Hubert Keller and a Riverboat Cruise with Emily

Emily got into town yesterday for the start of a glorious weekend together.  I swooped her up from Amtrak at noon and we went to the Burger Bar for lunch.  I've been wanting to go for a while because, A) it's received many wonderful reviews, B) everything on the menu is in the form of a burger...what's not to love, and C) it's a Hubert Keller Restaurant. 

When our orders arrived at the table, our waiter also dropped the bomb that HUBERT WAS AT THE RESTAURANT.  I immediately started geeking out.  I don't get star struck often....the times I do is almost always involving Chefs (they apparently hold the key to my geeked-out food-loving heart). 

Of course I asked if we could get a picture (I mean really, these opportunities come around once in a blue-moon) and he was as nice as could be imagined for a celebrity, highly accoladed chef.  The Executive Chef was also out on the floor, and he spent about 15 minutes talking to us, explaining their menu and finding out about us.  I started slightly food-geeking with him as well when he asked what toppings we chose on our burgers and when we both said Peppered Bacon he said, "that's my favorite topping, how can you go wrong with coarse cracked pepper on thick-sliced crispy bacon". Music to my ears.  He brought out a cheesecake "burger" dessert for us to try that was a doughnut cut in half, with Cheesecake, strawberries, and reduced glaze pineapples with a strawberry sauce.  One word: Heaven.  He also brought us a cookies and cream milkshake for us to have on our run to the Riverboat Cruise.  Yes......we both know that we need to go to the gym to 15 years to burn off that lunch, but it was SO worth it!

 The run to the Riverboat was not enjoyable.  It was 110 degrees outside....literally.  St. Louis is in it's 11th day of extreme heat advisory. 

 Still enjoying those milkshakes!  It was HOT!!

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Always so much fun with this girl!!! And I still have her for the whole weekend!! Wonder what else we'll get into!!!!!