“I started working at McDonald’s while I was going to college,” Dan recalls. “I worked my way up through the ranks to general manager. My last project for McDonald’s was opening the North Pekin McDonald’s. Then I went out on my own.”

By Dan’s reckoning, Our Inn Place had started out as a Mr. Swiss franchise, a burger and milk shake chain that spanned much of the United States before folding in the 1970s. A family purchased the restaurant and ran it as Our Inn Place for 15 years before Dan stepped in.

The restaurant has not strayed from its roots as a burger place, of course. Hamburgers and cheeseburgers with one-third pound patties and jumbo burgers with two one-third pound patties are just the tip of the burger berg. The menu also includes a Mexi-Burger with a one-third pound patty, chili cheese sauce, salsa, sour cream, lettuce, onions, and tomatoes, with tortilla chips at the base. If more Italian fare is to your liking, the pizza burger utilizes a breaded and fried sausage patty with mozzarella cheese inside. Adding some marinara sauce helps give it a real pizza flavor.

The burgers make up only half of what Dan says are the most popular items on the menu. Tenderloins share the spotlight. “We even have non-traditional tenderloins – like the Southern, Western, and even pizza tenderloins featured on different months,” he says. “We still hand make our tenderloins.”

If you want to branch out a bit, Our Inn Place prepares hot dogs, chili dogs, and sandwiches in a variety of styles: grilled chicken, chicken strip, BBQ, catfish, grilled cheese, and BLT. They also have a rotating “Flavor of the Month” sandwich to keep you coming back.

Should a dinner be more in order, Our Inn Place prepares catfish dinners, shrimp baskets, chicken strip baskets, ponyshoes, horseshoes, salads, and myriad sides including fried shrimp and mini-corn dogs.

Of course, no good American diner meal is complete without an ice-cold milk shake or ice cream float. Our Inn Place boasts no fewer than 20 different shake flavors from which to choose as well as 12 different flavors of hand-dipped ice cream, soft serve, and numerous other ice cream desserts and sundaes.

After serving the public for 30 years, Dan does not give all the credit to his own hard work but instead looks outward. “Pekin has been amazing,” he expresses. “We have lots of loyal customers. As a small, independent restaurant, we need and appreciate our customers. Every year you see more and more small businesses disappear. So, THANK YOU PEKIN for all your support!”

Naturally, Dan does not stop there. “I would like to thank my entire staff for ALL their hard work. We have a few that have been with us for over 20 years and have had five employees for around 10 years. We are like a family for sure.”

Through the undying support of the Pekin community and the tireless effort of its family-like staff, Our Inn Place continues to prove the most important word in its name is ‘Our.’  

Our Inn Place is open for dining in and picking up from 10a. through 9pm seven days a week. Delivery hours start daily at 10am and end at 8pm. Start an order online at www.ourinnplace.com or place your order by phone at 309-347-7777.