Pin-up Bowl

Rating: Titillating!

For all you Jews out there who don’t roll on the Sabbath, this bar is the place for you. Once the sun goes down on Saturday night and Shabbos is over, make your way to Pin-up Bowl and get your roll on.

Get your roll on any day of the week for that matter. The newest creation of Blueberry Hill’s owner, Joe Edwards, Pin-up Bowl attracts crowds that range from bums on the street to Nelly and his crew.

Nelly has been known to drop in every once in a while for the vibrant atmosphere and ridiculously big TVs. His high score of 257 is proudly boasted on the wall next to the Men’s bathroom.

This incredibly trendy bar is radiantly clad with bright colors and bowling paraphernalia. When you look around, you might feel like Jennifer Lopez and Jeff Lebowski produced a redheaded stepchild and named it Pin-up Bowl. People have been known to come in for hours and just stare at the eclectic scene.

Other celebrities have been known to knock back a few after a performance at the Pageant. But don’t be worried if you’re just a regular old Washington University student.

“We have regulars, older couples that like to come in, people that come in straight from work and never leave and college students that come in from down the street,” said Sarah Jones, bartender at Pin-up.

Order a drink from the extensive but expensive cocktail menu and bring it to one of the eight lanes in the back the bar. Basically, bring Mommy and Daddy’s weekly allowance and be prepared to stumble home drunk-dialing them for more.

Don’t drink too much though, because the Ronald L. Jones Funeral Chapel is conveniently located next door. On that note, Sarah says that the “Key Lime Pie,” one of the signature cocktails, which is made with Licor 43, Stoli Vodka, Stoli Vanilla Vodka, Midori, milk and fresh lime juice, is one of the most popular drinks among the female crowd.

If you are looking to order some pitchers and bowl a few cheap games with your boys, this is probably not the place for you. If you’re looking to have a great night with the girls from upstairs, Pin-up Bowl is the place to be.

On Friday and Saturday night, it’s usually filled to capacity by 1:30 a.m. and you’ll probably have to wait to get an open lane or even get a drink from the bar. Pin-up Bowl is located at 6191 Delmar in the Loop, near the Pageant. Call them at (314) 727-5555.

Enjoy, but remember the wise words of Walter Sobchak: “This is not ‘Nam. It’s bowling. There are rules.”

La Pizza

Rating: Titillating!

You know this place is authentic because of the restaurant’s name: “La Pizza,” is Italian for “The Pizza.”

Like the Corleone family, the Bishops run a family business. Like the Corleone’s family business, La Pizza is closed on Sundays.

This family-run, New York-style pizza parlor prides itself on making the best pizza in the city. After tasting it, this is no exaggeration. But don’t let them hear you call it New York style, because Paul Bishop II, referred to by his friends as “Pauli,” says that this title often gets a bad rep in St. Louis.

Pauli, one of the family members who operate La Pizza, refers to the food as “Neapolitan” style, because the pride that goes into making the pizza stems straight from the motherland. He says that the key to making a true Neapolitan style pizza is to use the freshest ingredients.

The bread and sauce are made daily from scratch. The herbs and spices are grown outside. Pauli also says that La Pizza uses the “Cadillac of cheese,” whole milk mozzarella for all their dishes. If this cheese were in fact a Caddy, it would be an Escalade on 24’s.

One of their unique signature pizzas is the “Seafood Specialty Pizza,” which is made with fresh crabmeat, lobster and shrimp or any combination of the three. The seafood comes from “Bob’s Seafood” which is right down the street from La Pizza.

Pauli says to bring in a piece of salmon or tuna and they will be willing to cook it up and throw it on the pie for you. La Pizza has been open for a little over a year and if business continues to grow as is has, the owners are looking into opening another location soon.

The restaurant’s interior isn’t the most stunning in the city, but it has true Italian flavor with plenty of pictures of Italy. The taste of the food makes up for any lack of ambiance.

La Pizza currently only has one driver for deliveries, but they will usually deliver after 5 p.m. and to anywhere on the Washington University campus.

If they can’t deliver when you call, it’s worth the drive down Delmar towards I-170. Once you start adding toppings to a plain pizza, it gets pretty pricey, but even so, it’s nice to eat some real pizza that’s not Domino’s or Papa John’s. La Pizza is located at 8137 Delmar Blvd. and the phone number is (314) 725-1230.

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