Peoria Institution: The Hillside

The Hillside is located at 1745 North Sheridan Road near Gale Ave. The Hillside may be the most aptly named bar in Peoria as the building is situated at the bottom of two hills (Sheridan and Gale). Driving by as a kid, it always reminded of a hobbit hole for some reason. The building is small and old, the only thing that really sticks out in my mind is the small breezeway that serves as the front (and only) entrance to the bar. One thing that is truly unique about this bar is the parking lot, which is on the south side of the building. If you own a truck, it would be no big deal to pull straight out onto Sheridan. If you own a car however, trying this will surely end up with a badly scraped bumper. So if you happen to find yourself leaving the Hillside after a few cocktails remember; BACK OUT!

A little bit of history for you. PBR staffer DS told me that the Hillside used to be called JT's and was apparently a great place to get the white stuff. Why it wasn't always called the Hillside I will never know. Anyway, I remember always seeing cars parked right on Sheridan in front of and up the hill from this bar. A friend of a friend told me that one time, a drunk driver (not me, I swear!) was flying down the hill and hit the car farthest up the hill. This, apparently started what was surely a hilarious cartoonish accordion-style smashing of numerous vehicles. The person who told me this story did not find humor in it, as his car was involved and did not fare well in the collision. He says that ever since then, very few people park on the hill. Indeed that is the case, most days I drive by the Hillside, sometimes there might be one car, parked directly in front of the bar but that's about it.

There are two things that are extremely unique about the Hillside. First, is the bar which is (Cardinal) red and has raised dots on it that remind me of Lego blocks. Second, is the fact that the Hillside has two (2) addresses. The correct address is listed above but, if you look just to the right of the door, the original address is 803, which can be found inside the breezeway upon entering the bar.

One of the things I like most about the Hillside is that, it's kind of in a no man's land. Just up the street, north of McClure, are Whitey's Tip Top and the Sports Page (now under a different name.) If you drive south you'll find yourself on Main St. right next to the Elbo Room and Blue. The valley in between these two bar clusters, holds the Hillside. This bar is heavy on charm. The Hillside is the kind of place where on most nights, the bartender is drinking a beer right along with you. Most of the time this works without a problem but on one of my first visits there, the guy made a mistake. I ordered a vodka tonic and was handed what turned out to be a tequila tonic. I'm not a big fan of tequila to begin with but having to drink it with no warning was especially jarring. I told the bartender about the mix up and he gave me a free vodka tonic, all the while insisting that the drink he had made me was "not that bad". Yah, that's right, he actually drank it. I can't remember what he named it but I do know he was a pretty funny guy. This is also a place (like Roger's) where it's pretty easy to coax the bartender into a game of pool. Most of the time though, you would be better off just putting your money on the table as the beer slingers at both of these places are pretty damn good.

Speaking of pool, the Hillside has got you covered if you're into billiards. They have two tables, one of which is usually vacant as it sits in a weird little side room away from the bar. The other one, which is pictured above is straight back at the end of the bar. If you are a pool cue snob, you might want to bring your own. The cues at the Hillside are well loved. I usually play my best games with a bent cue on a shitty bar table though, so it doesn't bother me. Behind the main table is the stained glass beer serving lady, which looks like it's supposed to be German and helps to give the bar some of it's character. There are two small flatscreens at either end of the bar with none in between. It seems to be like there are a lot of bars in Peoria like this. Maybe it is because they have been bars before there was TV, I'm not quite sure. The jukebox is a digital one (boo!), so you can play T-Pain right before Hank Williams. That's what I usually do just to keep everyone happy. You are probably going to need a diverse taste in music for a night at the Hillside. Most nights, the jukebox jumps from country to rap and everything in between.

This is especially true on karaoke night, which is one of the most fun I've ever been to. Whatever you do, don't try to sing "Love Train" because there is this dude there that sings it perfectly and does the dance too. For your game playing pleasure there is also a pin ball machine and Golden Tee to hold your interest.

Just before writing this post, I decided it would be a good idea to go down to the Hillside once again to get a feel for the place. It was my plan to take down the daily/weekly specials to let you, dear reader, know about them. I failed miserably. All I know is that on most nights a pitcher of beer will cost you 5 bucks. Shots are around $3 a piece and there is an extremely spartan, yet workable amount of booze behind the bar. My return to the Hillside though, turned out to be a magical one, as one of the regulars provided the bar with a ridiculous amount of Avanti's bread. I walked out with 6 loaves and there were many more to be had beyond that.

