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Nathan Wright, chef and co-owner of the late-night eatery, was initially unsure about the product and the cannabis-infusion process. He was approached about the idea by Swade, a Missouri-based cannabis company.

“Are we just giving away weed in jelly?� Wright recalled asking. “That’s wild to me.�

Wright decided to give it a try, and the jelly was a hit. He said the sandwiches sold out on a busy night at the Loop location, with double the usual sales.

“This is opening the doors to do more� infused food, Wright said. “Customers at Up Late are already high — or on their way to get high — so this is a match made in heaven.�

In a legal marijuana market full of flowers, vapes and pre-rolled joints, cannabis-infused meals are carving out a space.

Already popular in states with mature cannabis markets, infused dinners or fine dining experiences incorporate THC in gourmet-style food. By mixing their culinary skills with the marijuana scene, chefs say they’re helping to destigmatize cannabis while capitalizing on consumer demand.

Now, after voters legalized recreational marijuana in Missouri in 2022, a growing number of chefs in the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ area are experimenting with infused cooking.

Aliya Waldman, owner and chef of The Chartreuse Dinner Club, has been hosting private infused dinners at her ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ apartment. The number of dinners she cooks has doubled in the last couple of years, though she doesn’t think infused dinners will reach the popularity of flower or gummies.

“It won’t take off to the level of that,� Waldman said. “It’s more of a luxury item. It’s like a fancy dinner for a high-end date night.�

Waldman infuses items such as oil, butter, duck fat and coconut cream, which can be added topically to dishes so THC dosages can be adjusted to diners’ preferences. For Waldman’s sweet corn crepe and golden beet and goat cheese mousse, cannabis is infused into a beet balsamic. Like Wright at Up Late, Waldman gets her cannabis strains from Swade.

Waldman sells out all six of her monthly dinner events — each has six diners — and thinks the market has room to expand, partly because people are shifting away from beer and cocktails.

“People are drinking way less,� she said. “People are going to choose a cannabis experience over places with cocktail pairings.�

‘Time to take root’

In April, the STL’s Pot Chef competition encouraged local chefs to show off their infused recipes. Seventeen chefs gathered at the Artist Art Banquet Theater on Cherokee Street, where about 80 attendees sampled infused food and beverages and voted for their favorites. Winners included an infused fried Twinkie, BBQ sandwich and pesto pasta.

Event creator Arica Avery said one of the goals was to encourage more chefs to experiment with cannabis-infused foods. She came up with the idea after she saw chefs selling THC-infused products at farmers markets and food festivals.

“I didn’t see a platform that showcased or celebrated these chefs,� Avery said. “This is a foodie town and nothing existed, so I decided to be the one to make it.

“People are already coming to ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ to eat. Let’s give them a way to eat cannabis safely.â€�

For a dinner series called “Best Buds,� Swade, the Missouri cannabis company, is providing restaurants with High Five’s Stiribles, a water-soluble and flavorless THC-infused powder that is incorporated into sauces and condiments. Best Buds features a series of pop-ups, with local restaurants offering cannabis-infused items for a limited time.

“It’s taking time to take root,� said Brandon Cavanagh, Swade’s marketing director. “The edible market is there and growing.�

The series included pizza by the slice at Pie Guy Pizza on May 13, with tacos and tostadas at El Molino del Sureste on June 24, and sushi rolls and Thai street food dishes at Indo on July 16. Reservations for each pop-up can be made online.

Alex Henry, chef and co-owner of El Molino del Sureste, hasn’t offered cannabis-infused foods before but he’s interested in exploring. The Mexican restaurant will be serving infused salsas to go with its tacos, tostadas and other seasonal items in June.

“At the end of the day people want to have something to relax,� Henry said. “Infused dinner is a great way to explore it.�

Under Missouri’s recreational marijuana law, people can give cannabis to others without compensation up to certain limit. To sell marijuana or marijuana-infused goods, business owners need a dispensary license from the state, and it can only be sold out of a dispensary facility. But chefs can get around that requirement by offering the infused products, such as sauces, dips and jellies, as free add-ons.

“Generally speaking, individuals and businesses cannot sell cannabis products without a dispensary license,� said Lisa Cox, spokesperson for the state Department of Health. “There are some exceptions for businesses, including where local jurisdictions allow for restaurants to prepare and sell cannabis-infused food and drinks that they prepared the same day.�

‘Surreal at times’

Some chefs are experimenting with food offerings that include a related product, hemp, which has different regulations than cannabis. Recently, Steve’s Hot Dogs sold infused macaroni and cheese to celebrate 4/20, an unofficial holiday in cannabis culture. Steve’s Hot Dogs uses in its bowls a hemp-derived garlic cream sauce from local beverage maker Mighty Kind.

Because of a 2018 federal law, no licenses are needed to sell certain hemp products as long as products don’t contain more than 0.3% THC by dry weight.

Joshua Grigaitis, founder and owner of Mighty Kind, said hemp-infused drinks and edibles are going to explode in popularity as consumers become more educated on the similar effects of hemp and cannabis. Mighty Kind gets orders from across the country for its Delta-8 and Delta-9 seltzers.

“We’re just processing it ourselves,� Grigaitis said. “It’s surreal at times. It’s really spreading.�

Recently, the state health department an advisory with the health risks associated with hemp-derived intoxicating cannabinoids, which are currently unregulated. The advisory said if ingested, hemp-derived products may cause hallucinations, impairment of memory and judgement, anxiety, vomiting, nausea, loss of consciousness and death and advised Missourians to avoid such unregulated products.

The health department warned that children are particularly susceptible to hemp-derived THC products because they are packaged to look like commercial food products and are sold in gas stations and convenience stores. Last month, six elementary school students in the Riverview Gardens School District were sent home after mistakenly eating Delta-8 Nerds Rope Bites and Mad Monkey Sour Strawberry Premium Gummies.

Not everyone is convinced that cannabis-infused foods will become a huge market.

Last year, ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½-based Good Taste Edible partnered with Hi-Pointe Drive-In to launch an infused French fry sauce. But Harold Sexauer, executive chef of Good Taste Edible, said he realized that people are more familiar with infused chews or vapes and will tend to opt for something familiar.

“It’s a good quick sale but it doesn’t have the legs for long term,� Sexauer said.

Still, Sexauer isn’t ruling out future efforts and is interested in partnering with a well-known local restaurant on infused dinners.

“People want trust in a brand,� Sexauer said. “If they trust a brand, they will be willing to try more of their products.�

Waldman, of The Chartreuse Dinner Club, plans for now to continue serving cannabis-infused products from her apartment. But she’s looking ahead and wonders if state law will eventually change to allow cannabis-infused brick-and-mortar restaurants. Currently in Missouri, legal marijuana sales are restricted to licensed dispensaries, and buyers aren’t allowed to consume on-site.

“I don’t think it’s a fad by any means,� Waldman said. “Chefs are forward-thinkers because the food industry is always changing.