Way back in February, when MBIP was still taking baby steps towards becoming the full-fledged, blog-o-rama-mama-lama-ding-dong blog that it is today, Bob Gordon contributed a post called, Peoria Before and After, that got a great reaction from people. I thought I’d take Bob’s post idea a step further and examine what’s inside of some of the buildings that used to be something iconic in Peoria.
I thought the first entry in this new series should be a stop at the Dairy Queen that inhabits the space that used to be the Sandy’s hamburger franchise that stood on Sheridan Road opposite Sheridan Village back in the day. Let’s get in the MBIP mobile and make tracks to the building that used to be a Sandy’s.
It's kind of a grey, cloudy day out here and this is just the kind of weather I like outside. Hooray for Hazel!
There's the signpost ahead...
I hate to be a nitpicker here, but shouldn't that read, "Smores ARE Back?" This'll bother me all day, don't ask me why. It just will.
Here's the way the building looked years ago, when it was a Sandy's hamburger restaurant...
And here it is today as a Dairy Queen. As you can see they built around the odd structure of the old Sandy's restaurant. I think it's cool that they didn't tear the place down and that it's still the original building.
Let's go inside and see what this place looks like now. I haven't been in here since the '70's!
Here's the front dining area and it looks somewhat similar to my vague memories of the inside of this place.
I saw something in here that I thought dated back to the original Sandy's, but I wanted to get it verified. Here's Pat the friendly manager and she did indeed verify that...
The wooden beams are the same ones that were in this building back when it was a Sandy's. This building was built in 1958, the year I was born, so they're as old as me.
They should put some sort of commemorative plaque on them.
It's weird, looking at these beams really does jar the old memory banks! The inside of this place really isn't much different from back in the day when it was a Sandy's.
We'll name this beam, Jim.
Here's a vintage Dairy Queen photo on the wall. They should put up an old photo of the Sandy's. Yeah, I know I should quit telling them what to do, but hey, I'm just trying to help!
I thought I'd order something "Sandy's-like" in here, so I placed an order for a cheeseburger.
After you order you can sit down and they bring it to you, that's a nice touch! I chose this booth here. As you can see, I'm number 50. I'm pleased that I got an even number, if it would've been odd, it would've bugged me as bad as that sign out front reading, "Smores Is Back." I really should let that go, but I won't.
My cheeseburger has been delivered! It's an "original" cheeseburger, thank God it's not some knockoff cheeseburger!
It's funny, it looks just like a Sandy's cheeseburger from back in the day.
And I swear to God I'm not making this up, it tastes exactly like the burgers used to taste like back when it was a Sandy's. If you take a bite and look at the beams in here, you're kind of magically transported back in time. Drizzle, drazzle, druzzle, time for this one to come home!
Holy shitballs, look at what's at the bottom of my cheeseburger box! It's an Urban Artifacts miracle!
That shit is going to bug me all day and most likely though the whole weekend. Sometimes it sucks to be me. We'll see you all tomorrow.
Dairy Queen
4204 N Sheridan Road
Peoria
309-685-2706
Further Reading: Sandy’s Sheridan Road, Wikipedia and Roadside Architecture.l
Bonus Kickstarter Linkage
My friend and the person who designed my “The Boy Who Would Be A Fire Truck” book, Joe Freedman has started a new Kickstarter project and this one is really cool. He’s invented and designed a drawing machine called the GatorGraph and you can check it out here. Right now there’s a limited amount of sets to be had, so if you’re interested you should place your order now.
