Missouri Road Trip Begins in Maryland Heights

I had finally made it to St. Louis (twice) after a decades long absence, but I knew there was a lot more of Missouri for me to see. I decided to cross some of it off my list with a week long road trip through the state, and I brought my friend Jaimee along for most of the fun.

Jaimee was flying into St. Louis and wasn’t able to meet me until very late the first night. I thought it would be a great opportunity to check out a suburban hotel, and meet my cousin Linda for dinner.

As soon as I saw the photos of the Sheraton Westport Chalet, I knew it was what I was looking for. It was near the airport and referred to as in St. Louis, but it’s actually in the suburb of Maryland Heights.

The hotel did not let me down. The perfectly landscaped property with the European shutters and balconies were beautiful.

As soon as I arrived, I couldn’t help but explore the adjacent pedestrian plaza. It was a quaint little village with tiled walkways that definitely didn’t make you feel like you were anywhere near a big city, even though it was attached to a building with a jazz club, sports bar, and comedy shop.

The staff at the Westport Sheraton Chalet couldn’t have been more friendly. If I even looked like I had a question they were there with an answer. 

I was also more than happy with my room, which had a large work area, plenty of outlets, and a pull out couch. My room also overlooked a sprawling fountain outside.

Linda met me at the hotel and we walked over to the Westport Plaza next door. She had been coming here for years and enjoyed reminiscing.

The ball player in front of Patrick’s Sports Bar paid homage to the importance of sports to this Cardinal Nation. Family Nuts sells candy, trail mixes, and any kind of nut or chocolate you desire, and the Trainwreck Saloon seemed quite popular judging by the crowd.

We decided to have dinner at Paul Mineo’s Trattoria and we weren’t disappointed. We both ordered the pasta primavera, and it was one of the best I’ve ever had. It was filled with fresh asparagus, artichokes, broccoli, and eggplant.

I was asleep before Jaimee came in and we were both up fairly early. We had access to the executive lounge and it’s an upgrade I definitely recommend.

The executive club lounge at the Westport Sheraton Chalet was one of the best I’ve seen, especially in the U.S. Like the chalet, the breakfast was very European, with platters of cheese and fruit, as well as yogurt, muffins, eggs, and an espresso machine.

They even had a fully stocked refrigerator with soda, juice, and bottled water. We took some water for our road trip.

Before we hit the road, we walked around the property a bit. They have a nice pool area as well as a courtyard, where many guests gathered in the morning and evening. 

We then packed up and got in the car for our next stop, Jefferson City. We were only stopping there to meet the representative from Lake of the Ozarks to pick up some materials.

It looked like a town I would return to, but we were anxious to get going to the Ozarks.