Southern Illinois - Hotels with Bars? (Champaign, Carbondale: appointed, house, neighborhood)

[MikeQBF]

When we want to go out for date night, our strong preference is hotel bars. Neighborhood bars are just too rowdy for a quiet evening away from the house to talk and flirt. Typical restaurant/fern bars (Applebees, Fridays) are too kid-friendly for any kissy-face, even in late hours, of the few left that might be open past 9:00.

We're having a helluva time finding hotels with bars along I-57 below I-70. We know of three:

Effingham - Holiday Inn. Pros - pleasant, open 'til 1:00am. Cons - small crowded bar area with few seats at bar, surgical lighting.

Mt. Vernon - DoubleTree Inn. Pros - well-appointed, large welcoming bar, friendly staff. Cons - closes at 9:00.

Carbondale - Holiday Inn. Bar/restaurant was a COVID casualty, closed in 2020.

Can anybody add to this list? Maybe something around the I-57/IL13 interchange in Marion?

[Hiruko]

Originally Posted by MikeQBF

When we want to go out for date night, our strong preference is hotel bars. Neighborhood bars are just too rowdy for a quiet evening away from the house to talk and flirt. Typical restaurant/fern bars (Applebees, Fridays) are too kid-friendly for any kissy-face, even in late hours, of the few left that might be open past 9:00.

We're having a helluva time finding hotels with bars along I-57 below I-70. We know of three:

Effingham - Holiday Inn. Pros - pleasant, open 'til 1:00am. Cons - small crowded bar area with few seats at bar, surgical lighting.

Mt. Vernon - DoubleTree Inn. Pros - well-appointed, large welcoming bar, friendly staff. Cons - closes at 9:00.

Carbondale - Holiday Inn. Bar/restaurant was a COVID casualty, closed in 2020.

Can anybody add to this list? Maybe something around the I-57/IL13 interchange in Marion?

Billy Barooz in Champaign and Firefly in Effingham. Not like hotel bars, but certainly even a little classier than the Holiday Inn.

[MikeQBF]

We've dined at Firefly. Definitely classy and overall a great experience, but I wouldn't consider it a date-night bar as they roll-up the sidewalk at 10pm.

In this search I'm discovering hotel bars are an endangered species since COVID. Even in St. Louis many or even most of the major hotels have either closed their bars or have restricted hours. Hilton chain especially, the 9:00pm closing time is set by corporate.

[MikeQBF]

An interesting postscript... totally by accident we found the exact kind of bar we were looking for. It is an old-school hotel-adjacent cocktail lounge with cozy seating, low lighting, friendly bartenders, no slot machines, no TVs - the kind of place where you schmooze with your date and get each other in the mood for quality time later.

Our problem is it's in Ottumwa, Iowa. Sort of a long drive.