The Hillside is definitely a Cardinals bar. The bartender's name is Steve Cardinal, which pretty much designates him as a Cardinal fan for life. Much like most Cardinal fans that I know, he is a fan of all things baseball which means that if the Cards aren't playing the Cubs will be on the TV. Steve is also a big fan of Yogi Berra and his timeless quotes. One final note, if you decide to go to the Hillside and the door is locked, just give it a knock and whomever is bartending will answer. Just because it is late doesn't mean they are closed, it just means they're careful!

Cheers to the Hillside and cheers to Cardinal fans, even though they are misguided, lost souls who secretly wish they could root for a team that has enough resilience to play for a championship 102 years in the making!

Last Chance, a popular three-shift bar and weekend bro-fest

A fellow word-maker for the sake of a newspaper with me at the papah has consistently defended the right of downtown bars to maintain 4 a.m. liquor licenses. His argument for them is simple: Peoria is, and always has been a three-shift town.

And while there 

Update from I forgot when

Yeah, this place has been getting worse by the week. During the winter months, the smoking patio is fucking ridiculous. I've joked that when you're out there for any significant amount of time, it's like getting hickory smoked. Just cut off some arm meat, put it on a bun and call it "pulled person." 

Thursday through Saturday is especially ridiculous. The bar is packed with loud mouthed 21-year-olds who seem like they're getting drunk for the first time. 

And the music, dear God, the music. It's fucking horrible and good luck trying to do anything about it after 11, it's next to impossible. It's only going to get worse this summer. 

Update also from I forgot when

These improvements have come at a price however. The changes to the Chance have brought in a different crowd. I'm starting to see a lot less regulars and a lot more new faces. Sometimes change is a good thing and sometimes it's not. To be clear, I'm not hating on the people that have recently discovered the Chance, the majority of them seem really nice. But we all know how the loud voices/actions of a minority can taint a whole group of people. 

Another problem with the recent renovations regards the pool tables. The Chance has always been, primarily, a billiards bar and now a wrench has been thrown into that system. The dart board has been moved to a place where, if more than two people are playing, it makes it very difficult to play pool on either of the pool tables. I'm not bothered that I can't play as much pool as before (I'm sure there are many who are) my concern is, believe it or not, safety.

It's only a matter of time before some drunken asshole gets in a fight with another drunken asshole over the pool table/dart board. Unfortunately, this is a case where owner of the Chance is trying to squeeze every possible dollar he can out of the joint. I know, it's his bar and it's his prerogative but this is part of the reason why he's losing so many loyal customers.

Another reason, is the fact that several of the regulars' favorite bartenders have been replaced with younger, cuter, and less experienced girls. I'm sure they're real nice but it's a lot like your team trading away your favorite player for someone who has promise but just isn't quite as good.

Times change and people have to adapt, it just sucks to see place you love go to shit, which, unfortunately is what's happening to the Last Chance. I'll still be there several nights a week, just not for as long as before.

I guess we could always stage a mutiny and get some of our favorite bartenders back. You know, like in episode one from the sixth season of Cheers? What's that? You're not familiar with that episode? Well here, let me refresh your memory, (if you're impatient, skip to the 3:15 mark).

Original Review

The Last Chance Bar and Grill is located at 2713 W. Second St. in north Peoria. If that address sounds confusing it's because it is. The Last Chance can be found north of the Super Wal Mart on Allen Rd. This bar is the last chance to get something to drink if your destination is either Dunlap or Princeville. I don't know why it took me so long to write a review for this place (procrastination) but most of my friends and I go there a few times a week.

The Chance is a family owned bar and on a given night, is usually filled with the same group of regulars. The Chance has two pool tables and a dart board. Over the bar, there are three nice TVs. Beers are cheap, I always get a pitcher of Bud Light ($5) and Jameson ($4). There are nightly specials for drinks and daily specials for food but they change every week so you'll just have to take my word for it. During the day, the Chance is more restaurant than bar as they have an extensive breakfast and lunch menu. The hours for food are listed below. Butch's pizzas are always available, Sunday nights are free chili dogs and Monday nights are free tacos.

