I recently had a Saturday Night Dinner at Mike’s Tavern and sampled the Spicy Tenderloin Sandwich and it was out of this world tasty. While I was dining I saw someone eating a cheeseburger and it looked so good, I knew I had to come back and try that out and so here we are at Mike’s Tavern to sample a cheeseburger for lunch.
There’s also several guest stars slated to appear, so let’s start the Lunch At First Bite at Mike’s Tavern!
Here we are at the newly refurbished Mike’s Tavern in West Peoria, let’s go inside and see what’s happening!
I always love walking into this historical West Peoria tavern! I have a lot of history here, my Grandpa Seitz was a regular here way back in the day and I had a memorable day when I finished my 365 Bar Crawl in here back in 2011.
Speaking of my Grandpa Seitz, he was part of the crew that they bought these desks for. Back then there was no place to sit at the bar, so Mike bought these desks for the old-timers to sit at. It’s now referred to “death row” because all of those regulars have gone to the big tavern in the sky!
There’s my newest favorite thing in here, the cigarette machine and there’s a shot of the bar. Let’s see who’s working behind the bar today…
It’s Kaitlyn and Pablo! I told them I was meeting friends in a little bit for lunch and they said I could roam around and take some photos thill they showed up, so that’s what we’ll do!
Uh, oh, looks like Corona is looming back behind the bar, oh well, I’m vaccinated with two boosters, so fuck you, Corona!
As you can see they have a nice selection of beers on tap and there’s the famous Mike’s Tavern beer can collection behind the bar!
As I took this photo of the room opposite the bar, the gentleman seated in the far corner asked if I was the guy behind Meanwhile, Back In Peoria and I confessed that I was.
It turns out these are all Firefighters from Pekin Firefighers Local 524. They have a Heart Of The Dragon Charity Golf Outing coming up on June 11th and you can read all about that by clicking here.
They asked me to pose for a photo with them and I was honored to do so! Great to meet these Firefighters and thanks to them for their service to the community!
There’s the state-of-the art dart machine, the discreet gaming area in the back and I went outside and took a shot of the spacious beer garden at Mike’s Tavern.
And now, it’s time to announce this luncheon’s special guest stars!
First up is my friend Michelle, who’s been a luncheon guest on this blog several times! Always great to see her smiling and pretty face!
Next up is Michelle’s equally pretty sister Pj and her husband, John!
Pj, John and Michelle are great people and I’m happy to be spending this lunch time with them!
Right after I took Pj and John’s photo, Josh Brashaw walked in the door, so I had to take his photo as well!
It was great to see Josh and you can see him playing live by following his Jonny Quest band page on facecrack!
Okay, time to order lunch here at Mike’s Tavern. The menu is somewhat limited, but everything on it sounds divine!
We started off with the Nickel Stix appetizer. These are fried mozzarella strips wrapped up in a crispy egg roll skin. They come with a marinara dipping sauce and they were a tasty start to a delightful lunch!
Pj and John split a tenderloin and Michelle got the portabella fries which comes with a side of Ranch dressing.
They have several styles of burgers here including the Single, which is actually a double and the double which is really a triple. There’s also the Rocky Mountain Jalapeno High Burger and a Chili-Cheese Burger.
I ordered the Lil Joe Burger, which is a 4 ounce steak patty and I got mine with American cheese, pickles and onion. It looks fantastic!
Wow this is a heavenly cheeseburger! The bun is bakery fresh, the burger is tasty, juicy and seared perfectly!
The cheese is rich and while I’m not usually a pickle guy, the pickles really add a nice dimension to this burger. They’re really crispy and tasty and this is definitely a Pulp Fiction-worthy tasty burger!
Michelle, John and Pj said there food was delicious as well! Mike’s is definitely a must-stop for lunch and dinner, especially if you live in or near West Peoria!
After lunch we went out to see John’s 1950 Studebaker! What a beauty of an automobile!
John’s uncle from Indiana bought this car new in 1950 and it’s been in John’s family ever since. John is now the proud owner and it’s a beautiful automobile!
Back inside of Mike’s Tavern, I got a shot of Pj and Michelle, two beautiful sisters!
Pj then took a shot of Michelle and I seated at the Death Row Desks and we lived to tell this luncheon tale!
Thanks to Michelle, Pj, John and Josh for joining me for a fun luncheon afternoon at my favorite West Peoria Tavern, Mike’s Tavern! I hope to see you all soon!
——
626 N. Cedar Avenue
West Peoria
309-674-1860
——
Related Posts: Lunch At First Bite @: The Fox Pub, Donnelly’s Irish Pub and The Smoke-King Pit Bar-B-Que Restaurant.