‣ Hey there, welcome back to my travel blog! I hope you’ve been doing well. Today, I’ll be sharing some of my favorite spots in my new home, St. Louis. I’m really excited about this post, although it is admittedly a bit overdue – this week, I actually left the city for summer vacation, but I’ll be back in August! For now, though, here are some of my favorite spots in the city.
What to Do & See
The Gateway Arch & Museum of Westward Expansion
A trip to St. Louis is not complete without a visit to the iconic Gateway Arch, which is actually part of the Gateway Arch National Park. You can go up the arch for $15-19 per adult and $11-15 per child, and the elevator leads you up to a panoramic view of the city. Directly below the Arch is the (free!) Museum of Westward Expansion, which highlights how the West was settled and explored (often in rather problematic ways). I enjoyed learning more about the history of both our country and the role that St. Louis played in it, and it was interesting to read about the competition in 1948 design competition that led to the construction of the Gateway Arch!
Old Courthouse
Located across the street from the Gateway Arch, Old Courthouse was built between 1839 and 1862 and is famous for being the site of two critical court cases: Dred Scott v. Sandford (when Dred and Harriet Scott sued for their freedom and the Court ruled that African Americans were not entitled to citizenship) and Minor v. Happersett (when Virginia Minor tried to register to vote but the Court ruled that suffrage for women was not protected by the Fourteenth Amendment). It is currently closed for reservations, but you can typically go inside and explore the galleries, too.
Busch Stadium & Ballpark Village
The St. Louis Cardinals are arguably a cultural icon of the city, and if you’re a baseball fan, I highly recommend going to a game in Busch Stadium! If you sit near home plate, you can see the Gateway Arch from your seats. Nearby Ballpark Village has restaurants and shops and is always buzzing with fans. Although I haven’t been yet, 360 Rooftop is a rooftop restaurant/bar that offers views into the stadium, so you can watch a game from there, as well.
Union Station
Once a functioning train station for the St. Louis region with over 100,000 people per day, Union Station is now home to the St. Louis Aquarium, St. Louis Wheel, St. Louis Ropes Course, St. Louis Mini Golf, and A-MAZE-ING Discoveries Mirror Maze, plus lots of restaurants and a hotel. There are light shows at night, and it’s overall just a really neat spot to explore!
Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis
The Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis is located in the Central West End neighborhood, about a 15-minute walk from the Metro station. It is a 226-foot tall Roman Catholic church with stunning architecture and interior mosaics. I felt like I was in a page of one of my art history books!
City Museum
City Museum is not for the faint of heart, but it is a very fun place to spend an afternoon! It’s a 100-year-old warehouse with repurposed industrial objects and structures that you can climb through, slide down, and get lost in. You can purchase tickets online for $18 (or $20 at the gate), and access to the rooftop is another $8. I recommend going to the roof if it is open – there’s a fun ferris wheel, more slides, and cool views of the city.
Missouri Botanical Garden
The Missouri Botanical Garden, one of the oldest botanical institutions in the United States, features 79 acres of landscaping plus the Climatron (the first geodesic dome used as a conservatory!). It is open year-round, though late spring may be the best time to see all of the flowers. The garden also has special events, like the Best of Missouri Market every October (100+ vendors selling food, crafts, herbs, jewelry, etc.) and Garden Glow from November to December (special light shows and displays).
Tower Grove Park
Tower Grove Park is located adjacent to the Missouri Botanical Garden. It’s a beautiful urban park to walk around in, and there is also a big farmers’ market every Saturday from April to October!
Forest Park
Another urban park that you absolutely should not miss is Forest Park, which hosted the 1904 World’s Fair and some events in the 1904 Summer Olympics. (Some of these events were extremely racist and problematic, though. Click here to read about the Human Zoo.) Forest Park is also home to the Grand Basin, St. Louis Art Museum, Missouri History Museum, St. Louis Science Center, St. Louis Zoo, and more. All of these attractions are free, though you do need to make a reservation to go to the zoo. (I’ve been to the zoo – it was cute, but honestly it made me kind of sad to see a lonely polar bear and red panda…). Forest Park also has tennis courts, kayak/canoe/paddle board rentals, golf, and more. There are often special events in the park; some of my favorites have been the St. Louis VegFest in August (vegan food festival!), Great Forest Park Balloon Race (hot air balloons), and St. Louis Earth Day Festival. In the winter, many people ice skate at Steinberg Skating Rink and sled down Art Hill, too!
Where to Eat
St. Louis may be known for barbecue, gooey butter cake, toasted ravioli, frozen custard, and St. Louis style pizza, but there are still tons of yummy options for me around the city! Here is a list of some of my favorites.
