This Trailside Bar in Kirkwood Is Built for Bikes and Community

Perennial on the Trail was first conceived as an outpost to introduce the brand’s Common Ritual whiskey line to a larger audience in St. Louis County, but with Grant’s Trail situated steps away, the location has quickly become something more.

“For us, the location on the trail was a bonus,” co-founder Emily Wymore says, noting that the late October 2025 opening has allowed the team to think about how to expand for the busy season.

“We’ve always been integrated with cyclists at [Perennial in] South City,” events manager Shelby Seabaugh says. “We do the bike benefits, we do the Moonlight Ramble every year, so the trail was an added bonus for this location, but it ties into our overall ethos.”

In the months since opening, the location has become a gathering spot for the surrounding neighborhood, with regulars drawn in as much by the drink selection as they are by the enthusiastic team behind the bar.

“We don’t want to pigeonhole ourselves,” bartender Evan Oliver says. “We want to have something for everybody to enjoy.”

For cyclists and walkers who frequent the trail, the dog- and family-friendly location provides a casual space to relax, while a robust retail side allows visitors to grab and go with ease.

The trail location keeps six rotating Perennial brews on tap alongside a playful wine selection that blends the familiar with the adventurous.

“Most people know a handful of grapes they like, but there’s an entire world out there that’s so much fun to explore,” bartender Matthew Hickerson says.

Wine fans will find unconventional bottles of chenin blanc and gamay on the menu alongside standards such as cabernet sauvignon and prosecco.

Common Ritual is featured prominently at the trail location, which keeps every run of the small-batch blended whiskey on site.

The bar offers whiskey flights to showcase the unique blends and hosts a whiskey night on the third Thursday of each month, where aficionados can chat with Steve Nease — Common Ritual’s minister of blending and barrel curation — about the line.

Rounding out the beverage options are nonalcoholic canned cocktails, beer, and Excel soda.

The space itself is designed for community, with large tables built for casual gatherings.

“We’ve seen so many families in here on weekends, and one thing we’ve noticed is people aren’t afraid to sit with strangers,” Wymore says. “It makes the space feel really communal.”

Stacks of board games greet guests as they enter, and sofa seating near the bar leads to a merch area, where folks can grab branded hats and tees or a few favorite bottles and brews to take home.

Guests are welcome to bring their own food in; the bar has a handful of snack options and plans to expand in-house food options in the future.

A covered patio situated outside the main seating area overlooks the trail and gives guests more room to spread out.

“We really haven’t had a chance to utilize the outdoor space in any real way since opening, so it’ll be fun to see that expand outward this summer,” Seabaugh says.

“I think everyone is just happy to have a spot to land in that they don’t have to travel for. We want people to come in, play games, make new friends, and then grab their bikes and go.”

Visit Perennial on the Trail at 801 South Holmes Avenue in Kirkwood, Missouri, or here.

Author: Shannon Weber writes the A Periodic Table substack and is a contributor to Terrain.

Top image: Perennial on the Trail, situated steps from Grant’s Trail. (Brad Kovach)