Review Visit: September 17th, 2014…read more Pop. Pop. Get your popcorn here! Popcorn is like a burger sandwich or pizza. You can get your basic form of the food but the sky is the limit on the various ways to prepare it. Pizzas, sandwiches and popcorn are one of the many foods that comes in a million different flavors and combinations. Maybe not everyone loves popcorn (do these people even exist?) but places like Holland's Caramelcorn can offer popcorn lovers a seemingly endless variety to pick from. Having been through the Washington Square a few times, I noticed there were some cool and interesting shops to check out. So, I planned a day to explore the town's square and see what the local community has to offer. Upon finding a parking spot and entering the store, I knew I liked the place. It had this welcoming feeling to it and the person behind the counter was super friendly. The store was wide open and kept the merchandise against the walls. This allowed my friend and I an easy way to browse their wares. If you came here expecting to get much beyond the popcorn and soda, you will be disappointed. This store specializes in the popcorn and random sodas you've never heard of before. Luckily, there is a shop next door called Holland's Mercantile. But that's for another blog post. While we wandered the store, I managed to accumulate a handful of popcorn and sodas to take home with me to enjoy at my leisure. I don't remember how much everything cost but I wasn't worried about spending a few extra bucks to support local businesses. I will be honest, I may not have waited to get home before sampling some of the goods. The soda was a root beer variety and was bubbly and good. The popcorn, which the flavor escapes me, was good, tasted fresh, and had a bit of that grandma's love put in to it. Overall, it was a nice stop to pick up some goodies and to support a local business. If you happen to need some need for gourmet popcorn and odd ball sodas, you can't go wrong at Holland's. I believe they even do bulk orders for businesses. Remember, try to support those local businesses around you if at all possible.

Great old fashion shop, however they only pop once a week per the owner and the prices are higher…read morethan other small midwestern popcorn shops.

Review Visit: April 1st, 2015…read more Good ol' Uncle Bob. He is the Uncle you never hear of. But when you do, you love him. Well, that's how I feel about Uncle Bob's Homemade Ice Cream. I discovered this place while grabbing coffee in Eureka, IL. Oh boy, was it a good discovery. I sampled a few ice creams and loved each one. Conveniently when I was there, they also had dollar hot dogs! So between amazing ice cream and cheap hot dogs, I was in heaven. If you love ice cream and haven't visited Uncle Bob's, do yourself a service and go try some! The do sell Uncle Bob's ice cream at some local eateries, so keep your eyes peeled if you can't make it to the Eureka location.

This place is amazing. Served by mostly it seems local high school students, the service is…read morewelcoming, friendly, and efficient. With quite a few state fair winners in flavors, I find the ice cream delicious and well worth a visit. We had the peach and blackberry, both recommended to us by locals, and they did not disappoint. Strong fruit flavors in both with the peach having some good peach chunks too. We also ordered the hot dog which was solid but nothing crazy. Not that much seating throughout with probably 8 spots inside and a few benches outside. Great did a grab and go and there's a drive thru. We thought knowing Dayne Z or Brock M would help get us no free ice cream but we'll have to keep trying next time we visit.

Review Visit: September 17th, 2014…read more Sugar. Spice. Everything nice. Like in a lot of smaller towns, you'll usually have or find a business that deals in candy. Sugary confections. Sweet treats. Candy from yesteryears. Soda (pop) in more varieties than you care for it to come in. Things you think you'd never see again and things you fall in love with. Holland's Mercantile fills that role for Washington, IL. My friend Matt and I decided to spend an afternoon exploring the Washington Square to see what the town and it's folk offered. The words on the front of the store's glass got me excited at the possibilities held inside. As we opened the door and headed in, the excitement increased tenfold. It was like being a kid in a candy store. Except that we are adults... in a candy store. Upon entering, I first noticed the long row of candy in the glass containers where you can scoop out as much as you want. Lining the walls were a million different candy from a million different times and cultures. I saw things I hadn't seen in years. They had stuff I didn't think existed in time where color TV is the norm. On top of the candy, they also had a display case full of baked goods. Whether these are made in-house or from a local bakery, I am not sure. Either way, the stuff looked fantastic behind the glass. Turtles. Truffles. Caramel Bars. It all looked so good that I think my blood sugar level elevated just looking at the offerings. This store has more than just candy, baked goodies, and sweets from everyone's childhood. They also had the novelty toys from the same time period the candy/sweets come from. There were novelty toys that tied in to current day trends but they also had toys that kids from our time would enjoy just as much as kids from the time from which they came. I also think there was a back room that was full of a combination of everything the store offered. On this day, I let my inner child run wild and I picked up a small sack full of candy. I didn't want to get too much because I don't have the best self-control when it comes to my sweet tooth. Next door is another Holland's store that offers up popcorn in many different flavors and even more soda to pick from. This store did remind me of the candy store from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, minus the Candy Man tossing candy to and fro. Though that would've been quite the sight to see. The store just has this feeling of being a great place to get your sweet tooth fix while reliving items from your childhood and also your parent's childhood. I will end this with a warning. If you have kids and bring them here... expect to drop a lot of money on sweets and toys. It's easy to spend a small fortune in a place like this. Also, don't let your kids see Holland's Caramelcorn next door. They might get loaded up on sugar and then get popcorn cheese everywhere. How sweet it is.

