Things to do in St. Louis, splurging
Destination dinners, serious cocktails, and the city's best rooms.
This is St. Louis for the traveller who books the good table and means it: three days anchored by landmark dinners, a mosaic basilica that stops you cold, and cocktail bars that earn their reputation. The neighborhoods shift from the historic brick of Benton Park to the grand avenues of Central West End, so you get range without exhaustion.
Day 1: Benton Park and its best table
Start the trip with gooey butter cake and a market browse, then let Sidney Street Cafe justify its reputation over a long dinner.
- 9:30 AM
Park Avenue Coffee
Local institution for gooey butter cake and great coffee, the quintessential St. Louis morning stop, right by Lafayette Square.
Map - 10:30 AM
Soulard Market
Farmers market since 1779 with produce, spice and butcher stalls; open Wednesday to Saturday only.
Map - 12:30 PM
Vicini pastaria, cafe, & market
Handmade pasta counter and market on Park Avenue; get the pici cacio e pepe and Tuscan focaccia.
Map - 2:30 PM
- 7:30 PM
Sidney Street Cafe
Kevin Nashan's long-running Benton Park restaurant in an old brick storefront; the big dinner here.
Map - 9:30 PM
Day 2: The Arch, the Garden, Fox Park
The Gateway Arch and Old Courthouse, oysters at Broadway Oyster Bar, the Missouri Botanical Garden, dinner at Little Fox and a nightcap at Planter's House.
- 9:30 AM
Gateway Arch
Ride the four-minute tram pod to the top of the 630-foot Arch; book a timed ticket ahead.
Map - 11:15 AM
Old Courthouse
Where Dred and Harriet Scott sued for their freedom; open daily 9 to 5 across the Arch grounds.
Map - 12:30 PM
Broadway Oyster Bar
Cajun shack on Broadway: char-grilled oysters, gumbo and a po'boy on the patio.
Map - 2:30 PM
Missouri Botanical Garden
Walk Seiwa-en, the 14-acre Japanese garden, as its maples turn, then the Climatron's rainforest dome.
Map - 7:00 PM
Little Fox
Seasonal cooking and a serious wine list in a Fox Park corner room; book on Resy, no dinner Sundays.
Map - 9:00 PM
Planter's House
Lafayette Square cocktail bar with 350-plus spirits; order a Purgatory. Closed Mondays.
Map
Day 3: Central West End, art to aperitif
A free world-class museum on Art Hill, a Byzantine interior that earns every superlative, and Brasserie by Niche for dinner before serious drinks at Good Company.
- 10:30 AM
Saint Louis Art Museum
Free museum on Art Hill with the largest Max Beckmann collection anywhere; closed Mondays.
Map - 12:30 PM
Rasoi
Central West End Indian on Euclid, North and South Indian; the lunch buffet is the easy order.
Map - 2:30 PM
Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis
Tens of millions of Byzantine mosaic pieces covering every dome and arch, one of the most jaw-dropping interiors in America.
Map - 7:30 PM
Brasserie by Niche
Gerard Craft's Paris-style brasserie in the Central West End: steak frites, onion soup gratinée and a carafe of house red.
Map - 9:30 PM
Good Company
Grove cocktail bar using hand-carved ice from its sister company; a dozen drinks, shaken or stirred.
Map
Where to stay
Four Seasons Hotel St. Louis
Sits right on the riverfront downtown, close to Day 2's courthouse, Blues Museum and Busch Stadium corridor.
The Royal Sonesta Chase Park Plaza
The Chase Park Plaza puts you on the edge of Central West End, steps from the Art Museum hill and Brasserie by Niche.
Make St. Louis your trip
Swearby drafts the days from places people swear by. Swap any stop, then invite the crew by text, even friends without the app. Vote on dates, track costs as you go, and everyone gets one number at the end.
Get Swearby on the App StoreBefore you go
Book ahead
- Gateway Arch: a few days ahead
- Busch Stadium: a few days ahead
- The Muny: a few days ahead
- Hermann: months ahead
- Vicia: weeks ahead
- Sado: weeks ahead
Skip these
- Laclede's Landing trades on its Arch location but is the thinnest dining strip in the core; Washington Avenue and Soulard are better.
- The Aquarium and Wheel at Union Station are priced for tourists next to the free Zoo and Arch; do them with children, skip on an adults trip.
- Imo's as a best restaurant pick: it is a rite, not a recommendation.
- The Arch tram on a foggy day buys a view of cloud; the museum and grounds stay worthwhile.
The full St. Louis travel guide: when to go, safety, getting around