Bar Review: Boogaloo

This past weekend, I was out with friends and we decided to end our night somewhere different.  We ended up at Boogaloo in Maplewood.  Now you may be asking, what's different about a bar called Boogaloo except it's weirdo name... Answer: SWINGS!  Yup, instead of bar stools at the main bar, there are swings suspended from the ceiling where you can sit, swing and enjoy a drink.  And the drink of choice at Boogaloo is definitely their Mojito.  So if you want something different, or you just want a really good Mojito, I'd swing by Boogaloo for a nightcap and a flashback to grade school recess time ;-)

The Josies on the swings at Boogaloo

Bar Review: Three Kings Public House

So as I sit here and watch the Cardinals win Game 1 of the World Series, I am thinking about how I was without a TV all last week when the Cardinals were playing for the National League Championship!  The agony!  Luckily Josie and Eric were up for going out to grab a drink and watch game 4 of the series so I looked at my "list" of places to go and noticed a bar called "Three Kings Public House" that opened this Spring in the Loop on Delmar across from the Tivoli Theater (replacing what used to be Riddles).

None of us had ever been, so it was fun trying someplace new.  We got a great spot at a high table in the front bar area, with perfect views of the two TVs behind the bar to watch the game.  It was a Wednesday night, but because of the Cards game, the bar area was packed with fans wearing red.  Note that Three Kings just got a good review in Sauce Blog in regard to their bang-for-a-buck food, and there is also an entire dining area in the back area.

Watching Game 4 of the Cards Brewers Game

The beer menu at Three Kings was really appealing because they offered flights of 4 different beers.  I always like trying a bunch of different types of beers rather than sticking to one, so this was right up my alley.  There was a flight that had a good hoppy beer that I wanted to try, however it also came with a light wheat beer that I didn't really want to bother with.  Luckily you can mix and match any four beers that you want, plus the waiters at Three Kings (imagine young, hippy, laid-back dudes) are awesome and offered to make me my own flight, full of all hoppy beers.  What service!!!  Our waiter brought back my custom-made flight and I loved every beer choice.  Who knew that four hoppy beers could all taste so completely different.  My definite favorite was a hoppy IPA called Maharaja.  Soooo good!

Flight of Hoppy Beer

We also ordered two appetizers to snack on while we watched the game.  We first ordered the House Made Pub Chips served with Irish cheddar & "Winged Nut" ale fondue.  It was awesome!  The portion of chips was huge and the cheese dipping sauce was both smokey and a lit bit spicy, and absolutely delicious!  I could've licked the bowl clean.  We also ordered a Caprese Flatbread, which was flatbread topped with slices of tomatoes, mozzarella and basil.  Really simple, and really good!  The flatbread dough was cooked perfect, so it was chewy and doughy and not burnt or too crispy on the edges.  Great game watching food!!!

House Made Pub Chips and served with Irish cheddar & "Winged Nut" ale fondue

Caprese Flatbread

Overall, I really enjoyed Three Kings (and yeah... the Cardinals winning helped a little too)  I would recommend trying it out to watch a game and grab some beer and appetizers, or to actually go there for dinner to try something more substantive on their yummy and reasonably priced menu... I'm looking at you burger with provolone cheese on a pretzel bread roll!

Bachelorette Week: Bar Hopping

Today's post features our Bachelorette Party bar hopping and the party bus that got us there.

After SALT we headed over to the Moonrise Hotel to grab our decorations (veil, beads, hottie whistles, etc.) and gear (Beer, Jello Shots, snacks) for the party bus to pick us up.  We rented a party bus from STL Road Pony (the "Colt" is the name of the type of bus) which pulled up with music blaring and lights flashing... it's definitely a bus you have to party in.  It picked us up and drove us around for an hour so we could enjoy beer, jello shots and dancing on the bus.  What really makes Road Pony buses stand out, is the fact that there are two "stripper" poles in the middle of the bus's walkway (great for holding your balance too when the bus is making sharp turns).  It just made dancing way more fun and added to the party.  Overall, great party bus choice!




inside view of our bus from their website

  FIRST STOP: Double D Lounge (Karaoke!)

