PEORIA, Ill. (WMBD) — It’s a blast from the past.
Plans are in motion to bring back a well-known bar and restaurant to downtown Peoria after being closed for five years.
Opening in 2001, Richard’s Under Main made a name for itself in the heart of the city’s downtown area on Main street. The establishment closed back in 2018 but was known for it’s food, location and slogan.
“Steaks ’til 4, you know it,” Raul Salazar, co-owner of Richard’s Café and Richard’s Under Main, said.
Now due to new plans, that name is once again gaining traction. Down the brick steps, underneath city streets at 311 Main Street lies the doorway for where the past is planning to meet the present.
“The support, everyone is excited about it. Everyone is going nuts,” Salazar said.
Salazar said people are going nuts for the return of the business. He said he and his business partner, Scott Wood, originally thought the building was more damaged than they found to be the case.
“We came in a couple days later, we looked at it [the building] and decided it was time to bring Richard’s back to Peoria,” Salazar said.
Salazar said the bringing the business back to its original location was the icing on the cake — nostalgia meets the now.
“[It’s going to be] The same thing but different,” Salazar said. “So it’s going to have that old school Richard’s feel, that vibe that when you walk down them stairs, you’re walking into Richard’s.”
He said new additions include focusing on craft beers and gourmet burgers for the menu, but for the most part it will have the same atmosphere.
“I can’t physically go back to 2001, 2002, but you know it feels like you’re stepping back in time,” Salazar said.
The excitement is also extending to nearby businesses. Cody Cornwell, a senior barista at CxT Roasting Company, said he hopes this will be another step in breathing life into the downtown area.
“It’s really awesome, Cornwell said. “Hopefully it will be really good for downtown Peoria. Kind of excited for them to come back, everything comes in cycles around here so trying to get that revitalized and make it really nice.”
On Tuesday, the Peoria City Council approved a liquor license for the business and Salazar said they still have make updates to meet fire code requirements, while doing flooring and painting.
He said they also just opened a Café right above planned site and if everything goes to plan they’re looking to the end of June or early July to re-open the bar and restaurant below.
