gretchensteele
01-03-2010, 06:40
Thanks Life for the heads up on this :)
http://www.bnd.com/news/local/story/1068712.html?mi_pluck_action=comment_submitted&qwxq=543819#Comments_Container
Coulterville's Pistol City: Real cowboy cookin' and a Wild West decor
BY TERI MADDOX - News-Democrat
The coal-mining town of Coulterville must have been a rough-and-tumble place in the late 1800s and early 1900s.
People called it "Pistol City."
"I had an uncle who used to talk about who got killed on this street and who got killed on that street," said Sam White, 70, of rural Coulterville. "He said everybody carried a gun when they came into town at night."
Those stories led Sam to pick the name Pistol City Restaurant and Saloon for his Wild West-themed business nine years ago.
Rough-hewn wood siding covers exterior and interior walls. Knotty posts line a wraparound porch and form a gate between the dining room and bar.
Customers sit at cedar tables and booths, surrounded by Western scenes painted on windows. Decorations range from barn doors to wagon wheels, ropes to halters, saddles to deer antlers.
"This kitchen serves up real cowboy cookin'," reads a sign over the door.
The restaurant specializes in fried chicken, but its extensive menu also features steaks, fish, pork, burgers, sandwiches, soups and appetizers.
Breakfast is served all day every day.
"A lot of people who work shift work want to come in and get breakfast," Sam said. "Whatever the public wants, we try to accommodate them."
The restaurant offers a buffet and salad bar for $6.49, except on Wednesday nights, when customers can get a whole chicken dinner for $6.
The buffet includes seafood on Friday nights, chicken and dumplings on Sundays and breakfast on Saturday and Sunday mornings.
"Most of our food is made from scratch, even the pies," said manager Holly Perry, 42, of Sparta. "It's all home-cooking."
Sam was an ironworker for 37 years. He and a partner opened Pistol City in 2001 after renovating a metal pole barn that housed Whaley's Tavern and tearing down a gas station next door.
The partner later sold his share. Sam owns the restaurant with his daughter-in-law, Leigh Ann White, who serves as bookkeeper, and son, Sam White Jr., a hospital administrator.
Leigh Ann, 31, of rural Coulterville, describes the employees and customers as "one big family."
"We have so many regulars," she said. "People notice when an employee is missing, and with some of the customers, you already know what they're going to order."
Pistol City has become a favorite for boaters headed from the St. Louis area to Kinkaid Lake or Rend Lake and construction workers building the Prairie State power plant near Lively Grove.
Gene and Esther Barczewski drive more than 30 miles from Nashville twice a week.
On a recent afternoon, they filled their plates with chicken, ham, sweet potatoes and other side dishes from the buffet, topping off the meal with peach cobbler.
"The food is good," said Esther, 69, a homemaker. "(Gene) walks with a walker, and it's easy to get in here. There's no steps."
The Pistol City bar has the same rustic decor as the restaurant with high-top and regular seating, poker machines and a pool table. A large banquet room can be reserved free with food purchase.
Pistol City Restaurant and Saloon
Where: 258 E. Grant (Illinois 13) in Coulterville
Restaurant hours: 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily
Bar hours: 6 a.m. to 1 a.m. daily
Breakfast buffet: 6 to 10 a.m. Saturdays and Sundays
Banquet room: Free with food purchase
Information: 758-2443
On the menu:
Sunrise breakfast with two eggs, bacon or sausage, fried potatoes, Western fries or hash browns; Texas toast and coffee or tea, $4.99.
Bluegill or cod sandwich, deep-fried and served on a Kaiser roll, $4.59 (add chips, skin-on or steak-cut fries for $1.25).
Horseshoe with two hamburger patties on Texas toast, topped with fries and smothered in cheese sauce and/or chili, $7.79.
Lil' rib eye steak with 8 ounces of Angus beef served with choice of potato, salad bar and a roll, $11.99.
Regular lunch and dinner buffet with fried chicken, pork roast, ham, side dishes, salad and dessert, $6.49.
Contact reporter Teri Maddox at tmaddox@bnd.com or 239-2473.
I'm probably a little partial to this place.. some of the items in the cowboy decor were my Dad's and some of his riding friends. Lots of local history hanging on the walls there.
Just a side note about the caliber of the owner Sam - one year my Dad was severely injured and burned in a farming accident - right at the start of the season.. Sam helped my brothers farm all of our ground that year - out of the kindness of his heart. We'd have been up a creek without his help.
The food is great, the atmosphere is great, and there's plenty of room in the parking lot for boats and trailers and campers etc.
