Last Sunday I participated in a pub crawl sponsored by Peoria institution Katie McButt's. We started at Katie's at 10 AM with doughnuts and beer, Homer Simpson eat your heart out. Just before noon we hopped on the bus which was, in fact a full size school bus. It's been ten years for me since I've been on one so I was pretty excited to make faces and moon people out the window. Since we were the cool kids we took our seats in the back so we could hop out the emergency door at each stop.First Stop: Carrigan's Pub 5506 N. Main St. East Peoria
Located just southeast of Spring Bay Rd., Carrigan's looks like a newer bar inside and out and had some cheap drinks. A Guinness and bloody mary cost me only $8, while 16 oz domestic cans were two bucks. This place has the look and feel of a biker bar and probably is. During each quarter of every Bears game they hold a drawing that starts at $10 and rolls over. While we were there I noticed the current amount was $230. Like any good law abiding Peorian I rarely venture into Tazewell county for drinking purposes unless the sun is out, someone else is driving, or I am no longer sober enough to make responsible decisions. However, if you find yourself on the evil side of the river and reasonably sober, Carrigan's is worth checking out. After 35 minutes it was on to the next bar.
Second Stop: The Silver Bullet 135 N. Main St. EP
The Bullet is located in the shopping center that houses Harbor Freight Tools and Co-Op Records. Basically the fucking Lion's Den. I'm guessing the EP Police Dept. probably has a 30 second response time seeing as their headquarters are a stones throw away. The Bullet is probably an institution in EP but to me there's nothing really special about. Average pub food, reasonable drink prices, and a shitload of TV's. Recently, the owners of the Bullet added a smoking patio on the river side of the building. From what I've heard the city of East Peoria made them jump through all kinds of hoops to get this done, but I'm sure it was worth it in the end. Bonus: the patio does have a pretty nice view of our fair city's skyline. 35 minutes and 2 Bud Lights ($2) later it was back on the bus.
Third Stop: Club Phoenix 4602 Pfiefer Rd. Bartonville
Not surprisingly Club Phoenix isn't so much a "club" as it is a regular bar. Located atop the hill on Pfeifer Rd. it sits caddy corner to the Insane Asylum, (not sure what it's real name is but I think most of you know what I'm talking about). The last time I've even been in this area was in high school when some friends of mine may or may not have been breaking in to verify the claims that this place is haunted. I don't remember what the verdict was but the this place looks creepy even during the day. I asked a guy on a Harley, who I assumed to be local, about who owns it etc. He said that last he heard, some guy from Chicago had bought it but that was all he knew. Whatever the case may be the building looks to be in piss poor condition complete with gaping holes in the roof. Back to Club Phoenix. Nothing really special about this place except for the fact that they had a basketball hoop on the patio out back. Upon discovery of this, a game of horse ensued which I won due to my superior hooping skills. Okay, maybe it had something to do with my opponent being in his mid forties, pathetically out of shape and whiter than my ass in a snowbank. Drinks were reasonable ($2 domestics, $4 shots), 50 cent pool table, and a good atmosphere. Club Phoenix probably gets packed on the weekends as its really the only bar around.
Fourth Stop: Jimmy's Public House 2801 W. Farmington Rd. Peoria Il.
Despite the fact that Jimmy's looks like a DUI trap from Hell they do some pretty solid business and for good reason. Cheap drinks, good atmosphere, and plenty of local flavor can all be found at Jimmy's. The walls are adorned with Peoria sports memorabilia and other local nostalgia. Another great thing about Jimmy's is that they serve up man-sized shots. Basically, a shot at Jimmy's is a double anywhere else. One of the guys on the bus tour works there so we ended up staying there longer than was originally planned. Also, the leader of our tour was getting pretty sauced and our strict schedule was waived in favor of....well boozing. The only downside to this was that we had to skip our last stop, the Hillside on Sheridan, which is one of my favorite places.
After Jimmy's we hopped back on the bus where myself and a few others started a Hillside chant but to no avail. Katie McButt's was our destination and short of hijacking the school bus nothing was going to stop our driver from getting us there. Back at Katie's we were provided with hors d'ouvres and spaghetti and meatballs. The food was good but I stuffed myself and couldn't handle anymore beer. Before you judge me though, let me just reiterate that I consumed 20 some odd beers and about 8 shots in a period of 6 hours, so I think I did pretty good for myself. On the plus side, while I was sleeping off a long day of the Creature, I didn't have to watch the Bears lose! God they suck. Anyway, a good time was had by all and I'm looking forward to next year's trip. Not to mention how nice the weather was that day. It might have been one of the last good days we have so I'm glad I was able to get out and enjoy it.
I hope everyone has a safe holiday weekend and folks, let's not get too crazy on Black Friday, unless you're going to buy me a new flatscreen, in which case arm yourself to the teeth and take no prisoners!
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