SOL

I’ve been to SOL a handful of times and have enjoyed myself every single time. I see a lot of reviews saying it depends on what day you go, so I’ll let it be known I’m talking about Saturday night 1 – 3 am.
PROS:
Sexy people, average to good music mix, random movies playing on projector above the dance floor, ample number of couches available, three floors for fun of varying degrees.
CONS:
Cover charge ($ 10 last time I checked), walking through the place can be like navigating an MC Escher painting, especially after a few drinks.
Grab a few friends and take a chance on this place after 1 am.

I like SOL, I just wish I could convince more people to try it out, I’m sure they’d like it too. Oh wait, that’s what Unilocal is all about! SOL is the classy counterpoint to the smokey dive Upstairs Lounge. Both are great places to dance and hear local DJs do their thing, but SOL meets its burden with a lot more style. I can’t remember what I heard when I went to SOL, but I definitely remember what I saw; the space is very impressive. I went here on a Friday evening and the place was pretty empty, so make sure you time your visit for late in the evening.

Only downside was that the place wasn’t filled up, although Winter Warpdrive was going on and probably drew a lot of people.
The music was fantastic, and the old house meme created a very underground atmosphere. St. Louis has a few of these off-​the-​radar-​type clubs that have awesome music in a very non-​pretentious atmosphere… and this is the best of them. If they had a club like this in my last city, the thing would be overflowing. C’mon, STL, get your act together and come out to this place and dance your ass off.

This place was just downright weird. It seems to be an old house converted to dance club with a maze of hallways, stairwells, and strange, dark rooms. The main room downstairs had a nice ambiance, but that’s about where my enjoyment ended. The cover is relatively steep ($ 10 advance or $ 20 at the door). $ 20…really? The bathrooms were horrendous… especially for women since we have to sit on the nasty toilets. There was water everywhere, no dry toilet paper, and the seat was completely busted in one stall. The drink prices are a little steep, and the male bartender who served me was rude in a homophobic/​misogynistic sort of way. Overall, the place has potential but the owners seem extremely greedy and negligent.

I understand that clubs on Washington can get away with cover charges. But $ 10 to get in the door? On Lindell? Maybe I could swallow the $ 10 if there was a nice club inside. Instead what I found was a dirty house full of random rooms with random people. I finally found the dance floor room. Which to me looked like a 3 day rave had been going on and no one had cleaned up. I stepped on numerous bottles that were all over the floor. If your charging $ 10 a head. Pay someone to clean your place.
All this forgotten. I can tell you 3 of my friends have had their bills overcharged here. No management anywhere to be found to discuss the bartenders ripping people off.
Epic fail SOL

I’ve been twice, both times on Saturday evenings. What really sets this place apart from most of the other loung-​ey places in st. Louis is the crowd. There were alot of good looking people both nights I was there… and most of them were laidback and unpretentious. Some worn all out clubbing outfits while others were in jeans and flannel shirts. The set up is interesting and definitely unique compared to anything else in the city. If you like to dance and listen to local DJs this place is well worth a visit.
However, what makes me give it three stars is the turnout. I have been disappointed by the # of people here both nights (it may have been weather related as both times I was there it was cold and rainy outside). I will have to go back another time when the nights get a little warmer and perhaps I will revise my rating then.

Your experience at SOL will vary depending on what night you come, what time you come, and what DJs are spinning. But on the whole I give this place a big thumbs up.
I would call it a hybrid-​space, and it’s worth coming just to check out. The bottom (main) level is the large open space with a great looking long bar and plenty of sleek couches and tables. The middle floor has hardwood floors and several little chambers and seats. Generally this area does not have any DJs. I believe there are a couple arcade games. Then you walk all the way up to the attic, which is the highlight of the place, in my opinion. It’s much smaller and intimate, great hardwood floors, lots of nice couch arrangements, a dance floor space, and a bar. Bring a bunch of people up here early and you feel like you got your own privately reserved section.
Sometimes there’s a lot of dancing, sometimes there isn’t. It’s a crapshoot. Although if you come when a bigger name DJ is playing it can start to resemble a full-​on dance club. And if you’re lucky you can catch a dance party in the attic, which is my personal favorite. Of course there will be more dancing the later (and drunker) it gets. And since this is a 3am spot, it often doesn’t get popping until 1am or so.
I believe there is a $ 5 cover on weekends, but if you come early you might be able to dodge it. Drinks prices are a bit above average. A decent mixed crowd, usually not an excessive amount of d-​bags. The staff & management seem like good people.