If you stop in, tell them Gretchen and Critter sent you :)
There's also a pool table in the back for those who feel the need to have a frosty adult beverage and shoot a game or two :)
http://www.bnd.com/news/local/story/1068712.html?mi_pluck_action=comment_submitted&qwxq=543819#Comments_Container
Coulterville's Pistol City: Real cowboy cookin' and a Wild West decor
BY TERI MADDOX - News-Democrat
The coal-mining town of Coulterville must have been a rough-and-tumble place in the late 1800s and early 1900s.
People called it "Pistol City."
"I had an uncle who used to talk about who got killed on this street and who got killed on that street," said Sam White, 70, of rural Coulterville. "He said everybody carried a gun when they came into town at night."
Those stories led Sam to pick the name Pistol City Restaurant and Saloon for his Wild West-themed business nine years ago.
Rough-hewn wood siding covers exterior and interior walls. Knotty posts line a wraparound porch and form a gate between the dining room and bar.
Customers sit at cedar tables and booths, surrounded by Western scenes painted on windows. Decorations range from barn doors to wagon wheels, ropes to halters, saddles to deer antlers.
"This kitchen serves up real cowboy cookin'," reads a sign over the door.
The restaurant specializes in fried chicken, but its extensive menu also features steaks, fish, pork, burgers, sandwiches, soups and appetizers.
Breakfast is served all day every day.
"A lot of people who work shift work want to come in and get breakfast," Sam said. "Whatever the public wants, we try to accommodate them."
The restaurant offers a buffet and salad bar for $6.49, except on Wednesday nights, when customers can get a whole chicken dinner for $6.
The buffet includes seafood on Friday nights, chicken and dumplings on Sundays and breakfast on Saturday and Sunday mornings.
"Most of our food is made from scratch, even the pies," said manager Holly Perry, 42, of Sparta. "It's all home-cooking."
Sam was an ironworker for 37 years. He and a partner opened Pistol City in 2001 after renovating a metal pole barn that housed Whaley's Tavern and tearing down a gas station next door.
The partner later sold his share. Sam owns the restaurant with his daughter-in-law, Leigh Ann White, who serves as bookkeeper, and son, Sam White Jr., a hospital administrator.
Leigh Ann, 31, of rural Coulterville, describes the employees and customers as "one big family."
"We have so many regulars," she said. "People notice when an employee is missing, and with some of the customers, you already know what they're going to order."
Pistol City has become a favorite for boaters headed from the St. Louis area to Kinkaid Lake or Rend Lake and construction workers building the Prairie State power plant near Lively Grove.
Gene and Esther Barczewski drive more than 30 miles from Nashville twice a week.
On a recent afternoon, they filled their plates with chicken, ham, sweet potatoes and other side dishes from the buffet, topping off the meal with peach cobbler.
"The food is good," said Esther, 69, a homemaker. "(Gene) walks with a walker, and it's easy to get in here. There's no steps."
The Pistol City bar has the same rustic decor as the restaurant with high-top and regular seating, poker machines and a pool table. A large banquet room can be reserved free with food purchase.
Pistol City Restaurant and Saloon
Where: 258 E. Grant (Illinois 13) in Coulterville
Restaurant hours: 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily
Bar hours: 6 a.m. to 1 a.m. daily
Breakfast buffet: 6 to 10 a.m. Saturdays and Sundays
Banquet room: Free with food purchase
Information: 758-2443
On the menu:
Sunrise breakfast with two eggs, bacon or sausage, fried potatoes, Western fries or hash browns; Texas toast and coffee or tea, $4.99.
Bluegill or cod sandwich, deep-fried and served on a Kaiser roll, $4.59 (add chips, skin-on or steak-cut fries for $1.25).
Horseshoe with two hamburger patties on Texas toast, topped with fries and smothered in cheese sauce and/or chili, $7.79.
Lil' rib eye steak with 8 ounces of Angus beef served with choice of potato, salad bar and a roll, $11.99.
Regular lunch and dinner buffet with fried chicken, pork roast, ham, side dishes, salad and dessert, $6.49.
Contact reporter Teri Maddox at tmaddox@bnd.com or 239-2473.
I'm probably a little partial to this place.. some of the items in the cowboy decor were my Dad's and some of his riding friends. Lots of local history hanging on the walls there.
Just a side note about the caliber of the owner Sam - one year my Dad was severely injured and burned in a farming accident - right at the start of the season.. Sam helped my brothers farm all of our ground that year - out of the kindness of his heart. We'd have been up a creek without his help.
The food is great, the atmosphere is great, and there's plenty of room in the parking lot for boats and trailers and campers etc.
If you stop in, tell them Gretchen and Critter sent you :)
There's also a pool table in the back for those who feel the need to have a frosty adult beverage and shoot a game or two :)