For its modest size and Midwestern manners, St. Louis has the capacity to punch well above its weight in cultural and culinary appeal. Nestled at the confluence of the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers, St. Louis has seen its fair share of historical action, from the launch of the Lewis and Clark expedition to the 1904 World’s Fair and the Olympics that same year, making it the first non-European city to host the Games.
And while its history remains a draw, like the still-operational 1852 Anheuser-Busch Brewery, modern St. Louis has a lot to offer visitors beyond Budweiser. “I don’t think people give St. Louis enough credit for having a really amazing food and drink scene,” says Meredith Barry, a long-time Chicago bartender who relocated to St. Louis seven years ago and now runs her own bar, Platypus, as well as newcomer Loba & Lore. Barry points to local institutions like The Gin Room from Natasha Bahrami and Planter’s House by Ted Kilgore for putting St. Louis on the drinks map. “But there are a lot of other smaller places that are doing really amazing things here in St. Louis.” Barry shares her highlights and sleeper hits for grabbing drinks in The Lou.
Frazer’s Restaurant & Lounge
Opened in ’92 by chef Frazer Cameron, the restaurant originally served as a go-to lunch spot for workers at the neighboring Anheuser-Busch Brewery. Having expanded and evolved through the decades, Frazer’s has become a neighborhood icon, with an expansive cocktail program bordering on the downright theatrical. “There’s a drink called Who Goes There, and I tell everybody they have to get it,” says Barry of the Old Fashioned riff that gets delivered in an antique lantern carried by a server in a cloak and staff bellowing “Who goes there?” to bemused crowds. “It just looks like a neighborhood bar, there’s a great food menu, and then suddenly they’re chilling glassware with liquid nitrogen and putting on a show. But it’s just extraordinarily welcoming.”
Idol Wolf
Known for their art-centric boutique establishments, the 21c Museum Hotel in downtown St. Louis opened in the historic 1926 YMCA building. “If you’re looking for a hotel vibe, I would go to Idol Wolf in the 21c downtown. It’s gorgeous,” says Barry. The Spanish-inspired food menu extends to the beverage menu with a smartly curated wine list highlighting exciting picks from the aromatic Albariños of Rías Baixas to full-bodied Riojas. The creative cocktail menu ranges from unique Gin & Tonics and fruit-infused highballs to a selection of Martinis, like Barry’s personal favorite The Dirty Dalí with Bombay Sapphire, Moletto Tomato Gin, fino sherry, blanco vermouth, and house-made pickled onion brine. “I could sit at the bar and eat Spanish olives and drink that Martini all day.”
Kenny’s Upstairs
In the formerly beloved Upstairs Lounge space in the Tower Grove neighborhood, St. Louis industry vet Kenny Marks (iNDO, Small Change, Planter’s House) has reopened the bar with an eye toward intentional drinks and an inclusive, neighborhood vibe. With soft red lighting, vinyl booths, and a checkerboard floor, the bar aims “highbrow lowbrow” with menu options including Kenny’s World Famous Pickle Martini (with house-made pickled vermouth), cocktails like Telephone Line (apple brandy, sotol, Averna, soursop syrup, lemon and Don’s Mix foam), and plenty of beer-and-shot combos, including a broth back. “I always tell people, you’ve got to get a shot and a broth … it tastes kind of like a curry,” says Barry.
Left to right: The Tea Ceremony at Little Saigon Café (Photo by Eddie Hsia); Fuego Loba at Loba & Lore made with Arrette blanco tequila, kumquat liqueur, aquavit, Chardonnay, acid solution, celery bitters, and a chili lime potato chip. (Photo by Alex Hankins/@alexhankinsphotography)
Little Saigon Café
“Saigon Café is an amazing Vietnamese restaurant, and I don’t think people realize it’s a place you can go for drinks,” says Barry. “Eddie [Hsia] is behind the bar, and he does phenomenal drinks.” The family-owned restaurant opened in 2001 in the city’s Central West End, and Hsia oversees the bar program via his mobile cocktail company, Mixed by Eddie. At Little Saigon Café, Hsia aims to create approachable cocktails that might introduce guests to less familiar flavors inspired by Asian cuisine. The results are rotating creations like the matcha-laced Tea Ceremony, a clarified Thai Pepper Kiwi Margarita Punch, or their signature Vietnamese Chocolate Espresso Martini. The drinks serve as the perfect pairing (or dessert) for dishes like lemongrass spare ribs with honey and fish sauce, crispy shrimp dumplings, or steaming bowls of pho.