Every week the Last Chance holds a drawing. Ask the bartender to sign up and she'll give you a notebook to put your name in (no pseudonyms if you want to get paid). Once you're in, you're in every week. The drawing is held from 7-8 on Wednesday night and costs nothing to enter. The prize starts at $25 and moves up by $25 increments for every week without a winner. And if you win a decent amount of money (over $100), you are expected to buy the house a round, which, at the Last Chance is pretty cheap.

Saturday nights are always packed and sometimes it takes a while to get your drink, unless you're regular. Basically, the reason I like this place so much (besides the fact that I know a lot of regulars) is that you can have it your way (fuck you Burger King!). If you're in the mood to just sit at the bar and go numb, you can do that. If you're looking for some casual conversation, you can have that too. In short, there aren't a lot of abrasive personalities that hang out at the Last Chance. It's just a regular bar filled with regular folks. That may sound boring but, I think sometimes we all need a good shot of normalcy. I know I do.


Update II - Yah, this place has been getting douchier by the week. During the winter months, the smoking patio is fucking ridiculous. I joked that when you're out there for any significant amount of time, it's like getting hickory smoked. Just cut of some arm meat, put it on a bun and call it "pulled person." Thursdays through Saturdays are especially ridiculous with the bar packed to capacity with loud mouthed 21 year olds who seem like they're getting drunk for the first time. And the music, dear God, the music. It's fucking horrible and good luck trying to do anything about it after 11, it's next to impossible. It's only going to get worse this summer. Good luck barflies of Peoria!

Roger's Place

Roger's Place is a great little hole in the wall located at 1923 SW Adams St. just south of downtown Peoria. I went there last night after work to have a few before the Bears game. Roger's is a one room bar with 30 stools, no tables and a smaller than usual pool table. The table looks really old and I can't think of another place where I have seen one the same size. One side of the table is only about four feet from the wall but the bar provides shooters with a short stick in case you have to shoot from that side.

I walked into Roger's about 7:00 and there were only three people inside, including the bartender who is called Booter. I think it is a safe bet that this is a nickname, I can't really picture anyone actually naming their child Booter but I guess anything is possible. Roger's has two beers on draft: PBR and Bud Light. The PBR goes for $0.75 and the Bud Light will cost you $1.00. I thought I would splurge so I ordered a Bud Light. To the suppossed 20% of you reading this, Roger's Place is Altoid tin friendly, if you don't know what this means, I guess you'll just have to find out for yourself. You can also buy six packs of Blatz for $5.00 (awesome!), and 40 ounces of King Cobra or Steel Reserve.

After about 40 minutes the place started to fill up with regulars. The first ones to arrive were two Mexicans, one spoke fluent English, the other did not. Javier told me that he had just come from a DUI class, where he translated for his friend, which I found hilarious. He said it was fun and he heard some good stories. So, basically after attending a court ordered Dry Roads class, Javier's buddy needed a drink and Roger's Place was the watering hole of choice. Anyone who has ever had to go through one of these guilt trip sessions probably has felt the same way. They are like AA meetings without the actual intention of not drinking AND they are required AND you have to pay for them.

I took a picture of the bathroom sink because I don't think I've ever seen one like it. I swear to god the bathroom was two feet by two feet. It had a NO SOLICITING sign on the door, which I assume is some joke about prostitution.

One last thing about Roger's Place, if you are a pool player the following house rules apply if you want to hold the table. First, you must make the eight ball with a bank shot to win the game. Secondly, if you scratch trying to make the eight ball, you do not lose. In other words the game continues until someone makes a bank eight. I thought this was cool because it makes the game last longer and with the smaller table, is significantly easier to do than on a full size (7 foot) bar table. Also, bars that have house rules mean that the same guys play there all the time, in other words, there is almost always competition. I played Booter for two games, lost the first and won the second, despite the fact that he was obviously better than me.

Roger's Place is your typical hole in the wall with regular customers. It seems like it would be a fun place on the weekends. I'm guessing that a lot of craziness goes on here. On top of that, Booter told me that Willie York has been hanging out there a lot lately. So if you want an opinion on just about anything, maybe you can go down to Roger's and have a little talk with Willie! I know I have always found his semi-incoherent slurs to be very enlightening.

Cheers to Roger's Place!

Update - I've really grown fond of this place and the characters in it. Several times, people at the bar have thrown down some cash to buy a half pint for Willie who stops in from time to time. Booter is a great bartender and a fun guy to talk to. Kenny and Donnie are two brothers who sit at the Adams St. end of the bar and are nothing short of hilarious. Kenny's catchphrase is Yah Right! This place is a real solid boozer and is usually busiest from 5 - 8 on the weekdays. It gets kind of slow after that and is a good place to waste away by yourself if you're looking for solitude.

