Neighbors strolling past Keri Morgan and Steve Schmidt’s Tower Grove South home might mistake it for a local corner bar or restaurant due to its large storefront windows and inviting entry pergola. They wouldn’t be too far off the mark. Now a single-family home, the building, built in 1908, was a neighborhood grocery until the 1950s and is believed to have also housed a bar and possibly a speakeasy at different times.
The couple had been living in the nearby Southwest Gardens neighborhood before buying the home in January 2021. “I always had Tower Grove South envy,” says Morgan. “I stalked Zillow for a long time. This house was on the market for a while, and I just kept watching it.”
Schmidt was adamantly against even looking at it, but when they went inside, they both immediately fell in love with the space.
“When you walk in, it just feels very unique and special,” Morgan says. “The tin ceilings are so cool. There are so many things about it that feel original and nostalgic.”