Edition: A Winning Destination

Randy and Jason Sklar's St. Louis

Author: Beth M. Custer

8 a.m.

Jason: For breakfast, I would go to Pratzel's Bakery (8625 Olive, 314-991-0708) for a big upside down chocolate and vanilla cupcake.  They are just the greatest indulgence, and why not start your day off with something sweet?

Randy: There's a breakfast place in Kirkwood called First Watch (491 S. Kirkwood Rd., 314-909-7271).  It's a great place to take kids, becasue it will get them excited for going to the Magic House (516 S. Kirkwood Rd., 314-822-8900), which is right across the street.  It's such a fun place to visit with kids - I'll put it up there against any children's museum anywhere.

Randy: You're pretty much gonna wipe out the culture...

Jason: You're going to zero out, but we'll get to that later.  So start your day wtih a lot of knowledge, and a lot of culture in the morning.

10 a.m.

Randy: If you're a golf fan, play a round in Forest Park at the Probstein Golf Course (6141 Lagoon Dr., 314-367-1337).   Forest Park is such an integral part of the city, and I recommend walking the course if you can.  It's a wonderful way to see one of the best green areas in the city.

Jason: I'd go to Forest Park too, to visit the Saint Louis Art Museum (One Fine Arts Dr., 314-721-0072).  I love modern art, but what I remember is a huge, beautiful painting of St. Peter's Cathedral.  It doesn't have religious significance for me, but I remember it because it's beautiful and has such depth.  Here's the thing: You've gotta get your culture in early, because the debauchery is going to come later.

Randy: You're prety much gonna wipe out the culture....

Jason: You're going to zero out, but we'll get to that later.  So start your day with a lot of knowledge, and a lot of culture in the morning.

12 p.m.

Randy: For lunch, go to the Central West End, to Llywelyn's Pub (4747 McPherson, 314-361-3003).  You've got to try their homemade chips with the hot barbecue sauce - it is so good - and the burger there is just fantastic.  Also the Central West End is a great area to walk around and shop.  There are two great clothing stores that are the type of stores you would see in Los Angeles or New York.  Every time we're back in St. Louis, I find stuff for myself at Level 1 (387 N. Euclid, 314-361-7565).  My wife, who loves fashion and clothes, always finds something at Mezzanine (389 N. Euclid, 314-361-3777).

2 p.m.

Jason: It depends on what time of year it is.  If it's summer, you're going to get into your bathing suit and jump off the high dive at Shaw Park (Brentwood Blvd., Clayton).  That's a must.  Check out an afternoon Cardinals game at Busch Stadium (700 Clark St.) and watch the Cards.  In a perfect world, there would be an afternoon game, and we are describing our perfect day, after all.  If there is no Cardinals game, you've got to check out The International Bowling Museum and Hall of Fame (111 Stadium Plaza, 314-231-6340).  After you learn all about the history of bowling, you can actually bowl a few games.

5 p.m.

Jason: In the late afternoon, a cool thing to do is go to The Loop and Vintage Vinyl (6610 Delmar, 314-7214096) to do some serious music shopping.  You can walk up and down Delmar Boulevard and look at all the cool stuff, like the St. Louis Walk of Fame.  Afterward, you can get a root beer float at Fitz's (6605 Delmar, 314-726-9555), or a beer at Blueberry Hill (6504 Delmar, 314-727-4444) - they have a great selection of beer on tap.

7 p.m.

Jason: For dinner, you have to go to the Hill!  Cunnetto's (5453 Magnolia Ave., 314-781-1135) is so good, we love that place.  St. Louis is known for its Italian food, and wherever you go, you have to order toasted ravioli.  Nowhere but St. Louis can you get something like toasted ravioli.  You take ravioli and fry it, but then there aren't enough carbs, so we're gonna put red meat in it, then we're gonna bread it, then deep fry it, then we're gonna throw some Parmesan cheese on top of that, then put some meat sauce on it.  There's nothing more American than that.

DID YOU KNOW...

According to local lore, toasted ravioli was first created in 1947, when a chef at an Italian restaurant on The Hill accidentally dropped some freshly made ravioli into bread crumbs.  He decided to try deep-f rying it, and a St. Louis tradition was born.

Randy:

There's nothing in this world better than the fried artichoke hears at Kemoll's (#1 Metropolitan Square, 314-421-0555).  It's like a slice of heaven.  But if you're on the fly and you don't want to sit down, you need a pizza from Imo's (multiple locations).  They make really thin pizza.  That pizza is so thin, you could slide it to smebody under a door.  Imo's pizza is so thin, if it were in L.A., it would have an agent and a headshot.

Jason:

And it has to be a hamburger pizza.  Everywhere else in the world, people order sausage pizza, but not in St. Louis.  You can order it with a St. Louis accent - "Haaaamburger."

Randy: You must go to Ted Drewes for a concrete, no matter what season it is, even if it's freezing outside.  There's always a huge line, but it moves fast.

9 p.m.

Randy:

Here's one thing about dinner in St. Louis - you cannot get dessert at the restaurant.  You must go to Ted Drewes (6726 Chippewa, 314-481-2652) for a concrete, no matter what season it is, even if it's freezing outside.  There's always a huge line, but it moves fast.  It is THE place to go after a Cardinals game.  You may want to drive home, but your car will just automatically steer itself to Chippewa Street.

Jason:

When we're there, it's all about the concretes with Heath bars.  I like a pistachio concrete with extra Heath in it.

Randy:

I like Heath inside a butterscotch concrete - is that good!  We like to be brash and bold, so we turn it upside down, usually over our Mom's head.  Don't worry, nothing leaks, nothing comes out, because the concrete is so thick.

10 p.m.

Jason:

Now you gotta go out and work it off.  Go to Venice Cafe (1905 Pestalozzi, 314-772-5994) - it's one of the coolest bars in St. Louis.  You can hang out on the back patio and just listen to music or poetry or whatever is going on that night.  By the way, you should be taking a cab to all these places, or make sure you have a designated driver.

Randy:

That is a great St. Louis day.  The only thing that could make it better is if you see some St. Louis legend walking around, like Ozzie Smith or Lou Brock.

Magic House Saint Louis Childrens Museum
516 South Kirkwood Road, St. Louis, MO 63122

Norman K. Probstein Golf Course
6141 Lagoon Dr., St. Louis, MO 63112

St. Louis Art Museum
1 Fine Arts Dr., St. Louis, MO 63110

Llywelyn's Pub
4747 McPherson Avenue, St. Louis, MO 63108

Mezzanine
389 N. Euclid,, St. Louis, MO 63108

The Loop/University City
6504 Delmar Blvd, St. Louis, MO 63130

Vintage Vinyl
6610 Delmar Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63130

Fitz's
6605 Delmar Boulevard, St. Louis, MO 63108

Blueberry Hill
6504 Delmar Boulevard, St. Louis, MO 63130

Cunetto's House of Pasta
5453 Magnolia Avenue , St. Louis, MO 63139

Kemoll's
#1 Metropolitan Square, 211 N. Broadway, St. Louis, MO 63102

Ted Drewes Frozen Custard
6726 Chippewa Street, St. Louis, MO 63109