1860 Saloon And Hardshell Café

If you are looking for a casual dive bar in a sea of casual dive bars, 1860 and the Soulard area is perfect.  I had plans to go see some blues at 1860, and I have to confess that even though I knew I had been to 1860 before, I couldn't remember any specifics.  This setup still works well for Soulard, though, since there are so many bars, a young demographic, and loads of great music & special events happening year round.  If you build it, they will come.  
I was the first of my friends to arrive, and so I settled at a table with a great view of the stage.  It was freezing and drafty inside, but they were quick to respond to my request to turn the fan down.  I really appreciated that, especially since I know they were only trying to get the place cool enough to balance out how hot it would get later with a bigger crowd and music in full swing.  
The website and menu say to ask about the daily specials, so I did, but there weren't any.  I settled on broccoli cheddar soup and a house salad.  The soup tasted as if it had been made with a powdered mix, with that gritty artificial cheddar flavor we all know from mac & cheese.  I couldn't finish it.  The salad was very tasty, with fresh and crispy veggies, and good quality meats and cheeses.  It was so big that I managed to eat half and get the rest wrapped.  Unfortunately, they wound up accidentally throwing my to go box away when I made a trip to the ladies room.  
Our waitress was young, cute, and scantily clad, another Soulard standard.  She was friendly and attentive. The real standout here is the blues music.  With this being a "Hardshell cafe" along the lines of what you would see in New Orleans, great music is a must.  The band we saw that night was great rocking blues, and they had the dance floor kicking by the end of the night with people of all ages getting in on the action.

Oh dear Hardshell....

It's fun, 1860 is a little bit of an older crowd, hardshell the young group. Just walk through all 3 sections till you find the ppl you wanna drink with... middle section is the game area.

Let's hear it for the average!

1860 Saloon and Hardshell Café has been a review long since put off.  I don't wander down to this establishment very often.  During my first year in Soulard, I have been there four times.  My first and second visits were pretty decent.  The next was just awful.  And my recent one was okay again.  Thus, we play the percentages!

As far as grabbing a quick pint, 1860 is pretty ideal.  The beer is fairly inexpensive, and they do rotate their specials.  I met friends the first time but went by myself the second time.  I had a few pints of PBR and a crab cake sandwich.  Altogether, pretty affordable trips.  And the crab cakes are housemade and pretty delicious.

However, trip three was a disaster.  1860 needs to add descriptions of their pizzas to the menu.  We came in to order something quick.  When the waitress told us that they had a seafood pizza, it sounded pretty good.  She sort of vaguely described the toppings on the pizza, so we decided to order it.  

I can usually stomach my way through most meal.  However, one vegetable that I cannot handle is olives.  I hate them!  Just the smell of olives makes me sick.  Our pizza was covered in olives.  We were troopers and tried to forge through it.  I took them off, but the taste was just too much.

Finally, we met fellow Yelper Mandie M. for a few pints just a week or two ago.  I decided to go back to the crab cake sandwich for some assurance.  The food was pretty good, but the service left us feeling pretty neglected.

I just don't get out as much as I would like, so when I make my rounds, I just don't see 1860 Saloon in the plans.  There's just too many options in Soulard.  Maybe for a pint or two, but not much else.