I really enjoy the Hibernian parade and Dogtown event every year. It's a hokie, noncommercial…read moreparade and street party. This event is a shot in the arm for this areas uniquely neighborhood-esque business district. The residents have parties, picnics, etc. the restaurants have tents, beer gardens, music, and food. The local church has Irish dancing performances and the weather tends to cooperate most years. A good time is had by all. I tend to spend the first half of the day on or around Tamm (the parade route, restaurants, bars, and house parties). As the crowd gets younger, denser, and a wee bit drunk around the Clayton/Tamm corridor, I generally hike it with my group to lower Dogtown, where the restaurants have outdoor seating, live music, ample potties, etc. Since the Dogtown event falls on St. Patrick's Day and rarely falls on the weekend, there is some level of crowd control, which I like. It's still crowded, with lots of heavy drinking. SO, I do have to ask some of the folks with young kids WHY they hang around for hours after the parade is over. Once it becomes a big party, it is time to take the kiddos home. Seriously!!

For those of you looking for an official parade with floats and pageantry, the Dogtown St…read more Patrick's Day Parade is not it! But if you are looking for authentic, local Irish revelry, then this is for you! Always held on March 17, no matter what day of the week it falls on or what kind of weather we're experiencing, this parade consists mostly of flatbed pickup trucks, fire engines and groups of pedestrians. There are also some adorable little Irish dancer girls, Irish wolfhounds and bagpipe players spread out throughout the parade as well. One thing you will notice right away is that everyone in the parade and those attending the parade are either related, neighbors or send their kids to the same school. Normally this kind of small town mentality freaks me out, but once a year it comes across relatively quaint. If you are going to celebrate St. Patrick's Day in Dogtown, be sure to get there early, find a good spot in front (so you can catch good beads), and make sure you have a DD to pick you up!

Located just outside the Grand Metrolink Station under the Grand Viaduct, this artwork is one of…read morethose pieces you could walk right past and not see if you're focused on getting to the elevator. When you actually stop and take it in, especially when it is lit, it becomes a quiet pocket of color and texture tucked into the concrete world around it. Barbara Grygutis's piece makes the metal seem almost organic and soft. Seeing the shapes glow against the underside of the viaduct gave the area a calmer and more intentional feel even with the traffic overhead and the train tracks rolling through. It's not a big installation and it's not trying to shout for attention. That's part of what makes it work because it turns a transitional space into something that feels intentional. If you catch it after dusk, the lighting really shows the curves and shadows in a way that will make you slow down for a second or two. For a metro station that is otherwise quite transitory and utilitarian, the artwork adds a bit of warmth. It's worth pausing before you head up to the Viaduct so you don't miss it. There is a caption at the base with the artist's name and the piece's title. It adds, "Commissioned by the Arts in Transit for the Bi-State Development Agency with funding from the Federal Transit Administration" and the date 2012. [Review 401 of 2026 - 499 in Missouri - 25584 overall]

Why go downtown in St. Louis when there's a more fun parade right in Cottleville?…read more This parade had grown, and grown, and grown! Bring a tent the night before and set up on Route N. This is a hug party!

Too many people in a very tight space. Add public drunkenness and impossible parking to the mix and…read morethat pretty well describes the Cottleville St Patrick's Day Parade. This is the parade for people that are too lazy to drive to downtown to see a legit parade. At two stars I'm being pretty generous. The parade itself is weak and there aren't enough bars or restaurants to make this the place to go on St Patty's day. You owe it to yourself to do better.

"Flora Field" by Van Dyck Murphy Studio is a digitally fabricated terracotta screen wall that…read morereinterprets architectural ornament using sustainable materials and modern technology. Installed in the shadow of the pioneering Wainwright Building, the piece pays tribute to the building's original terra cotta detailing while introducing a contemporary approach. Designed by Kelley Van Dyck Murphy and Jonathan Murphy, the artwork consists of nearly 200 clay units, each 3D printed and assembled into a ten-by-ten-foot screen supported by a custom steel frame and concrete base. The name "Flora Field" draws from the building's decorative motifs, including hops flowers that reference the original owner's brewing business. The term "field" refers to a network of related components in architecture, and the piece resembles a dynamic grid of floral forms, each subtly distinct yet part of a unified whole. What makes this installation especially compelling is its material innovation. Instead of using plastic filament, the artists employed locally sourced clay, merging ancient craft with digital fabrication. The clay is extruded layer by layer using a 3D printer, guided by slicing software that translates the design into precise instructions. [Review 1172 of 2025 - 438 in Missouri - 24725 overall]

This past year I attended the second annual adult Easter egg hunt and boy was it crazy! Tickets…read morewere $10 each and you could turn in 15 eggs. The silver ones got you a big prize and the rest had numbers on them that had to match the ones chosen and you won a prize for that too. We won a few small prizes but the excitement of the hunt itself was well worth the money. If I go again, I'll be sure not to linger in the back! The hunt is held at night, so be sure to bring a strong flashlight and a small bag. Half the fun was watching other people (even ladies three times my age!) scramble to grab the eggs they thought would be winners. The website says there were 25,000 eggs, which sounds about right. At the end of the night, a band played and they sold overpriced beer and food, then announced the grand prize winners. One of the prizes was a vacation for two so if you're a lucky person, you should definitely give it a shot!

