the trick for me). There were 3 or 4 specials off menu and a choice of about a half-dozen "sides" to accompany all dishes; again, our server was very knowledgeable, and comfortable taking the time to explain all those items in detail. I ordered the Halibut and my wife the Grouper, and both were prepared perfectly. The sides were substantial and delicious accompaniments.
Our server came over to make sure everything was excellent (it was) and made friendly conversation with us while surreptitiously maintaining our table- refilling the wines and water, clearing extra silverware, refolding my wife's napkin when she left the table. It was all very second nature to him and performed professionally and efficiently. It wasn't until my wife and I were finishing our coffee that we realized that he was the only server in the restaurant, with 8 other tables filled with people (maybe 40 people). He confirmed that one of the other servers had called in ill. This amazed us- we had received the best service to date in St. Louis (as had another table we observed complimenting him) in a relaxed, easy manner from a waiter that should have been pulling his hair out, and we hadn't even noticed a hiccup. The complimenting table confirmed that that was "par for the course" here.
All in all, remarkable. Well done, Chris (our server). And well done, chefs! We can't wait to come back.
Pros: Service, Taste, Choice, Value
Cons: Location, information has trouble finding the phone number
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