There’s a lot of cool bars and taverns in Peoria and I’ve been to all of them in the course of my lifetime and more recently while producing and writing the MBIP blog for the last nine years. But for me, my favorite bar in Peoria is Mike’s Tavern in West Peoria. It’s Peoria’a most historical and classic dive bar and it has charm, warmth and so many memories for me.
Last year when the rotten pandemic happened, I couldn’t go to bars because due to a previous heart condition, I was in the highest risk group you could be in. So when I heard that Mike’s Tavern had been sold and refurbished, it killed me I couldn’t go look at it and do a blog post about it. But if I went that could’ve killed me too, so I stayed home, drank beer in the MBIP World Headquarters and looked at old blog posts about Mike’s Tavern.
However, this is a new year, I’m fully vaccinated and my doctor gave me the green light to start going out and about again! So, I thought I’d revive my Thirsty-Third Friday series (and yeah, I know this is the fourth Friday of the month, I was never too good at math, so just shut your stupid yapper) and go and check out the rebirth of Mike’s Tavern in West Peoria!
Mike’s Tavern: Reborn In West Peoria!
Here we are at Mike’s Tavern. I love that it looks just the same as it always has! I haven’t been here since January of 2020, so let’s go in and take a look at the new version of Mikes Tavern!
It looks and feels just like the old Mike’s and I’m thrilled about that! I see a couple familiar faces down at the end of the bar, let’s go say hi.
Here’s my friends, Mark and Stephanie Donahue, the new owners of Mike’s Tavern along with their co-owner, Bob Bullock (Bob is also the owner of Theo’s Ice Cream Shop).
Stephanie has a life-long history with Mike’s Tavern. She grew up in West Peoria right next door and her father, Mike Powers was and is a loyal patron of Mike’s.
I complimented them on how it looks new but they’ve still maintained the feel of the old Mike’s Tavern!
They were nice enough to give me a Mike’s Tavern t-shirt and stickers and there’s a portrait of Mike’s drawn by Mark and Stephanie’s daughter, Violet! How cool is that?
Taelor was the cute bartender on duty and she served me up a can of Budweiser with a pretty smile.
Okay, let’s take a look around in here at Mike’s Tavern circa 2021!
Classic Mike’s
They kept a lot of the things that made Mike’s unique including: The original tin ceiling, the vintage Budweiser trolley, the beer cooler and I’m so happy they kept the beer can and bottle collection behind the bar! Stephanie said her Mom spent hours cleaning off the decades of dust that had built up on the collection! I’ve always loved the Billy Beer can in the collection!
There’s also the classic Busch sign and the row of desks that were bought back in the day for the old-time regulars to sit in. And they kept the pay phone on the wall!
Mike’s Tavern 2021
They’ve added some new signs and knick-knacks but they have a vintage feel and fit right into the mix of Mike’s Tavern.
I love the lit-up barber pole, because way back in the day, this place was originally a barber shop, so it’s a nice tribute to the past.
They’re putting a kitchen in here, so stay tuned for updates about the new Mike’s menu!
Taps and T-Shirts
As you can see, they have a nice selection of draft beers and you can get your very own Mike’s t-shirt in here.
The Back Room
There’s more tables and a state-of-the-art dart board in the back room.
This group was posing for a photo, so I thought I’d capture the moment with the MBIP Camera!
The Beer Patio
There’s a spacious beer patio outside with picnic tables to sit at.
Smiling Faces Inside of Mike’s Tavern
I took some photos of some of the smiling faces at Mike’s Tavern. It was great to see old friends in here and meet some new ones too!
From the top:
1. Joe, Amber and Michelle.
2. Bryce, Becca (The Untamed Chef), Erik and Christy.
3. Kathy and Steve.
4. Johnson and Shannon.
5. Stephanie and Amy.
6. Michelle and Yours Fooly.
7. Will and Carley.
It was so great to see everyone and this was a fantastic and fun night at Mike’s Tavern!
The Mike’s Tavern Crew
Here’s the crew that cleaned up and refurbished Mike’s Tavern, from left: Jim, Mike (the construction foreman), Mark, Bob, Mark and Connor, who is the manager and lead bartender.
Thanks to this crew for revitalizing Mike’s Tavern while maintaining the original feel and charm of this classic West Peoria Tavern.
If for some god-forsaken reason, you’ve never been to Mike’s Tavern, now is the time to stop by and have a drink and soak in the historical vibes of West Peoria’s classic tavern!
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And speaking of historical, here’s one of my favorite Mike’s Tavern stories from my memory bank!
My First Beer @ Mike’s Tavern
I’ve known about Mike’s Tavern in West Peoria my entire life. My Grandpa, Leo Seitz was a regular at this legendary West Peoria Tavern, since the first day it opened in 1938. You can read all about the history of Mike’s Tavern in this fine feature article by Phil Luciano in the PJ Star.
I’d heard stories about Mike’s Tavern from my Grandpa, parents and relatives my whole life. My Grandpa liked to throw down a beer or seven and through the years he and his pals became legendary fixtures at this West Peoria tavern.
