Bulrush St. Louis – Rooted in Ozark Cuisine

Welcome to Bulrush!

At Bulrush we understand Ozark cuisine by looking to the past. Specifically, we explore the late 18th century and early 19th century – the moment in time when the indigenous people first encountered the settlers, who often brought enslaved individuals. These three cultures came together at one particular time to create what has evolved into the food that we eat today. Our goal is to honor each of these cultures and present their foods with authenticity and respect, using contemporary cooking techniques and hyper-local, hyper-seasonal ingredients. Please see our About page to dig deeper into our philosophies and guiding principles.

We offer our Ozark tasting menu Thursday through Sunday. Each meal crafted by 2-time James Beard semi-finalist chef, Rob Connoley, includes staff explaining the food, the history, and our numerous research projects through QR code-directed videos. Beverage pairings (alcohol or spirit-free) are available either through our reservation system or upon arrival, as well as ala carte drinks. Please note that we are a interactive restaurant which makes Bulrush not-so-ideal for business meetings or groups preferring privacy.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can we accommodate dietary restrictions?

Please note that at this time we are not able to accommodate DIETARY RESTRICTIONS for egg, dairy, mushroom or tree nuts. Each is used extensively throughout the menu. Vegetarian and gluten-free (cross contamination likely in our small kitchen) are readily accommodated with notification. As a general rule, please consider that this is a tasting menu – an opportunity to experience the chef’s vision. While we work hard to accommodate dietary needs, at the end of the day there are only two of us in the kitchen preparing over 85 items each day.

How can I redeem a gift card?

Our gift cards are processed through a separate system than our reservations. Please give us a call at (314) 449-1208 and we can take care of redemption. Likewise, you can email info@bulrushSTL.com with your gift card number, preferred reservation time, with phone and email, and we can take care of the reservation in off hours.

Can I bring more than four guests?

We purposefully have our reservation system set up to restrict large parties since we are such a small restaurant. However, when seats are available we can certainly allow you to bring a group. Please recognize that the layout of our room makes it more challenging for groups larger than four to talk with each other, and the interactive nature of the restaurant is best suite for groups wanting to engage the staff and videos in our research and explanations. There will be frequent interruptions.

Do you allow private parties?

Yes. For the tasting menu we can allow up to 24 guests. For a bar-type event, up to 50. Please contact us for details on costs and offerings.

Bulrush STL is a contemporary dining and craft bar experience in the Grand Center Arts District just a short walk to the Fox Theater and Symphony. Two-time James Beard semi-finalist chef, Rob Connoley features contemporary foods rooted in Ozark cuisine. Our goal is to define Ozark cuisine by looking into the past – the origin story, so to speak, when the indigenous Osage people first encountered the immigrants and settlers, who also brought the enslaved into the region known as the Ozarks. This is a messy story. A story often filled with troubling histories – histories that aren’t ignored. Tonight our focus is on the food and using our platform to give voice to the story tellers of the past. And so we look at how each of these cultures offered ingredients, techniques and traditions to what melted together to become what we now know of as Ozark Cuisine.

We source all ingredients locally from small farmers. We make everything ourselves including cheese, yogurt and butter. Our team forages all ingredients to ensure responsible harvesting.

From the Marshfield Mail newspaper recounting an Ozark resident during the Spanish Flu Pandemic, “Floyd Atkinson, who had the flu last week, is able to eat biscuits now, and he said they tasted good.”

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