Jul 24, 2020
Mulkey’s Restaurant, Rock Island, IL
If you’re old like me and have a restaurant you grew up with you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about when I tell you about Mulkey’s.
To start, the photos you see here are exactly the way Mulkey’s has looked for the 50+ years I have visited. A few years ago my aunt and I had lunch at Mulkey’s, the first time I’d been there in over 40 years. It was exactly, and I mean EXACTLY the way I remember it. The booths, atmosphere, and menu, all the same. And the fried chicken was just as good. The chicken is so fresh (I’m guessing it comes from a nearby farm) and their recipe is the best you can imagine. As a reviewer says on Trip Advisor, it’s “the best homemade food in the Quad Cities”. (The Quad Cities, if you don’t know, where I was born, is made up of 4 cities — two on one side of the Mississippi in Illinois, and two on the other side, in Iowa — Rock Island, Moline, Bettendorf, and Davenport. You can be in one of the cities on the Illinois side and cross a bridge and 2 minutes later be in Iowa. These cities are literally right on the Mississippi River. (I developed a fear of bridges living there that I have since overcome by riding my bike across the Coronado Bay bridge in San Diego.)
There are a handfull of great restaurants in the Quad-City area, including one of the world’s best ice cream shops, Whitey’s. And they’ve all been around for a very long time. Another one is Harris Pizza. For a restaurant to be good in this area it has to be really good because there are still so many great homecooks. In my family alone, I have many aunts and uncles and cousins who can cook. And when I say they can cook, I mean it.
Mulkey’s is open for business now during the pandemic but only for pick-up. If I were in the Q-Cities I’d be ordering their fried chicken for dinner right now. And their mashed potatoes and gravy and their delicious coleslaw just the way I like it, fresh, flavorful, and creamy!
Take a look at their website and you’ll see how basic they are. Also, it’s obvious they have done well enough all these years that they don’t even need a website. I was actually surprised they have one!
https://mulkeysrestaurant.weebly.com
PS What the heck is weebly?? Gah I love the Quad-Cities!!
Originally published at http://www.jeanoshima.com on July 24, 2020.