Commonly referred to as "U City" by locals, this community has a lot to offer…read more Home of the eclectic Delmar Loop where you can find eateries ranging from New York style pizza to Thai food. There are tons of boutiques as well as more well known establishments like Blueberry Hill, Vintage Vinyl Records, Starbucks, Cicero's, Pi Pizza, Mission Taco Joint, Piccione Pastry, The Pageant concert venue, United Provisions international grocer, Pin Up Bowl and now the Loop Trolley! There's so much more to U City but I'd be remiss if I didn't mention Chinatown. It's a must see area on the northern end of University City that houses blocks of restaurants, shops and businesses. U City was always the place the be when I was growing up in St. Louis and today it's more enjoyable than ever.

I enjoy University City because I grew up hanging out here because my cousins lived off Olive. I…read morebasically spent every weekend and all summer growing up here as my second home. U-City encompasses soo much culture and activity in a large area. U-city is soo much more than the The Delmar Loop. It is home to a variety of Asian restaurants and markets which I enjoy checking out. There are plenty of opportunities for shopping. There is a nice variety of options for eating: ethnic, american, bbq, soulfood, seafood, etc. There is a recreational center, various markets, parks, concert venues, entertainment venues and more.

St Louis is maybe the Arch, Cardinals and Blues, but so much more…read more Forest park with the zoo, science center, turtle park, telescope, golf course and walking trails is packed with adventure. In fact the whole St. Louis area is over run with free parks. (Not as interconnected as St. Charles County parks) The food can't be passed up. Pork steak (grilled and slathered in sauce an grilled again cooking in StL sweet BBQ) St Paul Sandwich (fried egg foo young patty on two slices of white bread some with vegetables or meats) Slinger (StL tradition with eggs, hash browns, and hamburger patty all covered with chili then onions and cheese) Thin crust pizza... as an appetizer if not used to it Toasted Ravioli (Deep fried and served with Marinara sauce) Gooey Butter Cake- far richer than you can imagine Frozen custard is decadence in what looks like soft serve ice cream, but much richer Jump in an don't count calories! Burn it off seeing parks, zoo, museums or other arts. Enjoy StL.

Best baseball team in MLB. Go Cardinals! Beautiful buildings downtown. I grew up in this area and…read morestill enjoy all the architecture and the beauty of the arch. Lots of stores and fine dining. Awesome bars/pubs. Worst part of St. Louis is the present day crime and the loss of jobs. We moved away after a plant closing and scarce employment opportunities. As a result, crime has escalated. It doesn't help the amount of people there feeding off the system and then causing turmoil in the streets. A real shame for the city.

As a runner, Hazelwood school district graduate (go Spartans!) and PTA Scholarship recipient, I…read morefelt it was only right to give back by participating in this race. So what if I've been out of college for 4 years, and I graduated from East waaaaay back in 2003?! Better late than never, right? Anyway, this was a decent race. I won't be too harsh on it for the aforementioned reasons, but it's only fair that I'm honest about it. This wasn't my favorite race. There was a 10K run and a 5K run/walk. I ran the 10K, and so did a pretty sizable group of people. Not a ton, but about 50 or so. The course itself was clearly marked, and there were lots of volunteers on the course to keep you from getting lost. My issue was with the course itself. It was really...boring. It took us through residential areas, which was cool, but a lot of the time, we were running on narrow sidewalks. I found myself ducking trees a lot. Not fun. I understand that the race wasn't big enough to justify closing off streets or anything. I guess I'm just spoiled by bigger races that allow you to run on the streets. Constantly looking down to make sure you don't trip over uneven sidewalks? Not fun. Post race support was nonexistant. Well, I take that back. FREE post race support was non existent. If you wanted to shell out some cash, you could BUY a bottle of water. No fruit or anything? Yikes. After running 6.2 miles (plus an additional 3 -- hey, I have a half marathon to train for!), I was aching for SOMETHING to nibble or sip on after the race. No such luck. Anyway, it was a good cause, but I think next year I'll just donate and skip the race. Sorry, Hazelwood.