Sunday, December 26th, 2010—Bar 350
Saturday, December 25th, 2010—Bar 350
Last Chance Bar and Grill
I needed to find a bar on Christmas and my brother thought he knew of a bar that would be open on Christmas. He had lunch a week ago nearby where he lives and works at a place called the Last Chance Bar and Grill and the bartender said they’d be open. I couldn’t count on this being a mistake, because our family is getting together tonight and there wouldn’t be a lot of time to find another one. So I checked in with The Chief who runs the fine Peoria Bar Blog: The Peoria Bar Review. He not only said it would be open, but that he’d meet me there and have a Christmas drink. So come along for the Christmas meeting of the East Coast and the Midwest Bar Crawlers!
Here we are, an aptly named bar for a joint that's open on Christmas day.
And not only is it open, there's people in here. But there's still plenty of seats at the bar. Let's settle in.
Terry the owner usually doesn't bartend, but since it was Christmas he volunteered so his bartenders could enjoy Christmas. A nice guy handing out a Christmas miracle.
And I'm not alone, since it's Christmas I have family with me. From left, my big brother Tom, my Dad and Yours Fooly performing the first ever annual wearin' of the Budweiser on my Dad. and check out my t-shirt it's a design "Boris" did for Gidget's cool show on Woody Radio. If you'd like your own Gidget shirt, you can order one from the 365 Bar Store, just click here: Gidget shirt. There's also one "Boris" designed for his "Secret Weapon" show on Woody radio, check it out here: "Secret Weapon" t-shirt. Nice work Daddio!
A shot of the festive bar from my stool.
Here's a wide shot of the long bar.
There's large wooden tables opposite the bar.
They have a large selection of specialty beers available at the bar.
There's two pool tables in the back game room.
There's also a state of the art dart board.
There's a wooden railing beneath the windows in the back room.
There's a beer garden in the back and I see some guys back there. Are they thirsty, giant elves? Let's go see.
Ron and Bob were enjoying beers back here. It turns out that at one time Bob was neighbors with my Uncle Bill Wombacher. More proof of what a small world it is. Cheers, guys!
My dad came back to say hi to Bob and to swap stories about my uncle Bill.
There's tables back here and what's the round object on top of the table?
An ashtray! Even though it's enclosed back here, since it's a beer garden you can smoke back here.
And my brother Tom takes advantage of this, another Christmas miracle!
There's a ceiling fan up above to keep the air moving back here.
Here's Don with a Big Al's sweatshirt. I asked him how the women are out at Big Al's these days and he told me he doesn't go there, they come out here. Hmm...I need to get out here some night and check that out.
I brought a couple of "Boris" designed Crawlapalooza t-shirts from the 365 Bar Store to hand out as gifts. Here's Bob with his.
Meanwhile, Terry takes care of business back at the bar.
This is definitely one of he longest bars on the bar crawl so far.
Uh, oh, Santa's hat is on the Jägermeister machine. I think he's passed out in the back, I hope he got all his toys delivered.
It turns out the Chief from the Peoria Bar Review couldn't make it, so he sent his friend, the lovely and pretty Amber. She's really cool and we had a nice conversation. Hey Chief, you seem like a great guy and some day we really need to meet, but you can send Amber in your place any day of the week!
And she works in the funeral business, so she was very helpful in trying to revive me after I passed out over-celebrated. Goodnight everybody!
Review
The Last Chance has stood in it’s place for years. Owner Terry bought the joint seventeen years ago and has put on additions including the back game room and the beer garden where you can smoke cigarettes, which sadly is a rarity in this Nazi-smoking regimed world we live in now. There’s also two pool tables in the back room along with state of the art darts.
They have a huge selection of beers and a full bar. They also have a kitchen and a diverse menu. They’re famous for their tenderloin sandwiches and the bar opens at 6am and they are known as having one of the best breakfasts in town.
It’s also on the Peoria Bar Review list of Peoria Institutions, so you know this place is a winner.
2713 W 2nd St.
Peoria, Illinois
309-243-5036
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Bonus Christmas Photos!
My parents have about everything they need, so we all chipped in got them something you can always use...booze!
And look, Kari, you were right, I got socks! Merry Christmas/Clackmas everybody!
6 References
Reader Comments (24)
I need sox's , I have to many quiters .
Nice long shot of The Long Bar , wow my toy car would go Ziouming across , I don't think I showed you my toy car @ work , but I been doing jumps from light table to light table with home made ramp , but I do it late so know one see me doing this , was trying to make video of it , anyway why am I rambling about this ?
Your Family seems Happy with all of the booze they have , Cheers .
OH shit back to work Monday , will you be in ? Maybe you can help me make my toy car video .
TO : Peoria , for inventing Marty Wombacker !!
Hats off to Boris AKA 'Mr. Logo' for the great Gidget T - shirt design! You're a class act Boris, and anybody that hires you for their graphic arts needs is going to get their money's worth. With a name like Last Chance Bar and Grill, you almost expect to see Clint Eastwood, John Wayne or Alan Ladd in there at the end of the bar, packing heat and waiting for some one to make his day!
