The Landing
Hannegan’s Restaurant & Pub
719 N. Second, 314-241-8877
About 15 tables, shaded by trees and umbrellas, are a peaceful oasis on a sunny day, when the Landing’s streets close during the lunch hour for civilized quiet. Hannegan’s attracts many tourists and conventioneers because of its location and view of the Arch but draws native St. Louisans before and after baseball games as well.
Morgan Street Brewery
721 N. Second, 314-231-9970
Morgan Street Brewery has a café-style front patio for lunch and dinner and a brick patio in the back that’s more of a beer garden, with room for 100 people and a bar with a full drink menu. During the lunch hour, Morgan Street is frequented by businesspeople; then come Cards fans, filling up the space before game time. At night, surrounded by lighted trees, the patio holds a varied group of regulars of all ages and, like Hannegan’s, draws out-of-towners as well.
The Loft District
Lucas Park Grille & Market
1234 Washington, 314-241-7770
Lucas Park’s patio, attached to the side of the building, overlooks a blocked-off pedestrian section of 13th Street. Businesslike by day, it becomes more of a night-club in the evening, when it’s taken over by young revelers. A portable outdoor bar serves every drink on the restaurant’s menu. Most of the patio’s 40 seats are occupied by diners. The outdoor stereo plays jazz.
Copia Urban Winery
1122 Washington, 314-621-7275
Copia Urban Winery's courtyard was recently renovated and enclosed for year-'round use, but during the warmer months, the back panels of the enclosure are removed. The patio seats 150 to 180 people, and the bar has two 9-foot-high drop-down TV screens that show Cardinals games, movies and TV shows. It's the perfect place for a party.
Mosaic
1101 Lucas, 314-621-6001
With its two patios, Mosaic has attempted to bring its inside concept outdoors. The upper terrace at the front of the restaurant overlooks Washington Avenue, the high-backed chairs and pedestal tables lightly shadowed by umbrellas. This is the place to people-watch (although a full menu is available at both patios for serious diners). On the restaurant’s south side, a second patio is dotted with lower tables, hanging flower baskets, umbrellas and potted plants for a Parisian-cafe feel. In the summer, Mosaic offers both early-afternoon and late-night happy hours, pouring sangria and margaritas liberally.
Schlafly Tap Room
2100 Locust, 314-241-2337
Exterior walls of the Tap Room brewery surround the brick patio on three sides; huge windows offer glimpses inside and lend a nice glow at sunset. Eight large round tables accommodate as many as 64 people. Generally, the patio is reserved for those intending to enjoy a full meal, but on slow nights and after the dinner rush, it’s opened up to folks just looking to enjoy a beer. During festivals, the outdoor seating is expanded, and the patio stretches all the way to the sidewalk.
Downtown
Harry’s Restaurant and Bar
2144 Market, 314-421-6969
Harry’s has two patios—one upstairs and one downstairs—and together they seat a few hundred people and hold as many as a few thousand. Choose your pleasure: upstairs, the large outdoor bar; downstairs, a stage for live music. “We’ve got a little bit of everything,” says owner Tim Pieri, who notes that customers generally range in age from 21 to 45. Weeknight happy hours run from 4 to 7 p.m.; each Friday there’s a happy-hour buffet and a band, the Unusual Suspects. Thursday through Saturday, live bands play later in the evening. On the Fourth of July, Harry’s sets up tables and sells $100 tickets that guarantee wine, appetizers, dancing and a fabulous view of the riverfront fireworks.
Mercury
1025 Spruce, 314-621-5502
Pablo Weiss raises the temperature with his latest venture, but unlike Nectar and Kitchen K, this one’s a sports bar, pure and simple. The patio seats 100, with a long yellow-pine bar on one side. Party favorites play in the background, never loud enough to drown out the game: You can watch the Cards on high-definition 50-inch plasmas, hear the real-time crack of the bats and gaze across the street at the stadium’s left-field gate. Mercury is open from 4 p.m. to 1 a.m., Monday through Saturday; on game days it opens three hours before game time. In the works: a 12-foot neon thermometer whose reading will rise and fall with St. Louis’ mood.
