Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All the United States Missouri St. Louis Venice Cafe
Gastro Obscura

Venice Cafe

This mosaic-covered bar is brimming with curated curios.

St. Louis, Missouri

Added By
tonycompton
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
CAPTION
Bathrooms!   JCinSTL / Atlas Obscura User
  timk_stl
  sup_kelz
  Philip Leara
  JCinSTL / Atlas Obscura User
  mossum / Atlas Obscura User
The fish pond at the bathrooms  
Rainy night at the Venice   philtuths / Atlas Obscura User
The sidewalk out front of the cafe.   Philip Leara
  JCinSTL / Atlas Obscura User
  JCinSTL / Atlas Obscura User
  JCinSTL / Atlas Obscura User
James Crutchfield Memorial Wall   JCinSTL / Atlas Obscura User
View from a table outside.   tonycompton / Atlas Obscura User
View of the patio, right outside, that is open all year.   tonycompton / Atlas Obscura User
  Collector of Experiences / Atlas Obscura User
  Collector of Experiences / Atlas Obscura User
Sidewalk view Corner art  
  Collector of Experiences / Atlas Obscura User
His and hers  
Bathroom mirror  
Patio gate  
  Michael Reinhardt / Atlas Obscura User
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

In 1978, Jeff Lockheed purchased a house in the neighborhood of Benton Park. After letting friends hang around for nearly a decade, he formalized his hospitality and converted his home into a café. He applied for a liquor license shortly thereafter (his patrons were already practicing the BYOB model), and, according to the bar's Facebook, "then took on the business model it follows today: Booze and beauty for cash."

The beauty that Venice Café alludes to—concentrated, vivid, and frenetic—swarms the property, both inside and out. The patio is filled with cement statues covered in tiles, and a collection of artwork created by Lockheed himself is visible through the window. Inside, mosaics and quirky assemblages blanket every visible surface. Venice achieves the kind of glow patrons expect from a barroom by blending the soft emanations of more than 20 different light fixtures in yellow, red, green, and blue. These collections are the result of decades of collection and curation, and Lockheed welcomes donations. Simply drop your gift off by the alley door and it will either be added to the gallery or disposed of.

Downstairs, you'll find an ATM (the bar is cash-only), along with a fish tank, turtles, and a continued expanse of mosaics that flows into two bathrooms and surrounds the toilets. To find them, just follow the stairs beneath the neon sign that reads "Shitters." 

The Explorer’s Lounge, which occupies the upstairs level, opens on Friday and Saturday nights. Mr. Waylon Slithers—a king snake known for napping in a vacant turtle shell—greets guests from his tank behind the bar. Taxidermy and artwork dot the room. Attached to the lounge is a bathroom that goes by The Blue Hole and is filled with curios, from ceramic lions to ancient chests to monkey statues that hold toilet paper to more mosaics.

Outside, the walls are covered in ashtrays, lighters, action figures, and more bric-a-brac. During the city's warmer months, "The Garden" opens up, complete with spring foliage. There's also a functioning "boat bar"—made from the front end of a boat. Patrons saddle up to the outside while a bartender mixes cocktails from behind the steering wheel. For those who don't like liquor, the bar also serves up beer and wine.

Two resident turtles, Myrtle and Shemmy, occupy the adjacent pond. On Lockheed's request, "Please don’t throw pennies in the pond. You’ll hurt the shell babies and your dumb wish will never come true."

Related Tags

Bars Unique Restaurants & Bars Alcohol Collections

Know Before You Go

With all the art surrounding you, it's easy to miss the "Cash Only" signs. There's an ATM downstairs.

Community Contributors

Added By

tonycompton

Edited By

rachelrummel, philtuths, Collector of Experiences, JCinSTL...

  • rachelrummel
  • philtuths
  • Collector of Experiences
  • JCinSTL
  • mossum
  • puentesmpaula
  • Michael Reinhardt
  • artstuffbylori

Published

August 1, 2019

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • https://www.riverfronttimes.com/foodblog/2013/02/12/top-eight-st-louis-bar-bathrooms-for-a-quickie?page=4
  • https://toilography.com/2017/08/21/mosaic-toilets-at-venice-cafe/
  • https://www.riverfronttimes.com/foodblog/2013/02/12/top-eight-st-louis-bar-bathrooms-for-a-quickie?page=4
  • https://www.facebook.com/VeniceCafeStl/?ref=ts
Venice Cafe
1903 Pestalozzi St
St. Louis, Missouri, 63118
United States
38.599342, -90.217435
Visit Website
Get Directions

Nearby Places

Lemp Mansion

St. Louis, Missouri

miles away

National Saxophone Museum

St. Louis, Missouri

miles away

'The Naked Truth'

St. Louis, Missouri

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of St. Louis

St. Louis

Missouri

Places 36
Stories 10

Nearby Places

Lemp Mansion

St. Louis, Missouri

miles away

National Saxophone Museum

St. Louis, Missouri

miles away

'The Naked Truth'

St. Louis, Missouri

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of St. Louis

St. Louis

Missouri

Places 36
Stories 10

Related Places

  • Auvers-sur-Oise, France

    Musée de l'Absinthe

    One woman's decades-long obsession with the "La Fée Verte."

  • Inside El Batey.

    San Juan, Puerto Rico

    El Batey

    Everyone from Alan Ginsberg to The Rolling Stones has stopped by this classic dive bar.

  • Ciudad Juárez, Mexico

    Kentucky Club

    When life gives you Prohibition, open a bar in Juárez.

  • Ridgedale, Missouri

    Bat Bar in Lost Canyon Cave

    If there's another drive-through golf-cart bar in a bat-filled cave on top of a mountain, we don't know about it.

  • São Miguel, Portugal

    Solar Branco Gin Library

    A 19th-century mansion houses the largest collection of gin in the European Union.

  • A shelf full of unofficial merchandise.

    Osaka, Japan

    Tavern Pachimon Wars

    This bar is filled with Star Wars merchandise from around the world, all of it unlicensed knockoffs.

  • The many, many necktie pieces on display.

    Oxford, England

    The Bear Inn

    This centuries-old pub boasts a collection of more than 4,500 snippets of neckties from around the world.

  • Tokyo, Japan

    Omoide Yokocho

    Colloquially known as “piss alley,” this narrow street filled with tiny bars and barbecue stands looks like it was pulled straight out of “Blade Runner.”

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.