"Fancy"
Niche in Clayton
Syndey Street near Soulard
Libertine in Clayton
Farmhaus in South City
Cielo in the 4 Season's downtown and Vin de Set near Lafayette Square both have awesome views of the Arch. Only other place to get that is 360, which is douchey.
Cool bars that college kids don't go to / Good for drinks and apps
Olio new the Botanical Gardens - wine and apps. The burrata is awesome. It's in a rehabbed old gas station.
Taste in CWE- cocktails and apps (don't feel weird about getting the fries bc they are amaze balls)
Bridge downtown, wine and beer
Sasha's on Shaw (bonus points for being in my neighborhood and having a patio). Note that there is a Sasha's in Clayton by the big Amoco sign. That's more hoity toity Clayton moms and dads.
33 Wine Bar in Lafayette Square (not positive they have food....)
Brennan's in CWE (again, not positive they have food....)
For brunch
Brasserie in the CWE
Half and Half in Clayton
Mud House on Cherokee
Pastaria in Clayton - Also, for dinner, the best Italian in the city that IMO tastes more like Italy than anything on the Hill.
Local Harvest on Morganford (weekend brunch only)
- Less fancy brunch options are Benton Park Cafe near the AB Brewery and Soulard Coffee Garden in Soulard
Whiskey bars
All of these opened in the last three months. I guess whiskey is trending in STL:
Planters House near Lafayette Square
Gamlin Whiskey in CWE
Small Batch in Midtown
Whiskey Ring on Cherokee
"Hipster"
Silver Ballroom = pinball on Gravois near Bevo Mill
Fortune Teller Bar on Cherokee.
Amsterdam + The Dam, soccer bar and hamburger place attached. On Morganford near TG Park.
Tacos
"Fancy" tacos would be Gringo in the CWE, Mission Taco in the Loop or Seoul Taco in the Loop (*See also "Food Trucks")
Legit/normal tacos on Cherokee Street - Tower Tacos or La Vallesana.
- Other favorite non-taco-specific Mexican includes Pueblo Solis in South City, Milagro in Webster, Las Palmas in Maplewood, Chavas in Soulard
Donuts
Normal - World's Fair Donuts near Botanical Gardens. Cash only. Lady that owns it has a beehive.
Hispter donuts - Strange Donuts in Maplewood, also open late night.
Sammiches
Blues City Deli near Soulard
LeGrands in South City
Mom's Deli in South City
Burgers
Bailey's Range downtown
Russells on Macklind has an awesome burger, but only at dinner. And their desserts are AWESOME.
Stacked Burger Bar in South City
SOHA on South Hampton
Pizza
Good Pie in the Loop. Wood-fired pizzas.
Pi - Downtown location is kinda of cool if you want to spend anytime downtown. It's in the new "MX District" on Wash Ave.
Black Thorn Pizza in Tower Grove South. Deep dish is awesome but call ahead and order bc it takes for-ev-er.
Breweries
Urban Chestnut - 2 locations. New one in the Grove or older one in Midtown. Both legit. My favorite.
Civil Life in South City is my second favorite to UCBC
Schlafly Tap Room or Bottleworks = the classic.
4 Hands near Soulard
AB Biergarten is actually pretty cool, too
Food Trucks
Seoul Taco, Guerilla Street Food, Cha Cha Chow and GoGyroGo are my absolute favorites. If you only have time for two, choose Seoul and Guerilla. Seoul is Korean tacos (I recommend the steak tacos and the yogi bowl) and Guerilla is Filipino. Note that Seoul also has an actual storefront in the Loop.
BBQ
Pappy's in Midtown is the most popular, be prepared for a line.
Bogart's in Soulard is 2nd most popular, but my personal fave. Again, lines.
Southtown Pub in South City
Shaved Duck near TG Park for sit-down BBQ/soul food
Spare No Rib near Soulard / Benton Park
3am bars
Beale on Broadway
Talayana's if you're feeling crazy. It's fratty. But just go in with a good attitude.
Handle Bar in the Grove for dancing.
Sandrina's near the Hill
Patio
Milo's on the Hill. Bocci Ball, sweet patio, and legit good "St. Louis style" pizza.
Broadway Oyster Bar. Jam bands, cool covered patio even if the weather isn't great, and split a bucket of crawfish.
Atomic Cowboy in the Grove.Good tacos, too.
Friendlys near TG Park. Cash only.
The Royale in South City
Mokabe's for coffee, strawberry lemonade and sandwiches. Right by Tower Grove Park.
The Block in the CWE. Good for dinner, too. Potted Pig appetizer is my favorite app in STL.
Sasha's on Shaw, Southtown Pub also have patios... but were already featured in other sections of this list.
Also, I hesitantly add Amsterdam Tavern and Tower Pub to this list. I have been to their patios and enjoyed them, but not in ages so I'm not sure what they are like nowadays.
Coffee
Sump Coffee in South City. Do not ask for cream or sugar.
Hartford Coffee Company near TG Park. I recommneded the Vietnamese Iced Coffee. It's like crack.
Shaw Coffee on the Hill
Park Ave Coffee in Lafayette Square or Downtown
Foundation Grounds in Maplewood
Rise Coffee in the Grove
Blueprint Coffee in the Loop
Restituo in Shaw is super artsy. Not even hipster. It's hippie. But feels very NYC art scene.
Any Kaldi's
Food that will make you feel like you are at home with mom/grandma - Mama Josephine's in Shaw
Avoid -
- Clayton bars and Wash Ave in the evenings. Especially douchey. Unless you want to feel like you are back at Fieldhouse on penny pitcher night.
- I used to advise people to stay away from the AB Brewery. Too touristy, and we have way better beer options in this city to show off. If you're out with beer-drinkers, drink local at one of the places advised. If you are with non-beer enthusiasts / Select 55 drinkers like my Dad, the AB Biergarten is actually pretty cool.
- The Soulard bars you used to think were cool. We're too old/cool for McGurks, Llewelyns, Molly's. If you find yourself in Soulard, iTap is acceptable, or Carson's for karaoke.
- The Landing. Period.