Tree House Restaurant / South Grand
The South Grand neighborhood is located near Tower Grove Park, and it just so happens to have my favorite restaurant in St. Louis, Tree House Vegetarian Restaurant. I’ve been three times this past school year – so much so that the waitress recognized me when I went back recently – and I’ve loved all my meals there! Everything is or can be made vegan, and they’re incredibly allergy-conscious. From crab cakes to jambalaya with cornbread to brunch cinnamon rolls and pancakes, Tree House Vegetarian Restaurant always serves delicious food.
Other restaurants in the area that I’ve been meaning to try are Lulu’s Local Eatery (vegan fast casual/American food), Pho Grand (Vietnamese food with vegan options), Pizza Head (vegan pizza), and Terror Tacos (vegan tacos). There are tons of different cuisines and lots of vegan options in this neighborhood!
Sweet Art
Sweet Art is a fully-vegan bakery and cafe serving breakfast, lunch, and desserts! It is also located near Tower Grove Park. They have rotating specials for lunch throughout the week too. I tried a cauliflower quesadilla which was really tasty.
Fiddlehead Fern Cafe
Fiddlehead Fern Cafe might be one of my favorite cafes ever! It is located near Tower Grove Park, about a 15-minute walk from the Missouri Botanical Garden. The restaurant serves coffee, tea, loaded toasts, soup, salad, and a variety of baked goods. I loved the smashed chickpea toast and ube sugar cookie.
City Foundry STL
City Foundry is a food hall and market in Midtown. A former manufacturing building, the 30,000-square-foot center houses everything from Turmeric Street Style (Indian street food) to Press Waffle Co. (customizable Belgian waffles) to Sureste (Mexican Yucatán food) to Poptimism STL (soft serve and popsicles). I had a spiced potato (papas en escabeche) bean-stuffed tostada (panucho) from Sureste, and it was really good! There are many vegan and gluten-free options that are labeled which is convenient.
Pastaria
Pastaria, located in Clayton, is an Italian restaurant with fresh pastas, wood-fired pizzas, and sorbet/gelato. I often have a hard time eating at Italian restaurants because the fresh pastas have eggs, but my waitress told me which dishes I would be able to eat! I ended up choosing the pizza (and ordered without cheese), and it was delicious.
Delmar Loop
The Delmar Loop has lots of shops and entertainment venues, but I always think of its many restaurants first. From Mediterranean (Gyro Grill, American Falafel) to Mexican-Asian (Seoul Taco) to Thai (Thai Country Cafe) to Chinese (Corner 17) to Korean (KBop, BOBQ, U-City Grill) to coffee shops (Blueprint Coffee, Meshuggah Cafe) to noodles of all kinds (Nudo House), there are so many delicious options! Some of my favorites are the lentil soup and falafel sandwich from Gyro Grill, tofu tacos from Seoul Taco, and vegan curry ramen from Nudo House. Blueberry Hill is a particularly famous spot, with people like John Legend, Chuck Berry, and Ed Sheeran all attending at one point or another. Dessert options include Fitz’s Root Bear, Insomnia Cookies, Ben & Jerry’s, boba, frozen yogurt, and rolled ice cream.
Revel Kitchen
Revel Kitchen is a fast-casual spot but the food is so good. You can build your own salad, bowl, or wrap, or opt for a pre-set one. My go-to order is a bowl with quinoa, spiced tofu, steamed broccoli, harissa sweet potatoes, fresh herbs, pickled onions, and the mesquite tahini sauce on the side. The avocado toast and vegan brownies are also yummy! I love that the entire allergen menu is posted online, too.
Clementine’s Naughty & Nice Ice Cream
There are five Clementine’s locations in the St. Louis area, and they all serve unique alcoholic and non-alcoholic flavors. I tried the vegan tahini chocolate chip ice cream which was very tasty! They post the allergens of the ice cream on the labels, and they have vegan cones, too.
Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams
Jeni’s is not unique to St. Louis, but there is a location in Central West End, and I love it just as much as Clementine’s. I tried the vegan Texas sheet cake and frosé sorbet, and they also have vegan cones! Jeni’s is located right next to Left Bank, the oldest and biggest independently-owned full-line bookstore in the city.
How to Get Around
I would say that St. Louis is a driving city; it is relatively spread out, and most things are not easily walkable. You couldn’t, for example, get from the Missouri Botanical Garden to Forest Park by foot. St. Louis has a public transportation system that’s convenient if you are traveling East-West only (i.e. from the Gateway Arch to Forest Park) as well as buses that can take you to some other places, like Tower Grove Park, but they sometimes run at unpredictable times. If you are planning to branch out, you will likely need to rent a car or plan to Uber/Lyft around.
Final Thoughts
I’ve definitely enjoyed living in St. Louis this past year, and I’m excited to explore more places too! From botanical gardens to museums, tacos to avocado toast, Earth Day festivals to Mardi Gras parades (St. Louis has one of the biggest ones outside of New Orleans every March!), there are lots of things to do in the city and greater region.
Thank you so much for reading! Happy Summer 🙂
