Review: John's Town Hall in Clayton

This unique tavern is located at the bottom of one of the fancy high rise residential towers that line the western edge of Forest Park on Skinker just inside the city limits. The Dorchester high rise has condos and apartments with a striking view of the Park. Professional baseball players such as veteran Cardinal utility man Shawon Dunston are known to reside here during the baseball season. Other ball players and pro athletes have resided in this tower over the years.

The interior of the bar is classic old style with an overall polished wood theme and a unexpectedly beautiful copper topped bar. The back wall is made up of old AB wood bottle crates. The bar does not appear to have changed much over the years. There are no tacky wall signs or inflatable frogs to detract from the room. While the bar tends to attract a more high end patron, it does not really try to cater to them. The selection of beer is simple with just a few imported and micro brews and customary liquor selection, but it does not have the long list of elaborate and expensive varieties of booze that has become commonplace at most hip bars today. One might expect a bar in this fancier area of town to be pretentious. However, Busch can be had on draft along with a standard cognac. The food menu contains basic bar food. On Mondays during half time of football games, the bar has free food. Sometimes it can be the expected half time food, like chicken wings, but at other times they serve something as old timey like beef and noodles garnished with a slice of Wonder bread. This is not exactly the normal finer dining fare for the swanky bars in nearby Clayton or West End. This is more of a working man's dinner, but in a higher class setting.

Many of the regulars, as would be expected, are residents of the building. The patrons range in age, but they all seem to hold some sort of professional job with most of them still wearing their ties well into the evening. The crowd is somewhat mixed, but mostly white. The folks seem to be regular urban life type of people, a little tougher than a Claytonite but not full-out urban warriors.

Later at night, the younger folks will filter in and the jukebox's odd selections will fill out the sounds of the room. The younger set hails from the surrounding apartment buildings, the universities and sometimes the bar will receive visits from the nearby theater companies. Sometimes you might spot a Cardinal in the crowd. This adds an odd mix to an already unexpected kind of crowd. There are televisions that most keep an eye on to keep tabs on the score, but it does not dominate the vibe of the room like some bars. Conversation will often turn towards sports with the game carrying the conversation.

The saloon has even more of a history with the neighborhood.

There is a plaque on the wall of Wayne "E" Elwart. Coach E was the old bartender for many years who passed away in 1997. He was an English teacher and football coach at nearby Catholic High School Christian Brother College (the high school is expected to flee to the nether reaches of the county in the coming year). The coach was a enormous by both physical size and popularity. He knew all of his regulars like they were life long friends. When he spoke, his voice boomed and dominated the attention of the entire room. If you caught this large English teacher in the right mood, you might find him giving the Porter speech from WIlliam Shakespeare's Macbeth. He was also known for his famous cocktail, the Ratskiller Cooler. This was a voluminous drink made of a mystery of rums. It was so large, two glasses were needed to serve it. One large Margarita glass and highball glass to handle the overflow. The bartenders will tell you that they no longer are able to make the drink, but if you catch the right barkeep, he might be attempt to make the concoction.

This unique tavern is located at the bottom of one of the fancy high rise residential towers that line the western edge of Forest Park on Skinker just inside the city limits. The Dorchester high rise has condos and apartments with a striking view of the Park. Professional baseball players such as veteran Cardinal utility man Shawon Dunston are known to reside here during the baseball season. Other ball players and pro athletes have resided in this tower over the years.

The interior of the bar is classic old style with an overall polished wood theme and a unexpectedly beautiful copper topped bar. The back wall is made up of old AB wood bottle crates. The bar does not appear to have changed much over the years. There are no tacky wall signs or inflatable frogs to detract from the room. While the bar tends to attract a more high end patron, it does not really try to cater to them. The selection of beer is simple with just a few imported and micro brews and customary liquor selection, but it does not have the long list of elaborate and expensive varieties of booze that has become commonplace at most hip bars today. One might expect a bar in this fancier area of town to be pretentious. However, Busch can be had on draft along with a standard cognac. The food menu contains basic bar food. On Mondays during half time of football games, the bar has free food. Sometimes it can be the expected half time food, like chicken wings, but at other times they serve something as old timey like beef and noodles garnished with a slice of Wonder bread. This is not exactly the normal finer dining fare for the swanky bars in nearby Clayton or West End. This is more of a working man's dinner, but in a higher class setting.

Many of the regulars, as would be expected, are residents of the building. The patrons range in age, but they all seem to hold some sort of professional job with most of them still wearing their ties well into the evening. The crowd is somewhat mixed, but mostly white. The folks seem to be regular urban life type of people, a little tougher than a Claytonite but not full-out urban warriors.

Later at night, the younger folks will filter in and the jukebox's odd selections will fill out the sounds of the room. The younger set hails from the surrounding apartment buildings, the universities and sometimes the bar will receive visits from the nearby theater companies. Sometimes you might spot a Cardinal in the crowd. This adds an odd mix to an already unexpected kind of crowd. There are televisions that most keep an eye on to keep tabs on the score, but it does not dominate the vibe of the room like some bars. Conversation will often turn towards sports with the
game carrying the conversation.

The saloon has even more of a history with the neighborhood. There is a plaque on the wall of Wayne "E" Elwart. Coach E was the old bartender for many years who passed away in 1997. He was an English teacher and football coach at nearby Catholic High School Christian Brother College (the high school is expected to flee to the nether reaches of the county in the coming year). The coach was a enormous by both physical size and popularity. He knew all of his regulars like they were life long friends. When he spoke, his voice boomed and dominated the attention of the entire room. If you caught this large English teacher in the right mood, you might find him giving the Porter speech from WIlliam Shakespeare's Macbeth. He was also known for his famous cocktail, the Ratskiller Cooler. This was a voluminous drink made of a mystery of rums. It was so large, two glasses were needed to serve it. One large Margarita glass and highball glass to handle the overflow. The bartenders will tell you that they no longer are able to make the drink, but if you catch the right barkeep, he might be attempt to make the concoction.

The bar is a great place to stop for a regular nip. The vibe is friendly and laid back. The place has yet to be exploited as a hipster hangout like the nearby Cheshire. The company is always amusing and it almost has a feel like the lyrics of the Cheers theme song.