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    Tilley's Tavern

    4.3 (55 reviews)
    InexpensiveChicken Wings, Burgers, Bars
    Closed 11:00 am - 12:00 AM (Next day)

    Tilley's Tavern Photos

    TILLEY'S TAVERN ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Live music
    Good for dancing
    Outdoor seating

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    Reviews With Photos

    Beef horseshoe
    Jason V.

    I've heard a lot of great things about this smalltown place which is on Main Street in Mount Olive. It's a bar and grill or tavern, as one would expect in a little village as most (if not all) towns in southern Illinois have one. Everyone seemingly raves about the food and atmosphere here, so I had to check it out. The service was very slow, and it took the server 10 minutes to finally seat me. There were only two servers but the place was not busy. She later apologized, got my drink order and then my food which also took quite awhile. I got the beef horseshoe. It wasn't a large or small serving, but just right. The fries were very crispy, which I liked. The cheese? I wasn't sure how to put it. It didn't taste like queso, spicy or average cheese, but more sweet or something like it. Let's just say, it was different. But I had a full belly upon leaving. One of my friends from Mt. Olive told me the place was never the same after the original owner passed away a couple years ago, as some things slowly declined.

    a view of the inside of the restaurant
    Kathy F.

    Small Town charm with food that would beat out 5 star restaurants in a big city. Walked in and was greeted and made to feel at home with the smile of ou r server Hayden she returned to check and refill our drinks Our food came out quick and hot the portion size are generous beyond words. It is definitely your hometown bar that has stopped in time nothing modern sturdy woodwork pressed tin ceiling

    Burger and Puffalo Wings
    Sean P.

    This was definitely a hidden gem. A fantastically simple burger that was almost perfect. A group of wings that were a nice, vinegar base like a buffalo but with added red pepper flakes (Puffalo sauce). One of the better small-town taverns you will find, even if the menu is simple.. they do it very well.

    Western Burger
    Adam R.

    Worth the drive! One of the best burgers around. The 1/2lb Pattys are no joke! Service was fast and friendly.

    Dining Area

    Stopped at this little spot while on the road. About a mile or so off the main highway. TOTALLY WORTH IT!! The burgers are huge & delicious and the seasoned fries were great too! Very reasonable prices. HIGHLY recommend!! One side of location is a small town bar and the other side is a dining area. I attached a picture of the dining area. Had a pretty cool patio area as well but was to cold outside to take advantage of it. Guarantee it is worth your attention!!

    Ravioli's frozen and fried...leathery but good for soaking up alcohol.
    Elwood P. D.

    We are giving Tilley's an extra star simply for existing. Mt. Olive does not have a lot to offer and it was a real surprise to find Tilley's here. The first thing we noticed when we walked in was that is seems bigger on the inside than on the outside. The extra dining room and game room was unexpected. We happened to hit it on Monday (wing night) and the place was romping. Sitting at the bar we had a good view of the operation and had an opportunity to engage with the staff as well as other patrons. The universal advice was...get the wings. Tilley's was doing a great take out business while we were there. A steady stream of locals where hauling out large white plastic bags of styrofoam boxes with wings and extra sauce. Not wanting to look out of place we ordered the wings. And quietly ordered a salad and fried ravioli just to explore the menu. There are several choices of wing sauce. Following the bartenders suggestion I ordered a spicy sweet sauce. She warned me it was quite hot. When I received the wings I realized I had forgotten I was in the mid-west and their idea of spicy hot is different from much of the rest of the country. I've had spicier oatmeal than this. The fried raviolis were average at best. There were a lot of them in the basket which was nice but then I shouldn't expect much more than frozen and fried in Mt. Olive. The salad was iconic mid-west. Head lettuce with grated cheese. We ate it because it was green. Tilley's is a fun place to hang out and have a beer and we felt the place was very affordable. If you are looking for quality food then Mt. Olive may not be your best option. But Tilley's is your best option in Mt. Olive.

    Marionasie 1.

    After the fun trip to Branson, we were heading back home and we were pretty hungry and my dad found this place and since we were so hungry we decided to eat here. The staff was very friendly and the place had a good atmosphere. The wait for food wasn't that long and we got appetizers and we got the fried pickles and the raviolis. And then our entries came and we were more than impressed. All of our food was amazing and we would definitely be back

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    10 months ago

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    4 years ago

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    1 year ago

    Great service. Wings, burger and seasoned fries were delicious. Would highly recommend.

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    3 years ago

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    3 years ago

    Yeah. Great good food. Good time. Good beer in a bottle but not on tap. Cool place. They need to brag about their history more.

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    3 years ago

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    2 years ago

    Great food wings love there fish to sometimes they get a crowd but always great customer service

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    8 years ago

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    8 years ago

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    10 years ago

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    6 years ago

    GREAT Food and the Prices are awesome. Thank you for the best Mushroom Swiss Burger I have had in 50 years.

