Wendy’s opens in Palos Heights

Wendy's opened this week at 12875 S. Harlem Ave. in Palos Heights.

By Bob Bong
Southland Savvy

A new Wendy’s restaurant opened this week at 12875 S. Harlem Ave. in Palos Heights. The fast-food eatery is in an outlot at the new Jewel-Osco store that opened several weeks ago at 127^th and Harlem. 

Diana’s Kitchen delights Metra passengers

Commuters who use the 80^th Avenue Metra Station in Tinley Park can finally get a cup of coffee or something to eat on the train while heading downtown for their morning trip. 

Diana’s Kitchen opened last week in the station café and from 5-9 a.m. is selling coffee, doughnuts, breakfast sandwiches and other drinks and snacks. 

The restaurant at 167^th Street and Oak Park Avenue replaces Isn’t That Sweet, which backed out of a deal to open in the station.

Old Plank Bank takes over First United

New Lenox-based Old Plank Trail Community Bank recently acquired the assets and deposits of Crete-based First United Bank.

Besides the main office in Crete, the failed bank had two branch banks in Frankfort. It has assets of $328 million and deposits of $317 million.

New Look for Food 4 Less

The Food 4 Less grocery store at 5556 W. 159^th St. in Oak Forest had a grand reopening recently after the store finished a major remodeling.

The store now features an expanded meat department with full-service butchers, an expanded produce department with organic selections and aisles devoted to foods from around the world.

The store, which is a division of Kroger Foods, opens daily at 6 a.m.

If you see a new business in town or wonder what happened to an old favorite, drop me a line at bobbong@hotmail.com.

You can also catch up on Comings & Goings at www.southlandbusinessnews.blogspot.com.

LBK Boutique Opens in Tinley Park

Lisa Kopas opened LBK Boutique last month in Tinley Park.

By Bob Bong
Southland Savvy

If Lisa Kopas had not started selling wedding accessories online in 2005 the Tinley resident would never have dreamed of opening her own store, LBK Boutique at 7913 W. 171^st St. in the Tinley Downs Shopping Center.

“I would never have done it without having the online store,” she said. “But I was successful online and was determined to try and do this myself.”

Kopas decided to open the brick and mortar version of LBK Boutique after she lost her job as a controller at a power plant in Ford Heights when it closed.

Kopas, 45, opened the store last month and said business was great until a road and sewer construction project started at the intersection of 171^st and 80^th Avenue.

“Business has been half of what it was,” she said.

“We sell accessories and gifts for all occasions,” she said. “We have lots of wedding and bridal accessories.”

Store hours are Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Tuesday and Thursday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The store is closed on Sunday.

For information, call 708-468-8649 or visit LBK Boutique online, or its Facebook page, or its ebay store.

Rosati’s Opens in New Lenox

Rosati’s Pizza of New Lenox opened earlier this month at 108 W. Illinois Highway in New Lenox in the former home of Lazy Dogz Burgers and Beef. The location offers carry out and delivery to New Lenox, Joliet, Mokena and Manhattan.

For information, call 815-485-1000 or visit Rosati’s of NewLenox.

Middle Eastern Bakery Opens

Almasi Bakery, which specializes in Middle Eastern baked goods, opened recently at 17845 S. Wolf Road in Orland Park. For information, call 708-478-5535.

If you see a new business in town or wonder what happened to an old favorite, drop me a line at bobbong@hotmail.com.

You can also catch up on Comings & Goings at www.southlandbusinessnews.blogspot.com.

Chicago Blu closes in Frankfort

Chicago Blu closed last week in Frankfort.

By Bob Bong
Southland Savvy

Chicago Blu Grill and Bar closed suddenly last weekend at 19917 S. LaGrange Road in Frankfort.

The restaurant opened in 2006 and was acquired by new owners Jay Rodriguez, Lisa Corona, and Scott and Rachel Zdanek in August 2010.

The company posted this note about the closing on its Facebook page on Oct. 14: 

"We regret to inform that we have given our final Last Call yesterday. Many thanks to our dedicated staff and to our loyal customers. It's been a wonderful experience."

A note on the front door and front window simply says, "Closed. Out of Business."

The website has been taken down and its phone number has been disconnected. 

