This month marks 10 years since I turned 21, the age of legal eligibility for writing about bars and adult beverages. So to commemorate, Night Shift this week visits a bar that I'm roughly 10 years too old to completely enjoy.
Which is fine — not every bar targets every demographic. But in an effort to fit in, I wore my cap backward.
At Pierre Laclede's Pub & Eatery, a safe stumbling distance from St. Louis University in midtown, the target is very obviously young college students on a budget.
On Wednesdays, Pierre Laclede's sells 25-cent pitchers of Keystone. On Fridays, $10 gets you endless refills on well drinks and Keystone drafts. And on Saturday nights, buying a plastic cup for $5 means you can get well drinks and — what else? — Keystone drafts for $1 apiece.
When in Rome, we figured.
The bottom-shelf whiskey in our whiskey and Coke was a good pour. Our beer, on the other hand, tasted like a rubber tire — not a good flavor for beer. Even Keystone.
We alerted the bartender, who seemed indifferent to our fancy tastes but poured a replacement, which tasted fine, with no questions.
The $5 cups, oddly, are leftovers from the bar's previous short-lived identity, Chea+ter's Sports Grill & Ultrapub, a name that was quickly abandoned in September amid concerns by the city's liquor control board about the bar's ownership. Before that, the space was the longtime home to Laclede Street Bar & Grill, a staple of "bar row."
If cheap booze from plastic cups isn't for you, there are other options. About a dozen beers are available on tap, plus two varieties of frozen hurricanes from a big machine. A large selection of liquor sits at the back of the poorly lighted bar, but my eyes couldn't make out the labels.
On the night we visited, while SLU students were still on Christmas break, folks started pouring through the front door about 11. A bartender told us the place gets crowded when school is in session.
Pierre Laclede's charming, old building feels lived in and features lots of brick and wood, with tables and seating areas sprinkled throughout. And a bar on the dance floor makes it easy to fill up your cup and get your money's worth all night long.
Pierre Laclede's Pub & Eatery
Where 3818 Laclede Avenue • More info 314-652-3818, pierrelacledes.com, fb.com/pierrelacledes, twitter.com/pierrelacledes • Smoking No • Hours 11 a.m.-1:30 a.m. Monday-Friday, 5 p.m.-1:30 a.m. Saturday, 9 p.m.-1:30 a.m. Sunday
Gabe Hartwig is the creative director of Go! magazine. He also writes about bars and theater. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook, and find more recommendations by Go! on Foursquare.
River City Rascals - Only $15 for 2 Box Seats and a mini-bat to a River City Rascals 2012 Home Game! (A $29 value!)
