Whitey’s Tip Top Inn holds a special place in my stitched up heart: It was the first bar I ever got served at.

Sometime in the fall of 1975, when I was a sixteen-year-old punk, myself and my friend Moon were riding around on a Sunday afternoon smoking funny filterless cigarettes. We were heading aimlessly down Sheridan Road when we passed the Tip Top (this is pre-Whitey’s days) and I said to Moon, “Let’s go in there and see if we can get a beer.”

So we did. We parked the car, went in and confidently strolled up to the bar. As I mentioned, both of us were 16-years-old and we both had baby faces and looked younger than what we were. I had braces, pimples was a little chubby and could probably have passed for about 13-years-old. The bartender, who I later learned was named Phil, walked over with a quizzical look on his face and said, “What do you two want?”

“We’ll each have a bottle of Budweiser please,” I said confidently while cocking my right eyebrow for a little added showmanship.

“Are you guys 21?” He asked incredulously.

I pulled out a ten dollar bill, laid it on the bar and said, “Of course we are!”

Phil looked at us, looked down at the ten dollar bill and went and fetched us each an ice-cold bottle of Budweiser. We couldn’t believe it and had a little laugh amongst each other when Phil was at the other end of the bar.

We had plenty of beer that day and I became a regular at the Tip Top after that, along with some of our friends. Times were different back then and I always say that the only I.D. you needed back then was cash!

The funny punchline to the story is that three years later they lowered the drinking age to 19-years-old. My birthday came around, so I met some friends at The Tip Top for a birthday celebration. We were all drinking and doing shots and Phil was bartending and he came down and asked what the celebration was all about.

I took out my driver’s license and showed it to him and told him it was my birthday.

He looked at my date of birth which is 1958, did the math and then looked at me and scowled, “You son of a bitch!”

Then he poured me a shot of whiskey and wished me a happy birthday and we all had a good laugh about that!

So back in 2013, when this blog was still in its infancy, I returned to the Tip Top, now named, Whitey’s Tip Top Inn to have a cheeseburger.

And this week that cheeseburger is this week’s spotlit Sandwich of Peoria!

Here we are at Whitey’s Tip Top Inn. It’s been standing tall here on Sheridan Road for decades now. If you click on the original link below, you’ll find the instructions on how to properly enter Whitey’s! (Hint: You don’t go through the front door.)

There’s the burger being grilled up and the buns are being toasted as well, which is a smart move!

And here it is, served up with Kitchen Cooked Potato Chips…wait a second…something’s missing…

Mustard! And check it out, it’s Gulden’s spicy brown mustard! Fancy condiments here at Whitey’s Tip Top!

Presenting this week’s Sandwich of Peoria: The Cheeseburger at Whitey’s Tip Top Inn!

Tasty and fresh ground beef, grilled to perfection, topped with melted American cheese and buttery grilled onions. And it’s housed in a bakery fresh, lightly toasted bun.

Sometimes simple pleasures are the best and the Cheeseburger at Whitey’s definitely falls into that category!

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