Simple restaurant that serves great food. The blueberry lemon soda is heavenly and our pizzas were amazing. We also had the ceaser salad and the dressing was rich and creamy. A fresh squeeze of lemon would have been nice. The almond olive cake was decent. The waiter was very kind! Overall we will return for pizza and a fresh soda!
Jul 19 · Annie JohnsonBAKERY PROFILE
Union Loafers Café and Bread Bakery
★ 4.01,305 recorded reviews$10–20
1629 Tower Grove Ave, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
Directory information can change. Confirm current hours, prices, products, dietary needs, and custom-order requirements directly with the bakery.
PLAN THE VISIT
Essential details
- Address
- 1629 Tower Grove Ave, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
- Phone
- (314) 833-6111
- Website
- Visit official site
- Rating signal
- 4.0 from 1,305 recorded reviews
HOURS
Listed operating hours
- MondayClosed
- Tuesday5:00 PM – 9:00 PM
- Wednesday5:00 PM – 9:00 PM
- Thursday5:00 PM – 9:00 PM
- Friday5:00 PM – 9:00 PM
- Saturday5:00 PM – 9:00 PM
- Sunday11:00 AM – 3:00 PM
About and visit notes
## Introduction / Overview
Union Loafers Café and Bread Bakery, nestled in the vibrant Botanical Heights neighborhood of St. Louis, MO, is a beloved culinary destination that successfully operates as three concepts in one: a dedicated bread bakery, a sophisticated lunch café, and a popular evening pizza restaurant. Since its opening, Union Loafers has earned a reputation among Missouri residents and national critics alike for its commitment to naturally leavened bread, crafted using time-honored, old-world techniques.
This establishment, located at 1629 Tower Grove Ave, is a testament to the idea that simple foods, when executed with high-quality ingredients and meticulous care, can be truly exceptional. During the day, the focus is on their outstanding bread, which forms the foundation of their widely acclaimed sandwiches, soups, and salads. When the sun goes down, the bakery transforms into an intimate pizzeria, serving up Neapolitan-style pies and an impressive selection of wine.
The philosophy here is "Uncommonly good for the common good," reflecting a mission to deliver simple, classic foods driven by quality, community, and transparency. Whether you're purchasing a rustic loaf of Light & Mild sourdough, grabbing a Roasted Pork sandwich for lunch, or sharing a Classic pizza for dinner, Union Loafers promises a dining experience centered around superior ingredients and the celebrated craft of baking.
## Location and Accessibility
Union Loafers is strategically situated in a prominent corner location at 1629 Tower Grove Ave, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA, making it a central fixture in the Botanical Heights area, close to other celebrated St. Louis eateries and attractions. Its location in this culinary hub ensures it's easy to reach for locals across the city and county.
For local patrons considering a visit, the establishment is attentive to ensuring a comfortable and welcoming experience for everyone:
- Onsite Services: Customers have the option to Dine-in for both lunch and dinner services, offering a chance to enjoy the café's bright, inviting atmosphere.
- Takeout: All menu items, from sandwiches to retail bread, are available for Takeout, which is a perfect option for Missourians on the go.
- Parking: Guests benefit from the availability of Free Street Parking in the surrounding area, simplifying the process of stopping by for a loaf or a quick lunch.
- Accessibility Features: The bakery is committed to being fully accessible, featuring a Wheelchair Accessible Entrance, a Wheelchair Accessible Parking Lot, and a Wheelchair Accessible Restroom.
## Services Offered
Union Loafers offers distinct menus for lunch and dinner, all anchored by the excellence of their bread. The services are segmented to provide the best possible experience depending on the time of day:
- Lunch Service (Sandwiches, Salads & Soup):
- Signature Sandwiches: Featuring celebrated options like Bistro Beef ($16.00), Roasted Pork ($15.00), the vegetarian-friendly Smoked Beet ($15.00), and classics like Full Turkey & Swiss ($15.00) and Ham & Cheddar ($13.00).
- Fresh Salads & Soup: Options include the highly praised Little Gem salad ($8.00) with buttermilk dressing, and rotating homemade soups like Chicken & Rice ($8.50).
- Sides & Snacks: Simple but delicious additions like the house-made Potato Salad ($4.00), a whole Pretzel, and Chocolate Chip Cookies ($3.50).
- Dinner Service (Pizzas and Starters):
- Artisanal Pizzas: Offering thin-crust, Neapolitan-style pies such as the Classic ($16.50), Pepperoni ($19.00), Sausage ($18.50), and the simple Tomato Pie ($13.00). The dough is a true highlight of the St. Louis pizza scene.
- Starters: Appetizers utilizing their bread, including Fresh Cheese & Burnt Toast ($10.00) and Meatballs & Burnt Toast ($15.00).
