July 2009 Archives

I'm kind of a creature of habit. I tend to go to the same restaurants all the time. I've wanted to try some new places, but I hate going to an unknown eatery, spend the money and not care for the food or service. In this economy, I'm not spending money at any place unless I've received a worthy referral. And, I know many of you feel the same way.

Well, this weekend the Bolingbrook Chamber of Business is sponsoring the first Restaurant and Catering Expo. The event will be held from 12 to 6 p.m. on Saturday, July 25 at the Bolingbrook Promenade.

Sponsors for the event said there's going to be about 15 restaurants to sample.

"There's going to be a lot of good restaurants from around Bolingbrook," said Kris Kuchler, marketing director for the Promenade mall. "It gives everybody a tasting. It's kind of like a Taste of Chicago," said Kuchler. "It's the first and we're hoping that it will be the first of many," she added.

The event will be held in the former Circuit City space and will showcase different restaurants, some new restaurants like Longhorn Steakhouse and Andy's Custard and as well as some long standing spots like Branmor's American Grill and Tailgaters Sports Bar and Grill. The event will also include a chef demonstration and a kid's corner where kids can indulge in cookie decorating and crafting.

Mike Evans, executive director for the Bolingbrook Chamber of Business, hopes that the event is a "win-win" for both the local business community as well as local residents.

"Sometimes people don't go out of their boxes and this (event) gives them an opportunity to try our different restaurants," he said.

And just like the Taste of Chicago, food will be offered in sample sizes. Tickets can be purchased at the door. The average vendor is expected to sell their tasters for about three or four tickets, and tickets cost 50 cent each.

I'll be there looking for new eateries, especially those that cater to children. And if I happen to find any especially tasty place, I'll be sure to let you know. See you at the event.

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I just wanted to let everyone know that the pre-sell tickets for this weekend's Restaurant an Catering Expo Show are up for sell at pre-sell price.

Tickets for the show, which will be held at the Bolingbrook Promenade are available now through Thursday at pre-sell price. You can get pre-tickets for $20, a value of $24 (a four-dollar savings). On the day of the show, you have to purchase tickets individually at 50 cent a ticket.

The show, which is being called a "mini-Taste of Chicago," is being held in the former Circuit City space at the Promenade mall. You can purchase tickets at either of the village's Meijer's grocery stores or at the Promenade's guest services office.

See you at the show.
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When I got my first water bill after moving here last year, I was stunned. I thought the Illinois American Water Company had made a mistake, so I filed a complaint.

I later found out that the bill was correct, but it took the customer service representative to explain it several times to a very irate customer (me). She explained that the city of Bolingbrook buys its water from the city of Chicago, and that we have to pay for the water to travel to our homes. After that I began to look at my water usage in a different way, looking for ways to conserve.

Then this week I was on the village's website, and I found information about Bolingbrook's water conservation ordinance. It's a policy that mandates when and how residents should use water during the summer from May 1 through September 30.

The village's website states that outdoor water usage is restricted on lawns and landscape sprinkling to either odd or even days of the month, matching your odd or even numbered street address, and should be used mornings from 6-10 a.m., or evenings from 7-11 p.m.

In this age of green talks and economy issues, I thought this water conservation topic is something residents should know about. After all many of us are looking for ways to both save in our pockets and contribute to earth.

I called the village's public works department, and for some reason they responded as though I were the water police. They were uncooperative, and continuously told me that the person I needed to speak with was unavailable. In this day of cell phones, no one is unavailable unless he or she chooses to be.

I ended up calling the Mayor's office. He called me back. All I really wanted to know was if the water conservation ordinance was enforced? He said it was not. Previously, it had been, but when the village switched from using well water to using water from Lake Michigan in March 2001, the problem of adequate water supply was no longer an issue. However, the city left the ordinance in place because conservation was a good idea, according to Mayor Roger Claar.

"We left it on the books because we said we should still conserve," Claar said. It's just good business," he added. "So now we suggest watering (yards) ever other day." he said.

Some Bolingbrook residents, including this one, think that the current cost of water in the village is too high. And the costs are at their current level because we're paying some many entities. Residents pay a surcharge fee to the city of Chicago because Lake Michigan is in their jurisdiction. We pay a surcharge to Bedford Park because our water travels through their piping system, and of course we pay Illinois American Water Company its profit. They earn a 12 to 20 percent margin, according to Claar.