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    6 years ago

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    9 years ago

    I loved this place because of the atmosphere . It has the oldest original beer cooler for tap beer in the area . The food was great !

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    4 years ago

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    7 years ago

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    6 years ago

    that food was DE LISH US. So good and great service. Try the horseshoes. Hidden gem!!!

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    7 years ago

    Love coming for drinks and fried pickles. Have tried a couple things all so far are good. The games are always on!!

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    11 years ago

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    Rooster's Pub - Bone in Buffalo sauce

    Rooster's Pub

    4.1(14 reviews)
    5.4 mi

    Ordered bacon burger and garlic butter burger , both were absolutely fantastic. Service was great,…read morefriendly and prompt. Will be back!

    Visits in JUL-AUG-OCT 2025…read more We moved into town this summer. Our realtor provided gift certificate as a closing congratulations. After we came the first visit I wanted to take my time, have a few more visits before I wrote. My rating of 3 (okay) in this case think of it as an academic C, a passing grade but certainly room for improvement. Rooster's Pub is okay, the food is okay, the service is okay, it is clean. If you are looking for a bar food meal this is an okay place to choose. You can stop here, disregard the rest and make your choice. I suspect that Rooster's is popular locally (and has some high ratings) is familiarity, and a customer base that hasn't widely traveled, there is nothing wrong with that. I am comfortable saying that this place is also likely a good bar, for those interested in that environment. It is not quite for me (us) as a restaurant. We have only been during the lunch hours. I have never owned a bar or restaurant. I worked in them at various levels earlier in life. I acknowledge how tough it is to be a bar that also has standout food. In my experience that is rather rare. I know that when a bar does get that balance right, they have a limited menu. They make a few things and make them well. A full menu is always going to have to carry some amount of frozen "Sysco" things dropped into hot oil. Our meals, I have had two okay tenderloins and one burger, my wife two fish (slightly overdone) meals, and one burger. My wish is for continued success for Rooster's, it is a fine place for others. As currently functioning it is not a place for me. This is also okay if the oil is always fresh, and the cook is attentive and pulls things soon enough to guard color/texture and the cooking finishes during delivery to table. On another note it seems that in our 3 visits, things are cooked hard and fast but then sit in the window, cooling until delivered lukewarm and past that "golden moment". A few lines about the fries. People do like them, I however do not prefer house cut fries. I think the basic restaurant frozen fry, well executed, is an easy win. Our's have been dark and soggy on arrival. I did get the tots on the middle visit (better), had forgotten the fry defeciency and got them this last time. My wife, a Midwestern lover of all things potato, left nearly half of her order. Overall plating has been a bit haphazard, not expecting a cooking show, but I do appreciate something that arrives looking intentional. There just doesn't seem to be a level of care applied to the meals that have come to our table (a note on that at the end). We have only had the same two front of house workers. They are polite (maybe stiffly and overly so), they get the order right and they accomplish the mission. However is feels a bit like a "transaction", which I understand it is, the customers aren't your friend. I don't think it's just us, there doesn't seem to be any warmth with anyone that comes in (even what I presume are regulars). If there is a scale with annoyed that I exist on one end, and a warm hug on the other, the service here is much closer to the left hashmark. A final note about my meals here. If the gaps in execution are some message that I am not worthy of a best effort, or simply not welcome- message received.

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    Route 138 Cafe - Hot Cocoa with whipped cream

    Route 138 Cafe

    2.8(19 reviews)
    1.3 mi

    Went for dinner with my grandfather. The waitresses were nice, but completely clueless. When a…read morenearby table asked for a manager, they were informed there was no manager. We waited 50 minutes for a chicken wrap and roast beef. They didn't have silverware clean, so we had to wait another 5 or 10 minutes for that after the food came out. There was one cook in the kitchen audibly yelling in the kitchen in time. Though the staff seemed overwhelmed were overwhelmed, although there were less than 10 tables. As someone with experience managing bars and restaurants all over St. Louis, the fault here lies with the owners or management. The staff were not set up for success. There should absolutely be a manager on duty. In fact, it's the law - in illinois you must have certified food protection manager on sight at all times. Not having a second cook on duty sounds like ownership trying to cheap out on overhead. The food was ok. Not bad, and not good. I'm not sure how this place passed a health inspection.

    Have driven by this place going to Litchfield and decided to give it a try. It was alright the food…read morecame out pretty quick and tasted good. Just wish that the staff were more attentive to customer needs. The pancakes are the batter kind and are my favorite! I loved how they served powered sugar in a shaker for you to control. The hot chocolate was good but could to was just Swiss mix with whipped cream. The cafe seems to definitely be a hidden gem of the locals with them being the main support. Definitely cannot wait to consider coming back here and exploring more of the menu!

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    Tilley's Tavern - chicken_wings - Updated May 2026

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