John Perkins’ Juniper held a special place in our hearts. After moving back to St. Louis, the small location on Boyle was our favorite place in town. There was something done a little differently with the food, the hospitality, the service. We even completed our first interview for this blog there. After moving into the new space, we continued to love everything John did there. It remained a special part of our family and an important element in the St. Louis restaurant scene. We celebrated new jobs, met friends there for double dates, even brought our sweet first baby there for her first brunch out on the town. When the pandemic hit and they shifted to a curbside service, we were happy to promote their family meal takeaway options. Although our town said goodbye to Juniper, we eagerly awaited the reopening of the space as John’s new concept, Sunday Best. 

As we walked in, John’s welcoming smile greeted us from behind the bar. Almost every table was full- a cacophony of laughs, glasses clinking, and waiters shuffling around to quickly get to tables. 

Our waiter handed us paper menus that seemed much more casual than the last time we were in the space, but we had to remember, it’s a different restaurant now. Batched cocktails were a nod to the previous restaurant in some of their flavors.

We started with a 1/2 dozen raw oysters with a mignonette and they were delicious. Fresh, perfectly shucked.

Next, we moved to shareables: The brussels sprouts with a fish sauce vin included a perfectly crisp, almost flash-fried texture with an addictingly salty fish sauce finish.

It’s true that at Sunday Best, the fried chicken is still the star. We tried the Sunday Best Sandwich: chicken thigh, smoked mayo, red pepper jelly, pickle, toasted bun, fries & Sunday sauce.

Tenders: chicken tenders, fries & Sunday sauce. You can request hot (it’s not melt-your-face hot, but still has a nice punch) or regularly seasoned chicken.

Sides we tried were the mac and cheese topped with panko, and collard greens, that were sweet yet tangy and cooked to perfection. We were too stuffed to order dessert but will have to return soon for a seasonal milkshake. 

Sunday Best hosts happy hour Wednesday through Saturday 4-6pm with hot skins, oysters, fried mac and cheese and drink specials.

Visiting Sunday Best last weekend was like walking the halls of your high school years after you’ve graduated. True, some things are different, but the heart of the place is still there. A lot about Sunday Best is different from Juniper. But what it doesn’t lack? Heart. Quality food. Exceptional hospitality. There’s just something about restaurants by John Perkins. We are happy to have Sunday Best in town and look forward to seeing it continue to be filled week after week. 

Thank you for inviting us out, Sunday Best! We will be back.