May 1 - 3

Your St. Louis weekend rundown is here!

Festival season is officially kicking into gear, patios are buzzing, and this weekend is packed with food events, Derby parties, live music, and classic St. Louis spring traditions.

In this episode of This Week in St. Louis, Brice breaks down everything happening around the city — whether you’re planning a full weekend of events, looking for a fun night out, or just trying to soak up the spring weather.

This week’s highlights include:

Food Truck Friday in Tower Grove Park, Faces of Soulard, and First Fridays around Grand Center.

Foodies Eat First Fest, Rosé Day in the Central West End, and multiple Kentucky Derby celebrations across the city.

Maifest at Grant’s Farm and Chinese Culture Days at the Missouri Botanical Garden.

WorldFest at Saint Louis Music Park and the Route 66 Centennial Festival at the Missouri History Museum.

Live entertainment including Marvel’s Infinity Saga in Concert, Devon Allman’s Blues Summit, David & Tamela Mann, and unique events like punk Disney night and a Hannah Montana rave.

Nightlife and experiences like Rooftop Rhythm at Angad, a speakeasy murder mystery, Adult Prom, and a Cinco de Mayo river cruise.

Cardinals vs. Dodgers at Busch Stadium — a perfect spring baseball weekend in downtown St. Louis.

This Week’s Flavors of the Lou

Neighborhood dive bar bucket list:
• Iowa Buffet
• Tick Tock Tavern
• The Cat’s Meow

Spot of the Week

The Sonic the Hedgehog Speed Cafe at Nudo House — a themed pop-up experience in the Delmar Loop featuring nostalgic menu items, merch, and a fun, immersive vibe. Perfect for something different this weekend.

Whether you’re hopping between festivals, dressing up for Derby Day, catching a game, or just finding a patio, there’s something for everyone this weekend in St. Louis.

Tag @STLBucketList if you check anything out — we love seeing your adventures. 💛

🎙️ Presented by Hoffmann Brothers
🔔 New episodes every week.