My new favorite late night spot in St. Louis.
Sol combines all of the elements of a «true» lounge. Relaxing atmosphere, great music, and a great crowd.
There are three areas to Sol, each one representing a different musical style. The main lower level plays some of the best trance/​techno music I’ve heard strung together in a long time. The other two levels are more rooted in rap/​hip-​hop.
The drinks are fairly priced. The bar is large, and the bartenders are quick. The lounge area is dominated by coaches against the wall overlooking the dance floor. The other cool thing about Sol is that there is always a great movie on the big screen over the dance floor, but not sure why the subtitles are in Chinese.
The people are usually pretty chill/​cool for a lounge type bar, but every once in a while you’ll run into a weirdo.

I’m Sol-​d!
The Buenos Aires connection was in town for a quick visit, and I knew that she’d want to dance. And hard. But without the lists, the lines and the big club hoopla. All we wanted was really good music that we could get down to and space to chill.
My cousin suggested Sol– turns out he’s been coming since the early underground days. It’s connected to the awesome Grind Coffeehouse, so I knew the vibe would be hip but devoid of that superclub pretension.
High ceilings, exposed brick walls, and lots of seating and leaning-​opportunities. You know, when you don’t feel like lazing but still want a good lean… girlies in towering heels know what I’m talking about! The DJs play house music standards on the lower lever, and an organic hip hop sound (think: The Roots) on the upper floors.
Cocktails are served quickly and with sweet severity. Don’t need much, these guys pour heady concoctions.
My favorite part of the experience? The super-​large projector screen. It’s almost 3 am, and while listening to an old Faithless track, I’m watching the last few minutes of Troy. No, never saw it, but there was just something so beautiful, so haunting about watching the tragic fight to the death. Maybe it had a little something to do with Brad Pitt and Eric Bana, but I don’t think so… there’s a certain allure in watching a movie without sound and mysterious-​by-​default Chinese subtitles.
Very cool late-​night spot… dig dig dig it.

I’m always looking for an upscale lounge that isn’t full of college kids but, instead, full of diverse people.
Sol on a Thursday this past summer was just it. The music was progressive house, loungey, and the place is beautiful. Exposed brick walls, gorgeous bar, spacious sofas with billowy sheets dividing the areas, and a great visual projector playing artsy movies.
My problem was that I went again on a Saturday night and the music was corny. Being from Miami, I guess I’m picky about the music and I don’t understand any corny mash-​up type music. That’s just cheesy. There were some good tracks thrown in but the mash-​ups that followed were so silly.
If they could have the DJs from Thursday night House Sessions on the weekends I would even give it a 5 star rating!
P. S. — loved the variety in age groups and types of people. Thumbs up to that.

A friend told me about Sol and insisted I go with him. I thought it was actually much better than the way he described it. It’s located in the back of a coffee shop (the new Grind) and appears to be an old warehouse. The ceilings is high and the furniture is low and contemporary, making it feel very loft-​y like.
The drinks were moderately priced and nothing really jumped out at me as far as fancy or unique drinks.
I’ve been a few times on Saturday nights, but it seems it never nears capacity. It attracts a 20-​something crowd and while gay friendly, has a strong straight following.
The bathroom situation was very confusing because I basically walked through the bathrooms to get into the bar. Also, some of the doors don’t lock, so don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Sol does a pretty crappy job at being a hip lounge, but a pretty crappy hip lounge is better than nothing I guess.
The patrons were mostly late ‘20s, early ‘30s, sort of tame, not too diverse.
The uptempo ‘80s mashup soundtrack was OK but outdated. Dude should have checked the shelf life on the Jim Morrison/​Blondie mix. I haven’t heard that one since the boom-​boom nineties. Made me want to get in on a hot dot-​com IPO! Sheesh.
The worst part about the place is the staff. The bartenders are tools who think they work in SoHo rather than St. Louis.
And I don’t get the gratuitous 40 foot ladder and liquor shelves. Are they supposed to be cool?

Sol is one of the best kept secrets in St. Louis. It’s only been open for a few months, but it’s already become one of my favorite spots. There’s just something so seductive about this place.
I’m more of a beer drinker and they have a great selection to choose from. A few i can remember are Peroni, Fuller’s London Pride, Youngs Double chocolate Stout, and Strongbow. If you’re more of a cocktail drinker they definitely have some high-​end bottles to choose from.
They have a large bar and beautiful lounge areas, so finding a place to sit is never a problem. They’re some really good djs that spin there, and the volume is just right too. You don’t have to shout to carry on a conversation. The crowd is a mature diverse bunch made up of grad students, central west end locals, weekend drinkers, baby boomers, etc…
Sol has a unique feel that’s is so refreshing to me. I absolutely recommend anyone who hasn’t checked it out yet to go see it. Sit by the fireplace with the saltwater fish tank in it, it’s my favorite spot.