Diablitos

Saturday afternoon, while we were cycling back home from Humphrey’s, we decided to take Laclede for a change of pace. We went to Humphrey’s in the first place, because we were entitled to some sort of deal there. It turned out to be just happy hour pricing, but hey, who knew? We felt entitled, because we had just set a new Guinness World Record, but I’ve already gone on and on (and on) about that. We are the Champions, my friend … Oh shush! Everyone already knows how great you really are, which may not be the same as how great you think you are.

Anyway, we were biking back on Laclede, which took us through a portion of the CWE that at least I don’t normally see. Normally, when we ride, we take East-West streets that are further north. It is always a joy to ride down a new street. There is almost always something new to see and then later drone on about here. In this case the most notable sights fell under the category of “Leapin’ Lizards, Batman!”

First up was the Cantina Diablitos, with its pair of drinking sombrero clad T-Rexes on the roof. I can’t even guess what they must be discussing as they stand over the rather vizierate corpse of a third dinosaur. Diablitos means ‘little devils’ in Spanish. Like Humphrey’s, Cantina Diablitos is in the shadow of Saint Louis University and must be a popular watering hole for the students. I did not go in, but only stopped in the parking lot to take this picture. We’ll have to save its interior for another adventure. 

The other sight that I’ll mention is a block of condos west of Vandeventer. Their facades were inlayed with Bob Cassilly terracotta. Different condo blocks had different animals inlaid in them. I liked these dragons the best. Cassilly is best known as the founder of the idiosyncratic City Museum, which is one of Saint Louis’s leading tourist attractions. Before he created the City Museum, Cassilly ran a terracotta factory in the City of Saint Louis.

Cassilly’s Dragons