“Eat. Drink. Repeat.”
Since 2007, Wiley’s Tavern has been known for happy hour and for its active nightlife. Now reemerging as Wileys, the modern rebrand launched in September with earlier opening hours, a sleek new look inside and out, and a revamped food and drink menu.
“We pretty much did a remodel from brand new floors to a brand new center bar. There are new booths and new tabletops. We really cleaned up the whole building,” said owner Todd VanSickler. “We’re in a historic building, so we went a little bit more modern, more clean-lined, but yet kept that historical feeling inside the building.”
VanSickler said a misconception Wileys has had to overcome is that “it’s that young dance bar.” They’ve worked on the project for almost a year, and were inspired by surrounding restaurants like Parker’s Bistro and Ode to Food & Drinks and the growth of downtown residents to step up their game.
“we love the crowd we have, and we want to continue to grow and build.” – greg doohen, owner
“Everything downtown is developing and growing, and we wanted to stay with the trend and grow with downtown,” said owner Greg Doohen. “There’s The Cascade [at Falls Park], lofts in the Jones[421], the Gourley Building—there’s built-in residential that we never had before that we can appeal to now.”
Stepping up includes the Lion’s Paw Mussels appetizer with whole bleu mussels simmered in Fernson’s Lion’s Paw lager with garlic, lemon, and butter, and served with grilled pita bread.
They also released the Gouda Mac & Cheese with grilled chicken breast, bacon bits, and bowtie pasta tossed in a creamy smoked Gouda cheese sauce and topped with toasted breadcrumbs.
MORE OF WHAT'S ON THE MENU
APPETIZERS
WILEY’S COMBO PLATTER
Cheese curds, fried pickles, shishito peppers, onion rings, and a pretzel braid. Served with a host of sauces. A $30 value. Sharing is encouraged.
SOUP & SALAD
SOUTH DAKOTA BISON CHILI
A Wiley’s Signature
Topped with shredded cheddar cheese.
FLATBREAD PIZZA
PEPPERONI & CREAM CHEESE
Double the pepperoni, cream cheese, and then topped with our three-cheese blend.
BURGERS
BIG BISON CHILI BURGER
Wileys goes gluttonous. Two half pound burger patties served open-faced o jalapeño bread then topped with our chili, cheddar cheese, sour cream, and green onions.
SANDWICHES & WRAPS
HONEY JALAPEÑO BLT
A mound of jalapeño bacon stacked on three slices of jalapeño cornbread with lettuce, tomato, mayonnaise, and honey. Just the right amount of heat and sweet.
ENTRÉES
WHISKEY MARINATED SIRLOIN
A whiskey marinated sirloin grilled to your liking, and then sliced for the perfect bite. served with you choice of side and grilled bread.
A TEAM EFFORT
Elevating everything from the new tabletops to the food menu, Wileys also kicked it up a notch with cocktails. Owner Greg Doohen said bar staff had a big hand in the new drink menu.
“We got all of our bartenders together and made sure they were a part of the new menu so they would get behind it,” said Doohen. “We took a lot of drinks they created themselves with stuff they’ve worked with and liked to make and serve on their own.”
See for yourself by trying one, like the Maddie Special with Ron Diaz Coconut Rum, Kinky Pink, lemonade, lemon lime soda, and grenadine.
Another new comfort food option is the Wileys Tater Tot Casserole “as good as Mom makes” with seasoned ground beef, roasted onions and peppers tossed in a creamy mushroom sauce, and topped with shredded cheese and tater tots.
When asked what their favorite new item currently was, they both didn’t hesitate to say the Bourbon BBQ Pork Tenderloin. These smoked pork tenderloin medallions are “grilled to perfection” and are served with a bourbon BBQ sauce with roasted onions and peppers.
“We have a huge smoker in house and we’ll smoke the Guinness Prime Rib and pork [tenderloin],” said VanSickler.
For those who were familiar with its previous menu, the owners kept favorites and “elevated” those as well. This includes the Blistered Shishito Peppers with fresh shishito peppers sautéed with soy sauce and served with a sweet and spicy ginger sauce.
“They’re a roulette of peppers. One out of 10 will be really spicy,” said VanSickler. “Don’t worry, it won’t light you up, though.”
“we’re really stepping up our food. our cuts of meat are nice and we have buffalo that we fly in.” – Todd Vansickler, owner
Wileys also kept their popular flatbreads, including the Bloody Mary with Wileys zesty Bloody Mary sauce topped with jalapeño bacon, pickles, green olives, mozzarella, and celery.
Speaking of a Bloody Mary, Wileys also opens early at 11 a.m. on Saturdays and Sundays for football and has “the largest Bloody Mary bar in Sioux Falls.” This has everything to throw in or on top of a patron’s beverage, including three different Bloody Mary mixes, tiers of vodka, cheese, shrimp, beef sticks, chicken fingers, onion rings, and cheese balls.
This scenario also has a mimosa bar, which VanSickler said has every candy you can think of to rim your glass with, like Pop Rocks.
But don’t think the nightlife or Fishbowl Fridays will change. Both owners said they’re excited to continue to bring in entertainment from all over the nation, like the recent DJ Dynamix from Los Angeles.
“Our night crowd on weekends is amazing, and I really think we can have the two crowds,” said VanSickler.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, VISIT WILEYSBAR.COM.
