Steeped in history and architecture, but without pretension or high prices, low key and friendly Saint Louis is unexpectedly great for design lovers. Between its deep German roots (read: lots of beer), and a strong undercurrent of the arts, there is lots to explore in the Brick City.
See:
• City Museum (first picture above): Crazy climbable scrap metal sculpture park meets explorable underground cave meets St. Louis artifact museum. And that's just the tip of the iceberg. This place defies definition and should not be missed. Truly.
• Jefferson National Memorial: Even if you don't go up the funicular into Saarinen's famed arch, at least visit the grounds and see the steel structure up close. It's a mid century marvel.
• Forest Park: Bigger than that other park in New York City, Forest Park boasts green expanses, an Art Deco glass greenhouse, a boathouse, and golf courses. Much of it is free, including the art museum and Saint Louis Zoo. If you're there in winter, the Steinberg skating rink has both an outdoor fireplace and bar.
• City Garden (pictured just above): A jolt of welcome culture in downtown Saint Louis, playing host to fountains and sculptures by the likes of Tom Claassen and Jim Dine.
Tour:
• Missouri Botanical Garden (pictured above): Extensive and beautiful grounds, and a kick ass Japanese garden.
• Anheuser Busch: Beer drinkers will enjoy a free factory tour of the famous brewery complex, with glasses of beer at the end. Even teetotallers will love seeing the signature Clydesdales up close and personal, in their pretty home stable. Look for the dalmation pup, who is often sleeping in the hay alongside the horses.
• Architectural Tours: Saint Louis has amazing architecture, so make a point to drive around some of the neighborhoods and gawk at all the brick homes. If you want more structure, view the city through the eyes of architectural historian Michael Allen. Email in advance for what's on the schedule.
• Cherokee Street: Walk down this design-minded street lined with homegrown art galleries, antique shops and Mexican restaurants. On any given weekend evening, there's bound to be multiple art openings.
Shop:
• Firecracker Press (pictured above): Bright, modern posters and cards created on antique letterpresses on Cherokee Street.
• R. Ege Antiques: A fantastically curated hodgepodge of beautiful antiques and interesting oddities.
• STLStyle: This tiny shop sells Saint Louis themed t-shirts, featuring different neighborhoods, that are a great alternative to traditional souvenirs.
• MoModerne: A mid-century enthusiast's dream. You can see the owners' house tour here.
• Quintessential Antiques: This place is a bit out of the way, and has limited hours, but is worth it if you are looking for interesting, vintage finds. Like most shops of this kind, what you get depends on what day you're there.
• Vintage Vinyl: If you have ears, go here for both new and used music. Touring musicians often shop here before playing The Pageant or Blueberry Hill later that night.
Eat:
• Iron Barley: Hearty food in a German meets Southern hillbilly environment. A unique and casual place in Saint Louis' South City. Try the seafood barley risotto or smoked salmon; both are simple, yet delicious.
• Taste by Niche: If you're feeling more fancy, head to the Central West End for local celebrity chef Gerard Craft's tasty pairings of handmade cocktails with food.
• Ted Drewes: Sure, you could leave Saint Louis without trying frozen custard, but why? To double down on local fare, sample the Tedad's: homemade vanilla custard with crushed oatmeal cookies from Dad's, another long-standing South City gem.
• Crown Candy Kitchen (pictured above): Step back to the past in this truly authentic soda fountain and candy shop, open since 1913. While you're there enjoying a milkshake, envision what old North St. Louis was like in its heyday.
• Sweetie Pie's: Prepare to let your pants out after leaving this Southern food cafeteria, because the fried chicken and mac and cheese is to die for. Wonderfully old-school, young men courteously carry women's trays to their tables. You can expect to see multiple church hats on Sundays. Don't be surprised if you see them filming their reality show, "Welcome to Sweetie Pie's", for Oprah's OWN network.
• Local Harvest: Yummy, organic local food. Thursday nights they have half off bottles of wine.
Drink:
• Urban Chestnut (pictured above): A modern take on a bier garten, with great German style beer, imported communal tables and glassware.
• The Civil Life: The new kid on the block, tucked away on an assuming street. Housed in a generic pole barn, it's surprisingly custom and homey inside, with super friendly staff. The session beer itself, and relaxed vibe, is certainly worth a visit.
• The Royale: Solid food, but it's the well-made cocktails that are truly worth drinking on their large outdoor patio.
• Schlafly Tap Room: The largest and most established of all the micro-breweries, Schlafly is one-stop shopping for beer, pub fare, bar games and live music. The lovely historic brick building is a bonus.
