Meet St. Louis

Say hello to the trendy new juice bar in The Grove. Jordan and Kayla Bauer landed on the idea when they were on their honeymoon in Hawaii, realizing it was a niche missing in their hometown of St. Louis. Instagramable smoothie bowls, fresh-pressed juice and super food elixers draw big crowds to the café. Over the whir of the blenders, the Bauer’s talked to Meet St. Louis about the challenges of opening a business, the desire to inspire others and how they scoured thrift stores to create the perfect minimalist hang out.

Inspired by trips to Bali and Indonesia, Collections by Joya is a women-run jewelry company. Owner Betsy Blancett-Nacrelli left her corporate job to follow a passion. What started inside her St. Louis home has now grown into a company that sells jewelry all over the country. Blancett-Nacrelli says it’s a business that couldn’t have grown without the help of other St. Louis entrepreneurs.

Even if you're not from St. Louis, you probably know the name. Since opening in 2011, 4 Hands Brewing has built a reputation as one of the most creative and prolific breweries in the Midwest. Not only are they a staple throughout the region, their beer is reaching people all over the country. Founder and owner Kevin Lemp sits down with Meet St. Louis to talk about what it takes to make great not only MAKE great beer, but also get customers to fall in love with it once they find it. The conversation covers everything from what made him take the leap into opening a brewery, to the incredible art and marketing of 4 Hands, to how the brewery became a pillar of St. Louis by thinking beyond beer to the community at large. Also, the conversation dives into the line of spirits hitting the shelves and where 4 Hands is going from here. Sit back, plug in, and enjoy!

Spread across two acres, 9 Mile Garden is the first designated food truck garden in St. Louis. Located in Affton, it features space for food trucks, a stage for live music, a big screen for movies, and plenty of space to sit down and eat from dozens of the city’s best food trucks. One of the trucks is Doggie Mac’s. Bryan Scott, also known as Chef B, serves up all-beef hotdogs topped with things like his grandma’s famous mac n' cheese or jerk pork and Caribbean slaw and he does it all with a smile. He joins us on the podcast to talk about years of trying his hand at the restaurant and catering business and how a food truck helped lead him to the path he’s on now. One of the people who helped him along the way was Brian Hardesty, co-owner of Guerilla Street Food truck and a partner at 9 Mile Garden. Brian joins us this week as well to talk about how a 9 Mile Garden is the type of place he wished existed when they launched their first food truck nearly a decade ago.

Earlier this year, the Meet St. Louis Podcast visited Sugarwitch. It was one of our most listened-to episodes, so before summer ends, we thought it would be only fitting to revisit the South City ice cream shop that was started by Sophie Mendelson and Martha Bass.