Red Dragon stands out among Asian restaurants in Southland

By Bob Bong
Southland Savvy

Friendly service and generous portions of tasty food help Red Dragon Café stand out in a crowded field of Asian cuisine restaurants in the Southland.

Red Dragon opened a few months ago in a small storefront at 167th Street and 80th Avenue in Tinley Park.

Like most Asian restaurants in the Southland, Red Dragon is primarily a delivery and carryout establishment, but it does have two tables and a television if customers want to dine in.

Red Dragon is family owned and operated. One of the clan, Winnie Au (pictured), said her uncle is the chef and opened the restaurant after working at many other Asian restaurants in the Southland.

“One thing that sets us apart,” Au said. “Is that we prepare all of our food daily with only the freshest ingredients.”

Au recommends new customers try any of the restaurant’s signature dishes, which include salt and pepper pork chops, salt and pepper smelt and Japanese seafood udon.

Less adventurous diners can easily find something on the menu, which features staples of Asian restaurants such as egg rolls, wonton soup, fried rice, chop suey and lo mein.

On a recent visit, my group tried the vegetable lo mein, Mongolian beef, Szechwan delight and egg rolls. All of them were great. The servings were enormous and contained heaping helpings of peapods, onions, mushrooms, carrots and cabbage, noodles, rice and a slightly sweet sauce that was delicious.

Au said that dishes marked in red on the menu are spicy but all can be made without adding the hot sauce for those with more delicate stomachs, like me. “Just ask for non-spicy when ordering,” Au said.

Red Dragon offers lunch box and lunch combo specials as well as dinner box and dinner combo specials. The Mongolian beef lunch combo at $5.50 included a mountain of fried rice and an egg roll and could have fed two people.

The restaurant also serves fruit smoothies.

For more information, visit their web site at http://www.reddragoncafe.com/

Three out of four stars
Red Dragon Cafe
16651 S. 80th Avenue
Tinley Park
708-532-3388 (phone)
708-532-3399 (fax)

Fun Center for children a dream come true for South Holland woman

By Bob Bong
Southland Savvy

It was a dream come true for Okeycha Pettigrew when she opened EduFun Play Center at 16102 South Park Ave. in South Holland in December.

Pettigrew first conceived the idea of combining education and fun in a center for young children in 1994. Since then she has earned a master’s degree in early childhood education. She also has been certified in special education, autism, CPR, First Aid, quality care training and nutrition. Nine years ago she started a home daycare center called Mom Knows Best.

Finally, last year, she decided the time was right to fulfill her dream and opened EduFun.

“The mission of EduFun is to provide fun and enlightening hands-on experiences for children,” says Pettigrew, a South Holland resident since 1998.

At EduFun, children up to 13 years old are encouraged to create their own worlds.

“They can pretend to be homemakers, doctors or business owners,” says Pettigrew. “One of the popular activities is the hospital. They pretend to be doctors and patients, and sometimes pet doctors operating on their pets.”

Other areas include a construction zone, a McDonald’s restaurant and a bank.

EduFun also has a free play zone where the children can play games using oversized cards, dominoes, checkers and chess pieces.

“It’s almost like Alice in Wonderland,” says Pettigrew. “It’s the world from a child’s perspective.”

The center also offers culinary arts, music and creative arts.
Pettigrew says EduFun is ideal for homeschooled children and kids in home daycare, but also is suited to teachers.

“We follow Illinois Learning Standards, so teachers can link classroom materials to the play areas when they visit,” she says.

Pettigrew and her husband, David, operate the center with some staffers, but she said parents are “encouraged to stay and play.”

Cost is $5 per child (adults are free) for a 90-minute session. EduFun can accommodate 45 children at a time. The only requirement is that children must wear socks.

The center is open Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Response has been great since opening, says Pettigrew. “We’ve already had a lot of birthday parties.”

For more information, call 708-670-5444 or e-mail Pettigrew at okeycha@aol.com. She says she is working on a Web site for the center.

Breakfast with the Bunny
Kids can have breakfast with the Easter Bunny from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. Saturday on the lower level of Orland Square Mall near Macy's in Orland Park. Costco is picking up the tab so there will be free bagels, pastries and other baked goods.

Deal of the weekend
Mention Twitter or Spring Break when reserving a room and get 20 percent off at the Days Inn, 9625 S. 76th Avenue in Bridgeview. 708-430-1818.

FreeEarth Day event at Irons Oaks

By Southland Savvy

Southland residents are invited to celebrate the Earth at a new, free event this year: Earth Day @ the Oaks. Earth Day @ the Oaks will be Saturday, April 17, 11 a.m.-3 p.m., at the Irons Oaks Environmental Learning Center in Olympia Fields.

Activities will include nature hikes, art projects, qi gong, a native landscaping workshop with Possibility Place Nursery of Monee and outdoor challenges, such as climbing up the 30-foot Climbing Tower (waiver required). Demonstrations will be held by the University of Illinois Extension, and Bloom High School will present its Bio Diesel Bus. Indoor activities include exploring the new Irons Oaks Discovery Center Museum and meeting with local, green exhibitors, including the Izaak Walton Preserve.

Entertainment will be provided by David Stokes, a naturalist and humorist from Wisconsin. Stokes uses songs, stories and hands-on materials to get kids actively engaged in learning. Live animals will also be included in his show. Catch him at noon, 1 or 2 p.m. The Illinois Raptor Center — a non-profit wildlife and environmental education center located near Decatur — will present Raptors 101, which includes meeting four different types of birds, at 1 p.m. A hot-dog lunch — compliments of Whole Foods — will be served until 1 p.m., and campfire s’mores will be served around 2:30 p.m.

The first 200 guests at the event will receive green giveaway items, compliments of Walt’s Food Center and the Irons Oaks Foundation. A raffle will be held for green prizes, including a rain barrel from Coyote Run Golf Course and a family picnic backpack from REI.

This free event is sponsored by Irons Oaks, the Homewood-Flossmoor Park District and the Irons Oaks Foundation with support from Whole Foods and Walt’s Food Center. Irons Oaks is a 40-acre nature preserve and a joint project of the Homewood-Flossmoor and Olympia Fields Park Districts.

For more information, call (708)481-2330 or visit ironsoaks.com.