Made a quick jaunt to Peoria over the weekend. Learned the hard way that many, if not most, businesses are closed Sundays making for slim pickins on the second day of our trip. Also many of the dairy stands that were on our target list were closed for the season. A return trip is in order, but still some highlights to share.
50s Diner - Great diner all around with many items made from scratch in house. The "I Love Loosey" sandwich is a nice take on the loose meat sandwich from the maid-rite franchise that used to own the building.
Larry's Driftwood Pizza - A classic tavern style pizza joint that serves nothing but pitchers of beer and cracker crust pizzas. The pizza is a unique take with sausage, green peppers and onions minced fine (I remarked almost like a lahmacun) with cheese melted in streaks on top. The balance of the pizza, much less cheese than is typical, worked for us. Also loved that sriracha seemed to be the hot sauce of choice at this old school spot.
Castle's Patio Inn - Didn't end up doing a meal there since the tavern wasn't well suited for children, but we did pick up a 2 pound tub of their cheese spread. Great stuff. 120 day aged cheddar with lots of garlic and spices. Grown up cheez whiz.