Mike Shannon's
620 Market, 314-421-1540
Named The Outfield at Mike Shannon's, this patio boasts a large bar, a DJ booth, trees and a great sound system—and overlooks the new stadium's outfield. Details count here, such as the special rail equipped with drink holders to help patrons juggle hot dogs, hamburgers and cold beers without taking their eyes off the game. Open for all Cardinals games—several radio stations plan live feeds here throughout the season—The Outfield can be reserved at other times for private events. There's room for about 1,000 people and DJs or live music throughout the summer. Note: InsideSTL.com's campaign to retire Willie McGee's jersey number is being hosted at The Outfield, so you'll be signing those "Retire 51" petitions until the Cardinals cave.
South Edge
Absolutli Goosed
3196 S. Grand, 314-772-0400
The patio at Absolutli Goosed is located on the side, with its own entrance, and it’s the perfect vantage point from which to watch the foot traffic along South Grand. The patio, which seats 40, serves appetizers and a streamlined version of the extensive drink list inside the bar, with martinis served in individual shakers for the pleasure of do-it-yourself pouring. During the Pride celebration, held the last weekend in June, Absolutli Goosed offers drink specials and extended hours.
King Louie’s
3800 Chouteau, 314-865-3662
Recently enclosed and covered with a roof, the patio at King Louie’s has ceiling fans to keep you cool and track lighting for atmosphere. Still a patio in our eyes, it overlooks the old train yards and has a beautifully landscaped garden with herbs, flowers and a red rooster sculpture by local artist Frank Schwaiger. A separate outdoor summer kitchen makes use of a wood-burning grill and oven, and the patio area works from a separate menu that emphasizes local and organic produce. The patio, which seats about 60 people, is used mainly for dining, but it’s also available for private booking.
Yemanja Brasil
2900 Missouri, 314-771-7457
Yemanja Brasil’s patio is known for its vibrant tropical colors and intimate mood. It seats about 40 people, who proceed to fight over the two swinging hammock chairs. Losers console themselves with the soothing trickle of the fountain and the sight of banana trees squeezed between neighboring buildings. The patio’s outdoor bar opens for special events such as Yemanja Brasil’s World Cup celebration (and game viewing). The owner recommends a reservation if you want to spend time on the patio; once there, nobody rushes.
Soulard/Lafayette Square
Big Daddy’s Bar & Restaurant
1000 Sidney, 314-771-3066
The old bricks of Big Daddy’s patio have been replaced and the outdoor bar has been renovated and expanded. The patio holds 18 tables and six barstools; depending on the time of day, visitors will be sitting down to lunch or living it up at happy hour, which runs from 4 to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday. Old-fashioned lamps illuminate the colorfully landscaped patio, which holds about 175 people and is often crowded after sundown, when Big Daddy’s turns into a nightclub.
Hammerstone’s
2028 S. Ninth, 314-773-5565
The patio atmosphere at Hammerstone’s is pretty mellow; diners occasionally bring their dogs along to wait hopefully through dinner. The patio features an outdoor bar and is popular for both lunch and candlelit dinners. In late July, Hammerstone’s holds a luau, roasting a pig for the buffet and giving away prizes to the best limbo dancers. Late in the season, Cardinals games are shown on a portable 10-foot-high screen. Music is often live and acoustic; every other Saturday, One Kindred Soul plays adult-contemporary and classic-rock tunes.
Eleven Eleven Mississippi
1111 Mississippi, 314-241-9999
This patio has an intimate, secluded feel but room enough to seat 40 people. Owners Paul and Wendy Hamilton replanted flowers and herbs from their own home garden, and they use the herbs in many of the restaurant’s dishes. The patio is enclosed, and a brick wall blocks the wind, shielding the candlelight. Both the menu and servers are the same, inside and out, and because Eleven Eleven Mississippi doesn’t close between the lunch and dinner rushes, couples often stop by in the late afternoon to sip glasses of wine or share an appetizer. Jazz music comes through speakers, and vines are beginning to climb the walls and wind between the lights strung overhead. Paul Hamilton’s wine bottle–themed sculptures add to the patio’s funky yet calming atmosphere.
