Phelan's Pub and Grill
1730 S. 8th Street
St. Louis, MO 63104
Phone number: 314-241-8282

We had a terrible experience at Phelan's on Saturday night. Before I get into that I will tell you about the bar. Phelan's is located in the heart of Soulard, about a block south of the famous Farmer's Market. I have some friends that live in Soulard and I can see the place from their front door. We were there on Saturday night to watch the Cardinal's game because they have a few small T.V.s. Inside there is a small bar, some tables to sit, a golden tee machine, and dart boards. There eight of us that went and inside there was one other person at the bar.

The night started out fine, and we were ordering beers and mixed drinks like crazy. We watched the Cardinal's game and we were having a good time. There was a group of four of us that had all of our drinks on the same tab. When it came time to pay, the receipt was a hand written tally sheet with what we ordered. I was very skeptical of this system. The four of us, two couples, and we drank three buckets and 10 mixed drinks. The bartender brought the tab over and it said $152, when I tried to figure out what my girlfriend and myself needed to pay the bartender kept snatching the bill out of my hands and demanded payment. As I got more looks at this bill it read three buckets for $49 and 10 mixed drinks for $42. The bartender kept cussing at us and demanded that we pay $152. I said no, and that I am walking out if you don't add that up again. The bartender went and got a calculator, added it up and the amount came to under $100. I can't believe she tried to make us pay an extra $50. While all of this is going on she is still cussing at us and giving us the finger as she is running our credit cards. I definitely saved my receipt from this night. Needless to say she did not get any tip at all and we will not be giving that place any more business. The sad part for Phelan's is that we would bring a big group in every other weekend or so and we would be the only ones in there all night.

If you are thinking about going to a bar in Soulard do not go to Phelan's unless you want to get scammed and cussed at while trying to have some drinks and give the place some business.

Prices: I don't know they tried to scam us. Don't go to this bar.

Contact us at Tim@StlStuff.com

Hammerstone's at 9th and Russell
2028 S. 9th Street
St. Louis, MO 63104
Phone number: 314-773-5565

Website

Hammerstone's gets it. What a contrast this place is compared to Phelan's, another Soulard bar. Read about Phelan's here. Hammerstone's has great food, cheap beer and they know how to treat thier customers. This place actually had people in the bar.

Hammerstone's is located at 9th and Russell in Soulard. The inside of Hammerstone's has a few booths, some tables, and a bar streching the whole length of the place. Hammerstone's has live music seven days a week. There is also an outdoor patio, which is very nice. An outside bar is situated in the back corner of the patio. We went there on a Friday night to eat and drink. We got to Hammerstone's around 7 p.m. and we were able to get a table outside on the nice patio. A strange thing that I did not know about Hammerstone's is that people can bring their dog if they sit on the patio. The waitress brought some dog treats and water. It was a great atmosphere. The inside was packed with people listening to the band play. The outside was full of tables and people sitting around drinking and talking. Like I said, the patio was very nice and it seemed like a private courtyard.

Hammerstone's serves all of the favorite bar foods. Hammerstone's has some bar food appetizers and they even have hummus dip and oysters on the half shell. They also have sandwiches, burgers and house specials, like pizza kebabs, fajitas, and pasta. One thing I saw on the menu is that Hammerstone's had a breakfast that consist of two eggs, two pieces of bacon, and two pieces of toast for $2. If I lived in Soulard I would eat here for breakfast every day. The food at Hammerstone's was delicious. I ordered the steak kebabs with mushroom gravy. The kebabs come with two skewers with steak on them, served with grilled peppers, grilled onions, and mushroom gravy. The steak was done perfectly and and went great with the peppers, onions, and gravy. I recommend this plate very much. It had a very reasonable price of $8.95. I would get it again if I went back. I also got to taste a hamburger, and philly cheesesteak. They were both very good. The philly cheese steak was excellent. The meat was tender and it was very cheesy. I am looking forward at eating at Hammerstone's again.

After we were finished with dinner we stayed to drink. Hammerstone's has some great deals. When we were there on a Friday night Hammerstone's had $4 pitchers, and $1 drafts. The prices were at the outside bar on the patio. These are some refreshingly great prices for a bar, especially in Soulard. We originally went to Hammerstone's for dinner, but once we saw the cheap prices on beer we stayed to drink for the rest of the night. We sat outside on the great patio and drank all night. This is a great bar in Soulard. There are spots to hang out and talk and there are spots to listen to live music. You are not forced to listen to blaring music if you don't want to. By the time we left, at around 1 a.m. the outside bar was packed with people. I had a great time at this bar. Hammerstone's is a great place to hang out in Soulard. I will be going back very soon.

Food Prices: I paid $8.95 for the kabobs. Prices are very reasonable
Bar Prices: $4 for a pitcher of beer, and $1 for draft beer. Prices are very cheap.