348. Rob Connely: Owner of Bulrush

Arts Interview with Nancy Kranzberg

Bulrush STL is a contemporary dining and craft bar experience in the Grand Center Arts District just a short walk to the Fox Theater and Symphony. Two-time James Beard semi-finalist chef, Rob Connoley features contemporary foods rooted in Ozark cuisine. Their goal is to define Ozark cuisine by looking into the past – the origin story, so to speak, when the indigenous Osage people first encountered the immigrants and settlers, who also brought the enslaved into the region known as the Ozarks. This is a messy story. A story often filled with troubling histories – histories that aren’t ignored. Their focus is on the food and using our platform to give voice to the story tellers of the past. They look at how each of these cultures offered ingredients, techniques and traditions to what melted together to become what we now know of as Ozark Cuisine.