Vin de Set
2017 Chouteau, 314-241-8989
OK, St. Louis’ newest outdoor dining option isn’t technically a patio, but it’s too good to miss. Vin de Set, housed in the top floor of the old Centennial Malt House, offers dinner-only rooftop seating with a bird’s-eye view of everything from Soulard’s bars to the new Busch Stadium and beyond. Rooftop diners may order from Vin de Set’s full French/American fusion menu, as well as a bistro menu available only outdoors. There’s a rooftop bar and a sunroom. Owners Paul and Wendy Hamilton (who also own Eleven Eleven Mississippi) have their signature herb and flower garden here, too, and hope to host jazz bands under the stars.
Lynch Street Bistro
1031 Lynch, 314-772-5777
Decorated with mosaic tiles, this brick patio seats about 50 on two levels separated by wrought iron. Flowering trees give partial shade by day and are lit from below after dark. Wine is offered at half price Monday through Thursday, an outdoor stereo system often plays jazz and there’s live music on the patio Friday and Saturday evenings as diners enjoy some of the best steaks in St. Louis.
The Great Grizzly Bear
1027 Geyer, 314-231-0444
The patio’s full-service bar was recently renovated, and on weekends the Grizzly Bear hosts “parties on the patio” with drink specials. There’s seating for about 75 people amid vine-covered walls and trees lit with twinkling Christmas lights, and the patio also boasts a cascading fountain. Under the new owners, a full kitchen has been added. Live music drifts out from indoors.
Venice Café
1903 Pestalozzi, 314-772-5994
The owner of Venice Café thought that the two coolest places he had ever been were Venice, Italy, and Venice Beach, Calif.—so he merged them. The patio houses about 40 tropical plants that are dug up and protected each winter, then replanted in the spring so that the patio's atmosphere will echo the restaurant's Caribbean/Jamaican menu. The kitchen, known for its jerk chicken, is outside. The patio seats about 50 people and is often crowded with many more. Every Friday during the summer there's a reggae spin, hosted by KDHX-FM's Papa Ray. The patio is also famous for its "boat bar," an old painted-up boat with a bartender inside taking orders. There are frequent miscellaneous live events, too—everything from poetry readings to musical performances.
Molly’s
816 Geyer, 314-241-6200
Seating 200, the outdoor patio at Molly’s is actually larger than the bar’s indoor area. There’s an outdoor bar with a full drink menu (Molly’s only offers drinks; there’s no kitchen) and several private pillow-filled wooden cabanas. Molly’s has the typical Soulard-courtyard vibe and is surrounded by flower beds, sculptures and tiki lights. DJs spin Wednesday through Saturday.
John D. McGurk’s Irish Pub
1200 Russell, 314-776-8309
The patio at McGurk’s has a New Orleans feel and one of the most beautiful outdoor gardens around—not to mention a nearly 20-foot-high waterfall, a fountain, two bars and four seating areas. All told, the patio seats about 170 people and vibrates with the live Irish music played inside seven days a week.
Square One Brewery
1727 Park, 314-231-2537
The patio of this new Lafayette Square brewpub is enclosed on three sides, gated at its front and so shady that it’s comfortable even at high noon. Foliage, flowers and a fountain add to the relaxing atmosphere. The patio opens in early spring, seating about 20 for lunch, dinner and evening cocktails, and the capacity should expand steadily as the season progresses. No patio reservations—it’s first come, first served.
Broadway Oyster Bar
736 S. Broadway, 314-621-8811
The brick patio at Broadway Oyster Bar is lit with Christmas lights year round and decorated with nautical mosaics. Open for lunch, dinner and drinks, the patio holds about 100. Live music is played onstage Thursday through Sunday. Broadway Oyster Bar is a hotspot meeting place for Cardinals games—dinner beforehand, celebration or solace afterward.
Norton’s Café
808 Geyer, 314-436-0828
Soulard’s largest patio garden has plants and flowers varied enough for a botanical textbook and, in their midst, a giant wrought-iron praying mantis. The patio seats 200, and there’s a full-service bar with additional seating; patrons waiting for tables often make their way there for a pre-dinner drink. In summer, there’s a Cajun buffet on Mondays from 5 to 9 p.m., and a weeknight happy hour runs from 3 to 6 p.m., with appetizer specials Tuesday through Friday. Music (from ’80s pop to classic rock) comes through speakers on the patio.
