St. Louis Art Museum

Strange Donuts

The Butterfly House

Gooey Louie's

Lafayette Square Park

Kimmswick Apple Butter Festival

Central West End Canine Costume Parade

Laumeier Sculpture Park

St. Louis Symphony

The Jewel Box

#5 Craftoberfest

#1 Baida Restaurant

Pre-Bucket: Newly opened on South Grand Blvd., a street full of global cuisines, Baida is a Moroccan restaurant. 

The last time I ate Moroccan food I was ten years old and in Epcot Center.  All I remember is the rich, nutty, honey drenched dessert.  This nostalgia, coupled with a favorite St. Louis food magazine promoting Baida as a new “hit list” restaurant, likely increased my disappointment when a friend and I ate there last night.  There were no other dinner guests when we arrived at 7:30pm and were ushered into the second of two rooms.  They have not yet begun serving off of their menu and instead have a buffet set up.  To be fair, one may want to try Baida once their menu items become available.  However, I’m always up for a good buffet – why not?  Their food did not taste bad, but, like the décor, it was boring.  With an overall lack of spice and flavor, everything from the chicken to the couscous tasted bland.  And – no dessert!  They have desserts listed on their menu, but none were present at their buffet.  Fortunately, a trip to the next door Gelateria Del Leone rounded out my evening nicely. 

Post-bucket: Maybe Baida has a few kinks to work out since they just opened.  I would like to say I’ll go back to sample their full menu, but their buffet is representative of the food they prepare.  With so many delicious restaurants on South Grand left to try, I would recommend going somewhere else first.  Also, if the opportunity arises, go find those desserts in Disney World’s Morocco!  I trust my ten year old self on that one.  

#8 Grove Fest

Pre-Bucket: St. Louis is a city made up of very diverse neighborhoods.  The Grove is probably the one I know least well, making the festival a perfect way to jump-start my education.

On Saturday, I stopped by Grove Fest, a street party held on Manchester Avenue, the main throughway of the Grove neighborhood.  Scheduled to run from 2-11pm, I arrived at the stretch of blocked off street around 2:20 and found that several booths and both music stages were still setting up.  This led to one of the day’s highlights as it resulted in my ducking into Rise Coffee House hoping to kill some time.  I ordered a fall spice latte off of Rise’s menu, which is handwritten on several sheets of notebook paper tacked to a cork-board hanging on the wall.  The drink was a little expensive, but I quickly got over this when I tasted caffeine in a truly delicious form.  Better yet, I sat in this somewhat hipster, somewhat vintage-feeling coffee shop watching festival attendees out the window.  It wasn't until I was finished with my drink that I realized there is an even cozier upstairs lounge with windows overlooking the street.

As for Grove Fest itself, it represented the neighborhood’s eclectic vibe well.  I got a free massage from the Healing Arts Center tent, ate a cornbread fritter from one of the many food booths, and chatted with vendors ranging from organizations like Planned Parenthood to a group selling artwork that artists with disabilities had created.  I also met a player advertising from one of St. Louis’ female roller derby leagues, to whom I confessed my desire to become a roller girl ever since watching Whip It.  She kindly acted as though this was the first time someone lamented over the inability to be Ellen Page’s character for a day. Regardless, I already know a bucket adventure to add to November’s list!  Best of all, before I left, I experienced Bubble Bus.  The greatest school bus.  Ever.  

Post-Bucket: The Grove lives up to its reputation as an eclectic neighborhood.  This was not my favorite street festival, but I recommend it as a great free way to spend a couple of hours on a Saturday afternoon.  Or, head to the festival later in the evening with a group of friends and take advantage of the many libations – the vendors were serving up every alcoholic fall-themed drink imaginable!  

October

1. Baida Restaurant
2. Butterfly House
3. Cahokia Mounds
4. Central West End Canine Costume Parade (Oct. 26)
5. Craftoberfest (Oct. 17)
6. Creve Coeur Lake
7. Grant's Farm
8. Grove Fest (Oct. 5)
9. The Jewel Box
10. Kimmswick Apple Butter Festival (Oct. 26-27)
11. Laumeier Sculpture Park
12. MX Movies
13. St. Louis Columbus Day Parade & Festival (Oct. 13)
14. St. Louis Symphony
15. Strange Donuts

Beginning the Bucket

Most people I know have a list of things they want to do or experience.  Some people call them bucket lists; others call them adventure lists, to do lists, or even just stuff.  Most people I know are also similar to me in that they have these “lists” written down all over the place.  Mine are stashed in my phone, in various notebooks, and most frequently, on the backs of fortunes now lying at the bottom of my bag from the cookies I ate weeks ago - the same bag I inevitably left at home when the mood for adventure struck.  So, there I am, looking places up on my phone and trying to remember which restaurant I had been talking about trying. 

Life by the Bucket is not merely about making bucket lists (and knowing where to find them), but about completing them.  I am entering my fifth year of living in St. Louis and realize more and more how many places I have yet to visit.  There is nothing I enjoy more than delving into everything my city has to offer, but even so, some days the comfort of my couch and the lure of Netflix bog me down.  Now, with motivation to live by the bucket, each month I will create a new list of fifteen bucket adventures and share my experiences as I go!