February 5th, 2010 03:10pm
Melissa Westphal
Two other stores will join the Noodles & Company restaurant in the space currently occupied by Blockbuster near East State Street and Trainer Road once the movie rental business closes.
First Rockford Group is behind the development, and the company says construction should start by the end of February.
The Blockbuster store is part of a handful of under-performing stores that were pushed into an accelerated closure process this year by the company. Officials announced last year that they could close up to 960 stores as the company looks to shed buildings and grab more of the digital DVD release market.
Noodles & Company will occupy 2,688 square feet of space and open late this spring. The location will have an outdoor patio.
All About Eyes, a full-service optical company that will have a licensed optometrist on staff seven days a week, will occupy another 2,900 square feet of space.
US Cellular will take 1,435 square feet and be run by operator Kevin Carnes.
February 4th, 2010 10:03pm
Melissa Westphal
Register Star file photo
It’s unclear when Thai Cuisine Restaurant, 6551 E. Riverside Blvd., closed, but a sign at the space says it will reopen soon.
The restaurant was first established in 1994, according to Register Star archives. It was well-known for its lunch buffet.
There are newspapers covering the restaurant windows now, and a sign says the place will open again this month and will have a new owner and new management.
January 26th, 2010 04:01pm
Melissa Westphal
A new Dog ‘n Suds restaurant at 3137 N. Main St. was supposed to open on Wednesday, but the opening has been delayed a week to give owners a bit more time for final preparations.
The restaurant is now set to open on Wednesday, Feb. 3, owner Greg Oliphant said. Oliphant is also the man behind the Dog ‘n Suds drive-in at 1421 Harlem Road in Loves Park.
The new Dog ‘n Suds will feature a different design than the other franchises. It will be fully enclosed and open year-round, and Oliphant plans to use the drive-thru left behind by the McDonald’s that used to occupy the space.
There is some outdoor seating at the restaurant.
The restaurant’s menu will feature Dog ‘n Suds favorites like Coney dogs and draft root beer.
January 25th, 2010 08:46pm
Melissa Westphal
Fans of wine and food spot Cru, 509 E. State St., have been disappointed to learn of its recent closing, but fret not. Owner Paul Sletten already has plans for the space.
Cru opened three years ago as a retail wine shop that offered lunch service and eventually added dinner service. Sletten, who also owns nearby restaurant and bar Brio, owned Cru with Damien Hunter, who was the wine expert out of the pair and worked as Cru’s general manager.
Hunter recently decided to step back from managing Cru so he could spend more time with his family, Sletten said. With Hunter’s wine expertise and management and cooking skills gone, Sletten decided it was time to end Cru’s run and begin a new adventure.
Sletten is in the process of remodeling Cru and bringing in what he calls a “killer staff.” The new restaurant will have a full bar, and that bar needs to be built, as Cru’s focus was on wine.
The style of the new restaurant will be “farm-to-table,” which basically means Sletten will try to use as much locally-grown produce, meat and dairy products as he can. Sletten said the menu will change with the seasons, to take advantage of the products that grow best at various times of the year. He has incorporated some of that style at Brio and by joining other local groups in partnering with area farmers and producers.
The new restaurant, which has a name that Sletten is keeping under wraps for now, will have everything from steaks to hearty vegetarian meals. He has hired an executive sous chef for the place.
“There are two styles of food that I love. I love to layer flavors and textures and combine tastes, which we do at Brio. But I also love putting a steak on plate that’s cooked perfectly,” Sletten said.
Sletten isn’t expanding Cru’s smaller space. He likes the idea of a smaller dinner service.
“That way, the staff can do what they do and it’s cozy for people to be here,” Sletten said. “Our area sees that vibrant foot traffic that supports quality products.”
The new restaurant doesn’t have an official opening date yet, but Sletten is shooting for spring or just warmer weather months in general. He plans to use social media outlets like Facebook to release tidbits of information as the opening date draws closer.
Hours for the new place will likely be 5 p.m. to midnight Monday through Thursday and 5 p.m. to 2 a.m. Friday and Saturday. He may consider Sundays, depending on the market response.
January 25th, 2010 12:49pm
Melissa Westphal
Noodles & Company is coming to Rockford and will open where the Blockbuster video store is closing near East State Street and Trainer Road.
Company Spokeswoman Jill Preston confirmed that the restaurant will open in August at 6430 E. State St. in Rockford. The Blockbuster store is set to close by the end of this month.
The Noodles & Company menu features Asian, Mediterranean and American pastas, soups and salads.
The company has restaurants all across the U.S., and the closest locations to Rockford according to the company’s Web site look like Geneva, Elgin, Crystal Lake, Lake in the Hills and South Barrington.
January 25th, 2010 11:57am
Melissa Westphal
Shoppers can grab a Whopper come mid-March when Burger King joins the food court lineup at CherryVale Mall, 7200 Harrison Ave.
