(Photo by Jake Williams)
When I think of Bunny’s Tavern in Urbana, I smile.
I almost never seek the place out. I’m not, by any means, a regular and I certainly don’t know the many regulars who occupy bar seats down the row from me. I’ve not eaten half the menu or ingratiated myself with the staff.
But, damn, if it doesn’t mean something special to me.
Sometimes my spouse, Sam, and I just end up there. In fact, it’s happened three times. Each visit meant something different, but they all had the same thing in common: simplicity.
When we first moved here in 2022, we walked from our house to downtown on our first outing without parents or friends (who were helping us move in).
We ended up at Bunny’s.
It was a cold Riggs American Lager kind of summer day, maybe we got an order of cheese curds, who knows. Brand new to town, it felt like the whole place was flying around us. The bartenders and wait staff moved as efficiently as I’ve ever seen service industry folks move. They were on top of every single last sip or rumbling stomach. I heard them call out to regulars as they entered the room, asking if they wanted the usual. A cook from a nearby restaurant sat down after a long shift, talking with the bartender about never “getting out of the shit” during service.
And in all of that chaos: calm.
I’m not sure if it was that incredibly efficient staff (who always seems to be there), or if it was a reminder of the small-town atmosphere I grew up in, but it just felt good. I simultaneously mattered so much to the staff, and didn’t matter at all. I was a new face, but also just blended into the crowd. That environment gave us a chance to breathe.
We took in our new home and all it would bring. It felt right.
The next time we ended up at Bunny’s unexpectedly was because we set out to take a walk to enjoy the outside weather. It was early April and the weather was finally turning warmer.
(Photo by Jake Williams)
Inspired by our attempts to be healthy, we stumbled into the tavern, ending up on the patio outside where a large inflatable bunny rabbit loomed over our shoulders. We did what seemed to become a trend at the place — we caught up, we made jokes and we breathed.
Recently, it all came together again when another weirdly-warm-weather walk brought us to Bunny’s, this time on the evening of a Monday holiday that most people seemed to have off of work.
The place was pretty dead in the best way. The staff still moved like lightning, but this time with the calm only a sparsely-populated dining room and bar could bring.
We initially just thought we would grab a drink, but soon enough, we had tater tots and a hot dog or two, all along with the weirdest (best) chorizo nacho cheese you’ve ever tasted.
That night was supposed to just be a walk, then it was a drink, then it was dinner. And that dinner became a date.
In places like Bunny’s, I fall in love with the food and drink industry (and, of course, Sam) over and over again. We have plenty of favorites in town for an elegant meal, burgers, sandwiches and more, but at Bunny’s you’re getting a solid experience without any frills. The focus is not on the food or the drink, but on your people.
And that’s maybe what this is all about, right? Finding those places in our lives where we can enjoy community — ours and others — as the main priority.
I hope we all take more random walks that end up at Bunny’s. We’ll be better for it.
Jake Williams is a journalist, editor and publisher based in Urbana, Illinois. Williams is also the CEO of the Illini Media Company, Chambana Eats' parent organization.