Willew: More soup than tap beer, a $4 burger, a Citra, Mentos, breakfast (on weekends) and lots of parking

Willew: The doctor and barber are out

The hairy guy's report:

Old buildings can find new lives. A couple old downtown office buildings now have slick, upscale apartments. Earlier, the old city hall became a restaurant called (imaginatively) Old City Hall.

And a short drive out Midland Road at Two Mile, in a nondescript building -- Mrs. Hairy Guy says it looks like an insurance office -- there's the Willew Lounge, in what the bar's website says is a former doctor's office and barbershop.

We checked through old city directories and phone books at the library and found no mention of a doctor's office at the Willew's location, though the building looks like it could have been intended for that. The closest link to a doctor's office you'll find at the Willew is chicken noodle soup, which some people swear by for colds.

We did find that a barbershop called Gene's was there in the 1960s. It might have been cute to combine a barbershop and a bar. Guys could have a beer while getting a trim, though that old line about the hair of the dog that bit you might not go so well if the hair ends up in your beer.

The soup may be the most interesting thing about the Willew these days. There's lots of it. The day we stopped in, the chicken noodle was among 10 -- yes, 10 -- kinds of soup (not including chili), mostly at $4 a bowl. We opted for split pea and ham, which was OK.

The soups are among a full menu -- assorted (and mostly deep-fried) appetizers, salads, burgers (in quarter-pound and half-pound versions), sandwiches and a kids' menu. The basic quarter-pounder is a great deal at $4. A peanut butter and bacon burger

Cayla at the bar

(which also has American cheese) is among $9 specialty burgers. Tacos are $1 on Tuesday, wings are 50 cents on Wednesday, and a burger and fries are $5 on Thursday.

Eight beers (fewer than the number of soups) are on tap. We asked about one -- Labatt Blue Citra, which we'd never heard of. Cayla the daytime bartender didn't seem to know anything about it, so we passed.

Citra sounds like citrus, which would break our general rule of avoiding beer that includes fruit. Checking later, it turns out we were sort of right: Citra is a variety of hops described as having "intense citrus aroma and flavor."

Another reason to avoid this one is that Labatt's describes it as "a hoppy session lager." What's that mean? Turns out that "session beer" is craft beer lingo for a brew "which can be consumed in large quantities without making someone excessively intoxicated." Labatt says Citra has 4.7% ABV; that puts it about even with Pabst Blue Ribbon (4.74%), which doesn't come with any hipster euphemisms.

The Willew has a full bar, complete with a colorful collection of DeKuyper drinks, including the dreaded Grape Pucker. There are dispensers for Jagermeister, Fireball and Crown Royal

Manhattan at Willew

Regal Apple. Getting a Manhattan was no problem. Cayla even knew how to make one. Domestic bottled beers are $2 until 6 p.m.

Various bagged snacks -- assorted potato chips, pretzels and nuts -- are for sale, along with Mentos mints and a couple kinds of gum in case you want to cover up alcohol on your breath for the drive home.

On a Monday afternoon, the place was quiet. We competed for attention with three guys at the other end of the bar, a couple people who came and went at a table, and a small group in the side room keeping busy with who knows what. There's an ATM and a buy-your-own state lottery machine. Outside the front door is a plastic bucket for cigarette butts.

TVs had assorted things to watch. And that was about it for amusements besides conversation or reading. There are no pool tables. The side room has dartboards on one wall, but tables were in the way. Beer posters provide wall decoration. A sign behind the bar warns: "Keep your hands off the waitress."

It's a different scene at night, with a large dance floor for live music on weekends and line

Inside the Willew

dancing lessons on Monday evenings. A big parking lot can handle a crowd.

Besides the bar at the same corner, there is an insurance office along with an upscale liquor store and a "dead end" sign.

The Willew opens weekdays at 11 a.m. (except 11:30 a.m. Monday), but at 7 a.m. Saturday and Sunday with a full breakfast menu.

And there's that strange name, Willew. The bar's website says Charlie Wilcox and William Lewis "owned separate bars and decided to pool their efforts," combining the first parts of their last names. Why it ended up Willew instead of Lewwil is best left to history.

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See Doc’s report: An afternoon on the wagon at the Willew, with tears

  The particulars:
  Willew Lounge
  3005 E. Midland Road
  989-684-9109