Best Bites column (Sept. 10, 2009)
Here’s the Best Bites column that appears in today’s edition of The Daily Journal:
A reader named Ken e-mailed me recently to tell me about the Watseka Theatre. “It is newly restored and a terrific nostalgic experience,” he wrote. “On Friday nights, they serve a high-end menu (prime rib, steaks, etc.) and have live entertainment. On Saturday nights, they offer dinner and a movie for $10.” On the Saturday evening that Ken was there, the dinner was “a pork loin sandwich (very tasty), potato salad and homemade dessert, and … (the) movie was a 1937 Cary Grant comedy.”
I didn’t realize the theater offered dining, so I did a little research, and here’s what I learned: The dining area inside the theater is called The Club Café, and it celebrated its grand opening on May 22. On Fridays, there’s happy hour from 5 to 6 p.m., with dinner served from 5:30 p.m. until midnight or until the last guests leave, whichever comes first. There’s also live music every Friday, ranging in style from jazz to pop to folk.
Debra Liddell, of Watseka, does all the cooking and baking with her husband, Charles Gomez. It’s “cooking from our heart,” she said. The menu changes from week to week, but you can expect to see entrees such as lamb chops, rock Cornish game hen with apricot brown sugar sauce, Tuscan chicken with white wine cream sauce, or stuffed pork chops.
There are also a few staples on the menu, including a lasagna that Debra makes out of homemade crepes. She also makes all the desserts from scratch, including a triple chocolate molten lava cake.
On Saturday evenings, when the theater isn’t booked for a special event, there’s “food and a flick” for $10. These dinners are much more casual, and the movie is an old one that’s not copyrighted.
If you are planning a visit to the Watseka Theatre and The Club Café, you are encouraged to confirm the schedule. Their number is (815) 993-6585, their e-mail is info@watsekatheatre.com, and they’re on the Web at watsekatheatre.com
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Schoop’s Hamburgers opened Tuesday in Bourbonnais. It’s decorated like a classic diner inside, with lots of red, black and shiny stainless steal. Opening the restaurant has been a long process for owners Don and Sharron Grobner, and Butch Hovarter and Dr. Valerie Goldfain. They’re exited to bring their favorite burger to the area, and they’re proud that they did it with area workers and businesses. Local labor did 98 percent of the work, according to Hovarter, and they also used a local bank, architect and landscaper. The restaurant is open from 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. seven days a week. They don’t currently offer breakfast, but they may add it in a few months. The phone is (815) 936-9090. When you go, be sure to enter the parking lot at the north end, and head behind the building for additional parking.
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Vito’s Pizzeria and Pub (1887 Armour Road) in Bourbonnais now has a lunch buffet. It’s served from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday and costs $4.99. It includes pizza, salad bar, breadsticks, homemade soups and rotating hot specials.
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BrickStone Restaurant and Brewery’s Fall Fest is this Friday and Saturday. The outdoor festival will be held under a tent on BrickStone’s lawn and will feature live music both nights, plus $3 BrickStone brews. There’s a $5 cover at the door each night.
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Fall flavors, including pumpkin ice cream and frosted gingerbread cookie ice cream, have arrived at PJ’s Ice Cream & Coffee in Manteno. They also have added green apple sorbet and peach and blueberry gelato to their regular lineup.
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I post some things on my blog that I don’t intend to publish in print, and one such post last week was about my little boy’s first encounter with baby food, peas to be exact. I figured that “first bites” was close enough to “best bites” to justify the inclusion. I also posted two photos, one of which has gotten so much reaction that I thought I would share it with my print readers, too. Fortunately, 5-month-old Grady and I have both gotten a little better at the whole eating/feeding thing.
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Denise and her husband, Brendan, live in Bourbonnais. Grady is patiently training them as parents and so far hasn’t asked for new ones.
