Business & Tech
Rich and Charlie's Offers a Taste of Italy in Our Own Backyard
After 40 years in operation, Rich and Charlie's has earned a reputation for great pasta and Italian specialties.
Think St Louis pasta and the first two words that pop in your mind may not be spaghetti and fettuccine, but instead it might be . For more than 40 years Rich and Charlie’s has made a reputation of bringing red and white pasta to the masses, along with a variety of Italian specialties at affordable prices.
Originally opened in 1967 on Delmar Boulevard, Rich and Charlie’s Town and Country location is one of the company’s earliest expansion sites. Over the years, little has changed at the West County restaurant. The dining room still provides a comfortable atmosphere with décor that’s simplistic and accented with retro Italian posters.
The menu has also remained much the same. Pasta still rules, and it includes 28 pastas divided by sauce: red, white and seafood. My red sauce recommendations are the Spaghetti Bolognese, Cannelloni and Penne Ronzio which is tossed with meat sauce and laced with mushrooms, peas and seasoned with prosciutto, then topped with cream sauce and Parmesan.
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Cream sauce connoisseurs favor the Tortellini. This prosciutto-stuffed pasta, whose history claims it was created as a tribute to the Goddess Venus, is sauced and tossed with mushrooms and peas. Fettuccine Carbonara, Cavetelli and Rich and Charlie's renowned signature pasta, Pasta Con Broccoli, are menu mainstays.
“We were the first to do Pasta Con Broccoli, which was a family recipe,” said Chuck Pozzo, co-owner of Rich & Charlie’s.
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Classico Italiano entrées include chicken, veal and a few beef and fish recipes. For decades, customer favorites remain the Chicken Marsala, Veal Parmigiano and Pesce Trattoria, a variation on Modiga style, which enrobes the fish filet in lemon butter sauce, melted provel and a sprinkling of mushrooms. Of course, entrées are served with the famous Rich and Charlie’s salad along with a basket of fresh Italian style bread from The Hill. To create a three-course feast, add an appetizer and dessert to your entrée of choice.
The entire menu from soup to sammies to pastas to desserts is available for takeout seven days a week. Lunch prices range from $6.25–$8.50 with dinner running from $9.25 to $16.50.
Rich and Charlie’s Town and Country is located at 1081 Woodsmill Road just west of Clayton Road at Route 141.