Delmar Loop in St. Louis Voted One of the Ten Best Streets in America

You go past Washington University and make a right on Delmar Blvd. As you look up you will see the two large stone lions guarding the gate to University City. As you venture further, you will be entering the Delmar Loop, St. Louis' premier entertainment district. The area gets its name from the streetcar turnaround that used to be there when this was on the furthermost western fringe of the city. Delmar Blvd. is a major east-west thoroughfare that runs all the way downtown. For a long time the Loop neighborhood languished. As you headed east towards the city proper, broken concrete and boarded up windows were the norm. You made sure that your windows were rolled up and your doors were locked. Then one man came along, opened a nightclub/restaurant/bar and started to make a difference.

Blueberry Hill was and still is the anchor that holds the Loop neighborhood together. Joe Edwards and his wife Linda run the place. It's a huge place, one of the largest nightclubs in the Midwest. As you enter the front door, the first thing that you see is one of Chuck Berry's old guitars. And the rock and roll pioneer still plays regular gigs there. There's a large collection of old Wurlitzer jukeboxes and the largest collection of Howdy Dowdy memorabilia in the world. A large bust of Beethoven with flashing eyes greets you as you enter the dart room where international tournaments are held every year. Concerts are held in various concert rooms including one called the Elvis Room.

After Blueberry Hill was established the next thing that Joe did was to refurbish the old Tivoli Theater. The Tivoli originally opened in 1924 during the heyday of the ornate movie palaces like the Fox and Loews theater franchises. Architecturally and historically the Tivoli Building is the most prominent in the area. It is four stories tall and houses seven specialty shops in addition to the theater. The Edwards spent $2 million on the renovation, restoring the theater to its former grandeur. You can tell that Joe had a hand in the restoration too, because there are a number of elegant display cases lining the halls filled with movie memorabilia and posters from the golden era of Hollywood.

Across from the Tivoli is the fairly recently opened Pageant Theater. The theater plays host to a number of well-known bands and stand-up comedians. Another noteworthy place to hear music is Vintage Vinyl. Rolling Stone Magazine has voted Vintage Vinyl as one of the ten best new and used record stores in America. This music store carries the largest collection of LPs, DVDs, and CDs in the country. Right up the street from Vintage Vinyl sits the Sunshine Daydrean shop. Sunshine Daydream carries a large selection of incense, tie-dyes, T-shirts, posters and pop merchandise. They also carry a lot of smoking supplies and Grateful dead stuff.

If you're hungry, it seems that there is almost no limit to the number and types of restaurants along Delmar Blvd. including Cicero's Italian Restaurant, the Melting Pot Fondue Restaurant, and Fitz's Bottling Plant. The Market in the Loop features Saturdays at the Market featuring arts and crafts, local farmers and growers, and entertainment. A free drumming circle open to all meets there on Sunday.

The Loop has something for art lovers too. It is the home of the St. Louis Craft Alliance and several nationally recognized art galleries. In 2007, the Loop was named as one of the ten best streets in America. Come visit and see why.