Forest Perk Cafe

Cutie-​pie little coffee spot tucked into the visitors center in Forest Park. They close at 4, so watch the time as we arrived just at 4 PM. No trouble for the nice barista, she gladly let us know that she was about to close but would make anything we wanted. We ordered a regular black coffee and a pumpkin spice latte. I had the black coffee and it totally hit the spot, the review on the pumpkin spice was that it tasted a bit more like chai, but had no complaints. The cinnamon rolls in the front case looked a bit old dried out, but the cookies next to them looked delicious.

What a great little surprise tucked into Forest Park. Stopped here for breakfast on a weekday before we hit the zoo and museum. Coffee was good, and sole employee there that day was very nice and made a killer spinach/​onion/​bacon omelet – fresh and flavorful! My boyfriend loved his egg and bacon sandwich as well. Great bread too. We’ll definitely go back for breakfast next time we’re in town and headed to the park.

Located inside the Visitor’s Center in Forest Park; across from the tennis courts.
This little café is right on time during a park visit. Whether you’re on a run, bike ride, intermission at the Muny or just in need of a potty break; the Visitor’s Center is the place to drop. While you’re there refuel at the café.
They have a killer grilled cheese sandwich.

Enjoyed the staff here and thought for sure I must have found something not listed on Unilocal.Nope, ya’ll got this already, lol! Being located right inside the Visitor Center you can eat here in the café or out at the table in the lobby. It was nice to be able to grab a snack and pick from the decent selection of drinks, use the restroom and water bottle filling station and talk to the visitor center staff in the nice cool a/​c all at the same time.

This café is great because of 4 main things: location (visitor’s center in FP), prices (very reasonable on all items), quality and taste of food (haven’t been disappointed yet), customer service (service with a smile AND manners). Last time I went there the one server was swamped with orders (just one server/​cook/​cashier on a Sunday morning?! What was management thinking?!!) therefore it took a little longer than usual to get the food we ordered. However, the omelets were good and well prepared and presented (not rushed-​looking or tasting) and the girl was gracious and apologetic for the delay (which wasn’t really her fault but whoever thought one person could handle a Sunday morning rush of runners and visitors).

Cool off here with refreshments after playing at nearby Wonderland playground.
Located inside the impressive visitor’s center, this little café has a lot to offer. The hummus and pita were great — it automatically came with feta so ask for it off if you want. They have all sorts of cold beverages, including alcoholic if your feeling party.

Convenient location in the Visitor’s Center at Forest Park with seating indoors or on the patio if it’s a nice day. It’s got a neighborhood feel and very friendly people behind the counter.
The food selection is way better than you would expect– we grabbed a tomato, mozzarella, and basil panini sandwich that was delicious. They also have a great breakfast selection and open at 7:00AM. Check it out next time you’re in the park and need a quick bite.

Remember. this is a café (cafeteria) not a restaurant. What I enjoy most here is the atmosphere. It is a place to grab quick, healthy, food while you are experiencing all the wonders of the park. The café caters to their everyday customers that are mostly bike riders, runners, etc. People that play sports and/​or trying to keep physically fit tend to frequent this place. So a limited HEALTHY menu is what they serve… minus the candy and chips. No greasy burgers or steak ala mode here. No fine dining or gourmet food here either. Great place to study and take a brunch date if you are a sport/​fitness junkie. I recently quit smoking and exercising more so I wanted to defend this place because I have visited here many times. Try The Boathouse if you want to kick it up a notch.

This is a decent place in Forest Park that doesn’t ever seem to be too busy which makes the service pretty quick! There are also tables inside and outside (between some walls and lots of plants so it wasn’t too windy.) So far everything that I’ve had (Caesar Salad and Pesto-​tomato mozzarella panini) were both delicious and good portions. There are also surprising interesting reading materials about St. Louis at the visitor center desk to peruse. Nice and unexpected. Like others have mentioned, the menu isn’t very original or large, but I wouldn’t really expect they could handle much more.

This place has a great cutest atmosphere and the sunlight’s beautiful. I had a BLT, and the avocado mayo spread was really tasty. My complaint about Forest Perk would be that the staff was really unprofessional, cracking jokes, talking to their phones loudly, looking away from a customer as they talked to them, their attitude seemed like it was an inconvenience to serve the food. I’d come here again but probably take my food to go and eat in the Park

My wife and I will end up making our plans around going here for lunch. We will literally say «hey you wanna go to Tilles park and then pick up some food at forest Perk café??» It is quite sad and awesome all at once because we both know we just want to go to the Café. They have some really great food and it is not bad price wise.
I usually get the pick 2 salad and sandwich because regardless they serve you what seems like the same amount of salad so you really get a good deal. The Caesar dressing is really nice to, something different from your normal Caesar dressing. The 3 cheese and ham hot sandwich is awesome also.
Also the strawberry yogurt parfait is the bee’s knees. We always get the parfait, I mean always.
I love that it is so small and you can see them making your food. Also the employees are always helpful and very attentive.
I am not a coffee drinker so I cannot attest to the quality or taste of anything other than the food and the food is Delicious.
Definitely a great place to stop in a have lunch. I love the outside seating also, very peaceful and they have nice tables with umbrellas. When it is not so freakishly hot we sit out there and enjoy the day.
Highly recommended.

Firstly, I’m happy to report that exterior walls and windows of Forest Perk are strong enough to withstand May’s frequent tornadic activity; I had to shelter in place while I was studying there. This leads me to my second point; Forest Perk is a great place to study. Despite being surrounded by the bucolic Park, Perk has plenty of tables, free wifi, food, drink, friendly service, and a bounty of natural and artificial lighting.

Forest Perk Café is a café located in the Visitors Center in Forest Park. Thought it can often be overlooked, it actually is a good quick and go option if you only have a limited amount time to grab lunch if you are in the CWE area. Prices are fairly cheap compared to Bread Co. but serve items that are very similar however somewhat limiting.
They have sandwiches, wraps, soup of the day, breakfast items such as omelets, parfaits, cereal, as well as kid options, candy and specialty coffees, teas, and drinks. Seriously everything but with some limitations. Pricing of sandwiches and wraps are around $ 5 and $ 6. When you get the pick two item, you get a whole sandwich and soup.
There are places to sit within the café, and outside in the visitors area which is also enclosed. One plus is that it includes free wifi. I enjoy this place because it is never really crowded. You do not have to wait long to get your food either. The staff that work there are also prompt as getting your food done.
Understand, again, the food is somewhat limiting. It doesn’t work well around special requests like they do not have soy milk, or vegetarian options… but ultimately is you are looking for a simple meal, I’d recommend it.

This place is nice because of its location. They did have iced coffee when I went, unlike Tom M.‘s experience, and it was pretty good. They have some sandwiches and other snacks, but overall, not a very big menu of food or beverages, which is my only complaint. The people working there are still very nice. I’ll probably return just because its in the park.