The good thing is that Bolingbrook, Plainfield and Homer Glen are currently in talks to acquire the Illinois water company, a move that could eventually lower customer water rates¬; however, the water guys aren't "willing participants," Claar said.

Although the proposed deal is a little ways down the road, hopefully it's something we can look forward to here in the Brook. And when I know more, I'll definitely let you know. Until then, I'll see you around.
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My kids started summer camp today at the Bolingbrook Park District.

They've never participated in any of the district's events, other than me taking them swimming. I was impressed with the professionalism of the camp leaders. Of course they all look like high schoolers and college level adults, but they seemed well trained and very aware of proper camp protocol and procedures. Whenever I asked a question, they had a ready answer.

I felt safe leaving my kids there. And that says a lot for this over-protective mom. If you haven't given the district summer camp a try, consider doing so. There's still a lot of summer to go.

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If you're looking for something relatively cheap, close-by and fun to do with your children, you might want to try going bowling one afternoon.

AMF Bowling Lanes, located at 401 Boughton Rd is allowing kids to bowl two free games each day, all summer long, now through Aug. 31st.

"Were trying to provide a fun and safe place for families, especially in light of the economy," said Brian Spiller, general manager of the AMF. "And we're certainly having a lot of traffic, folks we haven't seen here before (because of the promotion)."

It's a nice place to take the kids on a rainy day, and there have been plenty of rainy days. To sign-up all you have to do is go to www.kidsbowlfree.com/amf and print your coupons. You get coupons for every day of the week.

If you think it's an event that you're going to participate in all summer, you might want to consider investing in bowling shoes for your family, because that's going to be your biggest expense. Shoes cost $3.75 per person to rent - this includes kids. And that can add up. You can purchase shoes at Andy's Pro Shop. They're an independent bowling store located at the bowling alley. You can pick-up shoes for kids for about $25.

I took my kids bowling this week, and as soon as we left, my daughter asked could we come back tomorrow. I guess I'll be investing in some bowling shoes myself.

AMF Bowling is open Mon to Thurs from 10 am to 11 pm and Fri. and Sat. from 10 am to 11pm. See you around the Brook, or perhaps even at the bowling alley.

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If you're into contact sports - that is contact with paint - you might want to give the Chicago Open paintball tournament a try this weekend. I can't say that paintball is my sport, but my son likes it, so I'm in it.

The tournament started on Wednesday June, 24 and runs through Sunday, June 28, at Volunteer Park, which is just outside of the Park District's Aquatic Center. There are over 200 professional and non-professional teams expected to be dressed in gear and seen shooting one another in full paintball combat.

"There are teams coming from all over the country and world," said Keeley Watson a spokesperson for paintball sports promotions of San Diego, California, "We have games going on, on six different fields," she said. There will be teams from Russia, England and Mexico in appearance.

This is the show's fifth year in Bolingbrook, and it's free to the public.

"It's a cool visual show to watch," said Dan Leahy, a spokesperson for the Bolingbrook Park District. "There will be huge arenas on the field," he added. For people interested in getting into the sport locally, the park district sponsors annual paintball trips for teens ages, 12 to 17. The groups travel to Challenge Park Extreme near Wilmington, Illinois, in the fall and spring to get "their paintball fighting on."

In the sport, teams compete against each other in a "capture the flag" style approach. Players use paintball guns filled with gel capsules to "mark" their opponents. Once a paintball hits a player and "marks" them with paint, he or she is out of the game.

And if you're really, really into the sport you can pickup paintball paraphernalia at the show, as trade vendors are expected to be on-hand selling their wares. Hope to see you at the games.

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I'm not a nightclub person, so I'm kind of clueless in this area. But are there any good nightclubs in Bolingbrook?

My sisters and I were out this past weekend celebrating a relative's birthday. We had a nice dinner and wanted to go out to a local club to have a drink and listen to some music.

We tried three different places.

First we went to Tailgater's on Boughton Road. They were spilling out of the front door.
It just wasn't my type of spot. Then we went to Ditka's on Route 53, just north of Boughton. It was kind of quiet, and it lacked a band. Finally we ended up at Bar Louie's at the Promenade. The music was okay, the crowd was pretty young, and the drinks were really high and really watered-down.

Does anybody in Bolingbrook know where mature adults can go in Bolingbrook for a good drink and some nice music on a Saturday night?

If so, can you let me know?

See you around the Brook.