This week we hit the two month mark in the 13 month chicken eating tour. Grandpa John’s Rib Shack is known for its ribs and pulled pork sandwiches but the other day I noticed lettering on one of the front windows that said: “BBQ Chicken.” I’ve never had the chicken at Grandpa John’s and decided that this would be a perfect time to try it! And it’s located just across the street from MBIP Headquarters, so it’s just a hop and a skip and...
Here we are at Grandpa John’s Rib Shack on Willow Knolls Drive. And over there in the far window are the words that led me here: “BBQ Chicken.” Let’s go in and finish up the second month of this parade of poultry.
You order from that window over there and then they bring you your meal to your table. Cassey was behind the register and she posed for the MBIP Camera and then took my BBQ Chicken dinner order!
Two framed newspaper articles hang on the wall nearby the ordering window. The top one is from 1976 when Big John was battling the city over having to move his original restaurant. The bottom one is a 2012 review by Phil Luciano about the Grandpa John’s Restaurant that was located on University Street where Haddad’s North is operating out of now.
Photos of Big John’s Bar-B-Q are displayed on the walls in the front dining room. There’s photos of the inside and outside of the Bar-B-Q palace and there’s Big John at the bottom. I remember going to his restaurant as a kid and shaking his hand on the way out as he bellowed out his signature catch-phrase: “Thanks a lot, y’all have enough to eat?” My answer was always: “Yes, sir!”
There’s tables up front to sit in and tables in this window overlooking Willow Knolls Drive. I chose to sit in the corner of the back dining room.
And here’s the view from where I’m sitting and eagerly waiting for my BBQ Chicken dinner!
Just in case you were wondering, yes, they do have Prince Albert in a can. And no, they’re not letting him out!
Here we go, Cassey just delivered this beautiful looking BBQ Chicken dinner to our table! It looks and smells heavenly!
This is a squeeze bottle of the signature Big John’s house-made barbecue sauce. It’s great on all the barbecue meats, but I slather it on the french fries too! The fries here are house-cut and so delicious!
The cole slaw was tasty too. It’s also made in-house and it’s crunchy and just a little tart, just the way I like it. Now on to the star of this dinner...
The barbecue chicken! It looks so good, but it must be sauced before it’s eaten!
This is fantastic and tasty barbecue chicken, I can’t believe I’ve never tried it before! It’s really juicy and has a smoky barbecue flavor and the signature sauce compliments it so well! This is the first time I’ve had the chicken in here, but it won’t be the last!
I like the fact that my name is on the ticket and as you can see, my fingers and part of the ticket have lots of sauce on them. Luckily there’s a whole roll of paper towels at the table!
On the way out, I got a shot of that famous catch-phrase and the big man himself! Nice to see his barbecue legacy living on at Grandpa John’s Rib Shack!
Chicken Rating
Four Dixie Chickens—I love the ribs and pulled pork in here and now I can add BBQ Chicken to this barbecue love list!
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2328 W Willow Knolls Drive
Peoria
309-689-9970
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Related Posts: 13 Months of Chicken @: Birdie’s Bar & Grill, Jalapeno’s Mexican Grill, Midway Duck Inn, Ludy’s Kickapoo Creek Saloon, Jubilee Cafe, Rizzi’s and Agatucci’s.
Everybody knew you didn’t give no lip to Big John...
Surprise link...click on it, I dare you!
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Bonus Nick-N-Willy’s Pizza Gift Card Winners!
Nick-N-Willy’s pizza parlor located in the Metro Centre had a facecrack contest where people named their favorite signature pizza in the comments section and then all of the names were taken down and put in a Running Central bag. They asked me to stop by and pick five names out of the bag and these people each win a fifteen dollar gift Nick-N-Willie's card! So let’s get this contest underway.
Here we are at Nick-N-Willy’s which is located in the back end of the Metro Centre.
Wow, it’s bigger in here than I thought! This place opened up in the ‘90’s when I moved to New York, so I’ve never been in here. I’ll have to come back for a pizza post soon! That’s Brennen holding the bag of names. I like that it’s a Running Central bag because they were nice enough to let me eat my lunch in there a while back.
That’s the owner of Nick-N-Willy’s, Steve Carter holding the bag and there I am picking the winners! Okay, Ringo, you know what to do here!
Thanks, Ringo!
The winners are: Joe Smith, Debbie Smith, Kim Armstrong, Janelle Gibbs and last but certainly not least, Rachel Harmon! Congratulations to all of you and enjoy your free pizza from Nick-N-Willy’s! People really win at Nick-N-Willy's!