Custom Shirts Shop Now Open 

Customized Teez, a shop that can customize T-shirts, hoodies and even decals for cars, is now open at Ford City Shopping Center, 7601 S. Cicero Ave. The store is open during mall hours. For information, call 773-884-0337 or visit their Facebookpage. 

Graystone Closes Forever 

Tinley Park’s golf scene dimmed a bit with the recent closing of Graystone Golf Links at 7600 W. 171^st St. 

The course’s future will remain green but as a sod farm instead of 9-hole golf course. 

Owners of the course decided earlier this year to close the course at the end of this year’s season. They will operate a sod farm on the property while they continue to try and develop the site into a business park.

The course’s golf carts, trucks and other equipment hit the auction block last Friday. 

McDonald's Reopens 

A newly remodeled McDonald's restaurant has reopened at 515 Ridge Road in Munster, Ind. The fast-food restaurant had closed in June for the remodeling.

If you see a new business in town or wonder what happened to an old favorite, drop me a line at bobbong@hotmail.com

You can also catch up on Comings & Goings at www.southlandbusinessnews.blogspot.com.

Harold's Chicken to Replace Fatburger

Harold's Chicken Shack is coming to the former Fatburger
in Chicago's Beverly community.

By Bob Bong
Southland Savvy

Singer Kanye West’s failed Fatburger empire was replaced in Orland Park by a Dickey’s Barbecue Pit restaurant earlier this year and looks to soon be replaced in Beverly by another Harold’s Chicken Shack restaurant. 

The Homewood-based Harold’s has signs proclaiming a new location is coming soon to 2341 W. 95^th St. in the Beverly community.  

A call to Harold’s corporate office in Homewood was not returned.

Family Dollar Coming to Tinley 

A 9,000-square-foot Family Dollar store is being built in part of the former Walgreens drugstore on the corner of the Tinley Downs strip center at 171st Street and 80th Avenue in Tinley Park. The store is slated to open later this year. 

Love Culture Opens in Orland 

Love Culture, a women’s fashion and accessories store, is now open in the former Bath & Body Works location in the upper level Sears Court at Orland Square Mall in Orland Park. The store had been expected to open in August. For information, visit Love Culture online. 

The mall also announced that the Island Carousel, which had been removed during remodeling, is now back in its rightful place in the lower level J.C. Penney Court. 

Hannah & Harry's Closes 

Just a few months after it was reopened under the new name of Hannah & Harry's Restaurant, the former Hannah's restaurant in New Buffalo, Mich., is shuttered again.

The restaurant, which had closed in the summer of 2009, had reopened in June across the Indiana state line in New Buffalo.

The restaurant closed earlier this month and is for sale by its consortium of owners, one of whom wants to reopen the establishment with new partners.

 If you see a new business in town or wonder what happened to an old favorite, drop me a line at bobbong@hotmail.com

You can also catch up on Comings & Goings at www.southlandbusinessnews.blogspot.com.

New Dunkin' Donuts Opens in Oak Lawn

Dunkin' Donuts is now open at 10301 S. Central in Oak Lawn.

By Bob Bong
Southland Savvy

A new Dunkin’ Donuts has opened at 10301 S. Central Ave. in Oak Lawn in the former Buscemi’s Beef restaurant.

The new doughnut shop offers the usual Dunkin coffee and doughnuts and also has a drive-up window.

Except for a coin-laundry, the rest of the retail strip is vacant, which may be the result of a lengthy foreclosure case that dates back to February 2011.

Cosi Closes in Orland Park 

Updating an item first reported in May, Cosi has closed its restaurant at 15139 S. LaGrange Road in Orland Park. 

Emails to the company were not answered then or this week regarding the 3,000-square-foot restaurant at Orland Park Place, but the Deerfield-based chain is in trouble and its stock closed down at 68 cents per share on Friday.

The nearest Cosi is now in Hinsdale. 

Liquor is Quicker in Orland

The Orland Park Village Board last week approved a full liquor license for The Cheesecake Factory under construction at Orland Square Mall and beer and wine licenses for the Baker’s Square locations at 15711 S. Harlem Ave. and 14651 S. LaGrange Road.

