Breakfast Nook Now Open in Mokena

By Bob Bong
Southland Savvy

Daniel Luna recently decided the time was right to stop cooking for other restaurant owners and took the plunge to open his own eatery.

The result is The Breakfast Nook, which opened three weeks ago today at 19140 S. 80th Avenue in Mokena. The location has been home to at least two other restaurants, Dragon Palace 2 and Sicilian Joe’s.

Its name is appropriate, too. The space is small but cozy with a handful of booths and tables.

Luna, 34, was the chef at Mary Todd’s in Frankfort and Egg Cetera Café in Mokena and has brought his culinary skills with him to The Breakfast Nook, which has an extensive menu ranging from skillets and omelets for breakfast to wraps and burgers for lunch. Tea drinkers take note, the teapots are enormous.

While Luna lords over the kitchen, Christina Billings – who worked with Luna at Egg Cetera – runs the dining room with one other waitress, who knew Luna from their days at Mary Todd’s.

“We were leaving Egg Cetera about the same time and he asked me if I wanted to come with him,” she said.

As for business?

“So far, so good,” Billings said, noting they haven’t even done much advertising yet.

The Breakfast Nook is open for breakfast and lunch from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. every day. The phone number is 708-478-0908.

Five Below to Open Friday in Tinley Park
Five Below, a retailer that caters to the teen and tween market with everything priced from $1 to $5, will open Friday morning in Tinley Park’s Brookside Marketplace at 191st Street and Harlem Avenue.

The chain carries an assortment of merchandise including sporting goods, games, fashion accessories, jewelry, candy and snacks, books, DVDs, room décor and school supplies.

The chain was founded in 2002 by David Schlessinger, who also founded Encore Books and Zany Brainy.

Bayberry Pantry to Reopen Soon
Bayberry Pantry, 8004 W. 171st St. in Tinley Park, looks to be reopening soon under new ownership. The convenience store closed some time ago in the Bayberry Plaza at 171st and 80th Avenue.

CJ Frank Grand Reopening
CJ Frank & Son, a tax and accounting firm, is celebrating its reopening on Friday, Aug. 19, with a ribbon cutting at 10 a.m. at 18610 Burnham Ave. Suite A in Lansing. Hours will be 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday and 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Wednesday.

Dominick's to Close in Orland Park

Dominick's is closing its store in Orland Park in early October.

By Bob Bong
Southland Savvy

Orland Park's supermarket scene, which took a hit earlier this year when Green Food and Produce closed in the former Bobak's Plaza at Wolf Road and 159th Street and then was rocked when Randy's Market shut down a couple of weeks ago, will suffer another blow on Oct. 2 when Dominick's closes its store at 15080 S. LaGrange Road.

"It was a business decision made by the company," Dominick's Director of Public Affairs Lauri Sanders said Wednesday.

"The Orland Park store is a casualty of not being able to be a part of a profitable business," she said.

Sanders did know how many workers would be affected by the shutdown, but said Dominick's was committed to helping them during the transition.

"Our goal is 100 percent transfer or absorption into the company," she said.

An employee at the Merrionette Park store on 115th Street said some workers there are afraid they will get bumped from their positions by workers with more seniority transferring from the Orland store.

A spokeswoman for Local 881 of the United Food & Commercial Workers Union said all non-management workers at the Orland store are members of the UFCW and by contract are allowed to transfer to other stores in the chain.

"Usually, transfers are done regionally," she said. "Workers from Orland Park most likely would transfer to nearby stores such as Palos Heights or Frankfort."

The Orland store was older and slightly smaller than newer stores and did not have some of the latest features such as a Blockbuster Express machine, Starbucks and an in-store Chase Bank.

Despite those losses, Orland Park grocery options are still plentiful with Aldi's, Jewel-Osco, Trader Joe's, Costco and Meijer stores open for business in the village.

Five Guys Opens Today in Orland Park, Sports Authority Open in Orland Hills

Sports Authority is holding its grand opening on Saturday.

By Bob Bong
Southland Savvy

Sports Authority welcomed its newest and biggest store at noon on Friday when the sports retailer opened its store at 9231 W. 159th St. in Orland Towne Center in Orland Hills.

The 56,000-square-feet store is in the former location of Circuit City and Office Max.

Mall owner Tony Youshaei told the Orland Patch in January said the new store would be a “flagship” for the chain.

The store will hold its grand opening on Saturday, Aug. 13, starting at 8 a.m. The first 250 people in the store will receive mystery bucks with a chance to win a $500 shopping spree. The store also will have hourly drawings for a $100 gift card.

All next week, customers will be able to register to win a $1,000 shopping spree.

Helping celebrate the new store will be former Bears great Gary Fencik at 10 a.m. on Sunday, Aug. 14, and Cubs closer Carlos Marmol at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 18.

Hours for the new store will be 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday.

A website has specifically been made for Sports Authority Orland Hills. For information on the new store, call 708-226-5602.

New Five Guys Opens Today
Workers were being trained Sunday at the new Five Guys Burgers and Fries restaurant that will open Monday at 11 a.m. in the former Ginos East at 15840 S. Harlem Ave. in Orland Park (next to the Home Depot). It will be the second store location in Orland Park for the burger chain, and is affiliated with the Five Guys that has been open for a few years now at the entrance to the Target Greatland at 158th Street and LaGrange Road. Hours are 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily. The phone number is 708-444-1140.

Super Fade Now Open
A new salon called Super Fade opened recently at 16709 S. 80th Avenue in Tinley Park. The salon is open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Sunday. The phone number is 708-429-5034.