- Beverages & Wine: A thoughtful selection of non-alcoholic options, including bottomless Coffee ($3.50) and unique house-made sodas like Blueberry Lemon Soda ($5.00), alongside an extensive, curated list of Wine By The Bottle (Bubbles, White, Orange/Rosé, Red).
- Dessert: Olive Oil Cake ($9.00) and Chocolate Chip Cookie ($3.50).
- Retail Bread:
- Daily loaves are available for purchase, including the signature Light & Mild ($8.50), Semolina ($7.50), Oat Porridge ($10.00), Marble Rye ($8.00), and the classic Demi Baguette ($3.50).
- Specialty baked goods are also available, such as Whole Cheesy Bread ($12.00) and Chocolate Chip Cookies ($3.50).
- Tuesday Night Special: A curated special including a pizza, an Italian salad for two, and a bottle of wine, offering an excellent date night option for St. Louis couples.
## Features / Highlights
Union Loafers Café and Bread Bakery distinguishes itself in the highly competitive St. Louis food landscape with several unique features that appeal to a discerning, local customer base:
- Artisanal Bread Excellence: The core strength of the business is its high-quality, naturally leavened bread and sourdough, a fact that has earned them national recognition, including being named one of the best bakeries in America by the Food Network. The bread is often praised for its "crackly crust" and "custardy crumb."
- Dual Concept Model: Successfully transitioning from a popular Lunch Café known for its sandwiches to a highly-rated Dinner Pizzeria allows the establishment to maximize its use of fresh, house-made dough and offer a diverse menu throughout the day.
- High-Quality Ingredients: The bakery is known for its commitment to premium ingredients, evidenced by menu items like the Smoked Trout Salad Sandwich (with applewood-smoked fish) and the use of excellent oils and fresh herbs across all dishes, including the Caesar salad dressing.
- Inclusivity and Atmosphere: The atmosphere is described as simple, classic, and welcoming. The spot is explicitly LGBTQ+ Friendly, fostering a comfortable environment for all St. Louis residents.
- Payment and Convenience: The bakery accepts all major modern payment methods, including Credit Cards, Debit Cards, and NFC Mobile Payments.
- Beverage Program: Beyond the baked goods, the highly curated low-intervention wine list complements the evening pizza menu, and the house-made specialty sodas are a fan-favorite.
## Contact Information
To experience the celebrated bread, sandwiches, and pizzas at Union Loafers, St. Louis locals can find the bakery at the following address and contact information:
Address: 1629 Tower Grove Ave, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
Phone Number: (314) 833-6111
Mobile Phone: +1 314-833-6111
Whether you are calling to inquire about the day's retail bread selection or to make a dinner reservation for their acclaimed pizza service, the staff at Union Loafers is ready to assist the St. Louis community.
## What is Worth Choosing
For Missouri food enthusiasts, Union Loafers is worth choosing first and foremost for the unparalleled quality of its bread. The bakery has mastered the art of sourdough and naturally leavened loaves, and every item on the menu is a vehicle for this excellent product. The bread itself—whether it's the crusty Semolina or the complex Oat Porridge—is an absolute must-purchase. Many St. Louis customers agree that simply buying a loaf of bread to take home is worth the trip alone.
When dining in for lunch, the sandwiches are the star. The bread makes a world of difference, providing a perfect texture that is "soft in the middle with a chewy crust." While some patrons have noted that portion sizes, such as the Potato Salad side, might feel small for the price, the overall flavor and quality of core sandwich items like the Full Ham & Cheddar and the flavorful Bistro Beef consistently receive high marks. The Little Gem Salad with its rich, creamy dressing is also a standout, often cited as one of the best salads in the city.
However, the hidden gem of Union Loafers is the Dinner Pizza Program. Once the café switches to its evening service, their bread-making expertise is poured into the Neapolitan-style pizza dough. Favorites like the Spinach Pizza (with bacon, garlic, and lemon) and the spicy Marinara are highly recommended and are distinct from the city’s Provel-heavy pizza tradition. The ability to pair a fantastic, high-quality pizza with an expertly selected bottle of wine in a cozy, community-focused setting makes it an ideal spot for an elevated casual dinner in St. Louis.
In short, if you are a local who values artisan craftsmanship, fresh ingredients, and a menu that delivers on every front—from a simple cookie to a complex sourdough loaf to a perfect slice of pizza—Union Loafers Café and Bread Bakery is an essential St. Louis dining experience.
VISIT FEATURES
Services and accessibility
These attributes come from the directory record and should be confirmed when essential.
