A few weeks ago, I hopped on a plane (for one of the only times in my life) to attend a conference for work (which was totally a blast, and I learned so much). It was also pretty cool because I got to travel to St. Louis - somewhere I'd never been before.

While St. Louis is mostly known for the Arch (the gateway to the west), I have to say that not one meal I ate there was mediocre. Keep scrolling to see all the delicious food I ate in St. Louis (and some of the other stuff there, too).







The Gateway Arch

No, I didn't take the trip up into it, but I did watch a lot of videos of other people doing it. I swear, it's something out of Willy Wonka. The cool thing, though, is it was right outside of the hotel (I stayed at the Hyatt Regency at the Arch). There is some construction going on around it, because their building a pretty cool entry way into the area, so I had to walk around instead of being able to just walk right over to it, but it was only about a five minute walk. Another thing? It is way bigger than you would think it is (that's me up there, standing at one side of the base of it). 

It's the prettiest at night when it's all lit up.






 All the noms.

Seriously though. That food there? Omg.
 





Porano Pasta

What the what? This place is so dang good. It's like Chipotle for pasta. You pick your pastas, your meats, your sauces,  and your toppings. You can mix and match on basically anything. I chose homemade pasta, with chicken and seasoned vegetables, a pork meat sauce and alfredo, topped with different cheese. Not to mention to their focaccio was to die for. This place was A+ and the staff really went above and beyond to help me figure out what I would enjoy the most.






Pharaoh's Donuts

One of my coworkers and I ate here twice - it was that good. She and I both ended up with fresh-out-of-the-fryer glazed donuts. When I say those things will melt in your mouth, I mean it! I can just about guarantee there will be a line, but it will be worth it.







Sugarfire Smoke House

This place, which has been featured on Food Network's Burgers, Brews, & Que is off the chain. I went with the Muddy - which as you can see, is massive. It's sliced beef brisket, jalapeno cheddar smoked sausage, lettuce, tomato, horseradish sauce, pickles, and house BBQ sauce. Even the bun was soft and perfectly complemented the other flavors. Seriously, once you pick it up and take a bite, you cannot put it back down or you will lose it all. By the time I finished my sandwich, my hand was literally just full of food.
The house-made fries were crisped to perfection, and while I didn't get one, they do offer a White Russian milkshake that I'm pretty sure would've been out of this world.






Sweetie Pie's

I had never heard of Sweetie Pie's before I got there. But maybe you have. It's a soul food restaurant with its own dang show on OWN. Being from the South, y'all know I know soul food. And let me just tell you, this food was amazing. Literally nothing needed extra seasoning, not salt, pepper, butter, tartar sauce - nothing. It was perfect the way it was. I went with the fried catfish with macaroni (so cheesy with a crusty baked top), mashed potatoes with gravy (so flavorful), with a side of cornbread (which was honey sweetened on top), and banana pudding for dessert. Geez, Louise. My mouth is watering just thinking about it.





𝝅 Pizzeria 

I'd never had Chicago deep-dish pizza before, and technically, I wasn't in Chicago, but only a state over - so it still counts. And it counts even more because it's Obama's favorite pizza that he actually has shipped in from St. Louis. The sauce was on top - it was weird and unlike any pizza I've ever had before, but it was honestly pretty good too. Granted, I had to pick out the mushrooms, but whatever. It was still good.




Howl at the Moon

I had to stop at this place called Howl at the Moon, because the university mascot for the school where I work is the wolves, so it was a must. Located at Ballpark Village, it was a neat little bar/restaurant with dueling pianos. I'd never been to a dueling pianos bar before, so it was really neat. The food that night was catered - hamburgers and chicken, cookout-type food, so it wasn't anything exceptional. But the atmosphere was so much fun. There were slips of paper on each table so you could request songs for them to play. They were playing piano, so naturally I requested "Great Balls of Fire" - I just had to. But they played a ton of other fun songs, too (per request), like "No Scrubs," "Party in the USA," and a popular Dr. Dre song I won't name here. 




Things to do.

Since I was in St. Louis for a conference, there wasn't a ton of free-time to do extra things, but I did get a little bit of free-time in the evenings, and the last day because there were five hours to kill between the last conference session and my flight.












City Museum

This is honestly one of the weirdest, coolest places I've ever been. Unfortunately, I went just two hours before closing, so I didn't get to see everything - just a few floors. The things here are found items from around the city, and basically it's a giant playground for adults. That school bus up there literally hangs over the side of the roof on a ten-story building. I wish I could explain it, but it's truly a place you have to see to believe. But for only $10, it's definitely a must. I will say there are a lot of very scary, high things - and I'm terrified of heights. So if you're also not a fun of being up in the sky, you will miss out on some of the things going on here, but you can still totally have fun.









City Garden

This was a really interesting concept, which seems to be popping up more and more in different cities. It's a city park, complete with fountains, lots of grassy green areas, and artwork. The sculptures were all super interesting, and what's best is it's a free, open park!






Left Bank Books

Last, but absolutely not least, was a trip to Left Bank Books. This bookstore was huge, boasts the likes of Stephen King and John Green, and the staff were so incredibly helpful. I could only wish we had a similar bookstore around these parts!




Have you ever been to St. Louis? What were you favorite things? Where did you last travel to?