Southwest Garden

A neighborhood in St. Louis

Southwest Garden is a quiet south St. Louis neighborhood bordered by the Missouri Botanical Garden and Tower Grove Park, primarily known for its residential character and Italian food corridor rather than a dense music scene. Its one dedicated live-music stop is The Hideaway, a dive and piano bar at 5900 Arsenal St. open since 1954, it has kept the feel of an old neighborhood piano bar while accepting modest modern updates. A curved secondary bar at the center of the room transforms on weekends into a piano stage. Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights bring live piano from around 9 p.m. to 1 a.m., with Wednesday given over to karaoke. A featured performer, Oliver Johnson, plays piano and trumpet across blues, jazz, and Motown. The room is small and the music is close-quarters, which suits the bar's regulars-first identity. For live music in Southwest Garden, The Hideaway is essentially the whole story.