I’ve been to Castaways Bar & Grill twice in the last three years of doing MBIP, check those posts out here and here, but recently, Amanda, who has owned the bar for the last ten years, sent me a message on facecrack and invited me out to sample the chicken wings there and she said I wouldn’t be disappointed. Well, I’m never one to turn down an invitation and since we’re going to Chillicothe, this is going to be another road trip which can mean only one thing...
A knock on the door! And who is the one who knocks? Nope, it’s not Walter White, it’s...
MBIP pal, Contributing Writer and Wheelman, Scott Turley! And there he is behind the wheel acting out the ZZ Top song, “Driving While Blind!” I hope we get there in one piece!
Well, we got here and happily we made it in one piece...
So let’s go inside and start this week’s wing thing!
Wow, there’s a big crowd at the bar and if you look closely you can see Scott has already found a spot to sit at while I was outside taking pictures. Let’s go join him!
Aubrey is the pretty and friendly bartender on duty today and here she is serving up the first beer of the day!
Check out the lit-up bottles on display behind the bar. Nice!
Halfway into the beer, this trio came up and said hi. It’s Amanda, the owner with her husband Nathan and their son Henry. It’s Amanda’s day off, but she came over just to say hi to us. That’s so cool and it was great to meet the whole family!
Here’s Amanda with Julie, who manages the bar and grill. We met Julie on our very first trip here in 2012! Hard to believe it was that long ago, but it’s great to see her again!
Julie and Amanda pointed out all the different flavors of wings available at Castaways. Wow, that’s about the biggest selection I’ve seen so far and they said they’d cook us up a sampling of all of the flavors, how cool is that? While that’s being prepared, let’s take a look around in Castaways on this fine Sunday afternoon!
They have three beers on tap and they also have Not Your Father’s Root Beer, I’ll have to try that out, maybe for dessert!
There’s a full dining room with tables and booths opposite the bar area. As you can see from the Sunday afternoon crowd, this is a popular spot in Chillicothe!
Castaway’s has a food challenge on the menu called, The Double “O” Burger Challenge. You can read about the challenge by clicking here and this is the Double “O” Burger Wall of Fame of those who have won the challenge on the back wall in the dining room.
Castaway’s has a beach surf shack theme and there’s all kinds of beach knick-knacks like surf boards, flip flops, fish and other beach and surf-like items on the walls and ceiling.
The daily specials are listed here on this board on the wall in the back of the bar.
Here’s a shot of the tiki bar from the back of the room.
We’ve now moved to a table as Julie brought out some appetizers to try before the wings get here. At the top is homemade pork rinds, then Jalapeno dip and warm spinach dip. They were all fantastic, but the pork rinds were really tasty and I’ve never seen them offered up as a fresh appetizer anywhere else.
And look who showed up just in time to join in on the appetizer feast, MBIP pal and Contributor, Jeff Putnam! Jeff lives in Chillicothe and it’s great to see him again and catch up!
Wow! Here’s Julie with the chicken wings! I’m impressed not only with the number of wings, but how she can balance all of that!
And as you can see from the top of the picture, she brought out five more flavors to sample after the first giganzo tray was brought out! I think this is the largest sampling of wings we’ve had in all of our chicken wing stops!
Scott and Jeff are digging in...
But I’ve begun the all-important cooling process, which can only mean one thing...
Time for another beer! Cheers!
This is Sarah, who’s the chef here and she cooked up all these wings. The recipes for all the food on the menu were created by the owner Amanda and various cooks through the years. She suggested I try the Lemon Zest flavor and the Whiskey BBQ...
So I tried them both and they were so good and tasty! The Whiskey BBQ was good, but the Lemon Zest was really delicious! It’s got a unique taste that I’ve never had in a chicken wing, really a tasty wing flavor!
We’re starting to wind down over here! That was a lot of wings!
Weekly bones and napkin shot!
I was full, but I had to try the Not Your Father’s Root Beer for dessert and it was really good! It tasted like...root beer, but it had quite a kick to it! This stuff could get you in trouble, so I just had one, I’ve been in enough trouble lately and don’t need any more for a while! (Inside joke alert!)
We tried, but we couldn’t finish all the wings, so we got some to-go boxes. I don’t think we’d stand a chance in the Double “O” Challenge! Thanks to Aubrey, Amanda, Julie and Sarah for the great food and hospitality! And thanks to Scott for driving and to both him and Jeff for hanging out! It was a wonderful wingy day! We’ll see you all tomorrow!
Chicken Wing Rating
Four Wings Guitar Picks—The flavors are all excellent, but I suggest you try the Lemon Zest, that is one of the most unique wing flavors I’ve ever had!
Castaways
1707 North 4th Street
Chillicothe, IL
309-274-3484
facecrack page
Related Posts: Twelve More Weeks Of Chicken Wings @ Kelleher’s Irish Pub & Eatery, Rumberger’s Wings & More, The Fieldhouse Bar & Grill, Peacock’s Pub, Kep’s Sports Bar & Grill, T-N-T’s Sports Bar & Grill, Babes On Plum, Donnelly’s Irish Pub and Schooners.