I turned 19-years-old in 1977 and that was the year they decided to turn back the drinking age to 19, so it was a lucky birthday. I had torn up my fake I.D. and myself and a friend were on our way to Mike’s Tavern.
By this time my Grandpa Seitz was living in St. Joseph’s Home, but he still managed to walk over to Mike’s on a daily basis and have lunch and a few beers there. So I knew I wouldn’t run into him there at night, which I would’ve loved, but I still had to have the Mike’s Tavern experience!
Back in 1977, I was really into punk rock and I had the look down flat. As I sauntered in for my maiden journey to Mike’s Tavern, I had a spiky hair-do, I was wearing a t-shirt, a black leather motorcycle jacket, ripped up jeans and a pair of black Converse tennis shoes. I looked more like I was walking into an audition for The Ramones than dressed up for a night at Mike’s Tavern.
Back then the place was dark, really small and sparsely decorated. There was a wooden bar and a couple of beat up stools. I can’t remember if the line of desks were there or not.
There was four old guys drinking draft beer at the end of the bar and a middle-aged bartender serving them beers and shooting the shit.
When we walked in and they took a look at me, everything stopped like someone had shot off a gun in the joint. They all just stared at me like I was some kind of a mutant weirdo.
The bartender broke the silence by screaming out, “What the hell do you two want?”
“We just want to get a couple of beers,” I replied. I was kind of shocked at getting this kind of reception.
“You got I.D’s?” The barkeep barked out as he traveled down the bar to see if we were old enough.
We showed him the I.D.s and he didn’t even notice it was my birthday. I was starting to get kind of pissed.
“Whaddya want?” He shouted out while scowling at us.
“We’ll take two Budweisers,” I said and laid a twenty on the bar. I wanted to let him know we weren’t going anywhere. i wasn’t going to let some old geezers scare us away.
He grabbed two cans of Bud, slammed them on the bar and took my twenty and gruffly slapped the change on the bar. Then he went back to his buddies who were still giving me the evil stink-eye.
“Maybe we should just get out of here,” My friend said.
“Hang on,” I said while taking a sip of beer, “I’ve got an idea.”
After a couple of uneasy minutes I looked over at them and said, “Do you guys know Leo Seitz?”
They all looked surprised and shocked and one of them said, “Sure we do, he’s been coming here for years. He’s one of the original regulars.”
“He’s my Grandpa, that’s why I wanted to drink a beer in here, I’ve heard about this place my whole life,” I explained.
“Holy cow, you’re Leo’s grandson?” One of them said as the frowns magically turned to smiles.
They invited us down to join them at the bar and they all took turns buying us beers while telling me stories for hours about some of the antics that my Grandpa Seitz had pulled through the decades at Mike’s.
I told them stories including one time when Grandpa Seitz was watching myself, my brothers and sister and our cousins when we were little kids at his house and he asked us all if we wanted some popcorn. Of course we all said we did, so he told us to stay inside of the house and he’d go get some. Over an hour went by and he came back reeking of beer.
We all looked at him and said, “Where’s the popcorn, Grandpa?”
A pained look colored his face as he said, “Oh, nuts, I forgot to get it!” As we got older, we figured out he had made a run to Mike’s and forgot our popcorn! They loved that story!
At the end of the night and after drinking a river of beer, we all shook hands and the bartender said I was welcome at Mike’s anytime of the day or night.
It was that magical moment that I became a regular at Mike’s and I’ve been going there ever since.
I feel proud that I’ve left my own footprint in the history of Mike’s Tavern. I moved to New York City in the summer 1993. On January 10th, 2010 I started on a journey of drinking at a different bar for 365 days in a row and documenting it all on my blog, A Guy Walks Into 365 Bars.
It got written up in the NY Daily News and then the U.P.I. Wire Service put the story on an international wire so it went all over the world and it turned into the wackiest year of my life. And I’ve had some pretty wacky-ass years, so that’s saying something!
As I got close to ending this year of beer, everyone wanted to know where I was going to go for the final bar. Most people assumed it would be some tavern or bar in New York City. But I knew where it had to end: Mike’s Tavern in West Peoria.
I flew back to Peoria and we had a crazy day at Mike’s Tavern, you can see photos of the day by clicking here.
Mike’s owner Tony Ward had always been so nice to my Grandpa Seitz, he used to give him rides back to St. Joseph’s Home after my Grandpa’s afternoon visits. A few hours into this festive gathering at Mike’s, Tony came up to me and said it was one of the best days in the history of Mike’s Tavern! That meant so much to me!
I thanked him for the kindness he always showed for my Grandpa Seitz. Tony smiled and said, “Grandpa Leo is looking down right now and he’s so proud of his grandson.”
Both our eyes got a little misty-eyed and we shook hands. Another magical moment at Mike’s Tavern.
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Cheers to the new crew running Mike’s Tavern in West Peoria from myself, my Grandpa Seitz and Tony Ward. We’re all very proud of the work you’ve done in there and appreciate you keeping Mike’s Tavern and spirit alive!
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626 N. Cedar Avenue
West Peoria
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Related Posts: The Thirsty-Third Friday @: Last Chance Bar & Grill, Jan’s Tap and Dozer Park.