Stacked Burger Bar
The Patch neighborhood is a funky, old-school sliver of South St. Louis, in some respects the southern extension of Carondelet. According to Wikipedia, it’s geographically “defined by Robert on the north, the City Limits to the south, Alabama to the west, and by the Mississippi river to the east.” The neighborhood’s anchored by a small pocket park that bears a bust of longtime, local pol Red Villa, who was about as “old-school” as they come, his heirs also long-serving as elected officials. Larger than the bust, as landmarks go, is the Ivory Triangle Theatre, located in the rehabbed St. Boniface Catholic Church. It’s a real beauty, its two towers a visible presence throughout the area.
Over the past half-decade, the little business district surrounding the neighborhood has seen a resurgence of activity. While lasting businesses like a bakery, a barber shop, and a confectionary reflect the kinds of classic anchors that are seen in places like the Patch, several bars and restaurants have taken hold along a really crazy intersection that sees about five streets blend and merge. There, at the main collision of streets, you find Stacked Burger Bar and Feraro’s (with its side venue, The Engine Room). These two have found a recent home in the area, with a few other places scattered around the immediate neighborhood; another half-dozen bars are found just east, on South Broadway.
The concept behind these pieces is to get to know an area’s drinking establishments through first-time visits. This time out, there’s a bit of fudging, having visited Schoemehl’s once prior, maybe six months back; and the Halfway Haus once, well over a year back. After several dozen visits to the neighborhood’s linchpin dive bar, Frank’s First Alarm, that one was eliminated from consideration. That said, here’s a look at a recent weekend’s worth of visits to the Ivory Triangle.
The Halfway Haus
7900 Michigan, 314-256-0101
Though not a smoker, there’re moments of magic that can take place in a smoking bar. And that’s often a visual thing. Recently, as dusk fell over South City, the smokers at the Halfway Haus (in effect, most of the people there) were taking drags at a cigarette, and the light from the thinly-slit front window was cutting through these really evocative wisps of smoke. It was the kind of thing that you can focus on, when the TVs are tuned to NFL draft coverage and the conversation’s the kind of group thing that you’re not invited into.
On this recent afternoon, the conversation thread surrounded the bartender’s recent departure from another, nearby bar. Her verbal jihad against the owner drew a lot of positive commentary from the crowd. They were on her side and let her know, solidly. In her critique of her recent employer, though, she found no time for offering a newcomer a second drink; at some point, with my last drip extinguished, I looked out of the window one last time, savoring those smoky, backlit ringlets. It was a nice touch.
Oh: this is a thin bar, kinda long, kinda catering to a motorcycle crowd. There’s a big smoking tent and seemingly some occasional, live music. Just tucked off the main drag in the nearby neighborhood, it’s, well, a bar. That offers drinks (sometimes) and conversation (for some).
Feraro’s/The Engine Room
7700 Ivory, 314-256-0500
The initial idea for this visit was to hit the music half, The Engine Room. But things were a bit up in the air last week, with local scene stalwart Maysam “Bass Amp” Attaran taking over the booking. As a worker on the pizzeria side noted, “there’s going to be more punk and rock ’n’ roll,” and a little less of the reggae, songwriter and mature rock that’s been booked in the venue’s short history.
Foiled twice (once due to cancellation, once due to arriving too doggone early), I popped into the pizzeria for dinner and, lo!, there was a bar there, too. It’s located just inside the doorway and depending on where you sit, you’ll get a nice introduction to the outside world, via hot and cold breezes wafting in from the front door. The bar selection’s pretty straightforward, with taps, bottles, spirits, and wine.
The quirkiest thing about the visit was a turn at playing a version of Chuckaluck. The bartop had various rows of designs and with each drink, you get a poker chip. At any point, you can opt for the bartender to spin the drink specials wheel. My selection for the chip was the space labeled GSP; it seemed a good bet, figuring that the nickname of feared MMA fighter George St. Pierre would lead me to victory. No such luck; the wheel landed on a simple heart, the meaning of which was lost on me.
Stacked Burger Bar
7701 Ivory, 314-544-4900
Now, for one of those disclosure moments: I knew that Stacked is owned by Matt Windisch, who was a student of mine at Webster University in past years. Known as a solid soccer player, touring musician and home recording audio engineer, I was surprised to hear of his jumping into the restaurant game, via a concept (the burger bar) that’s taken off all around the region. His selection of the Ivory Triangle makes sense, in that he’s a neighborhood guy, having attended St. Mary’s High. I learned a lot about his Stacked efforts from Windisch, himself, as he caught sight of me on arrival; if curious, I paid for my meal and beer and didn’t exactly tell him the reason for my visit.
Learned: Stacked replaces a spot called the Ivory Coast, a sort of everything-for-everyone-concept bar and restaurant. The place actually is located on three streets, with two different addresses; this is a big space, with lots of space components. There’s a game room, a private dining room, the bar, and an interesting, J-shaped dining area that wraps around two whole sides of the building. The people inside those many rooms reflected the neighborhood, with professionals, retirees, the working class, families, couples… really, it was the kind of mix you need to keep a neighborhood-based concept going.
The bean burger, I might note, was a good one. And the Budweiser tasted like… well, a cold Bud. I learned a little more about a fun, quirky, little neighborhood from a business owner; he even showed me a recent article from St. Louis Magazine. If he has his way, Windsich’s spot will draw from well beyond the neighborhood, as a destination location that hip more people to the Patch and it’s various charms, both new and old.