Service options
- Onsite services
- Takeout
- Dine-in
Accessibility
- Wheelchair accessible entrance
- Wheelchair accessible parking lot
- Wheelchair accessible restroom
Offerings
- Coffee
Amenities
- Restroom
Crowd
- LGBTQ+ friendly
Payments
- Credit cards
- Debit cards
- NFC mobile payments
- Credit cards
Parking
- Free street parking
PHOTOS
See the bakery
VISITOR FEEDBACK
Reviews and recurring themes
Read individual comments as personal experiences, not verified guarantees.
pizza 269smoked 20roast beef sandwich 17caesar salad 16buttermilk 15marinara 15beet sandwich 10soup and sandwich 8chicken rice soup 8salad sandwich 6
Was super excited to try and in turn I’m incredibly disappointed .First, it took two hours to arrive. I ordered through their website and it did not give an estimate on delivery before checking out so that’s on me.For $17 I got a bacon turkey bianca sandwich without bacon. No bacon was on the sandwich which was awesome! However it only had one piece of turkey on the entire thing. I just assumed there was going to be more turkey on it at that price point.Then I got to the potato salad . For $4 you get 4 bites of potato salad!Maybe eating on-site is better, I don’t know. The bread was good but I really just feel super ripped off. The ham and cheddar was stacked with meat. The cookies were okay. I love what they do but man… hard to ever want to order again.
Jul 27 · ErinOverrated. The pizza was quite expensive and not worth what you pay unfortunately. The service was okay, we ordered to go and it took like 30 minutes to get our pizza considering there was no one in the restaurant. We sat down and waited and once our pizza was done we figured we might as well eat it there since we made ourselves comfortable and they served us water. The woman immediately told us no they don’t allow pizza boxes in the restaurant. Threw us off a little because as mentioned there was no one really there and we had waited awhile.
Aug 9 · BreannaProof that bread can change a man.Y’all. Strap in and butter your biscuits, because I am about to tell you how a BBQ-devoted, brisket-biased, meat-sweatin’ through summer Texan — had a borderline religious experience at a dang bread bakery.Now, I know what you’re thinking: “This man probably thinks sourdough is a fancy term for ‘where’s the meat?’” And normally? You’d be RIGHT. But Union Loafers didn’t just serve bread. They served purpose. They served art. They served a carb-driven awakening that shook me to my smoked-meat-loving core.I rolled in for an early dinner, and let me tell you, this place was already bumpin’ like a honky-tonk at happy hour. But BAM — no wait. We were seated faster than my wife finds a new book to buy. Service? 10 outta 10 and sharper than a brisket knife at a church picnic.I kicked things off with an ice-cold Stag — a classic Pabst lager from Milwaukee that came in lookin’ like it just clocked out of a shift and wanted to watch a ball game. Crisp, clean, no nonsense. The kind of beer that doesn’t need to tell you what hops it used because it knows you’ve got fences to mend and meat to smoke.Starters? Oh, buddy.The Caesar salad — romaine so crisp it could shatter, dressed in something tangy, garlicky, and just spicy enough to raise an eyebrow. The caper-chili flake-breadcrumb-Grana Padano-black pepper combo? That’s not salad seasoning — that’s swagger.The meatballs and burnt toast? The meatballs were tender, juicy, and swimming in a house marinara that tasted like someone’s Nonna whispered sweet nothings into each tomato. And that toast? That glorious slab of charred sourdough, slicked with olive oil and blanketed in cheese, changed me.Then the headliner arrived:Pepperoni Pizza — half upgraded with mushrooms and jalapeños because I like to live dangerously. When it landed on the table, I knew I was about to commit emotional infidelity on my smoker. The crust? Charred, chewy, and clearly the result of sorcery. The Calabrian chilis brought the heat, the herbs made it feel fancy, and the pepperoni? Curled at the edges like it was flexin’. The mushrooms added earthy depth, and the jalapeños? Texas-approved fire. Every bite was a full-on flavor rodeo.By the second slice, I was leaning back thinking about real estate in St. Louis. This pizza looked like it was ready for its magazine cover shoot. I stared at it longer than I did my first truck.⸻TL;DR:Union Loafers took a lifelong BBQ lover and made him reconsider his food pyramid. I’m not saying I’m giving up BBQ — let’s not get crazy — but folks, this place is bread-blessed and flavor-anointed.10/10. Would I go back? I’d cross state lines. I’d make a detour. I’d put this place on the GPS under “Emergency Pizza Situation”, and maybe even miss a football game for this.
Jun 12 · Sean LanhamDon’t be fooled by the simple menu—it’s top notch food!!! The Bistro Beef sandwich was delicious! The horseradish style sauce was perfect. I regret not getting a loaf to take home. The salad was fresh and crisp.Next visit will be for dinner to try the pizza.Staff was friendly and attentive. Definitely coming back soon.
Aug 6 · Serena CochraneNEARBY ALTERNATIVES
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