September 24, 2011
A lot of you will remember a special bar on one of the last stops of my 365 Bar Crawl last year. It’s a unique bar in Peoria, called Jerry’s Bar. Well, it’s my second night in Peoria and I thought we’d have a drink or three at Jerry’s bar.
I love the hand-drawn, artisanal sign hanging out front.
Here's the familiar stairwell that descends into Jerry's Bar.
And here's the legendary bar in all its glory. Some of you reading this sat on these stools back in the late '70s and had a beer or 12 at the bar and maybe even snorted something off of it. Oh, those crazy days in the '70's in Jerry's Bar. Fuzzy memories, indeed!
A long shot of the Formica-topped bar...where's the bartender, I sure could use a drink!
And if by magic, here's Jerry, the infamous bartender of Jerry's. He is to me, what Lloyd was to Jack Nicholson in "The Shining." A great bartender, with no judgement.
And here's Jerry with the lovely hostess of Jerry's Bar, Anne. I have to behave down here or they'll send me up to my room with no supper.
As you can see, it's a well-stocked bar.
These fellows have been on the wall for decades.
There's more colorful characters at the end of the bar along with some of the patented Jerry's Bar coasters. There's a Jerry's Bar coaster adorning the Bunt Custer's bar all the way across the world in Australia. Cheers, Clacky!
Here's a ship getting ready to set sail in the sink behind the bar.
And finally, an obligatory mirror shot! Goodnight everybody and see you tomorrow after dark.
Further reading: Jerry’s (Wicker Park), Jerry’s Sandwiches and facecrack.
The postman delivers the final reminders
She sells off her silver and poodles in china.
23 Comments
Reader Comments (23)
Always love seeing your folks. I bet they are very hospitable bar owners. Hope you didn't get sent to your room!
That's not a bar, it's a time capsule.
Your folks seem really nice. Hi Marty--glad you are having a good time. Congrats to the bride and groom.
Wish I was there having a drink with your dad. I like the way he fixes drinks in a huge glass with big ice cubes. That's the old school way,,,,the best way.
Home is the sailor, home from the sea,
And the hunter home from the hill. - Robert Louis Stevenson
"Behave yourself when you're under my roof boy, and watch your f*#%*ing mouth..." - my old man.
@kari: So far it's been a banner trip, haven't been grounded OR sent to my room!
@csp: If that bar could talk, I probably wouldn't want to hear a lot of the stories!
@Melanie: My folks are great and I'm having a great time. I'll send your regards to Michael and Abbie.
@Al: It would've been great to have you join us in Jerry's bar!
@Jaws: Great quote and was your dad the role model for The Great Santini?
Great pics of your folks!
If I ever met them, I would insist that your father speak with an Irish accent (even if he doesn't have an ounce of Irish in him). He just looks as if he should.
One of my high school friends had a bar that looked so much like this ... and, yes, we partied there when his parents were on vacation. Good times.
Also, a great Squeeze tune that I had forgotten about. A++
@ Mad...funny you should mention the Great Santini, my old man trained as a fighter pilot during WW II...his knee cap was shattered in a football game while he was still a cadet and they sent him home with a pension. Say, I got an e-mail from Printfection, they've added baseball hats to their product line (Boris take note) and I'm offering 'Sip Ahoy' and 'Jaws the Cabbie' hats at my Printfection site now. Talk to Boris about offering a Marty After Dark hat!
@Al .... a while ago you asked me if I've ever been to Walt's Inn -- well I'm here now ... nice old school joint. I actually remember being here like 3the years ago. It's funny - I go to so many places - I somestimes forget, until I'm inside, and then it all comes back to me :)
@GENE: That's great you remembered being there, its a great old bar, I was there back in 2005 when I was visiting friends in Columbia, MD. He took us to Walts and Fells Point, though I can't remember too much now,,,,,hey Gene,,,,take some pictures and have Marty post them.
@Al ... we left Walt's and are at a nearby Irish place called Mike McGovern's now .... it's beautiful - me and Smoopy are the only people here! ... nice cool neighborhood place -- better than Walt's. Next time I do a guest crawl for Marty -- I'll have to hit this neighborhood --it's the real deal :)
Need a couple of Tilted Kilts on Jerrys Bar!!! Now thats Irish!!!!
@MAD: On a pop-psychology tip, do you sorta flashback to Jerry''s Bar's carpet whenever you see that red tartan pattern? (i.e. Scotch tape logo?)
@roadsidewonders: Ha! I'll tell my Dad to brush up on his Irish accent! And I love that Squeeze song too, one of their best!
@Jaws: Thanks for the hat tip! We'll check it out!
@GENE: We'll have to set up a guest crawl soon, I'd like to see those bars! Maybe this Friday?
@RON: Great idea!
@csp: That must explain why I stagger whenever I tape something!
Good to see 'Jerry's Bar' again!
(as well as the wonderful proprietors!)
Hope you are having a good visit.
Man, my folks had those EXACT head figurines on their wall.
(I wonder what ever happened to them?)
Have a safe trip back and we'll catch up this week.
I have a few things in the works for the site.
@"Boris": I bought those for my parents from the tobacco store that used to be in Northwoods Mall. Very cool that you had the twin brothers in your basement! My parents say hi and we'll yak this week. Hope you're doing great Daddio!
Those heads on the wall scare me more than clowns. And that's hard to do.
@Biff: They're your personal Cardboard Box Man! Aaaahhh!
You may have not been grounded yet, but wait till they find out about that porn stash you picked up a couple of weeks ago.
Hooray for the obligatory mirror shot!
@JAZ: Ha ha ha! I left the stash in Manhattan and since my parents don't have a computer, they'll never know. If they ever do get the internet and start going through the archives, I could be in big trouble!
@meleah: Hooray!
Your parents are so awesome!! Love this post, Marty!!! One of my favorites thus far! That is one sweet setup he has!!
I'm late but had to comment. I have heard so many stories from Tom about the bar in his grandpa's basement-once we get these kids out of the house I hope we van turn the basement into Tom's bar!