Panera Bread will open at 6 a.m. Dec. 27. The restaurant is at 1690 N. State Route 50 in Bradley, in the First National Bank of Grant Park building. Hours will be 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Sunday.

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Christmas Day, Inc. will once again be serving a free Christmas dinner on Dec. 25. It’s a chance for anyone who might otherwise spend the holiday alone to come out and enjoy food and fellowship on Christmas Day.

The 17th annual holiday meal, which is catered by La Villetta restaurant, will be served from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at eight locations throughout the area. The meal includes ham, turkey, stuffing, several other side dishes, salad and pie. There will also be prizes and entertainment, including a visit from Santa, at each site.

There is no cost to the meal, but reservations are required. This helps ensure that each location is properly prepared. The intent is to bring together people who would otherwise spend the holiday alone, so carry-outs are not available.

Organizers of the event hope to serve at least 1,500 people this year. If you would like to make a reservation, or volunteer to help, please call (815) 295-1610. Reservations will be accepted until Dec. 23.

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Caribbean Delite is expected to reopen at 559 E. Court St. in early January. The restaurant formerly was at the corner of Wall and Station streets in Kankakee.

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Fieldhouse on Heritage has five new lunch specials for $5.55. The specials are available every weekday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and include a drink. Fieldhouse is at 12 Heritage Plaza in Bourbonnais.

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It appears that Doctor Donuts in Bourbonnais has closed. The restaurant opened in May of this year at 275 S. Main St.

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The current online Deal of the Day is for The Freight House Pub in Kankakee. You can buy a $20 gift certificate for $10. To purchase this deal, go to i57life.com/deals.

The new Arby’s at Exit 308 in Kankakee opened yesterday. The restaurant is inside the new Love’s Truck Stop, which is at the southeast corner of the Interstate 57 Exit 308 interchange. Both Arby’s and the truck stop are open 24 hours.

Beggars Pizza in Bourbonnais likely won’t be open for a few more weeks.

Christmas Day, Inc. is once again serving a free Christmas dinner on Dec. 25. It’s a chance for anyone who might otherwise spend the holiday alone to come out and  enjoy food and fellowship on Christmas Day.

The 17th annual holiday meal, which is catered by La Villetta restaurant, will be served from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at eight locations throughout the area. The meal includes ham, turkey, stuffing, several other side dishes, salad and pie. There will also be prizes and entertainment, including a visit from Santa, at each site.

There is no cost to the meal, but reservations are required. This helps ensure that each location is properly prepared. The intent is to bring together people who would otherwise spend the holiday alone, so carry-outs are not available.

Organizers of the event hope to serve at least 1,500 people this year. If you would like to make a reservation, or volunteer to help, please call (815) 295-1610. Reservations will be accepted until Dec. 23.

The eight locations are:

Bourbonnais:
Central Christian Church
310 NW Main Street
(815) 295-1610

Bradley:
Quality Inn & Suites
800 N. Kinzie Avenue (Rt. 50)
(815) 295-1610

Grant Park:
Community Center
209 W. Dixie Highway
815-465-6531

Kankakee:
Civic Auditorium
8th & W. Charles Street
(815) 295-1610

Lisieux Pastoral Center
371 N. St. Joseph Avenue
815-929-9158

Manteno:
Leo Hassett Center
211 N. Main Street
815-295-1610

Momence:
Community Center
125 W. Gladiolus Street
815-472-2001

St. Anne:
First Baptist Church
(new location this year)
215 W. Sheffield St.
(815) 295-1610

Click here to download a flyer (in both English and Spanish) for more information.

Panera Bread is expected to open in Bourbonnais before the end of the year.

Like other Panera’s, the menu will include bread, pastries, soup, sandwiches and coffee. It will also feature a drive-through window and offer catering.

The restaurant is at the southeast corner of Illinois Route 50 and Larry Power Road in Bourbonnais. The address is 1690 N. State Route 50. Hours will be 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday.

It’s not often that a reader tells me about a restaurant I haven’t heard of before, but that was the case recently when I spoke to a reader named Rich about Nelly’s Restaurant on Route 66 in Wilmington.

Rich told me that it was a “neat little place” with an “awesome” pulled pork sandwich. According to the restaurant’s Facebook page, Nelly’s also serves “awesome specialty burgers (all made from 100% Angus Beef), Vienna dogs, and other specialty sandwiches, all served on buns made from a local bakery, Milano Breads. We serve hand-cut fresh French fries, and awesome fresh-cut onion rings.”

I can confirm that both the pulled pork and onion rings are very good. I actually tried them together, with the onions atop the pork in my sandwich, as the menu said I could. The onions were cut super thin and had a light breading. They were like a fresh version of the French’s onions that you’ve probably had in green been casserole. The salty crunch was an excellent compliment to the juicy pork.

The lengthy menu also features wraps, wings, kids’ items and appetizers, including fried dill pickles and green beans. The casual decor features Route 66 memorabilia and chalkboards, some of which customers can write on. There are also TVs and free Wifi.

Nelly’s is open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday. The address is 140 Bridge St. in Wilmington. To get there from the Bourbonnais area, take Illinois 102 into downtown Wilmington. Turn left at the stoplight, which is Bridge Street, go over the bridge and the restaurant is on your right. The phone is 815-476-9590.

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

Read the rest of this entry »

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I am thankful to have such a fun job, and thankful to all of you who read Best Bites each week.

The new Arby’s at Exit 308 in Kankakee is planned to open Dec. 8.

The restaurant is inside the new Love Truck Stop, which is also slated to open that day. The truck stop is at the southeast corner of the Interstate 57 Exit 308 interchange. Both Arby’s and the truck stop will be open 24 hours.

The address is 3407 S. State Road 45/52. The phone will be (815) 929-1661.

(Thanks to a reader named Dorothy for that tip.)

Beggars Pizza could be open in Bourbonnais as early as next week.

A representative for the company told me today they hope to open during the first or second week of December. They are in the final stages of installing equipment and getting the necessary inspections.

The restaurant will be open for lunch and dinner daily. It’s at 165 S. Main St., in space formerly occupied by The Original Pancake House. It will be the 20th Beggars Pizza location, most of which are in the Chicagoland area.

Thanks to a reader named Gina for this recommendation:

“I just wanted to pass along the name of a great little place in Bourbonnais. Pup-N-Pop is on Main Street (The old Mocha Island), across from Starbucks. This is a great little place if you are wanting awesome Chicago style hot dogs, excellent BBQ pork & Italian beef sandwiches. All of their food is homemade. The soups are excellent, especially the beef barley soup, (which is) the best I have ever had. The owner just told us they will start serving french fries and assured us they will be the best and like nothing we have ever had before.

My 13-year-old son cannot get enough of this place.  It’s his favorite place to eat, hands down. The food is very reasonably priced and the service is super quick. The owners are super nice and always there to serve you with a smile. Very, very nice place. I am hoping you can pass this along to your readers. I would love for everyone to give them a try. I don’t think they would be sorry.”

I agree with everything you said, Gina!

Pup-N-Pop is at 415 Main St. NW in Bourbonnais. Hours are 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday. They’re closed on Sunday. There’s a drive-up window, so you can order without getting out of your car.

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A reader named Tom also left this comment on my blog post about Pup-N-Pop last week:

“Pup and Pops has very good food. They have all-beef Vienna hot dogs, homemade baked beans, potato salad and a great choice of other things. Everything I have had from there has been very good. It is a family-run buisiness and they are very friendly and will talk to you and make you feel welcome.”