Live, from Peoria, Illinois, it’s Saturday Night Cheeseburger, starring this week’s host, Salt and featuring the Ready For Prime Beef Player, Marty Wombacher. And now, all the way from Prospect Road in Peoria Heights, please welcome Salt!
Okay, here we are at Salt. I checked in with them and they said their bar menu stops serving between 10PM and 11PM. It's 10:15, so let's see if we can still get a cheeseburger in here.
If you look closely you can see an unplanned obligatory doorway mirror shot. Let's go in and see what's going on in Salt.
Breakfast, lunch and dinner are served here, let's get to the bar and see if we can get a cheeseburger.
They have a nice bar in here and I see a stool with my name on it there at the end of the bar. Let's go snag it.
Here's Kevin the friendly bartender serving up an ice cold bottle of Stella Artois. He told me I just made it in the nick of time to get a cheeseburger. Alright, the game is on!
Here's the view of the bar from my perch.
The couple next to me were yukking it up with Kevin and I assumed they were regulars here...
But it turns out that this is their first night here, please meet Dana and Will. Kevin's such a good bartender that he makes you feel like a regular on your first night in the place. Dana and Will live in Morton and were fun neighbors at the bar!
Blue lights hang over the bar, giving a nice mood to the place. Plus they're kind of hypnotizing if you stare at them long enough.
There's dark wooden tables opposite the bar to sit and dine at.
And if you move to the right of the bar, you'll find another dining area. It's late, so no one's sitting in here, service is mainly at the bar until midnight when they close.
If you like wine, you should check this place out, they have over 40 different hand-picked selections on the menu to choose from.
Here's a shot from the back of the front room.
I had to get a full frame shot of the bar, it's like a work of art.
Meanwhile, back at my spot at the bar dinner utensils have been laid out. Looks like it's about cheeseburger time!
Kellen, who's the Executive Chef here brought the meal to me at the bar.
Wow, this is one amazing looking cheeseburger. I got it with smoked Gouda cheese and on the side I ordered bacon salt infused potato chips. Time to dig in!
This is a great burger! The pretzel bun and the smoked Gouda cheese really make it a unique and tasty burger.
Well I did away with that fairly quickly! A wonderful cheeseburger on a wonderful night.
Kellen came out and wanted to know how the cheeseburger was. He's a nice guy and it turns out he just moved back from New York too. He said after he finished school he lived in L.A. and New York so he could get experience cooking on both coasts. Luckily he returned to Peoria and we get to sample his extraordinary cooking skills here. He makes one mean cheeseburger, I have to return to sample other items off the menu.
Okay, it's just about 11:00 o'clock, so time to head out the door and hightail it to...
Emack & Bolio's for dessert, which is just a couple doors down the block from Salt.
Tim Hennessey was goofing off and wasn't working, but co-owner Jim Maxwell served up a cone of the MBIP flavor of the month. I said the secret word and saved a buck! A perfect ending to a great night out on the town. See you all tomorrow.
My Cheeseburger
I got the House Burger which is ground chuck mixed with caramelized leeks. You have your choice of aged white cheddar, cheese curds or smoked Gouda to top it off. I went with bartender Kevin’s suggestion of smoked Gouda. The burger is a generous hunk of juicy beef and the Gouda cheese added a nice smokiness to the burger. And what really made it shine, was the homemade pretzel bun that houses the burger. I always say the bun makes the burger and the pretzel bun really made it for me. On the side, I got the homemade potato chips with bacon infused salt and they were so good they almost stole the show from the burger!
The dinner menu at Salt is and original and eclectic menu with items you won’t find in any other Peoria restaurants such as: Salt Crusted Beef, Moroccan Spiced Rack of Lamb, Pork Ribeye Churrasco and Vegetarian Noodles. One item I need to come back and try is the Corn Dog du jour! They also serve breakfast and lunch.
Cheeseburger Rating
Three and a half Wimpy’s, one of the best burgers I’ve had in Peoria so far.
Salt
4542 N. Prospect Rd.
Peoria Heights
309-966-1035
Further Reading: Peoria Journal Star, PACVB and Foursquare.
