This week's sandwich post is actually kind of a "Two Fer Tuesday" post. We're going to one of my favorite Peoria spots that I've neglected for way too long, Peoria Hofbrau! I haven't been there for over a year and we're going to correct that today by making not one, but two visits in a post! We're going to go in the afternoon for sandwich number 49, but I have to work after that, so I can't continue on with my Peoria Hofbrau World Beer Tour, which I've put on the back-burner for way too long now! So after the sandwich, I'm going to work and then I'm going to return to add a few points to my Peoria Hofbrau World Beer tour and meet two special guest stars, Kathy and Mike Barnett! So there's a lot going on in today's sandwich post and speaking of sandwiches, let's go get number 49 at Peoria Hofbrau!

Peoria Hofbrau Daytime Portion—Sandwich Number 49!

I can’t believe it’s been over a year since I’ve last been to Peoria Hofbrau! As I always say, fun flies when you’re having time! But the important thing is we’re here but the only problem right now is that rotten sunshine! It’s way to bright out here, let’s get inside!

Ah, that’s more like it! One of the many things I love about Peoria Hofbrau is that it’s always nice and dark in here! And check it out, there’s Andy over at the bar! Great to see him again and he told me he wondered where I had been! I wonder that every morning, but that’s a whole different story! let’s just keep moving along here!

There’s the rest of the daytime shift behind the bar, Reid, Vanessa and Spuds is back there all lit up for action! Wonderful to see all of them and Vanessa took my sandwich order. Andy suggested I try the Reuben today as it’s one of the more popular sandwiches here, so that’s exactly what I did!

There’s the beers on tap, they change frequently, so if you’re a beer afficionado, this is your spot! The sign hanging over the bar says, “In heaven there is no beer,” in German. That’s why I’ve lived a life that guarantees I’m going straight to hell!

There’s the obligatory Phil Luciano Dining Out review from the PJ Star. And check it out, a six pack of Hofbrau Beer, very cool! There’s the kitchen and they told me that my sandwich is coming out already! Great service in here!

So it’s back to the end of the bar and there’s Reid with sandwich number 49!

Wow, it looks fantastic! The marble rye bread is toasted and it’s got a big stack of corned beef and Swiss Cheese inside.

It comes with house-made Russian dressing on the side so I applied some of that to the sandwich and dug in. This is such a great Reuben sandwich! The corned beef is savory and flavorful and it’s nicely offset by the melted and creamy Swiss cheese. I’m not a big fan of sauerkraut, but there’s not a heaping amount of it on here and there’s just enough to add another dimension of flavor ro the sandwich. Andy told me that they used to only have the Reuben as a weekly special, but it was so popular, they added it to the daily lunch menu. Wise decision!

Sadly, because I had to go to work, I had to wash the sandwich down with an iced tea instead of a beer, but I’m returning tonight, so we’ll make up for it then. As I was leaving Andy was on the other side of the bar! Always nice to chat with Andy and we’ll be back before you know it, but first, the sandwich rating!

Sandwich Rating

Three and three quarters Dagwoods—Peoria Hofbrau has wonderful and delicious food and the Reuben is no exception! And hopefully you can have a beer to wash it down with!

Peoria Hofbrau Nighttime Portion—Mini World Beer Tour!

Okay, work is over and here we are back at Peoria Hofbrau and it’s nice and dark outside, this is more like it!

And it’s even darker inside, permanent midnight in here, I love it! I saw a familiar face behind the bar, it’s Henrietta, she was being camera shy and covered up her face! Great to see her again in spite of the camera shyness!

There’s another familiar face, Tiffany who’s been on the MBIP blog before. She’s looking wonderful as always and in case you have a few too many German beers, there’s plenty of signage in here to remind you where you are!

As I looked at Bob Whitaker’s wall of World Beer Tour fame and saw the beer cooler, I decided it was time to start back in on my Hofbrau World Beer Tour. Instead of sitting at the bar, I got a table though, because I’m meeting our special guest stars, Kathy and Mike Barnett soon.

As soon as I sat down, Cara came over and said she’d be our waitress for the evening. She’s looking pretty tonight and I love her smile! There’s the view of the bar from my seat at the table. After Cara took my order, Logan and Ally came up to the table and told me that they read MBIP every day and I always love to hear that! We had a fun conversation about Peoria and the blog. It was really nice to meet both of them and I appreciate them reading the blog on a daily basis!

Here’s Cara with the first beer of tonight’s mini tour! Check out the pouring skills on her, very impressive!

Right after that beer was poured our special guests for the evening arrived, MIke and Kathy Barnett! Kathy and I were classmates at Bergan and Mike went to Spalding and he and Kathy were high school sweethearts. They just celebrated their 38th wedding anniversary! I got them an hourglass for this occasion (hopefully this makes up for the fact I crashed their wedding all those years ago, yes, I was the original wedding crasher!) Mike and Kathy have four children and seven grandchildren! Try as they might, I don’t think they’re ever going to catch up with TIm and Tina Hennessey, who I believe have 47 grandchildren as of this moment, but since this is a "Two Fer Tuesday" post, being second place is kind of appropriate! We had a great evening chatting about old times and catching up on what we’ve been doing for the last few decades! Thanks to Kathy and Mike for hanging out, it was wonderful to see both of them and I hope to see both of you again soon! Thanks to everyone at Peoria Hofbrau for a wonderful double dose of a post today!