How long will O'Connell's Pub stay open? Owner John Parker has given one firm answer and one open one. The firm answer is that the pub at Kingshighway and Shaw will close no later than Wednesday, March 17, 2027, with a final St. Patrick's Day. The open answer is everything before that date. Parker told St. Louis Magazine that the closing will depend on how long he can keep paying the bills, and that depends on how much support the restaurant gets from the community.

In the same interview, Parker named the Missouri Botanical Garden's Garden Glow as a vital source of revenue for the pub. Garden Glow opens to the public on Saturday, Nov. 14, nine days after this post goes up. That makes the Garden's holiday light season the stretch most likely to decide whether a Southwest Garden landmark makes it to March.

What Parker Announced on Sept. 16

Parker posted the news on the pub's Facebook page on Sept. 16. "It's been a tough fight, but this economy was the final straw," his post read, according to St. Louis Magazine. "When we close is still up in the air."

He also asked customers to come in often and to use any gift cards they have. "We will stay open as long as we can, with the absolute last day being Wednesday, March 17, 2027. We can only do that with your help," Parker said in the magazine's report.

St. Louis Magazine's monthly openings and closings roundup, last updated Oct. 28, still lists O'Connell's at 4652 Shaw with that March 17, 2027, date marked as announced. The date is still tentative, and the pub could close sooner.

Why Two Months of Lights Carry So Much Weight

The pub runs on a short menu, and its costs have gone up. "Beef prices have doubled, and for a restaurant that sells hamburgers and roast beef sandwiches primarily, that hits us really hard," Parker told St. Louis Magazine. He added that people are eating out less, spending less when they do, and that delivery orders don't make restaurants money.

That is the context for what he said about Garden Glow. He called it a vital source of revenue, but said two months of it can't carry O'Connell's through a full year. He also said Labor Day week was the pub's worst week in three years.

The math is simple, and Parker described it the same way. "You take all the money you spend, then take all the money you bring in, and see which number is higher," he told the magazine. He said spending had come out higher for six straight years. The Glow season is when the income side has the best chance to catch up.

The Garden Glow Calendar, Week by Week

According to the Garden's Garden Glow page, the event runs on select nights from Nov. 14 through Jan. 2, rain or snow, and admission includes the Holiday Flower and Train Show. The Garden advertises more than two million lights. These are the dates to know if you live nearby and plan your evenings around activity on Shaw:

Hours change partway through the season. The Garden's pricing calendar shows many early-season nights running 5 to 9:30 p.m., with last entry at 8:15 p.m. Many December nights run 4:30 to 10 p.m., with last entry at 8:45 p.m. Longer nights give visitors more time before and after their entry slot.

Tickets range from $6 to $25 and are tied to a specific date and time. Same-day admission goes up $2 after 4:30 p.m. Tickets can't be refunded. Exchanges cost $20 per transaction and must be requested by Jan. 2, 2027. Garden members get $5 off adult tickets, and tickets are free at the Festival membership level. Memberships start at $55 for one adult.

The Garden also sells dinner. Its Dine and Glow package at Sassafras, the Garden's restaurant, costs $20 per adult in advance and includes an entree, two sides and a soft drink.

Parking Without Using Your Neighbors' Curbs

The Garden's own plan puts free Garden Glow parking in its two lots at Shaw and Vandeventer, one block west of the Garden, with a free nonstop shuttle to the entrance. There is more parking at the Commerce Bank Center for Science Education, 4651 Shaw Blvd. Limited accessible parking and passenger drop-off are at the main entrance, 4344 Shaw Blvd.

The Garden's guest instructions ask visitors to respect neighbors by not parking on residential streets or in private lots, and they say cars in private lots may be towed at the owner's expense. On busy nights, the Garden suggests allowing extra time or using transit or rideshare. MetroBus stops at Tower Grove Avenue and Shaw Boulevard, and at Alfred Avenue and Shaw Boulevard.

If you have friends coming in from the county for the lights, send them the Garden's parking details before they arrive.

The Sale Option Hasn't Closed

O'Connell's has come close to a sale before. In June, FOX 2 reported that the family had sold the pub after more than six decades of ownership. According to St. Louis Magazine, that deal was set to close in the first quarter of 2027. By September, Parker said the buyers were facing similar pressures, and both sides agreed to go a different direction.

The property is now for sale. KSDK, drawing on the St. Louis Business Journal, reported an asking price of about $1.59 million. The listing covers a two-story, 5,687-square-foot building on a 0.52-acre site with about 40 parking spaces. KSDK noted that the "K-Unrestricted" zoning could allow the site to be redeveloped for a range of uses. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that Parker was talking with prospective buyers after the earlier deal ended. No buyer or future use has been announced.

Parker has said he would still consider the right offer. He told St. Louis Magazine he has spent six years on major building work, including tuckpointing, resealing the roof, and repairing floors and electrical. "The building is in good shape and really has integrity," he said. From our own experience with St. Louis brick buildings, that list covers the expensive work most old commercial buildings put off. It gives a buyer who wants to keep the pub running a much simpler starting point.

What This Corner Has Held Since 1972

O'Connell's opened in Gaslight Square in the early 1960s. St. Louis Magazine gives the year as 1961, and the pub's own site says 1962. Jack Parker, a bartender who became the owner, bought it in 1965. Seven years later he moved the bar to Kingshighway and Shaw and brought the wood panels and mirrors with it. That makes 54 years at this corner. St. Louis Magazine wrote that longtime regulars saw the pub as the city's last living connection to Gaslight Square.

The burger is what the place is known for. St. Louis Magazine describes it as a roughly 9-ounce thick burger cooked on a seasoned grill to whatever temperature you order. The roast beef sandwich comes second, and it is the other item Parker named when he talked about beef prices.

If you've been meaning to stop in, the pub's own requests give you a short list:

1. Go in person. Parker said in-person sales are down and delivery doesn't make restaurants money.
2. Use your gift cards. He asked for that directly.
3. Keep Wednesday, March 17, 2027, open. That is the date of the planned final St. Patrick's Day, if the pub makes it that far.

After Garden Glow ends on Jan. 2, there are about ten weeks until March 17 with no light show bringing evening crowds to Shaw. Whatever business the pub builds up between Nov. 13 and Jan. 2 is what it carries into those weeks.

At Palermo & Co. Real Estate, we've spent a lot of time on brick buildings like the one at Kingshighway and Shaw, and we'll be watching what happens to this corner along with our Southwest Garden neighbors. If you have questions about older buildings in the area or what a sale like this can mean for a block, contact us. We're happy to talk it through over a burger at O'Connell's while it's still open.