We first stopped at Double D Lounge off Brentwood to enjoy some Karaoke.  Wash U and SLU kids must be back in town, because the place was wall to wall full of people!  The place was hopping, but luckily we found a spot right in the front near all of the singers and action.  The line for song requests was like 40 deep, so we had to bribe/harass our way onto stage so we could sing 2 songs before moving onto the next bar.  First song: Britney Spears "Hit Me Baby One More Time" (a classic).  Second song: Kelly Clarkson "Since You've Been Gone" (great for screaming).  Overall it was fun, but unusually crowded; however, I think it was just a fluke, because it is not usually that crowded.  Double D's is also known for their jello shots, so it can make for a fun evening.

SECOND STOP: Pepper Lounge (Dancing!)

Next stop is the Pepper Lounge downtown off Locust Street.  I have been in love with Pepper Lounge since I first went there the summer of 2008.  In Winston Salem for Law School I was always craving a good dancing club, but it seriously lacked there.  And in South Bend for College I pretty much spent every Friday night at the Backer for dancing and Tokyo Teas, so the Pepper Lounge brings back found memories of that (Except Pepper Lounge is like 20 times nicer!).  So of course we had to go to Pepper Lounge to dance the rest of the night away!  Unfortunately, this place was jammed packed too!  We could barely get in and we had to huddle in a tight circle and were constantly being bumped by people around us.  I swear... it is usually not that crowded!  We noticed Jessie was getting a bit sleepy so we took our party bus back to Moonrise Hotel and called it a night (and enjoyed some late night snacks on our very quiet right home).

Bar Review: Three Sixty St. Louis

This Saturday, some high school girlfriends and I visited Three Sixty St. Louis, the new 360 degree rooftop bar on top of the Hilton Ballpark Hotel (not to be confused with the Hilton Downtown, which is a couple blocks away).  It just opened on July 25th and I've been dying to go.  We had a couple hours to kill between a wedding and a downtown reception, so it was the perfect time to check it out.

View from the Street

 To get to Three Sixty, walk through the main lobby of the hotel and take the elevators up to the 26th floor (I hope you are patient, because on weekend nights it gets crowded and there will be a long and slow line for the elevators!).  Undoubtedly, 360 has the coolest 360 degree view of downtown St. Louis, but what I really enjoyed about 360 was how most of the area is actually indoors, away from all the heat and rain.  And even sitting inside, you still get the 360 view, because the entire thing is glass.  It is nothing like I've ever seen!

Waterfall behind the inside bar
flowing down the stairwell into the lower area

360 had a variety of places to sit down.  You could sit at the bars (outdoor bar and indoor bar), you can sit at booths (inside against the glass walls or outside by the big screen TVs), there are lounge areas by the outdoor fire pits, and there are mid height tables with stools scattered throughout the rest of the area.  There is even a private wine area with a two sided glass wall where the wine is on display.

Wine Wall

Outdoor Fire Pit



Behind the indoor bar with DJ booth up above

Outdoor Bar

Everything was cool about this place!  Even the bathroom counter tops were bright yellow!!!  Each table had a magnet board with the drink menus pinned up on them.  They had about 6 six specialty cocktails made from homemade infused vodka.  The waitress said they weren't your typical "punchy" drinks, but actually gave you a "punch" of alcohol.... not my thing, so I got wine.  They also had some crazy quirks to a couple of their drinks, like a cucumber cube or a Guinness cube.  We convinced Ryan to try the drink with the Guinness cube, and it was basically like a huge ice cube with Guinness frozen in it.  Kinda reminded me of a Pepsi slushy.  It was pretty gross looking, lol.

Yellow Bathroom Counter

Drink Menu on Magnet Board

Infused Vodka Containers with spouts.
Check out the DJ stand above

Guinness Cube

We were a little hungry so we decided to get some of the small plates.  Josie Hughes got their garlicky popcorn, which had actually pieces of fresh minced garlic mixed in the popcorn.  Really good, but definitely needed some gum afterwards.  It was a great bar snack if you just wanted to go for drinks.  We also got fish tacos, chicken skewers and lobster rolls.  All were amazing.  Next time I go, I'll definitely try the pizzas.  We sat right by the pizza oven and the pizzas looked really good.