Peoria Institution: Katie McButts

Katie McButt's is located at 2440 N. Knoxville Avenue in Peoria. If you have ever driven towards downtown on Knoxville, you have probably noticed an Irish flag painted just outside the front entrance of Katie's on a wall facing north. This bar has been around for a long time, probably about 30 or so years. A friend of mine told me that long before it was Katie's, the bar was called the Turf Club and was  pretty hip place in the 60's and 70's. The bartender, Trevor has been serving drinks at the East Bluff tavern for the past 15 years and is as good a bartender as you could hope for, especially if you get to know him. Every time I have ever gone to Katie's, Trevor has always bought me a shot and/or a beer.

Among their specialties are 18 beers on tap (with one tapper of root beer) and the best Guinness combos in town. Try a Half and Half (Guinness and Harp), Belgian Waffle (Guinness and Blue Moon), or an Irish-American (Guinness and PBR or Old Style), all for only $3.75. Among their other drafts are Killian's, Honey Brown, Smithwicks, Beamish, Coors Light, Spaten, Moose Drool, Miller Lite, Old Style, PBR, Harp, Smithwick's, and several other. Out of the 18 drafts, almost all are "regulars" with only a few that rotate. Imports are $3.75 while domestics are $2.75.

Despite the location, Katie's is generally a safe place to stop in for a drink. A few years back, a robbery took place. Luckily though, only a handful of people were in the bar at the time. I consider this to be an isolated incident as this is the only such robbery to have taken place in recent history. The bottom line is that Katie's is no more dangerous than a night out downtown. The crowd is friendly and on nights when the dart league takes place McButt's is a lively place to be. The bar does not have a pool table but has three dartboards, a Silver Strike machine, and several poker machines.

A friend of mine recently told me about his 21st birthday at Katie's where he took "The Challenge". Behind the bar is a large copper tub which holds ice and beer mugs. On the front of this tub are the 19 drafts. To the left of the tub, above the cash register are two bottles of Irish whiskey, upside down, with pouring mechanisms on them. The first is Tullamore Dew (rough!) and the second is one of my personal favorites, Jameson. "The Challenge" as my friend called it, is to drink one of all 18 beers (and the root beer) going from right to left. When you get to the end of the line, you must take a shot of Tullamore then Jameson to complete the challenge. I can only imagine how drunk one would be at the end of this excursion but it still sounds like fun. Plus, then you can brag to your friends about your completion of one of the more unique and ridiculous drinking games there are! And while 18 beers may not sound like much, keep in mind the brews involved in this challenge run the gamut from Belgian white ale, to Irish lagers, to American pilsners, and everything in between. If you think you can handle the challenge, drink a Miller Lite, Smithwick's Guinness, Harp, Old Style, then PBR in that order to test your insides. That sequence makes up the heart of the batting order for "The Challenge."

As for food, you can always get a Butch's pizza and a bag of chips. Katie's also has fifty cent chili dogs every Saturday (11 AM- 5PM), which Trevor informed me is the reason for having root beer on tap.

I've listed Katie McButt's as a Peoria Institution because of it's age and atmosphere. Personally, I cannot think of another bar in town that is locally owned (with the possible exception of Crusen's) that has more beers on tap, this adds to Katie McButt's uniqueness.

Another unique thing about Katie's, is that it holds baseball dual citizenship. Mac, the owner, is a Cardinals fan and there are several St. Louis mementos in the bar. The bartender Trevor, however, is a die-hard Cubs fan (as if there were any other kind). So, when Mac is occupying his seat in the tavern, it's a Cardinals bar but as soon as he leaves, Katie's magically transforms into a Cubs bar. If it is a slow night at Katie's, Trevor will turn the juke box off and turn up the game. Seeing as he had fond memories of both ball clubs, I think Harry Caray would find himself right at home here, especially with Budweiser on tap.

The atmosphere at Katie's is much like other older taverns that are located in a neighborhood, or in Katie watching the news. Around seven, they'll clear out and business will be pretty slow until nine or so when the regulars start creeping in. Katie's is hardly ever busy. The only exceptions to this rule are when a band is playing (not often) or when a group of professionals from downtown decide to take a chance and check out the East Bluff tavern for after-work drinks.

