Bulrush StL Restaurant

My wife and I had a very pleasant experience here. The staff all work super hard! The bartenders were top notch! The Chef is amazing, but weird as he should because his food is spectacularly weird and wonderful. I felt as though he has a true passion for unique cuisine... A true artist! This is a must try restaurant! We would come at least once a month if we lived in St. Louis. Just do yourselves a favor and just go, you’ll see! ❤💥💯👍🏼👍🏼

Everything about this meal was amazing. The food, the atmosphere, the drinks and the service were impeccable. I would highly recommend this place to anyone and will never forget this experience. Expensive but well worth the price for me. I am pregnant and they were incredibly accommodating and had a non alcoholic drink pairing option so I was able to still fully enjoy the entire experience.

I have never had a culinary experience like what I had at Bulrush. Normally, a place of this quality (and you’d have to look to Michelin star restaurants to find a peer to Bulrush) is steeped in pretense and snobbery. The staff and atmosphere could not have been more welcoming. We were greeted immediately upon entry and given a welcome beverage. We were soon taken back to the kitchen and dining room.

When you dine at Bulrush, you sit around the kitchen and watch Chef Rob Connoley and his team do their thing. It’s fun watching them work, but even more fun is Chef Rob’s explanation of each course. He personally introduces each dish and tells about the inspiration behind it. This particular night was very comfort food inspired and incredibly delicious. Highlights were the gnocchi with hog shank and blue corn grits with a variety of vegetables. In honor of the Lenten season (and a little bit of nostalgia), they even started with their take on a Filet O’ Fish!

It was remarkable in every way and each bite was the new best thing I’d ever eaten. The drink pairings were also excellent and matched the restaurant’s mission of sourcing ingredients with a Missouri connection—even the French wine was from a region whose root stock can be traced back to Missouri. This couldn’t have been better and I highly recommend you make the effort to have dinner at Bulrush soon.

I’ve waited two weeks to write this review to see if time would temper my very high opinion of my evening at Bulrush, and it did not!

I think there is something very important that I want think people should know when booking your reservation. Your evening will be a 5 star experience. You will get great service. Your food order will never get lost or not prepared perfectly, your drink will never go unfilled and you definitely don’t have to worry about service being slow or inattentive. You will get personal attention from Chef Connoley as he describes each course, and its historical and cultural significance

The bar at Bulrush is set so high it almost needs its own scale. And we haven’t even gotten to the food yet! Each course was thoroughly thought out and executed in front of you. Not only are you getting an amazing (7course the night I went) meal but you are also getting plenty of educational entertainment along with it.

I took my wife here for our 12th anniversary and the whole time leading up to my reservation I was just hoping that this restaurant would be worthy of our celebration together. Two weeks later and we can’t shut up about it. We tell anyone who will listen about our awesome evening out at Bullrush.

Two more things. We were sent home with a cute Polaroid photo of us, the menu, a PawPaw seed and chef Connoley’s take on gooey butter cake for breakfast the next day.

The last thing, which came as a total surprise, at the end of the meal we were informed that the tip was included with our initial reservation, so we just got to float out of the restaurant on cloud 9.

Thank you to everyone involved that night to make our wedding anniversary so memorable!!

10/10!!! Fantastic experience!! So impressed with everything! The food alone was probably the best meal I've ever had! But, what made the whole evening was everything else that comes with this restaurant: the history of the food, the creativity and uniqueness, the no waste kitchen, the passion of the chef, the kindness of the staff, the attentiveness, the décor, the welcome beverage, the to-go treat for the next day, the polaroid picture, the commitment to the community, the intentionality of running a business with fair wages, the closeness to the land, the natural elements used in the serving dishes, the presentation, and I could go on and on. Yes, the price point is high, but worth every penny. We will be back!

Out of this world experience to be able to hear from the chef before each course is served. As a fan of Missouri history, to learn and taste recipes that are over 100 years old is a gift. Restaurants like this usually only exist in New York or overseas. You must come to this restaurant to experience Michelin dining in the Midwest.

This was the best eating experience I’ve had and I’ll be back. Every course was amazing and I love the care, dedication, and passion that goes into the both the food and the overall theme of the restaurant. I do not know of any other restaurant that’s doing what this one is doing.

The alcohol pairings weren’t our favorite but we thought the apple cocktail was incredible.

The atmosphere is very relaxed and cozy. The service is top notch.

My husband humors my enjoyment of expensive tasting menus but even he 1) loved the food and 2) felt full at the end of the meal. I had the vegetarian option and appreciated getting a protein replacement versus more vegetables which is often what happens. The gravy for one of the dishes was over salted (+blackened tempeh) but food was otherwise so good. The last course was one of the best desserts I've ever had.

Service was efficient if somewhat impersonal and a bit rushed. But I can't imagine having to repeat the same stuff every twenty minutes all night long, either.

