Passport has always been a fun promotion and one that's seen great success in other markets, and that's why we were so excited to bring this bad boy to St. Louis. What is Yelp's Passport, you ask? Think of it this way: we give you a passport to discover a cool neighborhood in your own backyard. We want to take you inside some of the best businesses and help you find new places to visit, and also have some unique experiences, too. That's exactly what went down in St. Louis, and Yelp's Passport to Cherokee Street was nothing short of a big success.
The week started out with a kickoff party at Nebula Coworking and gave Yelp St. Louis Elites a proper taste of the neighborhood! Nebula is a ridiculously cool venue that serves as an office for some of St. Louis' best creative professionals, and you can even stop in day-by-day to rent a desk if you need a place to work. Also, they just happen to have the perfect space for a party! Guests enjoyed a wide variety of Cherokee Street-inspired surprises, including authentic Mexican tacos from Don Carlos and signature drinks made by Mike Glodeck and his team from Foam. All of this happened, of course, while they enjoyed music spun by the DJs direct from Apop Records. The ladies got to experience something different, too, when the team at Drew Henry Salon & Gallery offered up their skills to create timeless vintage hairstyles. If people weren't in love with Cherokee Street already, they certainly were on their way after this event! You can see the whole spread of photos here.
Tuesday on Cherokee Street
really only means one thing… Taco Tuesday, obviously! 15 of us headed over to
Siete Luminarias to celebrate what’s really the best day of the week, and the
folks at Siete treated us to an amazing spread. You have not lived until you’ve
experienced their unlimited taco bar, complete with a side of street corn and a
refreshing agua fresca. We got to choose from a variety of tacos including
cactus, beef, pork, beef tongue (yikes!), and more. We washed it all down with
some frozen margaritas, and might have been the happiest group of Yelpers
that’s ever existed.
On Wednesday, Scarlett Garnet
opened their doors to us for an event called “What’s Old is New,” and a group
of lady Yelpers got to accomplish two things: check out one of the best jewelry
shops in the city, and make some of their own! Everyone brought in an old piece
that they don’t wear anymore, whether it was a lone earring or a grandmother’s broach.
Owner Katie Miller helped us make our old pieces into new ones, all while we
enjoyed snacks and champagne. The evening resulted in some pretty impressive
pieces of jewelry, and even better, some new friendships as well.
The next day we moved the
celebration over to The Mud House, where owner Casey Miller graciously accepted
the challenge of teaching 15 Yelpers how to do their own latte art. We took up
the entire front room (good thing it was after hours!) and were treated to an
endless parade of baked goodies straight out of the oven, including St. Louis’
famous gooey butter cake that The Mud House does oh-so-well. After sipping
on our treats and coffee, Casey
let us go behind the counter to make our own lattes and try our hand at latte
art! A few Yelpers came to impress, drawing some impressive designs, but the
end verdict was that we’ll leave the latte art to Casey. As Amanda K said, "the bearded man she created was by far my favorite. Oh, and the warm
scones and chocolate chips cookies didn't make me mad either!"
So how exactly do you end a week of such epic proportions properly? What can possibly do a week of such interactive events and stellar businesses justice? A wrap-up party at STL Style, that's what! Yelpers came out from all over the area during Tropical Storm Isaac (impressive!) to enjoy a laid-back, casual wrap-up party. STL Style served as the perfect venue thanks to their custom St. Louis shirts and one-of-a-kind store, and The Jump Starts played live music all evening. In addition, guests enjoyed chicken and veggie burritos from Siete Luminarias (yum) and ice cream samples from I Scream Cakes! Orange habanero chocolate ice cream? Yes please! Drinks were of course flowing, and we also raffled off a custom-made STL t-shirt every twenty minutes. You can see the whole spread of photos on Yelp's Flickr!
Yelp's Passport to Cherokee Street was special in so many ways, but the best part to me was seeing the whole community to come together to give this deserving area some love. From the Yelpers to the business owners, people were so passionate and ready to explore, and that's what makes the Yelp community here so great. Big thanks to Brea Photography for capturing the whole week on camera, each and every business owner for your time, energy, and passion, and to the St. Louis Yelpers who came out during the week to take part in events. This week was one for the books, and I think I speak for everyone when I saw that we walked away with a newfound love for Cherokee Street.
Until next time,
Aimee K
Yelp St. Louis Senior Community Manager