This past New Year's Eve, my friends and I made Katie's our bar for the night. Knowing that every place in Peoria was going to be packed, I came up with the idea to make Katie's our home base. It couldn't have worked out better. From nine until almost midnight, we had the bar to ourselves and even after people started showing up, there was still plenty of room to be comfortable. I'm not sure why it is that more people don't frequent McButt's and I'm not complaining because it's a great place to go and watch a Cubs game in peace. But I will say, if you're looking for a place to meet some friends that isn't too crowded and has a friendly atmosphere, Katie's is the place.

So, if you live in the East Bluff, I suggest making Katie's your local watering hole. If you don't live around the area, Katie's is still worth a shot (or two).

Cheers to Katie McButt's fro keeping the neighborhood tavern tradition alive and well!

P.S. Katie's, in keeping with the way things used to be in Ireland, is not open on Sundays

The Last Hurrah

The Last Hurrah is located in the Northpoint shopping center off N. Knoxville. It's a couple doors down from Firehouse Pizza. As far as I know this bar has been there for quite some time (at least 20 years). I've been told that during the 80's and 90's the Last Hurrah was "the place to be". Since then I think they've seen a drop-off in attendance which (I think) makes it an even better place to go.

The bartender who works there the most is known as Tex (I think it has something to do with his last name). He's a big dude who looks like he might have spent some time in a boxing ring. The guy is an absolute pro. Tex has been tending bar at the Last Hurrah for 15 years or so. He's a laid back guy with a good sense of humor. I say he has a good sense of humor because he usually wears a Cubs shirt which means he has to laugh off many a (usually bad) Cubs joke, coming from some Cardinals fan. If you patron the Last Hurrah 3 times in a two week period, Tex will most likely remember your name, or at least, your drink.

Beyond Tex there are plenty of other reasons to make the Last Hurrah one of your regular stops. First they have dollar drafts EVERY DAY. Obviously they are served in the smaller 8 oz. glasses but this is still a good deal. They also have cheap shots and good mixed drinks, you know, the ones where you can actually taste the booze!

Second, they have a nice new crackbox with tons of trivia and other games (not quite sure what is all on there, my girlfriend usually plays the machine while I watch baseball) as well as Silver Strike, Golden Tee and darts. There is only one pool table but it's really not that hard to get a game in, except for Thursday nights when the Pool League holds the table from 8ish to 10ish. There's usually this middle aged guy in there who is an amazing pool player and tries to shark people. He's cool but can be annoying, he's got a calling card though so you'll know who he is. So, if you are at the Last Hurrah and a 40 something guy wearing glasses says "I'll buy you a beer if you play me", what he means is "I'll buy you a beer if you play me, then you'll win because I'll let you, then I'll try to get you to play me for another beer, if you do I'll let you win again then I'll start trying to play for money". In other words, if you wanna play a couple games and get some beers cool, but once he starts saying "Awwww c'mon lets play for a buck" prepare to lose some cash.

Beyond the entertainment and cheap drinks, the Last Hurrah has another thing going for it; the TV's! They've got two 40 inch LCD's two slightly smaller ones, and an old rear projection in the corner near the pool table. Now, this might not seem like alot but when you take into account that the bar is only twenty feet long, it is. Not only do they have a good amount of TV's for the size of the bar but the bartender will actually ask you want you want to watch! I've been in there before when the place was almost empty and Tex went ahead and turned every TV on the Cubs game, he even put the sound on, awesome.

So, if you've never been to the Last Hurrah before I'd advise you to check it out. That is, if you like laid back, neighborhood taverns where you can get your drinks quickly and cheaply and watch the game. Obviously, the place must be doing something right, it's been there for a long time, even when the Northpoint shopping center did not have much, there was always the Last Hurrah.

Bananas Alehouse and Eatery

First of all let me just say that when this bar opened my friends and I went there all the time. It is located on Willow Knolls Rd. between Allen and Radnor which is very close to where most of my friends (boozehounds) live. We used to go up there every Thursday because they have $2 U Call - Its. We were the regulars and could pretty much do whatever we want. Some examples would be: smoking pot/cigarettes in the bathroom (post smoking ban) being loud and unruly, and generally obstructing normal people (non boozehounds) who were trying to enjoy their pinot noir or whatever stupid fucking drink they were drinking that costed more than 2 bucks. It was fun and sadly now it is just lame.