Chee, Marty, I feel all warm and fuzzy. Thanks for reminding us all that Christmas is a time for family and for drinking your legs off.
I like Peoria ... a cool town with a lot of cool bars to visit. I'd fit in there ... I think ?
A great slice of Hometown Crawl Marty!
Thanks for the shout out Jaws.
Hey Daddio, I hope with the current East Coast weather situations, you get back home OK.
You may be winding down the REST of the Crawl from the Midwest.
Be safe traveling if you get out on time.
Wish you had remembered your PHONE!
Awwwww Marty you look so awesome in my shirt.. Thank you "B" for such and awesome design with my fave car on it! (Nash Metropolitan)
Glad you are having a great time with the fams!
I love your parents
Peoria looks awesome by the way. The people look very friendly.
and you give awesome gifts to your folks...
I've given quite the same to my mum and dad.
Happy Boxing day.
Great to see other generations of Wombachers on the bar crawl in Peoria! Amber was a nice addition as well! And that is a cool Gidget t-shirt by Boris. And you did it all on Christmas day, a lesser bar crawler would've taken this day off. Cheers to Marty and his family and Peoria!
Hey Marty, did you ever find out about that Catholic girls school that blew up two or three blocks away from the street where I spent my childhood? I told you about that a year or two ago. My house was on Kenwood Ave, about two blocks or so from that school, and a few blocks over from Calvin Coolige grammar school. The explosion was in the late fifties or early sixties. Left a big crack in our living room wall and the neighbors talked about it for years.
Tom keeps his hair just like Marty,,, great family picture and the booze bottles for Dad and Mom is fabulous, the Classic 12 yr old I see. Good neighborhood bar and grill. The chief gave you a Christmas present by sending Amber,,,very pretty gal.
Awesome seeing the Wombacher variations in the photos! Merry Christmas!
Wait... "The Wombacher Variations" would be a really good hipster douchebag band name!
Merry Clacksmas once again and howdy to Ma and Pa Wombacher!!
I got socks too!
Love that Terry worked the bar for his employees, great boss there. Nice to see more of the fam, my parents would die if I bought them alcohol lol. Yay for socks! I don't remember the last time someone bought me socks. Love the shirt "Boris". And like "Boris", I heard on the news flights are being canceled in NY, so I hope you make it home safe and soon!
Hey, after a weekend without internet access, just like Marty, and a great hangover, I'm back!
Merry Clackmas for you all!
Cool bar, and nice T-shirts Boris!!!! Unfortunatly, the shipping to Brazil it's much more expensive than the T-shirt itself!!
The Last Chance Bar & Grill looks like a great place! I love those old signs hanging off of utility poles - never see them in the city. I also like those bar stools, and all of the gaming options too. I don't smoke anymore, but if I did, I'd love that beer garden. And when the outside temp gets a little warmer, I'd probably love that beer garden anyway! Great to see your dad and bro on the crawl (and your mom and dad with the gifts that keep on giving). Hope everyone had a Merry, Merry Christmas and that the week before the New Year is filled with more family, friends, happiness, booze, food, more food, not-so-bad tv reruns, and massive amounts of lounging. TO LOUNGING!
@Everyone: I'm still internet-challenged, so I can't comment back to everyone, but happy holidays and thanks for all the nice comments and words. Hopefully tomorrow I'm flying back to New York, so tomorrow's post won't be up till late afternoon, early evening. Cheers!
Gosh, Marty, I had a hard time concentrating after the wonder of S'more Couture. I imagine Karl Lagerfeld inside, offering a tray of melty marshmallow-and-chocolate topped graham crackers.
I'm a big FAN of Karl Lagerfeld! HA HA HA!
Weird! I didn't get socks for Christmas that year!!
Is that sign behind the darts target a beer brand? There's a belgian beer called "Bush" but without C in the name. Very strong beer! and talking about socks... If I remember well, Jason drank a Bush beer at AB bar in 2009 and after getting him out of the bar and taking him home (drunk), he looked at his socks, 20 minutes through my miror in the living room! haha saying "That's so weird! when I look in the miror, I can see my socks in the floor but if I look at them on the floor, I don't see them!" HAHAHA after that I knew I was in love! :D
(Time to go to work... booo boooooo.... I will try to comment back on other posts later !)
Cheers
That was a cool looking bar. I am glad that your brother and your dad could join you on the crawl.
wow. I cant believe Last Chance Bar and Grill was OPEN on Christmas AND they ALMOST have indoor smoking!
@Guilherme, in the holiday of Thanksgiving, there was a promotion for free shipping, but unfortunately I did not get the offer. Marty and Boris, there will be another chance for free shipping?
@ Marty, another great trip to Peoria, beautiful photos and great bars! upward and onward!
Oh, Merry Christmas and Clackmas!
To 15 more!
@Luc Ramone: I don't know about the free shipping rates, that all depends on the hosting site. However, the shirts and the blog will be up long after this bar crawl is over, so you've got plenty of time. And Merry Clackmas/Christmas to you and yours!
Great Picture of your parents, I am glad to see that they have a good supply of booze just in case of a snow storm.
Happy New Year!!!!
Knuckles Tiki Bar