Washington Post restaurant critic Tom Sietsema recounts his meals at Farmhaus, Bogart's Smokehouse and Half & Half in this weekend's Post travel section.

Titled "Meet Me in St. Louis for Some Good Eats," the latest installment in Sietsema's semi-regular "Postcards from Tom" feature has mini-reviews of those three restaurants plus and passing mentions of Sanctuaria, Gus' Pretzels and World's Fair Doughnuts.

Niche owner and chef Gerard Craft has been chewing his nails and rubbing off his tattoos ever since he discovered that Sietsema visited, in large part because Craft is a DC native. He needn't have worried, based on the lead paragraph to Sietsema's story:

"If you want to know why St. Louis tastes so good right now, reserve a table at Niche restaurant. The maple custard layered with smoky shiitake mushrooms that launches chef Gerard Craft's $65 tasting menu is one of many dishes that would look at home in San Francisco or New York but happens to be served in historic Benton Park."