 
PetSmart Closing in Lansing

The Petsmart store at 17525 S. Torrence Ave. in Lansing is closing at the end of business on Sunday, Oct. 28. The store is in the midst of a closing sale, if you need any pet supplies.


If you see a new business in town or wonder what happened to an old favorite, drop me a line at bobbong@hotmail.com.

You can also catch up on Comings & Goings at www.southlandbusinessnews.blogspot.com.
 

Office Depot to Close in Orland Park

Office Depot is closing in Orland Park on Dec. 12.

By Bob Bong
Southland Savvy

Office Depot will be closing its store at Orland Park Place on Dec. 12 and is expected to move sometime in 2013 into a much smaller space across the street in Ravinia Plaza.

The move is part of the office supply retailer’s move away from larger stores into much smaller stores.

“During the past few years, Office Depot has been focused on improving the in-store shopping experience for our customers by remodeling stores into a smaller format, which makes them more intimate and easier to navigate,” Office Depot communications manager Julianne Carelli said in an email. “The current store is nearly 22,000 square feet and does not fit in with our new format plans. 

“The relocated, smaller format store will be about 7,000 square feet and is anticipated to open in the near future at a convenient area location,” Carelli wrote.

Office Depot is seeking bids for a location at 15202 S. LaGrange Road, according to bidclerk.com.

The company said it would continue to serve its customers through retail stores in Chicago Ridge and Frankfort or online at Office Depot. 

New Cowboy Bar in Town

Country and western music fans have a new place to wet their whistler now that The Saloon at Bourbon Street has opened at 3359 W. 115^th St. in Merrionette Park.

Bourbon Street turned its former Nightclub into The Saloon last week and will feature live country acts, country DJs, dance hits and line dance lessons on Thursday nights.

For information, call 708-388-8881 or visit The Saloon on Facebook.

If you see a new business in town or wonder what happened to an old favorite, drop me a line at bobbong@hotmail.com

You can also catch up on Comings & Goings in other parts of the Southland at www.southlandbusinessnews.blogspot.com.

UPDATE: Fairplay Foods Now Open in Oak Lawn

Fairplay Foods may open as soon as this week at 87th and Cicero in Oak Lawn.

By Bob Bong
Southland Savvy

Editor's Note: Fairplay opened on Sunday and its official grand opening will be Thursday.

Though the company says no opening date has been set for the new Fairplay Foods store at 87^th Street and Cicero Avenue in Oak Lawn, employees say they have been working inside the store this week and were told the store will hold a soft opening starting Thursday, Oct. 11, with the official grand opening to occur a week later on Thursday, Oct. 18.

Employees could be seen entering and leaving the store and working inside on Tuesday, so it looks as if the opening is imminent.

Charter Fitness Moves in Mokena

The Charter Fitness health club on 191^st Street in Mokena moved last week into its new digs in the village at 19816 S. LaGrange Road next to the Brookhaven grocery store.

The phone number will remain unchanged at 708-479-4477. For information, visit them online at Charter Fitness Mokena.

If you see a new business in town or wonder what happened to an old favorite, drop me a line at bobbong@hotmail.com.

You can also catch up on Comings & Goings in other parts of the Southland at www.southlandbusinessnews.blogspot.com.

Tribes Alehouse Opens Today in Tinley

Tribes Alehouse officially opened its Tinley Park location today.

By Bob Bong
Southland Savvy

Tribes Alehouse officially opened its Tinley Park location at 5 p.m. today at 171^st Street and LaGrange Road in the former Charley Horse sports pub.

Owner Niall Freyne, who opened Tribes Alehouse at 11220 Lincoln Highway in Mokena in November 2009, said he gutted the interior and started from scratch.

"I went against the rules and made the space inside smaller," he said. "But we are doubling the size of the bar and will have seating for 135."

"We'll start with 50 beers on tap and I hope to add a few as we go along."

Over the winter, Freyne hinted at his intentions in a message to followers on Twitter that said a Tinley Tribes would be nice.

Tribes Alehouse also has a full bar and an American-style Brasserie menu. 

For information, visit their Facebook page.

Miroballi Plaza Now Open

Miroballi Shoes is now open in its own plaza at 144^th Place and LaGrange Road in Orland Park. The store was one of the businesses forced to relocate with the closing of Orland Plaza earlier this year.