Only suggestion - chef mentioned they had gotten rid of videos?? but we are nerds and loved the reading on the history of the area and the food research. We definitely would have read more stuff like that. I also loved hearing about the various orgs being supported and the pro-environmental aspects of the food service, even if I am adding to our end stage capitalist hellscape by browsing the container store.

A uniquely unforgettable experience.

My partner and I celebrated our wedding anniversary here in April, and I'm counting down the days until our next visit.

The chef and staff go to great lengths to educate diners about food and history in the Ozark area in a way that feels meaningful, raises awareness, and frankly, makes me feel proud to live in Missouri.

As an empathic individual, I was worried my ability to enjoy the food would be overshadowed by my own white guilt as I sobbed into my Ozark dishes, but that wasn't the case. Kudos to chef and the staff for their incredible work. We'll see you again this month.

Bulrush was an amazing culinary experience that far exceeded our expectations. I would recommend Bulrush to all who truly love food and appreciate the enthusiasm of Chef Rob and the entire Staff. The experience starts as soon as you make your reservation! Enjoy your greetings at the door and allow it to continue past the last course. Every moment was exciting and special. Out first experience with Ozark food, had the pleasure of enjoying 2 new fish dishes personally served by a fantastic chef! We would fly back to ST Louis just for another dinner at Bulrush!
Thank you Chef Rob and your entire Team, Lori and Brandon

Interesting experience and backstory behind the food and items we used. Gave us a complimentary take home dessert and Polaroid picture.

We love food based experiences and Bulrush did not disappoint. The owner/chef explains the sustainability and research behind the concept as you progress, you learn about the waste control processes and how the people of the Ozarks lived in the past. You got these stories through the food Bulrush makes for you. Definitely a fun and tasty way to learn about food, history and possibilities for the future.

The welcome drinks, palate cleanser was a nice segue Into the space. We did the pairing option and wish we had not ordered a starter cocktail. Other than that small change, we had a fantastic experience!

Amazing intimate chef's tasting menu that uses zero waste practices. We added on the drink package and it was well worth the prices as we received 3 wine pours and 2 cocktail pairings. My only complaint would be that it would be nice to add a coffee or a dessert wine with the last course

Great experience and food. The chef clearly puts tremendous effort into creating a unique dining experience

My short review does not do this experience the justice it deserves. The food is amazing. Missouri is blessed to have such a talented chef make it his home. He has done a remarkable job of incorporating history into his art. I'm particularly impressed with the flavor and texture combinations. I also have high regard for his business practices. Nicely done, Chef!!! I'm very impressed. Anyone reading this review, please consider visiting Bulrush and see for yourself.

Chef Rob & team are as talented as they are inviting at Bulrush. How this wasn't included in Eater's top 26 restaurants to eat at in St. Louis is a total travesty, and speaks more to the reviews shortcomings and bias than to their actual understanding of culinary exploration experience. Go here. Don't hesitate. It's a wonderfully sublime exploration of Ozarks culture and cuisine.

I think the best way to describe our experience would be revolutionary. The food was absolutely delicious. Each dish is thoughtfully researched and crafted using sustainable methods. I have seen reviews that state that this place is a once a year treat, but I absolutely disagree. We will be going here as often as we are able. This is way all restaurants should be operated, with a strong emphasis on incredible tasting food, local sustainability and education.

I give Bulrush 5/5 stars because it was delicious and my wife and I had a good time and want others to enjoy it, but I feel a more accurate rating would be 4.5/5 or 9/10 if google allowed it. Firstly, the food was incredible. Taste was amazing (perhaps ever so slightly over salted on some dishes), and the sourcing and presentation was lovely. We will definitely be back. What detracts would be the service. We did not have the opportunity to order drinks until well after the first course, they did not have the drink in stock that my wife ordered (they comped the drink they ended up making), and they brought me the wrong drink by mistake (they comped that as well). Additionally, they served our entire cohort of 4 couples a course without providing silverware, which we had to ask for. Overall, the food was amazing, the staff was very polite and friendly, and my wife and I had a lovely time, so I give 5/5 stars, but there is room for improvement. But don't we all have room for improvement? We look forward to next time!

As an outsider when I think about St Louis food I imagine fries, burgers and barbecue.
Bulrush just broke that stereotype because is an hybrid of fine dining, french cuisine techniques, history, local ingredients and Missouri cuisine.
I will not be surprised if in the future Bulrush get a Michelin star ⭐✨
This is the reason why we should go out for dinner 🍽 and try a different stuff.
The service was amazing and all the food arrived at the right time with the proper QR code with the explanation of the dish.

Again another good experience at Bulrush.

Incredible experience. An ozarkian tasting menu combined with fascinating culinary and agricultural histories. The asparagus dish blew my socks off.