Bull’s on Broadway (1010 W. Broadway in Bradley) closed yesterday. The original Kankakee location (125 W. Station St.) remains open, and according to Facebook, will soon be offering menu items previously offered exclusively at the Bradley location, which was inside The Spot bar.

This was posted yesterday on Bull’s Facebook fan page:

Well, we have made a difficult decision. After about 18 months, we have decided to discontinue operations at Bull’s on Broadway, effective today. It was a difficult decision, but it was one we had to make, for no other reason that business volumes. Costs were exceeding sales, and you just can’t operate that way for too long!

BUT…the better news…our Broadway location had a unique menu, and (according to a lot of you) the best burgers for miles around! So, fear not…a lot of the popular items on the Broadway menu will soon be introduced at our main location …”

Bull’s on Broadway opened in March 2009.

Several readers have asked me for an update on the new Club Irwin. I spoke with the owner again Monday, and he told me he hopes to open within about two weeks. As soon as I have an exact opening date I’ll post it on my blog (blogs.i57life.com/dining) and send out an e-mail. If you would like to be added to my e-mail list, contact me at drenckens@daily-journal.com.

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Thanks to a reader named Lattie for this recommendation: “You don’t have to stay at the Hilton Garden Inn to eat at The Great American Grill. … They have specials each day. I had their chicken sandwich and homemade soup of the day. My friend enjoyed her grilled portabella sandwich. One of the specialties of the chef is cheesecake. We had the apple cheesecake (and) it was fantastic. The service was attentive. It was all top-quality.”

The Great American Grill is in the lobby of the Hilton Garden Inn (455 Riverstone Parkway) in Kankakee. They’re open daily for breakfast and dinner. Call (815) 932-4444 for more information.

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Congratulations to The Unpampered Chefs for their second consecutive win in the annual Amateur Chef’s Competition. The two-man team of Shawn Hamende, of Bonfield, and Tim Chappell, of St. George, impressed four very lucky judges (myself included) at the event, which was held Aug. 21 at the Kankakee Farmers’ Market. Each team in the competition received $50 at 9 a.m. and had to purchase all the ingredients for an appetizer and a main course from market vendors, and then prepare and serve their creations to us at 11 a.m.

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Congratulations also to Ryan Jackson, winner of the Pro Chef’s Challenge, held Aug. 7 at the market. Jackson is head chef at the Kankakee Elks Country Club. If you would like to try his food for yourself, the club currently opens for dinner at 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Starting Oct. 1, the dining room will only be open Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings. For reservations, call (815) 937-1228.

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Jackson is also behind the food served every Friday night at the Manteno American Legion. Two colleagues have recently recommended the dinners, which last week included stuffed pork chops, Southern-style fried catfish, coconut-crusted tilapia, meatloaf and peppercorn-crusted New York strip. Every entree includes the soup and salad bar, which features numerous specialty salads, such as Pesto Pasta Salad and Cucumber Tomato Salad. There’s also a dessert option (last week was Milk Chocolate Heath Bar Crunch Brownie) and a kids’ menu. The dinners are served every Friday from 5 to 8 p.m. at American Legion Post 755 (117 N. Walnut St.) in Manteno. Call (815) 468-8324 for more information.

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I’ll be at the Taste of Kankakee County Friday evening, which is a new event helping to kick off the annual Power Boat Nationals boat races. Tastes from area restaurants will be available from 5 to 7:30 p.m., and beverages will be available at the event and inside the nearby Kankakee Boat Club (1600 Cobb Blvd. in Kankakee). Admission to the Taste costs $15 per person or $5 for kids under 12 and includes two beverages (Pepsi products or beers) and food samples from all the vendors.

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I would like to welcome Frankie’s Pizzeria in Monee and Old Country Buffet in Bradley to Let’s Eat Out, our online menu guide. Go to www.i57life.com/letseatout for downloadable menus, coupons, hours and more.

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Denise Renckens Olszewski is general manager of online operations for The Daily Journal. She can be reached at (815) 937-3374 or at drenckens@daily-journal.com.

