Ozark cuisine — an off-shoot of the beloved Southern culinary tradition — doesn't typically get much play in the world of fine dining. The region, which includes Missouri, Arkansas and Oklahoma, has an ambiguous culinary identity to those unfamiliar.
Chef Rob Connoley aims to bring greater understanding to the region’s culinary culture.
The owner of Bulrush in Grand Center has been educating St. Louisans on — and delighting them with — the mouth-watering history of Ozark cuisine since the restaurant’s debut in 2019. The restaurant’s tasting menu is informed by Connoley’s research on the region during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. With a lack of documented recipes, Connoley took inspiration from historical records of how people lived and worked at the time.
“When we look at the role of Indigenous people, especially the Osage people or enslaved individuals who were brought to the area by settlers, that stuff was oral tradition,” said Connoley. “By looking at their lives in a non-culinary way, I'm able to learn quite a bit about the food they were growing, hunting and sometimes eating. That's what's fun for me because then we can move ahead 150, 200 years and see the connections to today.”
Connoley’s appreciation for the region and its fare has earned him recognition on the highest levels. He’s a four-time James Beard Foundation Best Chef semi-finalist, and on April 3, he was named a finalist for best chef: Midwest. Nearly a week later, Bulrush earned the No. 1 spot on “Ian Froeb’s STL 100: The best St. Louis restaurants of 2024.” Last year, the eatery came in second.
Bulrush’s mission goes beyond educating diners on Ozark cuisine. There’s also an emphasis on serving the community by way of “reparative restauranting.” The unique business model is “reparations in the most classic sense of the word,” according to Connoley, as he lends his time, money and resources to the community.
As part of the restaurant’s reparative work, Connoley has been mentoring Normandy High School students in Chef Andrea O’Bannon’s ProStart class since 2023. One of those students, Alex Belton, shows particular promise.
The high school senior started competing in the Family, Career, and Community Leaders of America’s regional and state culinary events in 2023, where she brought home gold medals in both levels. During her first appearance at nationals in Denver, she came in second place.
Belton had no cooking experience prior to O’Bannon’s class. Her success in competitions, however, brought on a newfound confidence in an unfamiliar space.
“I knew that I had it in me, I just had to bring it out — and I did. So the continuous wins after that brought me my motivation to keep going,” said Belton.
This year, Belton has gone on to compete in, and win, regional and state FCCLA culinary events. This year, she’s headed back to nationals in Seattle. Under the guidance of Connoley, she is diligently practicing her technique and perfecting the competition menu in the hopes of bringing home the gold.
“I typically practice about two or three times a week, and typically what we do is set up as if I'm in the competition setting. We do everything full out as if I'm competing, and we do this back to back until I can get it,” said Belton.
Aside from her strong skills as a rising star in the culinary world, Rob is proud of the person she has become since they started working together.
“She's come so far in two years in the ability to present herself to the world,” said Connoley. “The leadership that she has developed are things that really excite me because wherever she ends up next, you know she's going to do well. She's going to be fine. And we just need to support her so she can flourish in whatever way she needs to.”
To learn more about Bulrush’s restorative work, Belton’s aspirations after high school and the grilled cheese critique that makes her and Connoley laugh to this day, listen to St. Louis on the Air on Apple Podcast, Spotify or Google Podcast, or by clicking the play button below.
“St. Louis on the Air” brings you the stories of St. Louis and the people who live, work and create in our region. The show is produced by Ulaa Kuziez, Miya Norfleet, Emily Woodbury, Danny Wicentowski, Elaine Cha and Alex Heuer. Roshae Hemmings is our production assistant. The audio engineer is Aaron Doerr.
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