🎙️ This Week in St. Louis is presented by Hoffmann Brothers, proudly serving St. Louis for over 40 years. From heating and cooling to plumbing and electrical, they help keep homes running smoothly all year long.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Hey everyone and welcome back to This Week in St. Louis. I'm Bryce and we have a stacked weekend for you. It feels like St. Louis is really hitting its spring stride right now. Patios are packed, festival season is kicking in, and this weekend has a little bit of everything. It's one of those weekends where you could keep it casual with a parking and a patio or fill every day with events, live music, and neighborhood festivals. So whether you've got plans or need some inspiration, I've got you covered. Let's get into it. This week in St. Louis is presented by Hoffman Brothers, trusted by St. Louis families and businesses for over 40 years. Whether it's your AC, water heater, plumbing, or even EV charging, Hoffman Brothers has you covered. Local, licensed, family owned, book your service at HoffmanBros.com. Big thanks to them for supporting local stories like this one. All right, let's start with some of the bigger happenings this weekend because there are a lot. If you like your weekends built around food and community, Food Truck Friday is kicking things off Friday night in Tower Grove Park. And this first one of the season always feels like a St. Louis rite of passage. You've got a huge lineup of food trucks, live music, people spread out in the park. And this one has an STL City tie. So there's even more energy around it. It's free, all ages, and honestly, one of those easiest Friday plans you can make. And while you're in that Friday night mindset, there are a couple art-centered events worth mentioning too. Bases of Seulard and Benton Park looks like a really cool mix of local art, live music, craft beer, and food, very neighborhood-driven, very St. Louis. And it's also First Friday, which means First Fridays at the Pulitzer and around Grand Center is happening too. If you're in the mood for gallery hopping, grabbing a drink, making a night of it, that's always a solid move. Then Saturday really opens up if your weekend plans lean more food forward. Foodies eat first fest is back downtown all weekend. And this is more than just a food event. It's chefs, cocktails, culinary experiences, wellness programming. It feels more like a full-on food culture festival. And then Saturday is basically unofficial derby day in St. Louis. There are several ways to do it. Forehands and Peacemaker Kirkwood have their derby celebration with big hats, oysters, cocktails, and live music. If you want something a little more elevated, rooftop energy, there's the Skyline Steak Soray at the 360 in Westport with DJ sets, Derby Fashion, themed cocktails, very much dress up and make a day of it vibes. And if wine is more your speed, Rose Day in the Central West End is happening Saturday 2. And this one is part wine crawl, part neighborhood festival, part pop-up shopping event. You're tasting rose throughout the neighborhood, supporting nonprofits, hearing live music. It's just a really fun spin on the Spring Street Festival. And then if you want one of those classic recurring spring traditions, there's Mayfest at Grants Farm happening this weekend and continuing through May. I'll mention it briefly because it happens multiple weekends, but it's worth remembering. German food, beer, brass bands, the Clydesdales, all the Grants Farm classics. Also happening this weekend and definitely worth calling out Chinese Culture Days at the Missouri Botanical Garden. This is one of those events that feels both beautiful and immersive. Performances, art, food, culture, programming. It's and it's always a really special weekend at the garden. And if you're looking ahead to Sunday Plans, World Fest at St. Louis Music Park is another one to keep on your radar. Free event, global food, performances, family-friendly activities, very community focused and really fun. Honestly, you could spend your entire weekend bouncing between festivals and not run out of things to do. But if your weekend plans lean more towards concerts, shows, or something happening after dark, there's a lot going on there too. Let's start big. Marvel's Infinity Saga in concert is at the PAL Symphony Hall all weekend. And this feels like such a cool crossover event. Orchestra meets Marvel Universe. If you're a film score person or just even a Marvel fan, that's a fun one. Friday Night Alone has a stacked lineup. You've got Devin Alman's Blues Summit at the pageant. If you want blues and rock, David and Tamalia man at the Stiefle, if you want something soulful, Mr. Blue Sky, the Elo tribute at Family Arena, if nostalgia is calling you. And then on the opposite end of the spectrum, all your friends at Blueberry Hill is basically an indie dance party built for anyone who romanticized the blog era and old iPods, which is honestly sounds very fun and very specific. And for a rooftop move, Friday night, rooftop rhythm at On God is doing its usual skyline cocktails DJ energy situation. That's one of those reoccurring things, but it's always a good plan. Then if you want something a little chaotic and nostalgic, there's the best of both worlds rave at the Hawthorne, which is basically Hannah Montana and Miley Nostalgia Night. Saturday keeps the music going too. Can you feel the punk tonight at the pageant? Might be one of the wildest concepts of the weekend. Punk rock Disney music. And if you want something interactive and different, Friday night, speakeasy, a murder mystery of intrigue looks fun too. Prohibition theme, costumes are encouraged, and it's got some mystery dinner vibes. Then Sunday gives you a couple more options as well. There's Adult Prom at Blueberry Hill, which is exactly what it sounds like and honestly feels kind of hilarious in the best way. And if you want to take your Sunday somewhere a little different, there's even a Cinco de Mayo cruise on the river out in Augusta. So whether you want symphony, rooftop DJs, tribute bands, punk Disney, or Adult Prom, somehow this weekend has it all. And of course, we've got to talk sports because it wouldn't be a proper spring weekend in St. Louis without baseball. The Cardinals are hosting the Dodgers at Bush all weekend, and that is a fun series. Big matchup, good weather. Downtown is gonna be buzzing. Honestly, even if you're not going to the game, being around Ballpark Village in downtown during a big series weekend is always an event itself. And if you've got people visiting from out of town, this is one of those classic St. Louis weekends where you can basically build an itinerary around iconic things. Cardinals game, food truck Friday, maybe a festival Saturday, patio dinner somewhere else. And that's a good weekend right there. And another classic feeling event worth mentioning, Route 66 Centennial Festival at the Missouri History Museum. This one feels very St. Louis in a nostalgic way. Classic cars, history, music, family programming, and just celebrating 100 years of Route 66. Now it's time for our Flavors of the Lou, and this week we're doing a little neighborhood dive bar bucket list because sometimes the best spots in St. Louis are the ones with the neon sign, cheap drinks, and a whole lot of character. First up, Iowa buffet down in Graveway Park. If you know, you know. It's cash only, it's unapologetically old school, and it has one of those true neighborhood bar feels that gets harder to find. Burgers, beers, no frills, just a classic St. Louis butt. Then over in Tower Grove East, TikTok Tavern. This is the kind of place that feels equally perfect for a casual weeknight drink or a laid-back weekend hang. Great patio, solid bar food, strong neighborhood energy, just one of those places people get loyal to. And then in Soulard, the Kat's Meow. This one has all the charm you want in a neighborhood dive, a little quirky, a little legendary, and very Soulard. It's the kind of place you go for one drink and somehow stay a while. So if you're looking to add a few classic neighborhood bars to your St. Louis bucket list, start with Iowa Buffet, TikTok, and the Katz Meow, three spots, three neighborhoods, and all very different flavors of the city. And if you want to see the whole list, go to our Instagram at STL Bucket list for the whole list of dive bars. We have a new spot for you to check out this week, the Sonic the Hedgehog Speed Cafe just opened at Noodle House in the Delmar Loop. And it's basically a pop-up culture, pop-up meets food collab. They've got a special theme menu with a playful bites and drinks inspired by Sonic, including a chili dog plus custom packaging merch, just a really fun, nostalgic atmosphere. It's not your typical new restaurant opening, it's more of an experience. Great if you're a Sonic fan, great if you've got kids, or honestly, just if you want to go try something quirky or and different in the loop. All right, that's your weekend rundown. And honestly, it's a stacked one. Whether you're doing Food Trek Friday, dressing up for derby parties, catching the Cardinals, hitting a festival, or just finding a patio and letting the weekend unfold, there's a lot to do. As always, if you go do something fun this weekend, tag us at SDL Bucketless. We love seeing where you all end up. We drop new episodes every week with what's going on around St. Louis. So make sure you've subscribed wherever you listen. Have a fun weekend. Enjoy the spring weather, and we'll see you out there.