Sunday night is my only night off from work. And let me follow that by saying I’m not complaining, I’m happy to have the job and for a good portion of the nights I work, it’s just a six hour shift, so it’s very doable. Okay, that’s all I’m saying about my job, as we all know, I don’t blog about my job, because that’s what pays for this blog.
I thought that going out to bars on Sunday nights would be a good thing. Bars aren’t as crowded and I like Sunday nights, and like I said, I don’t have to work on this night. But then an unfunny thing happened: I came to the realization that a lot of bars here either are closed on Sunday or they close early, so I’ve decided to do something with another theme on Sundays and do my “Two Beers At A Bar,” idea once a week on another night and have that be the weekly post that focuses on bars around town.
So this is the final, Sunday Suds and Swizzle Stick night and speaking of swizzle sticks, no one has them here and I think I’ve run that into the ground, so that’s another reason for this final post. Last week, my bar-crawling buddy, Gene from the BBC, suggested that I try the Stadium Club which is in the same neighborhood as last week’s bar, The Crow's Nest and so that’s tonight’s destination. And I don’t need to call a cab because...
MBIP contributing writer and photographer, Bob Gordon is over at MBIP Headquarters and he’s going to be tonight’s designated driver. Better drink that beer slowly Bob! I don't want to end up in jail!
And with Bob behind the wheel, it's off we go.
Well now, this is sad, the Stadium Club is closed up and there's wood on the windows. When did this happen?
Time to improvise, Bob suggested that we try the Publik House, which in nearby on Prospect Avenue in Peoria Heights. I've heard good things about that place so that's where we're headed now.
And here we are, but it looks kind of dark outside of the bar...
And that's because they're closed on Sundays. Just a reminder why I need to shift these bar posts to the week days. Luckily Bob knew of another bar, just about a block away.
And here we are at Toasters Tap, a friendly biker bar, just off from Prospect Road in the Heights.
Wow, it's big in here with a sprawling ziggity-zaggity bar running through the whole place.
Bob and I decided to sit down here at this end of the bar.
Renae is not only the pretty bartender on duty, she's owned the joint for the last five and a half years.
Here's some of the lit up bottles at the front of the bar along with drink specials to the right.
There's three pool tables in here so you're never at a loss for a game of billiards in here.
Here's John taking a shot. He's a regular here and a nice guy who didn't give me crap after I blinded him with the flash from this photo. To his credit, he still made the shot.
There's long communal tables situated behind the bar to hang out with a group of your friends.
A long finely polished shuffleboard table lines the front wall of the bar.
They have live music here and this is the band stage area.
What do you get when you cross Vanna White with Mohammed Ali? Wheel of Boxing!
Dueling dart boards!
These patrons were enjoying some pizza at the back of the bar. From left: Squirrel, Becky and Rob.
In addition to pizza, they have chips for sale in this vending machine. Seeing the Kitchen Cooked Chips reminds me I need to call them to see if I can get a tour of their potato chip factory. I emailed them and never heard back from them. Time to add this to my obsession list.
Pinball!
Cheap Trick stool alert!
Unplanned obligatory mirror shot...
Totally planned obligatory mirror shot! See you all tomorrow.
Toasters Tap
1300 E Sciota Ave.
Peoria Heights
(309) 686-8299
Further Reading: Peoria Night Out, Thunder Rose Alley and Foursquare.
And The Final Virtual Swizzle Stick From Jaws The Cabbie
Jaws sent in this virtual swizzle stick yesterday in anticipation of today's swizzle stick post. Which is good, because I forgot to ask for one at the bar! Thanks, Jaws!