Garlic Popcorn and Chicken Skewers

Fish Tacos

Lobster Rolls with seasoned homemade chips

Everything was great, but of course expensive.  Drinks were about $10 each, and the small plates were around $12-15.  But it was totally worth it for the total experience and the view!  I would recommend 360 bar to anyone who likes to try new things and is looking for a fun time.  It would be perfect for a first date, to try to impress someone new, for out of town guests, or for just meeting up with the girlfriends to catch up.  It is also amazing for Cardinals games because it has a direct view into the stadium.  You can sit at the outside bar, watch the game from above, and even listen to it on the outside big screen TVs.  It is the perfect set up!

View of the Stadium

Booths overlooking the Arch

Check out the video from where we were sitting inside.

Overall, a great time!!!  Special Thanks to Josie, Annie, Monica and Ryan for letting me be creepy and take pictures of their food :-)

Restaurant Review: Robust Wine Bar

Last week, the family met up at Robust Wine Bar in Webster Groves.  Our family is really into wine, so Robust was the perfect place.  The wine list is very extensive and has a variety of wines available by the glass.  The menu is also uniquely organized by type of wine, ranging from "Crisp" light bodied whites to "Robust" full bodied reds, along with some fun dessert wines and sparkling wines.  Robust also invented a menu numbering system (called the "Robust Factor") that pairs up the groups of wines with each item of food on the menu.  And for the adventurous wine drinkers, like us, there are some great wine flight choices where you can choose a group of three 4 oz glasses (roughly 1 and a half normal glasses) of wine.  I decided to go with a 3-wine flight of the pinot noirs (shown below)

Pinot Noir Wine Flight

From Left to Right:

2009 APALTAGUA “Reserva”, Pinot Noir – Curio Valley, ChileFirm cherries, deep red raspberries and dried rose petals, with a dash of black pepper and smoked paprika. Earthy and well-structured. (My favorite!)

2006 REX HILL “Reserve”, Pinot Noir – Willamette Valley, OregonDark cherries, orange pulp and baking spices. Black fruits and dried sage join in on the palate. 2006 was a warm vintage, contributing a great depth of color and flavor.

2006 DIERBERG, Pinot Noir – Santa Maria Valley, California (My least favorite)Blackberries, Provençal herbs and wet stone combine with coffee and vibrant acidity. Ripe, dense fruit with mouthwatering balance.

Robust also has a great assortment of appetizers and small plates that are great to share with a group.  Note: if you are looking for a meal, Robust lacks a big meal menu, and is more for light eating and group sharing.

We first ordered a fun flatbread and a couple small salads to share.  The Heirloom Tomato Salad, with Basil, Cipollinis, Shallots, Ricotta, Parmesan, Aged Balsamic and fresh Croutons, was really light and summery.  We also tried the Roasted Beet Salad, with Roasted Beets, Goat Cheese, Oranges with a Red Wine Ver Jus Dressing.  Jessie and Joe are big beet fans, and the salad was surprisingly not as "beety" as they expected, so you don't have to be really into beets to enjoy this salad..

We then ordered the Spinach and Three Cheese Spread, which contains Spinach, Roasted Artichoke, Cream Cheese, Mozzarella and Parmesan Cheese with Housemade Crostini.  It was Yummy!  One can never go wrong with spinach artichoke and cheese dip!

We also got the baked Camembert, which is kind of like baked brie cheese topped with Balsamic Strawberries.  Again, you can't go wrong with melted cheese!

Overall, I enjoyed the wine and all of the wine choices over the actual food menu.  Luckily I wasn't starving, because the menu lacked any heavy food options and a large portion of the small plates were mainly cheese based, which I cannot base my entire meal on (unless it is mac n' cheese ;-)).  Splitting with the family was fun and I would definitely go back with a big group or just some girlfriends for a drink or two.