The popular food chain is one of few new stores that have opened or are opening at the mall. Burger King joins other food court offerings like Charley’s Steakery, Kobe Japanese, Panda Express, Quencher Smoothies, San Jose Taqueria, Sbarro and Subway.
Skin Deep, which offers a variety of skin treatments, opened Jan. 13 at The District at CherryVale, the lifestyle center next to the mall. Skin Deep has anti-aging, detoxifying, purifying and anti-oxidant treatments and products.
Fryerz is another restaurant opening soon at the mall’s upper level near the northwest entrance. According to the mall’s Web site, the Fryerz menu will feature chicken, fish and gyro meals priced at $5.
January 22nd, 2010 12:53pm
Melissa Westphal
The Blockbuster store near East State Street and Trainer Road is expected to close by month’s end as part of the company’s overall strategy to shed stores and grab more of the digital DVD release market.
Blockbuster officials announced last year that they could close up to 960 stores as part of their portfolio optimization initiative, Spokeswoman Michelle Metzger said. Metzger said the company closed about 300 stores in 2009, and a handful of under-performing stores were pushed into an accelerated closure process this year.
The store at 6430 E. State St. is included in that accelerated closure process. Metzger said the company likes to have another store offering within a 10-minute radius, so the stores at 2715 N. Main St. and at 1724 E. Riverside Blvd. in Loves Park will stay open.
Inventory at the East State Street store is being sold off until it closes. Metzger said company officials were able to renegotiate leases with six store owners in other cities to turn the buildings into Blockbuster outlet stores.
The movie rental market has shifted in recent years to mail subscriptions and digital downloads, making choices more convenient for customers, since companies like Netflix and Redbox came along. Blockbuster had to adjust, and Metzger said getting the word out is key.
“People still think of us as stores, but we’re so much more,” Metzger said. “We’re everywhere. And people still know our business as offering hot new releases. We’re very passionate about living up to that brand.”
Blockbuster still has 6,600 stores worldwide. Blockbuster On Demand allows users to watch digital moves on Samsung TVs and Blu-ray players and through TiVo and mobile devices.
The company partnered with Georgia-based technology company NCR Corp. to install 10,000 low-cost DVD-rental kiosks across the country. Metzger said about 2,500 of them are available so far.
Customers can visit blockbusterexpress.com to find kiosks in their region. A quick search of the Rockford region shows kiosks located at 10 different Mobil gas stations.
January 19th, 2010 05:37pm
Melissa Westphal
Swilligan’s Pub, 200 N. Church St., closed a few weeks ago for remodeling, and owner Tom Lester said he’ll know more by the end of the week about the restaurant’s future.
Lester said the pub’s kitchen needs to be renovated, and January is typically a slow month for bars and restaurants, so he decided to close temporarily. He also cited the economy for making business especially tough right now.
January 19th, 2010 05:33pm
Melissa Westphal
Sugar & Spice, 414 E. State St., has closed its doors after about six months of serving a bistro-style menu of soups, sandwiches and coffee drinks.
Owner Brenda Delehanty said the recession made it difficult to keep her doors open heading into 2010, so she decided to close on Dec. 31, 2009. She was also offered a new job in the hotel industry right around that time, so she said that also contributed to the decision to close.
Still, she said, it was tough to close, and she’ll miss the regular customers she came to know since opening Sugar & Spice in June.
“It was something different for lunch, dishes that were homemade and hearty, and that’s what people were looking for,” Delehanty said. “I’ll miss everyone with all of my heart.”
Delehanty said she hopes she can one day open a restaurant again or possibly start a restaurant within the hotel industry.
Melissa Miller, a commercial real estate agent with Century 21 Country North Inc., already is getting some buzz on the restaurant location. She put signage up at the establishment today, and anyone interested in the space can call her at 815-978-6125.
January 8th, 2010 01:40pm
Melissa Westphal
Rockford has a new site for new and gently used clothing and accessories at GH2, 6151 E. State St.
Barry and Diane Tope opened GH2 as a partner to Great Hang-Ups, 613 S. Rockford Ave. The Topes bought Great Hang-Ups about five years ago, but the store has been open in Rockford for about 22 years.
The Topes found the resale business model growing more popular during the recession, so they decided to open the second store. Plato’s Closet, a discount teen clothing retailer, used to occupy the space where GH2 is now, but it moved a few stores down to a bigger location.
The timing was right for GH2 to open, Diane Tope said. The store has more of a boutique feel and sells a mix of new and gently used clothes, accessories, formals and more.
Tope said the new store is attracting a new generation of customers who didn’t shop at or know about Great Hang-Ups. It’s also open a little later and open on Sundays.
Hours are 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday.
Tope said business was excellent during the holidays, particularly the option of customers buying gift cards that don’t expire and can be used at both stores. And the store is taking part in a fashion show Jan. 21 at Giovanni’s Restaurant & Convention Center, 610 N. Bell School Road.
Call GH2 at 815-397-1000 for more information about merchandise or selling your own items or visit the Great Hang-Ups Web site at greathang-ups.com.
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