Hipster, tourist, college student and suburban family alike can make an afternoon of the popular neighborhood known as The Loop in University City. The eclectic, cross-section feel is the main draw to these six blocks of Delmar, stretching from just east of Skinker to just east of Big Bend
By Joelle Jenkins
Funky by definition, The Loop hosts more than 120 specialty shops, restaurants, galleries and live music venues, all accessible from the Delmar MetroLink station and within walking distance of Washington University.
You can’t talk about The Loop without mentioning Joe Edwards, founder and chief promoter of the area’s revitalization. Edwards owns Blueberry Hill, Tivoli Theatre, The Pageant and the St. Louis Walk of Fame, and he’s been bringing the surrounding area back to life, most recently with a focus on property east of Skinker. “The [St. Louis] city limit is actually west of Skinker and not at Skinker, as many people believe,” Edwards explains. “These renovations are helping The Loop to move into the city, which will truly make the area a loop, with the city and county coming together as one entity.”
While Edwards strives for future retail renovations, Saaman Development is focus-ing on residential with 849-Loop Living. The $7 million, 30-unit condominium high-rise development, planned for the corner of Westgate and Vernon, is the latest addition to The Loop’s rich neighborhood mix.
Richard Harkins, a senior research technician at Washington University, moved to The Loop six years ago. “Everyone is easy to talk to, and I don’t feel like they are judging me by my Southern accent,” says the Alabama native. “My downstairs neighbor is Latin American and plays the bongo drums. There’s a Russian couple across from me and an Asian couple I see all the time.” On Sundays, he listens to the frenzied rhythms of the drum circle that meets just east of Fitz’s. Weekend evenings, he’s on foot: “We set out at Cicero’s and then make our way to Blueberry Hill and end up at the Delmar Lounge [a 3 a.m. bar] and just walk home.”
Whether you’re staying or visiting, The Loop remains one of the most laid back places to hang out in St. Louis. Check out Blueberry Hill (6504 Delmar, 314-727-4444, www.blueberryhill.com) for burgers and pop culture décor. For family fun, order the hallmark floats at Fitz’s American Grill & Bottling Works (6605 Delmar, 314-726-9555, www.fitzsrootbeer.com). For dinner with live jazz on the weekends, try the swank, sultry Delmar Restaurant & Lounge (6235 Delmar, 314-725-6565). Riddle’s Penultimate Café & Wine Bar (6307 Delmar, 314-725-6985, www.riddlescafe.com) has an ever-changing menu built on local ingredients and an astute, idiosyncratic wine list. To satisfy an ethnic craving, try Saleem’s (6501 Delmar, 314-721-7947) Lebanese restaurant or the spicy falafel at Al-Tarboush (602 Westgate, 314-725-1944).
For after-dinner entertainment, head to Vintage Vinyl (6610 Delmar, 314-721-4096) to pick up some great music. Pin-Up Bowl (6191 Delmar, 314-727-5555, www.pinupbowl.com) is a martini lounge that happens to have eight bowling lanes. A couple doors down, there’s The Pageant (6161 Delmar, 314-726-6161, www.thepageant.com), a venue for some of the best concerts in town. Or catch an artsy or indie flick at the Tivoli Theatre (6350 Delmar, 314-995-6270).
Rather shop? Visit the Diversity Gallery at The Pageant (6161 Delmar, 314-721-3361) for stuff you’ll find nowhere else. For cheap but trendy or pseudo-vintage clothing, try secondhand Rag-O-Rama (6388 Delmar, 314-725-2760). Want something West Coast? Visit Tantrum (6370 Delmar, 314-783-0527) for men’s and women’s fashions straight from Los Angeles. And finish at Bittersweet Botanicals (6178 Delmar, 314-862-5784), where owner Cherl Fritz turns flowers into an art form.
This neighborhood’s mesh of cultures, styles and tastes softens the city-county boundary and every other divide.