Here’s the Best Bites column that appears in today’s edition of The Daily Journal:

Read the rest of this entry »

Here are a few September events for your calendar:

• The Taste of Kankakee County will be held from 5 to 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 3, in an area adjacent to the Kankakee Boat Club (1600 Cobb Boulevard). The new event is one of the festivities surrounding the Power Boat Nationals boat races that will once again be held Labor Day weekend. Admittance to the Taste costs $15 per person or $5 for kids under 12 and includes two beverages and food samples from all the vendors. Tickets are available at the event or in advance at the Kankakee Valley Park District or the Holiday Inn Express at Northfield Square Mall. Also that evening, the boats will be conducting test runs until 5:30 p.m., the band Bakersfield will perform from 5 to 8:30 p.m., a beer tent and the boat club will be open, and rides in a two-seater racing boat will be raffled off. Vendors are still invited to join. For more information, call (815) 955-7211.

• The 50th annual Limestone Fire Department Chicken BBQ will be held Saturday, Sept. 11, from noon to 7 p.m. Dinners are carry-out only. The cost is $8, or $6 for a children’s dinner. Tickets are available at the door or by calling the fire department at (815) 932-4664.

• The 75th annual Greek Festival will be held Sunday, Sept. 12, from noon to 7 p.m. Dinners include your choice of Greek style shish-ke-bob or chicken, plus several sides. Numerous homemade Greek pastries and sweets, including the classic baklava, are available for sale. The festival is held at Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church, which is at 296 N. Washington Ave. in Kankakee.

• The fourth annual Half Paddy Festival will be held Sept. 17 and 18 (halfway to St. Patrick’s Day) at St. Patrick’s Church in Kankakee. The corned beef dinner will be held Saturday evening following the 4 p.m. Blue Mass, which is held to honor area firefighters and law enforcement personnel. The church is at 428 S. Indiana Ave. For more information and a full schedule of events, go to www.halfpaddy.com or call the church at (815) 932-6716.

I’m a huge fan of Mexican food, especially tacos. I like mine the traditional way, with meat (pork is my favorite) wrapped in corn tortillas and topped with diced onions and cilantro.

Last week I discovered two new tacos that I recommend trying. The first was at Jimmy Jo’s BBQ (665 N. Convent St.) in Bourbonnais. I wasn’t expecting to see tacos on the menu when I walked in, but they’ve been offering pulled pork and beef briskett tacos for more than a month. I tried one of each and both were excellent. They come topped with tomato and lettuce, and either pico de gallo, red sauce or green sauce. Also available are sour cream and guacamole, which is particularly good on the pork taco.

The other tacos I enjoyed were the new Cantina tacos at Taco Bell. They’re served the traditional way that I like and even come with a fresh lime wedge. Choose from chicken, steak or carnitas (shredded pork). In addition to tasting good, these tacos are also waistline friendly. The steak Cantina taco is 160 calories, the chicken taco is 170 calories and the carnitas taco is 200 calories.

There will be free sweet corn at the Kankakee Farmers Market on Saturday. The market is open from 7 a .m. to noon at the southwest corner of Schuyler Avenue and Merchant Street.

Here’s the Best Bites column that appears in today’s edition of The Daily Journal.

Read the rest of this entry »

The annual Kankakee Elk’s his & hers golf outing and fish fry will be Aug. 20.

Dinner tickets are $20 per person and include unlimited cod fish and draft beer, as well as entertainment by The Silouettes from 8 to 11 p.m. Tickets are available at the door or by calling (815) 937-1227 or 937-1228.

The Elks is at 2283 Bittersweet Drive in St. Anne.

A reader named Dennis called recently to recommend the Manteno Sportsman’s Club (851 N. Main) on “beautiful Lake Manteno.”

The lounge, which is open to the public, opens daily at 11 a.m. to serve drinks. For a limited time, they’re also offering $2 cheeseburgers (that are “huge and outdoor grilled”) on Wednesdays from 6 to 8 p.m. They also have $2 margaritas and $2 shots of José Cuervo tequila on Wednesdays.

“Everyone’s invited,” Dennis said. “It’s a great deal for the money.”

The Full Bull opened recently in Watseka. The bar and grill serves burgers, sandwiches, wraps, wings and more.

On Tuesdays, get two items for just $2. Choose from a small burger, pork burger, chicken breast sandwich, fries or onion rings. On Taco Thursdays, chicken or beef flour tacos are $3. They also have wing specials on Wednesdays and a $4 fish sandwich special on Fridays.

The kitchen is open for lunch and dinner Tuesday through Saturday. Lunch hours are 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and dinner hours are 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

The phone number is (815) 432-2855 (BULL). The address is 117-119 E. Walnut St., aka Route 24.

(Thanks to a reader named Mary Lou, who not only gave me this tip, but also tracked down much of the information for me!)