Stay:
• Dwell 912: This stylish and relaxed B&B is a welcome change from traditional hotels. Proprietor Jen Schoemehl shared her lovely home with Apartment Therapy readers back in 2011.
• Moonrise Hotel (pictured above): A young and friendly hotel, located in a college-centric area of town with many restaurants and venues. The rooftop bar is a great place to enjoy a drink on a beautiful night.
(Images: Flickr, used with permission; Terese Ramin; Far From Ordinary; American Classic; Dabney Frake; Nextstl; Moonrise Hotel)
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Man, that City Museum looks amazing!
@Quincyscott, it is! I lived in St Louis a decade ago and remember that as one of the highlights. It's pretty kooky, and a lot of fun.
Laumier Sculpture Park is also a great visit, though a bit further out from the city. The Contemporary Art Museum and the Pulitzer are great art museums to visit as well. Other great restaurants include Farmhaus, Mad Tomato, and Good Pie, and Mr. Wizards is really much better (creamier) than Ted Drew's.
Thank you so much for this article! Speaking as a St. Louis native and resident we definitely have a lot of pride for our city and the small treasures dotted within.
City Museum is the best place to visit, ever. While I lived in Kansas I loved to visit St. Louis just for that!
Skip Crown Candy and go to Scottish Arms! The milkshakes are ok; Scottish Eggs are amazing! Soulard Market (and the homes surrounding it) are also worth catching if you have an extra hour or two downtown.
I. LOVE. CITY. MUSEUM. I used to go there ALL THE TIME. Adults and kids alike have tons of fun there!!!
The first time I went to STL, I fell in love, completely head over heels in love. I stayed in Central West End, and it's still my favorite jaunt. STL truly is a design lover's city, even a foodie's city. My favorite cupcake (is anyone still into cupcakes) place is Jilly's. It has the BEST red velvet cupcake ever. I tried having some shipped to California (where I live), but they don't ship. Oh well, that means I must go back to STL for more cuppies and culture!!
LOVE St.Louis! My sister lives there and I have gone there quite often growing up, there is always something interesting to do and somewhere delicious to eat. ( and a free, pretty awesome zoo! ) The new mobile 'Summer Truck' is also pretty awesome! :)
Fountain on Locust has pretty amazing ice cream. Get the Bearcat sundae. You're welcome. (They also have Burlesque Bingo the first Thursday of every month. It's a blast.)
And second the Scottish Arms suggestion.
And brunch at Rooster, good Lord. The Rooster Slinger will make you cry.
Okay, enough of my St. Louis love.
thank you for sharing all this great stuff about my hometown, which i love so much!
What else is great about City Museum, other than interesting exhibits of stuff dug up in the city, the little-kids train ride, a huge slide, lots of running and jumping space for kids (and kids-at-heart) and more? It's the home of CIRCUS HARMONY! Young kids doing AMAZING acrobatic/juggling/contortion feats, learning cooperation, coexistence, persistence. Weekly shows. They are absolutely incredible, and I would be writing that even if my nephew was not a performer with the group! (It's a nonprofit, so I do not think this constitutes an ad!). But it's a great feature of the really great City Museum.
(But someday I really want to get a Ted Drewes!)
Coming from a St. Louis native, this is a great guide! I also have to agree with the commenter who mentioned Rooster. It's the best, and even if there's a wait it's definitely worth it (their bloody marys and crepes are to die for!).
St. Louis this and St. Louis that... Everybody always talks about St. Louis as though it's the only big city in Missouri. You know what? Kansas City is a much hipper place. River Market, Crossroads, Westport, Brookside, Waldo, to name a few of the many awesome and unique districts. We also have an AMAZING art museum. Kansas City is also less dangerous than St. Louis. (St. Louis is third most dangerous and Kansas City doesn't even make the top ten list!) First Fridays and the West Bottoms great events to take part in! Not to mention we have some of THE BEST concerts in the region!
I say skip St. Louis and try something a little more adventurous. :)
Love, love, love the city museum. The most unique place we have ever visited. I wish I'd had this guide before we went.
You should do a travel book with all the cities ....
I second the visit to MoModerne. Although I've only been in once (just a week ago), I'll be stopping in anytime I'm in the area. Unique items and great people. Also, not sure how the Contemporary Art Museum didn't make the list. Glad it was added in the comments.
That's a great list. But for eating (and drinking), one must simply go to Pi. Flagship location in U-City or the new Downtown location. Either one, but DO IT. Your view on pizza (and wings) will be changed forever.
For the Art Deco lovers, make sure you check out the Chase Park Plaza. Beautiful hotel, plus residences, a movie theater, and restaurants. Great place.
