The regulars at Mullets Sports Bar in Homer Glen know the popular Wednesday night special: half-priced wine, two-for-one pasta and most importantly, the trivia contest.
Pub Trivia USA packs the house every Wednesday.
Now those game players can come on Tuesday as well, test more of their skills and bring the kids if they want. On Tuesday’s Game Show Night the same popular emcee, Aaron Heldt of Monee, leads the crowd in an assortment of games that are takeoffs of old TV favorites, such as “Jeopardy,” “Name That Tune” and “Family Feud.”
“Name something your wife can do for hours,” Heldt told the folks playing “Survey Says,” the start-up on a recent Tuesday night game.
They answered: “Sleep.” “Watch TV.” “Complain.”
The top answer was “Talk.”
Denise Gallagher of Frankfort, who owns the bar with her husband, Michael, and brother-in-law Dan Gallagher, hopes the new Tuesday night draw will take an otherwise slow night at the bar and turn it around.
“It takes a while,” she said, just four weeks after starting the new game night. “But it’s starting to catch on. It’s growing.”
Bob Nash of Homer Glen came to Mullets that night with his children, Jake, 14, Lexie, 11 and Andrew, 8, to play games and eat $3 burgers, hoping to win gift certificates to come back. On a previous visit they won second place.
“They like coming,” said Nash, pointing at his kids who were having dinner while waiting for the games to begin. “We all like games. We’re game players.”
Nash said he probably is best at “Solve the Puzzle,” a version of “Wheel of Fortune,” and Lexie is the family expert on “Name That Song.”
Game Show Night is organized and run by the same Lisle-based company that runs Pub Trivia USA nights in more than 60 Chicago area locations.
Dan Zealley of Lisle, the owner of the company, said Pub Trivia USA contests started in 2010 and have become pretty popular, especially in the suburbs.
“We’ve been growing for years,” said Zealley. “It’s a fun thing for people to get out, a social event. They get together on a weekly basis like a dart league.”
He added game show night to his menu last summer, and as with trivia contests, hires hosts to run the shows in the bars. “Because of the locations it’s more of an adult game, but we alter to the clientele,” he said.
At Mullets, Game Show Night “is not raunchy or racy. It’s clean. You can bring the family,” said Denise Gallagher, stopping to chat with her regular diners. “People love Aaron and there’s no charge to play. It’s fun. It’s something different to do and to talk about over dinner or a drink.”
Bernie and Pam Fedor of Plainfield go to Mullets once a month for trivia night, partly because he’s a rock star at trivia, his wife says. But they also were checking out game show night. They both enjoy the games, she said, eagerly trying to come up with letters for a version of “Wheel of Fortune.”
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Prizes at Mullets are gift certificates of $10, $20 and $30, but regular players have a chance of winning more by adding up their points.
Joan Cary is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
Game Show Night
Where: Mullets Sports Bar, 14903 S. Bell Road, Homer Glen
When: 7 p.m. Tuesdays
Information: 708-645-7000; www.pubtriviausa.com/game-night-locations/