Those of you who have been following my blog for a long time may remember my friends, Kevin and Star. They appeared on the blog many times, especially around Christmas. Then a few years ago, they got an RV and decided to live out the Lost In America dream and roam the country and we haven’t seen each other for a few years.

I think their last appearance on the blog was back in Christmas of 2021.

Well, they’ve pulled back into town and hitched their RV up near Canton and we’ve decided to meet at Billy’s Pub, a popular Canton bar.

And my friend, Jim/Karl is going to be driving us there, so let’s go hit the road to Canton, Illinois.

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Bar Number 183: Billy’s Tap, Wednesday, August 5, 2026

And there’s the aforementioned Karl behind the wheel steering us to Canton, Illinois. He’s pulling a true Karl face there, I love it!

Whoops, speaking of Karl, here he comes with a message for the MBIP Karl…

“I sure hope you’re going to get some of them French fried potaters to make up for those sickening green beans you ate last week, Karl. Mmmhmmm…”

And through the miracles of these here interwebs, here we are at Billy’s Tap in Canton, Illinois. I love the signage and the artwork on the side of the building here!

I was here in 2016 when MBIP Wheelman Scott Turley and I went on a Christmas shopping trip here to Canton. I can’t believe that was ten years ago!

Let’s go in and see what’s happening in Billy’s Tap on this summer evening in Canton, Illinois!

Wow, the place looks just as cool as I remember it from ten years ago! Let’s find Kevin and Star…

And here they are, Star and Kevin looking absolutely fabulous!

It’s so wonderful to see them again and feature them on the blog! The bar was full, so we decided to sit at a table, have some drinks and a bite to eat and then head to the bar later in the evening.

There’s Karl seated at our table and we all loved his “Pain Reliever” t-shirt!

Janelle was our friendly waitress and here she is posing with Star!

After we got our drinks, Kevin took me on a tour of Billy’s Tap. I love the lit up ceiling and the Billy’s logo hanging up there. There’s a Budweiser trolley in the lower left corner, always the sign of a classic bar!

There’s the packed bar and gaming machines line the wall behind it.

I love all the beer siganage in here and check out behind the bar, it’s the one and only Hamm’s Bear! Very cool!

There’s Kevin leading us into the back dining room and bar in here. I forgot how massive this place is!

Here’s Kevin taking us out to the beer patio and there’s also a beer garden out here. This place truly has it all!

When we came back inside, we met Ashley who’s the third generation owner of Billy’s Tap.

Her Grandfather bought the bar back in 1948, from the original owner, Billy Brotz. He kept Billy’s name on it and it’s been in the family ever since.

Ashley took charge of Billy’s over 20 years ago and you can read all about the history of Billy’s Tap by clicking here and reading a nice article by Phil Luciano.

Here’s a photo of the original owner, Billy Brotz, hanging on the wall opposite the bar.

I ran into my friend Wes, who lives here in Canton and it was great to see him and catch up on things!

Meanwhile, back at our table, our food has arrived. We got a pizza and Karl got a cheeseburger and much to the other Karl’s delight, he did get some of them French fried potaters…mmmhmmm.

And as always, he loves to soak them in ketchup! I’m sure the other Karl is happy that this Karl is eating red French fried potaters as opposed to green beans this week!

Karl said the cheeseburger and fries were absolutely fantastic!

The pizza was a tasty treat too and here’s Star and Kevin enjoying it at our table. They have great food here at Billy’s Tap and it’s worth the drive from Peoria to dine here for lunch or dinner!

Okay, some seats have opened up at the bar, so we decided to sit over there for a nightcap or two…or three!

Grace was the pretty bartender on duty and here she is delivering me an ice cold bottle of Budweiser. My favorite after dinner drink!

There’s the many beers on tap behind the bar and the cooler is very well stocked with assorted beer, seltzers and other beverages. You’ll never go thirsty here at Billy’s Tap!

There’s the Billy’s Tap logo emblazoned on the mirror and I love the Billy’s Blatz t-shirt haning behind the bar!

Here’s a shot from the very end of this lengthy bar!

And I had to get a shot of the outside of the bar at nighttime!

This was such a fun night and thanks to Ashley, Janell and everyone at Billy’s Tap for the wonderful food, drinks and friendly service and vibes.

Thanks to Kevin and Star for meeting us, it was so good to hang out with them and catch up on things after not seeing them for a few years! They may be making one more appearance here before they leave town, so stay tuned for that!

And thanks, as always, to Karl for driving and hanging out for the evening, always a blast to have him along for the night!

And big thanks to my friend Wes, who picked up and paid for our tab! That was very generous of him and he said it was his way of donating to the blog. Thanks so much, Wes!

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