Today we’re having lunch at Jack’s On Adams and we’re going to be featuring the fact that Jack’s On Adams is show-cased in a brand new book that is celebrating Peoria.
Here’s the cover of the book which is titled, “100 Things To Do In Peoria Before You Die” and it’s written by Molly Crusen Bishop.
Molly is a writer based here in Peoria and in addition to this book, which is published by Reedy Publishing from St. Louis, she’s also written two other books, a children’s book called “Serendipity’s Song” and a nonfiction history book called “Footprints of Our Forefathers.”
She’s been a contributing writer for eight different magazines, including Peoria Magazine and Construction Beauty Magazine.
And we’re going to meet her in just a few minutes, if you keep on scrolling down!
Here we are at Jack’s On Adams in beautiful downtown Peoria. Let’s go inside and see what’s happening!
As soon as I step in, I see two familiar faces…
It’s the aforementioned author, Molly Crusen Bishop with the owner and CEO of Jack’s On Adams, Jack Berres!
Molly’s holding her book open to the page where she wrote about this fine establishment.
This is one of the best local books about things to do and places to go in Peoria that I’ve ever seen! Here’s a description of the book from the Reedy Publishing website:
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“Located right in the middle of Illinois lies the metropolitan city of Peoria which invites its visitors to experience the best the midwest has to offer. With 100 Things to Do in Peoria Before You Die, get the best ideas for a memorable visit or rediscover the city you’ve known for years.
Drive down historic Grand View Drive, with a breathtaking view of the Illinois River Valley, grand homes, and gorgeous views of fall colors. Visit the trendy Warehouse District and throw an ax while enjoying a cocktail, climb an indoor rock wall with the kids, attend a cultural festival along the Peoria Riverfront, or a concert at the Peoria Civic Center.
Outdoor enthusiasts can canoe in a 16.4 mile HLC River Jaunt while enjoying the spectacular views of the Illinois River and a variety of eagles, herons, cranes, and flying fish, or visit the Banner Marsh or Emiquon Nature Reserve to see spectacular wildlife, or hike at one of Peoria Park District’s 9,000 acres of park land.”
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The book just came out at the beginning of October and I’m going to list where you can buy it online or at a local business at the end of this post.
But first, we’re going to eat lunch and take a look around in Jack’s On Adams!
That’s Matt behind the bar serving up an iced tea. He took our luncheon order and we grabbed a table and I flashed my copy of Molly’s book. I’ve read it already and I sincerely recommend it.
I thought I knew every place and thing in Peoria from doing this blog for almost ten years, but I discovered some places and businesses that I had never heard of!
As I said, at the bottom of the blog I’m listing where you can buy copies, but for now, let’s take a look around in Jack’s On Adams.
There’s some shots of the bar and there’s Megan down at the end of the bar flashing a beautiful smile for the MBIP Camera!
At the front of the dining room is a stage where live music happens at Jack’s.
Tonight, PhanieRae & The Soul Shakers are taking the stage and if you’ve never seen this band, you definitely need to stop in at Jack’s On Adams tonight.
Come in for dinner and drinks and the show starts at 9:30pm!
Allison and Glen recognized me from the blog, so I went over and said hi. Both of them work for Easter Seals and they’re really nice people. It was nice to chat and meet them!
There’s a room dedicated to darts and if you want to join the league scene, just call and inquire how to do that.
Meanwhile, back at our table…
Lunch is starting to arrive!
Molly and I split an order of the JACKd Up Shrimp. I haven’t had these yet and both Molly and I agreed that they were out-of-this-world delicious!
The jumbo fried shrimp is lightly breaded and tossed in the JACKd Up sauce. The sauce is a sweet heat honey sauce and these are the tastiest shrimp I’ve ever had!
Lunch is off to a fabulous start!
Molly got a small cheese and sausage pizza and she raved about it.
I’ve had it and it’s Jack’s own Peoria Tavern Recipe and you can read about the first time I tried it by clicking right here.
I got the Tampa Bay Cuban sandwich and a side of coleslaw. It looks fantastic!
Let’s dig in…
The coleslaw was just the right blend of creamy and crispy and very tasty.
Like everything on the menu, the Tampa Bay Cuban is Jack’s unique version of a Cuban sandwich.
There’s a tastebud titillating mix of home-cooked pulled pork, salami, ham, pickles, melted Swiss cheese and the sandwich is topped off with a liberal dose of Jack’s homemade bistro sauce. It’s hot-pressed on Cuban bread and this is such a satisfying sandwich!
All the flavors blend so well together and the bistro sauce knocks it right out of the park!
Jack’s has a unique and wonderful menu with appetizers, salads, burgers, sandwiches and of course the Peoria Tavern Style Pizzas.
They’re open for lunch and dinner and don’t forget, PhanieRae & The Soul Shakers are live at Jack’s tonight!
Come and have a JACKd up start to this October weekend!
You can buy “100 Things To Do In Peoria Before You Die” online at these following sites: Reedy Press, Target, Barnes & Noble, Amazon and Google Books.
If you’d like to purchase it at a local business, these following retail outlets have copies in stock: Urban Artifacts, Stems by Allison, Little Shop of Hoarders, PAAR, Peoria Book Rack and Relics.
If you’d like to meet Molly and get your book signed, she’s having book signings at PAAR on November 16th, Cafe Santa Rosa on November 17 and at The Book Rack on December 1st.
Get a book for yourself and these make great gifts for all occasions!
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107 SW Adams
Peoria
309-839-2855
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Related Posts: Lunch At First Bite @: Kenny’s Westside Pub, The Blue Duck Barbecue Tavern, Castle’s Patio Inn.