Comparison · checked 2026-09-03
St. Louis's after-work crowd splits two ways: Soulard, the market-side grid of oyster patios and tap rooms — or The Grove, the Manchester strip of cocktail rooms and pizza bars. Same city, different night. Here is how the cited windows compare.
Soulard: the market grid
Planter's House (1000 Mississippi) posts Tap Time Tuesday–Friday 4–6 PM and all day Sunday: $3 off tap cocktails plus $3 off fries, roasted red pepper hummus, Caesar salad, burger, and burrata. Molly's in Soulard (816 Geyer) posts Tuesday–Friday 3–7 PM with $1 OFF ALL DRINKS and $2 OYSTERS AT PATIO BAR ONLY. Soulard is the long-window district: start at 3, eat oysters, stay for the tap pours.
The Grove: the Manchester strip
The Vandy (1301 S Vandeventer) posts Tuesday–Thursday 5–6 PM and Friday 4–6 PM: $10 old fashioned, margarita, mezcal margarita, bees knees, gimlet, daiquiri, and martinis, $9 wine by the glass, and $5 City Wide beers. HandleBar (4127 Manchester) posts half-price pizza and discounted libations from open until 6 — and all night on Mondays — with no dollar amounts on the homepage. The Grove is the cocktail-and-pizza strip: short clocks, walkable second stops.
| Soulard | The Grove | |
|---|---|---|
| Vibe | Market bars, oyster patios; Geyer polish | Cocktail rooms, pizza bars; Manchester ease |
| Window shape | Long afternoons (3–7) plus all-day Sunday | Short clocks (5–6) plus Monday all-night pizza |
| Price signal | $3 off taps; $2 patio oysters | $10 classics; $5 City Wide; half-price pizza |
| Best for | Daylight starts, oysters, groups | Cocktails, crawls, Monday nights |
The call
One daylight session: Soulard — Molly's Tue–Fri 3–7 is the longest clock in this piece, and Planter's all-day Sunday covers the weekend. One cocktail night: The Grove — The Vandy's $10 board, then HandleBar's half-price pizza, all night Monday if you time it right. Check On now for which windows are live this minute. All windows above come from the venues' own pages — full cards on Deals.
Sources
Poured here: Planter's House · Molly's in Soulard · The Vandy · HandleBar