Loba & Lore
The newest bar from Meredith Barry and her partner, artist Lisa Marie Thalhammer, Loba & Lore just opened this October in Midtown St. Louis. A fan of storytelling, Barry envisions the community-centric space to be a richly thematic experience, with Thalhammer’s art on the walls and Barry’s art in the cocktail glass. “Loba is Latin for she-wolf, and I really wanted it to have some she-wolf energy,” says Barry. “Lore is the storytelling part of what I love about making cocktails—showing people a different side of it, the artistic, expressive part.” Experience the artistry yourself with cocktails like the Missouri Miso Mushroom Manhattan (rye, Calvados, amontillado sherry, green apple, barley tea, white miso, mushroom, vermouth, Angostura bitters and a Werthers candy garnish) or the Twilight Blossom (ube, lemongrass shochu, junmai sake, plum vodka, vanilla, yuzu, honey, green tea, coconut milk and a white chocolate petal garnish).
The Passport Cocktail Bar & Bottle Shop
In the bustling nightlife hub of the Delmar Loop, The Passport marks the first brick-and-mortar location from sommelier Javia Gilliam-Sanford and mixologist Kaje Sanford. Born from the married couple’s drinks business, Pour Decisions STL (which also includes a mobile bar, a line of bar tools, and educational events), the cocktail bar and bottle shop is inspired by their love of travel and the transportive quality of drinks. “It’s a really beautiful space with incredible vibes,” says Barry. “And they really care about the education side of things, too.” Sip on house originals like Earl’s Fever Dream, an espresso Martini riff with Earl Grey vodka and lavender foam, grab a bottle—or better yet, signup for their wine club—and drop in for weekly events like the “Just a Vibe” DJ sets every Thursday as they curate community alongside an appreciation for drinks. “Even their zero-proof menu is fantastic,” says Barry.
Javia Gilliam-Sanford (left) and Kaje Sanford (right) at The Passport Cocktail Bar. | Photos by Mabel Suen/Explore St. Louis
None of the Above
Opened at the end of 2023, None of the Above is accessed through the historic tunnels of the bustling City Foundry, now a hub for dining and entertainment in Midtown. With a playful speakeasy vibe and a chic ambiance, None of the Above combines classic cocktail technique with a penchant for flavorful experimentation. Under the helm of Niche Food Group bar manager Fionna Gemzon, the cocktail menu ranges from house orginals like the Hejaz Railway (tahini fat-washed Armagnac, za’atar, marjoram, Suze, honey, lemon) and the Macario (mezcal, sotol, cacao, coriander) to lesser-seen classics like the Pendennis Club and the Yellow Bird.
Platypus
With a craving for community and an idea to create a bar that functioned like an amalgamation of every place she has worked and loved, Barry opened Platypus in 2021. “A platypus is a ‘yes and’ sort of animal, you know? It’s cute, it’s poisonous, it’s weird. So I was like, that’s what this bar is gonna be,” explains Barry. “It’s whatever it needs to be to the person who’s coming in.” That looks like a multiroom space with a bar in the front, a room with pinball and a kitchen window for baskets of fries and popcorn chicken (or tofu), a back patio, and a venue space that hosts everything from live music to drag nights to bingo and pole dancing.
Crafty chalkboard cocktails rotate daily, alongside a playful selection of chuggable wines and beers both craft and macro. “I didn’t want to be chained to a menu, and part of the purpose is to use what we have fresh in-house. But it also gives us creative freedom, and it’s a great space for all the bartenders to contribute.”
Small Change
“Ted Kilgore is the one who really pushed the cocktail scene here in St. Louis. You can see his effect on the whole city,” says Barry, giving credit to the founder of lauded cocktail bar Planter’s House, which opened in 2013 on Lafayette Square. “Small Change is their other bar, and it’s the perfect blend of a dive bar and a cocktail bar. Truly, the cocktails are phenomenal.” Self-described as the “dive-bar-chic stepchild” of Planter’s House, Small Change opened in 2018, bringing neighborhood-bar vibes to the Benton Park area. A round of drinks might include a classic Martini, a rotating house original like the Disjointed Identity Crisis (Jägermeister, Malört, green Chartreuse, lemon, lime, simple syrup), or a can of Hamm’s and a shot of Mellow Corn. “I like to grab a drink and sit on the patio with my dog,” says Barry.
Telva at the Ridge
Co-founded and led by chef Loryn Nalic, who won the James Beard Award this year for Best Chef in the Midwest, Balkan Treat Box is a delicious love letter to husband Eric’s Bosnian roots and the city’s strong Bosnian community. Opened in January of 2024 in the Webster Groves neighborhood, Telva at the Ridge is Nalic’s cafe-style extension, with an emphasis on Balkan breakfast like the cilbir—Turkish eggs with garlic yogurt, tomato-chile brown butter, herbs, and toasted somun. Wake up with a Bosanska Kahva (a Bosnian coffee served in a traditional copper dzezva with a sugar cube and a piece of Turkish delight) and a rose latte with house-made rose syrup. For brunch cocktails, go classic with a Bloody Baba (vodka, tomato, roasted red pepper, smoked salt, lemon, dill) or refreshing with the When in Bloom (Cocchi Rosa, Cappelletti, mint, pomegranate, prosecco).
Left to right: Telva at the Ridge serves up Bosnian coffee and Balkan breakfast like cilbir with Turkish eggs. | Photos by Spencer Pernikoff