(St. Louis, MO) — St. Louis is known for its world-famous barbecue. There’s a reason “St. Louis Style Ribs” are on BBQ menus around the world.
Now, you can experience flavors from around the world in St. Louis! Introducing Expat BBQ, by Niche Food Group.
Located in the City Foundry STL, Expat features three stories full of seating and space, including an outdoor patio on the third floor.
The slogan is “Well Traveled Barbecue,” and there’s good reason for that. Just look at the menu! You’ll see food inspiration from Brazil, Vietnam, Mexico, China and more, while still staying true to Midwestern BBQ.
We started off with the “Slay Tray,” a trio of delicious appetizers including Hot Wisconsin Cheese Curds, Jerk Chicken Wings and Spare BBQ ribs. The cheese curds should be submitted into an international cheese curds awards show, because they are absolutely amazing. Just on their own, they’re packed with flavor and not TOO hot. The perfect amount of kick. They are served with a mango habanero sauce, if you like things extra spicy.
Diving into the international flair, there’s the World Tour on the menu. This is a way to try many meats like lamb shoulder, pork shoulder, brisket, ribs and more. We personalized ours since we already tried the ribs, so we got lamb shoulder, pork shoulder and brisket!
With sides of jalapeño mac ‘n cheese, baked black beans, Texas toast, collard greens and fries – there are delicious sides for everyone. The brisket and jalapeño mac ‘n cheese were the stars of the show for us on this order.
Rachel and I are big dessert fans. So when the option came up to try Tiger’s Blood Shaved Ice and Pineapple Crisp, we were in!
With ice cream and brown sugar crumble laid on top, this was my kind of dessert. The pineapple was juicy and packed with flavor, while the brown sugar crumble gave the perfect texture to wrap it all together.
The MVP of desserts, though, was the Tiger’s Blood Kakigori. Served at the perfect consistency, the shaved ice is flavored with strawberry, watermelon, coconut and sweetened condensed milk. It’s so light, but packed with flavor to make it a refreshing dessert. This was perfect even when the temps were frigid outside, so I can see this being a huge hit when the warm weather returns! Grab a patio seat and enjoy!
The international-inspired atmosphere at Expat made me want to travel the world! The attention to detail makes the space feel exquisite, but the open space concept offers a welcoming breath. Plus, the staff were all amazing. Our server, Sarah, was very attentive to our orders and offered great insight into the different food options. Sarah did a wonderful job!
Zach, the General Manager, was also welcoming and knowledgeable. He did a great job on providing some history of the restaurant and the vision they’re working with. You can tell Zach is passionate about what he does, which includes providing a fantastic menu to customers. With a recent opening of fall 2024, Zach and his team are constantly looking for ways to improve and evolve the menu.
All in all, this was an extremely unique experience for Rachel and I. Plus, it was our first date night out since having Mattie in December! Thanks, grandparents!
Check out Expat at the City Foundry STL, located at 3730 Foundry Way, St. Louis, MO 63110.
Matt Sheehan Official 