Live, from Peoria, Illinois, it’s Saturday Night, starring this week’s host, Castle’s Patio Inn with special guest stars, Lisa, Alex, Kevin, Ali, Jim and Anne and featuring the Ready For Prime Beef Player, Marty Wombacher! And now please welcome this week’s host and iconic neighborhood Peoria bar, Castle’s Patio Inn!
My friend Lisa is behind the wheel and looking pretty as she steers us to Castle’s Patio Inn.
And here we are at this neighborhood bar that’s been on the block for as long as I can remember. Of course, that’s not saying too much as I have trouble remembering what I did last night.
As you can see from the neon in the front windows, this is a St. Louis Cardinals bar, all you Cub fans are welcome, but please keep your opinions silent once you enter the bar!
And there’s even more St. Louis Cardinals neon opposite the front door, let’s go in and start this week’s Saturday night adventure!
There’s plenty of seats at the bar, but I happened to look over to my left as we walked in...
And I think I see a familiar face over there...
It’s my old pal, Jim Bonnett, seated at the left corner of the table with his wife Anne and their friends Bobby and Amy who were in town visiting from Indianapolis. This was a nice surprise and it was great to see all of them! JIm’s a musician and is one half of a banjo duo that has goes by the name, “Banjovi & Hawkins.” I love that name and you can check out their facecrack page right here!
After a brief chit-chat with Jim and Ann and their friends, Lisa and I got settled in at the bar and bartender extraordinaire, Alex was quick on the draw with an ice-cold bottle of Budweiser. Always love to see Alex and hear his stories!
And the night starts out on a great note as Alex serves up a crock of the legendary Patio Inn cheese and a stack of Ritz Crackers. Somewhere Andy Griffith is smiling.
Wow, it’s not only delicious, this cheese defies gravity! I quickly ate it because this is freaking the fuck out of me!
This trio is the night shift crew at Castle’s Patio Inn, from left: Ali, who’s the pretty waitress and hostess, Kevin, who’s the chef and will be making tonight’s dinner and Alex, who needs no introduction because he already got one!
Behind the bar is this wooden refrigerated cabinet that houses...
Crocks of the famous Castle’s cheese spread, best cheese in Peoria and beyond! You can get a crock or two to go, but be forewarned, this cheese is so addicting, people have been known to finish off the crock in the car before they even get it home!
Just like everything in this place, the trio of taps never changes and that’s a good thing.
The Budweiser Trolley spins overhead at the bar, the Trolley is always the mark of a classic Peoria bar.
A shot of the dining area and bar from the back of Castle’s Patio Inn.
I love this corner of Castle’s, but I’m always bummed that the Spuds neon light is never turned on...
I vocalized my sadness and Alex came to the rescue! Spuds is lit at Castle’s, I know that feeling well!
Shine on you crazy Spuds!
The Daily Specials are posted on this board above the bar...
While the Nightly Specials are listed on the back wall, right next to...
The jukebox, which has a varied mix of tunes from The Beatles to The Ramones to Frank Sinatra and everyone in between. It’s got quite the musical mix.
Oh, deer!
Meanwhile, back at the bar, Ali and Alex are filling drink orders...
And here comes Kevin with tonight’s Saturday night feast he expertly prepared back in the kitchen!
Lisa and I split the Castle Crown Sandwich the signature prime beef sandwich at Castle’s and it comes with a pile of potato chips. You can read more about the sandwich in the review below, but it’s really a tasty treat!
We also split an order of the potato skins and they were wonderful too!
And for dessert, we opted for another round of beers! Cheers!
You know it’s close to closing time when Alex takes a seat at the bar! Thanks to Lisa, Alex, Ali, Kevin, Jim and Anne for a fun Saturday night at Castle’s Patio Inn! We’ll see you all tomorrow!
Our Meal
Lisa and I split the signature Castle’s Patio Inn sandwich, The Castle Crown. The sandwich has tender prime beef slices and is topped with Castle’s cheese spread, onions and pickles. This cheesy, beefy mixture is housed between two slices of French bread and heated up on a griddle so the cheese melts and it’s one of the most delicious sandwiches in town! Both Lisa and I added some spicy mustard to the mix and that really took it over the top, a really tasty sandwich!
We also split an order of the potato skins and they’re potato boats filled with melted cheddar cheese, bacon bits and onion. You can’t go wrong with ingredients like that and they were a nice side dish for the sandwich.
SN Rating
Three and a half Galloping Gourmets. If you’ve never had The Castle Crown, you owe it to yourself to stop by and try it. Castle’s is open for both lunch and dinner, Tuesday through Saturday.
Castle’s Patio Inn
802 W. Loucks
Peoria
309-685-9570
Related posts: Saturday Night @ The Publik House, Salt and McMahon’s Pints and Plates.