Beyond Thursdays the only good night to go there is Saturday when they have one dollar wells. By the way, I still feel like I'm getting ripped off by paying one dollar for a shot of Ten High. What, was Big Lots out of fucking Kessler? One good thing about Bananas is that they probably have the highest ratio of hot chicks to not hot chicks on Peoria's Northside. However, as many an experienced drinker will tell you wherever there are hot chicks getting plastered on dollar vodka tonics, there will inevetably be an inordinate number of sleazy douchebags in Affliction t-shirts. Six months ago you couldn't throw a rock in LA, NY, or Chicago without hitting some wanna-be trendsetter with one these shirts and fucking scarf (so your neck is cold but your arms aren't?) and now these hideous clothes have finally made their way to Peoria. The Affliction t-shirt fan club apparently meets every Saturday night at Bananas to discuss how awesome Seether is and drop crappy pickup lines on hot milfs and young up and comers in whore heels. Awesome.

Now, I will provide all you guys and girls out there with the real problem afflicting (see what I did there) this poor excuse for a bar. If your only goal for going out on a particular night is to pick up a piece of strange, or you wish you could afford more Ed Hardy shirts this place might be right for you. However if you have any intention of tracking more than one sporting event, you, my poor uninformed friend are shit out of luck. That is because Bananas has only one TV. That's right One. Fucking. Television.

On a recent Saturday, the majority of my friends (wastoids) were at Bananas and I was the Last Hurrah (a REAL bar) watching the ND Purdue game. I wanted to go there (you know 1TVBar) and join them but not until I was assured by one of my less drunk friends that he would make sure that Notre Dame football would be on. When I arrived, the 1TVBar was showing Texas Tech vs. Who Cares! It Texas Tech for fucks sake! Immediately I wanted to lace into this idiot, because on a Saturday night it takes approximately 1 hour to change the channel. He then informed me that someone had actually requested that the channel be changed to the Tech game. So I asked the bartender to change it back, which he did. In between the 3rd and 4th quarters I went outside to smoke and when I came back in I found myself watching Penn State vs. Iowa. Sigh. The two guys sitting next to me were the perpetrators of this act so I could not vent my frustration freely (was still too sober to start shit). So I did what any responsible fan would do and asked for the remote. So, for the next 30 minutes I dutifully switched back and forth between the two games, a task which I performed admirably due to years of armchair quarterbacking. Actually, I did it so well that a complete fucking stranger came up and congratulated me on my remote control prowess. So, ND won, Penn State lost and 1TVBar is officially on the shit list.

When this place first opened I understood that maybe it would take them a while to get a couple more LCD's but almost 3 years later it has not happened! This is an indefensible act.

Other notes on 1TVBar. The food sucks (except for Butch's pizza, which is always good) and you can only get it during the day. All they make is crappy sandwiches, chips and salsa and a buffet that has chili and some form of chicken tortilla soup that isn't as good as the retarded shit I put together after a night of hard drinking and usually involves noodles and leftover chicken wings. Another thing that drives me nuts about this shithole is the bathroom. There's a toilet and a urinal but for some reason whenever some D-Bag goes in there he locks the door like he has some embarassing medical condition that requires him to sit down when he pees. Whenever this would happen before I would just jiggle the handle until it unlocked itself (much to the dismay of Mr. Stage Fright) and went in there and pissed but now they have replaced that lock and it is no longer possible (trust me I've tried).

To sum up, if you just wanna go out, catch the game and get your drinks in a reasonable amount of time, don't go here on any Saturday or Thursday. The rest of the week is OK, except for the fact that the jukebox must be kept at the lowest level possible until 8:00 because of the fucking nail salon next door. Also Crazy Lady is there alot, I'll explain her later.

Update I: Monday nights are free pool and $4 domestic pitchers, Tuesdays are $2 Heineken and Shocktop and $3 Monster bombs

Update II: Banana's is under fire from the city liquor commision. Apparently they have a class 2 (I think) liquor license that requires them to have 25 or 30% of their profits be from food sales. Apparently, their lackluster menu wasn't quite cutting it because they've been using sales of things like orange juice and counting it as food. They'll probably get fined. Honestly I don't understand why they don't just pop for the class 1 liquor license. If they hadn't spent a bunch of money by having lawyers fight this thing, they might have had enough cash get the class 1 LL.