The best variety of popcorn indulgence is waiting for you at Hollands. It is hands down better…read morethan Garrett's! I make trips to central Illinois, and this is one of my must do stops!

Moved to town not to long ago and a new ice cream place opened up over the summer! It's in place of…read morethe Old Dairy Queen in case you didn't know! I've visited a couple times and I took a few pictures every time I went. The people that work here are super friendly, helpful and quick! I have discovered that the blueberry cheesecake creamer is my absolute favorite! The ice cream tastes so fresh and Light! They have a ton of seating surrounding the building and when I go I also see a lot of people hanging around, happy, and having fun! They usually get through the lines pretty quickly though. If you see a big crowd of people don't hesitate to stop, the wait won't be very long! Get over there and try a blueberry cheesecake creamer, you won't regret it!

Carius Creamery in Morton is a hometown gem--still under the same ownership as when it was Dairy…read moreQueen downtown for so many years. They've kept all the charm and quality you'd expect, with a fantastic ice cream selection that feels very familiar if you loved the classic DQ menu. The service is always quick and incredibly friendly--it's the kind of place where you feel welcome the moment you walk up. There's plenty of parking and outdoor seating, which makes it perfect for families or a relaxing treat. And with a park just across the street, it's a great stop when you're out with little ones. Delicious ice cream, great people, and a perfect location.

Review Visit: September 7th, 2014…read more The Ice Cream Shack of Sunnyland... located in Washington? We are here to talk about the ice cream shack of....... Sunnyland. My friend Matt and I decided to come here after grabbing some pizza from Aurelio's in Peoria. After having some greasy pizza, you need something sweet and delectable to wrap up after a day of exceeding the recommended number of calories per day. We arrived shortly after the sun went down. You almost wouldn't be able to tell as the line of cars in their drive-thru was enough to make it seem like midday. That is a bit of an exaggeration but whenever I cruise by and it's 'ice cream shack season', there is a line about 10-15 cars deep. This night was no exception. After squeezing in a parking spot, we got in the human line that wasn't as long as the car line but still impressive for the time of day. As we had plenty of time to look over the menu, Matt and I couldn't help but remark at the millions of items on the menu. The size of the building leads you to be fooled in to thinking that this place serves only the basics. It felt like reading a novel as I looked over the dozens of options. I'm not sure what Matt ordered but I remember getting a peanut butter malt/shake/blizzard. I don't remember what the specific type of ice cream novelty drink it was but I remember it being delicious. I could tell by Matt's smile that he was equally enjoying his drink as well. Not wanting to be locked in the parking spot by the ever-long line from the drive thru, we hopped in at took off. Since it was a quick visit, this is a short post. I have only been here the one time but I would love to revisit some day and try the bazillions of food offerings they have along with another peanut butter... anything. Yeah, I have a peanut butter addiction.

Fantastic local ice cream shop. Have not ordered a bad item off their menu yet!…read more Glad to see they keep the old school ice cream soda on the menu!

Updating my review because my opinion has changed. The last several times we have been the service…read moreand food have been perfect. So glad to have DQ nearby.

Its a Dairy Queen, you're not getting gourmet food, but this DQ from what I could tell is clean,…read morewell kept, friendly staff, good hot food, and has yet to fail me after a few visits. I see a lot of nit picky reviews on here, but keep in mind what it is. Overall I have had no issues here and will continue eating here every so often.