I could go on for days here with stuff to do, but I won't bore you.
I love my hometown! This guide is a great start, but STL has so much to offer, a quick guide just doesn't do justice.
If architectural tours are your thing, the Frank Lloyd Wright House in Ebsworth Park is a dream.
And for vintage hunting, I'm not sure how the shops on Cherokee escaped this list.
Dining on The Hill is always good for first-timers too.
Good work, AT!
I moved to Saint Louis from Orlando, Florida exactly a year ago today. I am SO happy we decided to do so. I absolutely love this city and it has so much to offer! Great article!
@krissydiggs As a non-Missouri resident who has spent extensive time in both STL and KC (I went to Mizzou and had lots of friends from both cities), I can say, without bias, that St. Louis is honestly the better place to visit. It has more cultural activities, and simply more things to do. The food is often more unique as well. Kansas City is a much hipper, newer town, and although I would ultimately prefer to live in KC due to amenities, STL is more interesting in terms of history, culture, and activities.
We got married at the City Museum in the room that connects to the outdoor sculpture shown in the picture. It was an amazing place to marry and party!
Also, the great Ted Drewe's vs. Mr. Wizard debate will never die. However, I vote for Ted Drewe's custard.
@krissydiggs - Wow what a chip on your shoulder about the STL. I agree KC is a great place with amazing culture however if you look at most city guides in major publications they generally skip STL and mention KC as the midwest representative. Now let's have a little education on your comment that St. Louis is dangerous. Yes we are high on that list but if you are from St. Louis you would know that the majority of that crime rate is thanks to a lovely little place called East St. Louis - AKA not even in Missouri but across the river in Illinois. Unfortunately it is part of Metro St. Louis and we always take the rap for it. But the majority of the locations mentioned in this city guide are perfectly safe and well worth the trip. No matter where you travel you should always be smart about safety. Be more educated on the subject before you start trashing a place.
Aside from that I was born and raised in STL we have great history, wonderful places to eat, shop, & see and for the most part it is relatively inexpensive - many of our museums have free admission. If you think you might travel here don't let small minded people sway you. The STL is great!
How could you miss La Dolce Via or Foundation Grounds? Even though they're not in a list, go there for the most luscious ever, ever, pastries. And for dinner LDV, the best.
If you go to the Gateway Arch and the Jefferson Memorial Museum, don't miss a visit to the museum in the basement of the old Cathedral...worth the time!
@Healeygirl: Thanks, I was going to say the same thing. First of all, there's really no reason to take time out from a discussion about how great one city is to point out that another is better, but it seems especially unnecessary to do so in this case. I've been in St. Louis for about 11 years now and I am thrilled that it is finally starting to come into its own and be recognized for the great things here, many of which have only sprung up or improved in the time I have been here. There is definitely a real interest in making this a vital and interesting place to live and visit and this kind of thing will only improve that. (And I have never yet been to KC, but I would love to, because I hear that it has a really great art scene and all kinds of cool things to do and see. That's what I hear. A lot. I hear that A LOT.) I would also add to this list all of the great art museums in STL: SLAM, The Contemporary, the Pulitzer Foundation, and my favorite, the Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum at Wash U.
Quick clarification: the crime ranking has nothing to do with East St. Louis (which is in Illinois). The City of St. Louis ranks high in crime because the boundary of the city hasn't changed since the 1870's. Crime stats for "St. Louis" look only at the inner city. In other metros such as Louisville, Indianapolis and others, the city has expanded its boundaries to incorporate more land and other municipalities. In St. Louis, this would be the equivalent of adding University City, Clayton, Webster Groves and many other suburbs into the crime stats. As a metro area, St. Louis ranked as the 103rd most dangerous in 2010.
Anyway, I was wondering if the author could add photo credits to the guide? I don't have a big problem with you taking the photo for Urban Chestnut's new bier garten from my site, but it would be nice if there were a link or indication of who took it. Thanks.
http://nextstl.com/placemaking/urban-chestnut-brewing-company-bier-garten-opens-to-rave-review
Thanks so much for the St. Louis shoutout! I second all the above recommendations, especially Cherokee Antique Row. Check out Dressels Pub if you're in the Central West End!
I live right across the street from Forest Park, which is such a fantastic place. Taking a run through there in early summer is so wonderful - you can jog past a free showing of Shakespeare, watch kids splashing in fountains and lovers having sunset picnics in front of the Art Museum, and hear jazz drifting from the Boat House.
I know St. Louis isn't as glamorous as New York, LA, or any dozen other cities, but it's where I live and grew up, and hearing it spoken of with love is a great pleasure!