Downtown Moline Bar a Relaxing Respite From All Cares

By Jonathan Turner

Dan Bush and his team at Bummer City Inc. clearly put a lot of thought, care, time and money into their latest venture – Take Cover Tiki Club, which opened last fall at 1401 5th Ave., Moline.

Next to their Analog Pizza & Moline (which itself will close March 29, to be transformed to a country-western, honky-tonk bar), Take Cover totally overhauled a formerly generic Jimmy John’s location, to the least generic thing you can imagine. The comfortable, intimate refuge is unlike any other bar in the QC.

That’s accomplished with a deep, creative menu of tasty craft cocktails, and a super cool, inviting interior that literally takes you on a relaxing vacation. It’s the perfect date spot – with several green-leather booths, subtle and romantic lighting, and a jungle-themed visual vibe.

Take Cover Tiki Club, 1401 5th Ave., Moline, opened in October 2024. (photo by Jonathan Turner)

Bummer City – which owns and operates the two Analog Arcade bars, Moline and Davenport; plus Armored Gardens and neighboring Devon’s Complaint Dept. in downtown Davenport – spent over six months on the Take Cover renovations, determined that it would have no trace of the former Jimmy John’s sub shop, Bush says.

“We looked at a lot of tiki bars and invented our own interpretation,” he says, crediting his wife Megan with the unique interior design. The bar seats 48 total and has an outdoor patio.

The chill atmosphere is realized partly with its curated recorded soundtrack of ‘60s surf rock, plus pop and R & B. Take Cover’s name is meant to reflect its mission—to offer a carefree refuge, escape, an oasis, Bush says.

One of the many booths at the romantic Take Cover. (photo by Jonathan Turner)

“We ran through like 70 different names,” he says. “We wanted it feel like you’re being transported to a different time and place.”

Like I did on a recent sunny afternoon, you can take advantage of a generous happy hour 3:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. (every day but Fridays and Saturdays), where selected drinks are half off.

The new bar totally transformed a former Jimmy John's, requiring over six months of work. (photo by Jonathan Turner)

Current spring specials have cute names like “Buzz Worthy” (rum, mango, pineapple, lavender, lime soda); look for new seasonal specials starting in June. Frozen cocktails are $10 and $16 each, and other cocktails (from $10) include Singapore Sling, mai tai, spicy mango margarita, mojito, cosmopolitan, Bahama Mama, Walking Stick (rum, mezcal, Campari, benedictine, cinnamon syrup, lime), High Tide (vodka, curacao, pineapple, citrus), Painkiller (rum, pineapple, orange, crème of coconut), and Paloma (tequila, nectarine liqueur, lime, grapefruit, agave).

The downtown Moline bar features a wide range of craft cocktails and drink specials. (photo by Jonathan Turner)

There are a number of non-alcoholic options, like sober daiquiri and Paloma, and a good variety of beers, wines and seltzers. Be sure to ask for a complimentary pub snack mix.

Coming in May will be much more greenery on the patio, which is under the huge, colorful public mural (completed October 2023) on the west side of the Analog building, by Brooklyn, N.Y.-based artists Jari “WERC” Alvarez and Gera “GERALUZ” Lozano, roughly 120 feet wide by 26 feet tall.

The outdoor patio at Take Cover. (photo by Jonathan Turner)

In early May, Bummer City will open its new Late Rider in the seven-year-old Analog space, the area’s first Nashville-style honky-tonk – featuring pool tables, darts, and line dancing.

“It will be the most over-the-top thing we’ve ever done, crazy design choices,” Bush says. “We want that ‘wow!’ factor. I’m just super excited about it.”

The new menu – created by the Armored Gardens chef – will feature new American and Tex-Mex dishes, Bush says. Bummer City’s mission is to make the QC as fun as humanly possible and they’re succeeding.

I can’t wait to thrill at Late Rider and chill again at Take Cover.

Take Cover is owned by the Davenport-based hospitality company Bummer City Inc. (photo by Jonathan Turner)

Jonathan Turner is a veteran journalist and piano player, who has made the QC home since 1995 and loves writing about arts and culture. He is the author of the books “A Brief History of Bucktown: Davenport's Infamous District Transformed,” and “100 Things To Do in the Quad Cities Before You Die”.