Review Visit: May 5th, 2013…read more The iconic ice cream cone-shaped building in the heart of East Peoria, IL. If you are a resident, you have probably driven by this place many times. Some of you may have even stopped in for a bite to eat. I have stopped by many times myself since I live close to it. Each time, the ice cream never disappoints. I have gotten the food a few times and while it is cheap, it's also only 'okay'. Not that the food is terrible in any way, it's just that could use a little lovin' while being cooked. My special item I get here isn't even on the menu. It is a strawberry ice cream with chunks of waffle cone in it... while served in a waffle cone. It is divine!

Absolutely the service is fantastic the tenderloin our world famous and is made with (love)! I…read moretotally recommend this restaurant! Bekah Grys- from Central Illinois riding therapy

Environment: GREAT I will definitely come there again!…read moreThe environment is so nice. And the mini golf was so much fun in such a beautiful place!

Review Visit: June 13th, 2016…read more A perfect combination of fun and delicious. I have, admittedly, been here many times before June 13th. But that is neither here nor there. The only thing you need to know is that this place has cheap mini golf and some of the best ice cream around. The mini golf portion is about $5.50 a person, young ones being cheaper. The course is your typical 18 holes. But this course is quite challenging and I have only sunk a few Hole-in-Ones here. There is a sweet deep blue fountain/waterfall that runs through most of the park. My ball has gone in the water more times than I care to admit. The challenging but fun course aside, the real gem here is their ice cream. Imported all the way from Madison, Wisconsin, this is some of the best that I have. It easily is in my Top 3. My usual is a Caramel ChocoLatte. Sooooo good. The company they get it from is called Chocolate Shoppe Ice Cream and I really want to visit Madison, Wisconsin one day to have ice cream directly from them. All in all, a great place to spend an afternoon putting balls and devouring ice cream. This is actually one of the few places on my blog that falls into two categories. Mini Golf and Ice Cream Shack, since you can pop in and enjoy ice cream without ever stepping on the green.

Review Visit: May 13th, 2015…read more This ice cream is '¡muy caliente!" I knew Mexican soda was a thing but Mexican ice cream? Not in the capacity to have it's own ice cream shack. Well, queue my surprise when I learned that there was a Mexican ice cream shop in Peoria. One that has a name that leads you to think that maybe... just maybe this place is delicious. Doing what I normally do (as avid readers of this blog will know), I gathered up one of my friends who likes to travel (Matt) and we headed over the Illinois River (not the Peoria River) to get some ice cream (and add more bracketed comments to this paragraph for no reason). The location of Las Delicias is a bit of an odd one. Actually, those whole road of shops is not a greatly planned out area. You have all these shops along Main St but the parking situation leaves a lot to be desired. You usually have to hunt for a place to park and sometimes walk a small distance to your destination. I just wanted to put this in here as a warning should you want to venture down Main St. Matt and I found a place to park and headed in. Upon entering, we were greeted by a friendly cashier and shop that was small and felt homely (in a good way). This place truly felt like it was a family-owned. Matt and I browsed the handful of offerings and I was surprised by the flavors. Granted, this was over 5 years ago, so I don't remember the specifics and I failed to take a photo of what was being offered at the time. I grabbed some kind of strawberry ice cream while Matt got himself some flavor that I never heard of before. We paid for our ice cream desserts and headed out. I think there were a few chairs inside to sit but due to the small-sized of the restaurant, we opted to eat outside as we walked back to my car. I am a sucker for strawberry (and peanut butter) flavored treats. At this point in my life, I had quite a few different strawberry-flavored items but this one is the only one that instantly blew me away. Something about the quality of this dessert was unreal. It was far and above beyond anything you would find in the store unless you option for the expensive stuff. This stuff tasted homemade and had love in every scoop. I can't properly describe how much I loved this ice cream cone and how sad I was when it was gone. If you find yourself in Peoria and are on a circuit of trying out all the ice cream places, this one needs to be at the top of your list. You won't regret it. If you do go and you do regret it, lo siento. That's what life is all about though, right? Trying new things and seeing what the world has to offer.

Great variety it options, traditional and non-traditional flavors and very consistent in quality! I…read morelove going here for the yogurt cups and horchata as well!

Have only used their small drive-through location across the street from the main location, but…read moretheir Wake Up Call coffee is hands-down, the best coffee around! For commuters that only pass through Washington, it's out of the way and not on the main north/south highway but well worth the small detour for great coffee and friendly service.

Love the Blend!!! They have wonderful drinks and snacks!! Great place to go visit with friends…read more Nice cozy place to hangout!