Owners Dan, Tony and Perry Miroballi decided to build their own retail center, with space for additional tenants.

The store has been a fixture in Orland Park for more than 40 years after moving from its original home in Chicago’s Beverly community. There also is a store in Wheaton.

It’s Greek to Me No More

It’s Greek to Me closed recently at 13119 S. LaGrange Road in Orland Park. The restaurant opened in March 2010. Its website is shut down and the phone number is disconnected.

If you see a new business in town or wonder what happened to an old favorite, drop me a line at bob@chicago-patch.com.

You can also catch up on Comings & Goings in other parts of the Southland at www.southlandbusinessnews.blogspot.com.

Peppo's Dili-Deli Opens Today in Tinley

Peppo's Dili-Deli will open today in Tinley Park.

By Bob Bong
Southland Savvy

Peppo’s Dili-Deli, a popular sub shop since 1976 in Palos Hills, is opening today at 10 a.m. at 6905 W. 159^th St. in Tinley Park.

“We’re really looking forward to opening in Tinley Park,” said Robert Peplowski, 28, a partner in the business and the son of its founder, Jim Peplowski. Both men live in New Lenox.

“We’ll have the same menu as the Palos Hills location,” said Peplowski, who added that the sub shop might have additional expansion plans in mind.

“If it works out in Tinley, we’ll open more,” he said. “We’ll continue to move south.”

The Tinley location will employ about 10 people, Peplowski said.

For information, call 708-237-1755 or visit them online at Peppo’s Dili-Deli or check out their Facebook page. 

Red Mango Eyes mid-October Opening 

RedMango, a smoothie and frozen yogurt shop, reported on its Facebook page this week that it expects to open at 31 Orland Square Drive in Orland Park by mid-October.

Owners Trisha and Jeff Fendt said they are now taking applications online. The Orland store will be their fourth in the Chicago area and the chain’s first in the Southland.

If you see a new business in town or wonder what happened to an old favorite, drop me a line at bob@chicago-patch.com.

You can also catch up on Comings & Goings in other parts of the Southland at www.southlandbusinessnews.blogspot.com.
 

Halloween Season is in Full Swing

Halloween City has a huge store at 15846 S. LaGrange Road in Orland Park.

By Bob Bong
Southland Savvy

October not only marks the true end of summer it also signals the start of the Halloween season as temporary Halloween stores are now open throughout the Southland. 

Halloween City at 15846 S. LaGrange Road in Orland Park is open in the former Party City store, which closed earlier this year after merging with the Party City store at 14906 S. LaGrange Road.   

Halloween City also has stores at 16845 Torrence Ave. in Lansing, at 13462 S. Archer Ave. in Lemont's Long Run Marketplace, and at 1534 U.S. 41 in Schererville's Fountain Park plaza.

All of the stores are open from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Sunday. Hours will be extended after Oct. 20.

There is a Halloween City sign at 16195 S. Harlem Ave. in Tinley Park, but the store is not yet open.

For information, visit the company online at Halloween City.

Spirit Halloween has a store
at 16086 S. Harlem Ave. in Tinley Park.

Spirit Halloween has stores at 16086 S. Harlem Ave. in Tinley Park in the former Bud’s sports bar and at 14726 S. Cicero Ave. in Midlothian's Mid-Oak Plaza. Spirit also has a store at Louis Joliet Mall in Joliet. Stores are open from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.

For information, visit the company online at Spirit Halloween. 

Halloween Express opened a costume and decorations at 6101 W. 95^th St. in Oak Lawn. The store will remain open through Nov. 2 and hours are Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Halloween Express also has a store at 15818 S. Harlem Ave. in Orland Park. 

For information, visit Halloween Express.  

Many other stores have extensive Halloween departments including Saunoris Nursery in Frankfort, Alsip Nursery in Frankfort, Party City stores, Menard's stores, Lowe's Stores, CVS stores and Walgreen stores.

If you see a new business in town or wonder what happened to an old favorite, drop me a line at bobbong@hotmail.com.

You can also catch up on Comings & Goings in other parts of the Southland at www.southlandbusinessnews.blogspot.com.