Nixta

St. Louis Imagine that “cool, colorful, always lively” restaurant in Oaxaca that everyone always talks about—“except it’s in St. Louis,” said Julia Kramer in Bon Appetit. That’s Nixta, a Botanical Heights newcomer with brick walls painted in bright pastels and Acapulco chairs that scream, “Come on in, hang out, bring your friends, drink as much mezcal as you want!” Nixta is no mere taco joint, though. The proof is in the pulpo. In a year when octopus has started appearing everywhere, chef Tello Carreon is serving possibly the best in the country—“crisp to the point of crunchy along its tentacles; tender and meaty without being overly soft on the interior.” Carreon, who’s from Guanajuato, Mexico, “makes deeply complex moles the way his grandmother taught him,” and tops his “stunning” shrimp ceviche with dabs of rosewater foam. This chef knows no borders. “His brain is a catalog of continents’ worth of ingredients, and the only way for an outsider to understand how they work together is to taste them.” 1621 Tower Grove Ave., (314) 899-9000