Small Business Spotlight: Love at First Bite
February 5, 2021
Whether you’re craving smoked meat, seafood, or vegan cuisine, or if you just want to indulge in fries, Love at First Bite has you covered. Walking into the small building at the corner of Ashby and St. Charles Rock Road, customers are greeted by employees ready to serve you. On your right, you will see a mural of Bush Stadium and the Arch and on the left, you will see a chalkboard that has the restaurant logo on it.
Love at First Bite first opened their restaurant on September 9, 2020, in St Ann, Missouri. According to their website, Love at First Bite is “the newest creation and biggest flavor explosion from Chef Jason Lamont.”
In 2010, Chef Lamont began cooking professionally with one goal in mind: to have meals that fall in love with your tastes buds head over heels. The restaurant has managed to become masters of the trade due to the expertise and commitment of Chef Jason Lamont. Love At First bite serves fresh, hearty, and truly unforgettable recipes. Their menu includes dishes assembled from the freshest ingredients, guaranteed to carry your life with bold and inspiring taste. Love at First Bite, with many wonderful plant-based recipes, is vegetarian-friendly.
Employee Shaye Gross explained what Love at First Bite is doing for people during the pandemic. “Once a week we’re receiving letters in the mail for needy people this past holiday season.”
Shaye said the community can help by “continuing to come visit and purchase meals.” Love at First Bite currently offers takeout and curbside pickup at this time. The hours are Tuesday through Saturday from 11 am to 8 pm, Sunday from 12 to 6 pm, and they are closed on Mondays.
Love at First Bite has a variety of different items on their menu such as “sammiches”, loaded fries, seafood, salads, and various types of smoked meat sold either by a half-pound or whole pound. You can also get smoked meat on a sandwich. According to Shaye the most popular dish is the “vegan St Paul sandwich.” It includes egg, bell pepper, onions, cauliflower, lettuce, tomato, onion, pickle, and veganaise.
Shaye also stated that they do a “Seafood Sunday.” “Everybody likes something different on Sundays so we thought seafood would be great,” she stated.
Although the restaurant is new, the employees have different backgrounds when it comes to the food industry. Shaye remarks that she has been in the food industry for “seven years now and she loves the customer service part” of her job. She adds, “Everyone is very kind and nice.”
Inside the restaurant, they have colorful decor and signs everywhere you can go. According to Shaye the reasoning behind it is “we chose those colors because they are the colors of the African Flag.”
They are currently taking orders on their website and they also have a Facebook page.
