I'm a junior here at Missouri State University, and having lived in Springfield off and on for the past three years, I've had my fair share of experiences at businesses and places both opening up and closing down (rest in peace, Palace Theatre) while I've been here, because Springfield is constantly changing. I have also seen many places expand or just stay in homeostasis. So I thought I would take a moment to reflect and talk about some of my favorite places to go and things to do here in my lil college town.
Civil Kitchen
One of the best local restaurants I've ever been to, and one of the best restaurants in general as well, Civil Kitchen, which is located right on Park Central Square, touts a reputation for being a good late night spot to grab a bite to eat. Open til 1 AM on the weekends, and Midnight every other day (but closed on Mondays),
Civil Kitchen stays open much longer than your average sit-down restaurant and touts a fantastic menu at all times as well. Featuring an expansive menu with diverse influences (but primarily cajun-inspired),
Civil usually has something good for all of my friends. They heavily advertise their crab beignets (and for good reason) but I think the real star of their menu is the roasted brussels sprouts you can get as a side. Whenever you're downtown, give Civil a chance because I'd honestly eat there daily if I could.
Founders Park
One of the most beautiful spots in town, Founder's Park, just off the square, in Springfield features not only plaques and pictures with information about the founders of the city, but it also is a gorgeous urban park that features beautiful raised concrete steps and often summer movies and concerts will be hosted on a stage facing the rest of the park.
Whether an event is going on or not, Founder's is a great place to hang out outdoors in Springfield. Would highly suggest a photoshoot or a nice coffee date there.
Art Museum
Our art museum, located right next to Phelps-Grove park, is one of the coolest and prettiest places in town, and that's before you even step inside. A free museum to the public, the art museum features constantly-changing galleries, with historic and contemporary paintings, sculptures, and more, from both local and global artists. It also will feature entire exhibitions and shows curated by or hosted by our local artists. Try to hit up the art museum at least once with each new curation of the galleries, it's a great experience.
European Cafe
My personal favorite coffee shop, European Cafe, located on Park Central Square, has a wide array of not only coffee drinks but also teas and house-made pastries of all sorts, from your typical macarons and scones to fancier craft desserts that their team of chefs makes. The atmosphere is also unbeatable, with ample seating, cute decor, and games to play set at every table, as well as large windows to allow plenty of natural light in.
European Cafe even hosts baking and decorating classes so you can learn how to make some of the components of their pastries. And those pastries and drinks are pretty fantastic, too, if I do say so myself.
The Outland
Located on South avenue just half a block off the square, the Outland Complex is a 3-room venue (Outland Bar, Front of House Lounge, and the Outland Ballroom) that hosts a plethora of concerts, from dj sets to hardcore shows to country gigs and everything in between, as well as open mic nights and the occasional big events such as the Fake It! variety show or the Get Dusted drag show, and many other things as well.
A (typically) all-ages venue, the Outland provides a great space and plenty of opportunity to see not only some impressively-large acts from around the country, but also for our local artists to have an actual venue to play and perform at. The Outland has something going on almost every night of the week, so it's always worth it to pop by and see what's going on whenever you're downtown.
Five Pound Apparel
One of the cutest boutiques around, Five Pound Apparel, located downtown, features a lot of great clothes and accessories, paired with a couple great missions: to give back in the form of donating food or books or shoes to people in need, and to help instate the new redesigned Springfield flag. Obviously that first mission is more important, and on the tag of anything you buy, you'll see that each purchase of it donates 5 pounds of food or 5 books or a pair of shoes, depending on the item. And their clothing is diverse, too. It's not just t-shirts with their logo, it's also cute dressier clothes, jewelry, casual nostalgia tees about childhood literature, and many knickknack. And of course in their effort to get Springfield a new flag and for tourist activity, they feature plenty of things with the soon-to-be new Springfield flag's logo emblazoned on them.
Alamo Drafthouse
This one isn't quite so local, as it's a chain, but it's a little bit local because it's the first franchised location so at least it's run locally. But the Alamo Drafthouse became my solace after the Palace was bought out. Located all the way down on Primrose by Target, the Drafthouse is a movie theatre unlike any other, featuring not only its own bar with its own events, but also a full food and drink menu when you enter the theatre itself. With reclining seats and bottomless popcorn (with real butter!) and sodas, and more food and bev options than you may know what to do with (as well as a pretty good student discount on tickets), Alamo is the go-to place for all of my movie watching and should be yours as well.
Culture Flock
Started as an online shop and promoted primarily via Instagram, Culture Flock has now opened their own storefront down on Lone Pine (I know it's a drive but it's so worth it), and are one of the best places to go in Springfield. Pairing with local artists almost constantly to churn out new designs, Culture Flock has plenty of clothes, accessories, and gift-worthy items on their website and even more in-store (and often exclusives for each to keep you coming back!), so every time you check them out you're bound to find something for not only yourself but also all of your friends and family!
Tinga Tacos
Another of my favorite food places, this one especially for drunchies, Tinga Tacos is located right downtown off the square and features a rotating array of street tacos (including vegan options!) and they are all so delicious. While the price may look a little steep at $5-8 a taco, when you break it down it's usually about $12-15 a meal because you'll usually only need two tacos at the most, and that's about the amount you're likely to be spending at any other cheap restaurant in town. Definitely check out Tinga Tacos, they're open til 2 on the weekends so they're a great place to stop after the events you're at end (but please be respectful and don't go in belligerently drunk, no one deserves that).
Stick It In Your Ear
One of the gems of Springfield, Stick It is a record store on Walnut street right downtown. Having been around for 20+ years now, Stick It In Your Ear is one of the most established and well-known record stores in the area, not just in town, and they feature a large array of records, tapes, cds, and accessories for your players. Along with that, they also have a constantly moving stock of tapestries and posters that you can check out. They also carry physical tickets for many of the events in town, so you can save on those pesky online fees and then pick yourself up something new to spin while you're there. Give them all your business.
So there you have it, folks. A list of some of my absolute favorite places that I've found in my time here in Springfield. There are many many other great places here, too, so make sure to try and go to a new coffee shop or restaurant or store of any sort whenever you're out and about as often as you can, because our city is ever-growing and ever-changing. It's a beautiful thing. Support local business and most importantly have fun.
