Check out these restaurants the next time you make plans for your weekend brunch.

National Margarita Day is Sunday, Feb. 22. Check out where you can find the best margarita in your area.

The McHenry City Council has approved a 10-year, $142,000 sales tax rebate deal with Niko Kanakaris, a restaurateur who is set to buy and rehab Vickie's Place on the Fox River.

Rock Falls establishments with gaming machines, and the machines’ owners, will be required to pay more in gaming machine fees to the city starting this year.

Competing for customers in a market crowded with competitors isn’t anything new for Horacio Leon, one of the co-founders of Azul Cantina, Sterling’s newest Mexican restaurant. 

Azul Cantina is open for business in Sterling. The Mexican-style restaurant moved into the former Applebee's building.

Villa Verone Ristorante Italiano is a family-owned business that features authentic Southern Italian fine cuisine.

Check out what Shaw Local audiences voted as the best romantic and fine dining restaurants in Kane, DeKalb, Will and McHenry counties, as well as the Illinois Valley.

Enjoy a romantic dinner to celebrate Valentine's Day at one of these restaurants in northern Illinois.

Check out where Sauk Valley audiences go for the best pizza in the area.

Long inspired by the food, culture, and hospitality of New Orleans, the team is celebrating with a one-night-only lineup of Mardi Gras specials.

Owners Dave and Tracy DeVries have added Papa’s Pizza and The Classroom Bakery to The Classroom in Nelson.

The approximately five acres of land is currently unincorporated agricultural land in Will County. The restaurant would be located directly east of Walker’s Grove Elementary School.

One week after a fire destroyed Tom & Jerry’s Restaurant in Sycamore, the longtime local favorite is already moving toward reopening, announcing plans for a temporary location and a full rebuild at its original site

Sidecar Supper Club & Beer Garden is celebrating 10 years of food, fun and live music in Batavia.

An Indian cuisine restaurant is set for Kankakee County.

The Idle Hour, a new cigar lounge, and RILY, a raw bar and live jazz venue, are expected to open later this year.

At Monday’s Manteno Village Board meeting trustees voted 3-2 to deny the request for a liquor license that also included a gaming provision.

Zuka Sushi-Hibachi & Chinese in Bolingbrook offers a variety of sushi, hibachi and Asian cuisine, according to its website.

For nearly 30 years, ye olde Red Knight Pub in Stockton has rolled out a welcome mat that gives people the Red-carpet treatment, with friends and hospitality from people on both sides of the bar.

Lakshmi will be singing copies of her new cookbook.

A new family-owned restaurant in Joliet is serving up Venezuelan and Colombian food.

Continuing the resurgence of East Dundee, an office building in the heart of the downtown just sold for $1.5 million. A restaurant space in nearby West Dundee is on the market.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation by the Plainfield Fire Protection District and MABAS Division 15 fire investigators.

Celebrity Chef Fabio Viviani will join executive chef Noah Gümüstekin for an unforgettable culinary event Jan. 31-Feb. 1 to benefit the James Beard Foundation.

Yen Ching, the popular eatery on Lincoln Highway in DeKalb will be closing by the end of the year after over 40 years in business. Co-owner Marilyn Yin talks about their years in business.

Emily and Jesse Moffitt are opening a second Summer Moon Coffee in Wheaton. The couple opened the first location in Crystal Lake about three years ago.

With the grand opening scheduled for spring, the $22 million Fox Haven Square development in St. Charles is quickly transforming from long-imagined to fully realized as a destination for dining and entertainment.

More than 40 participating St. Charles restaurants will be offering a special discounts.

The city of St. Charles said 2025 represented a year of healthy occupancy rates among the storefronts and businesses in the downtown area. The city is focusing on 11 vacant storefronts going into the next year.

The 2,450-square-foot restaurant offers 60 seats for indoor dining. Customers can order ahead online at zaxbys.com and through the Zaxbys app for curbside pickup.

Restaurant Weeks are the perfect time to try something new at a special price.

Check out what pizzerias Illinois Valley residents love the most!

More than 40 years ago, Jack in the Box had a restaurant on Chicago Street in downtown Joliet from 1968 until the late 1970s.

The 2,842 square foot one-story drive-thru restaurant a .72 acre parcel on Larkin Avenue is for sale and is “in move-in-ready condition,” according to LoopNet.

Aurora's second annual Restaurant Week is Jan. 20 through Feb. 3.

The longtime owner of Terrace Inn Lounge in Joliet closed the bar at the end of 2025 to spend more time with his family. 

Not going to Soldier Field for the big game? Check out these sports bars in northern Illinois where you can catch all the action and enjoy food and drink specials.

Wendy’s plans to reward the first 50 customers on Friday when it opens its new location at 16556 W. 159th St., Lockport.

Check out the Favorite Breakfast and Favorite Brunch winners in the Sauk Valley Favorites contest!

The Upper Illinois River Valley Development Authority's board of directors on Tuesday unanimously voted to approve a resolution determining the intent to issue revenue bonds in an amount not to exceed $50 million.

Poopy’s, billed as “the largest biker bar in Illinois,” is for sale.  The biker bar, restaurant and event venue in Savanna made the announcement Tuesday, Jan. 13, via its Facebook page. 

These events will have a six-course meal with 2-ounce wine pairings.

In the past, Brown’s Chicken had Joliet locations on Jefferson Street and South Larkin Avenue.

The former schoolhouse in the tiny southwest Stephenson County town of Loran finds new life as the Slurp 'n Burp – serving hearty plates, cold pints and community spirit much larger than the small burg itself, keeping stories and beer flowing.

In January 2025, The Curator’s Cafe moved to American Legion Post 1080 in Joliet, reopening in the American Legion kitchens.

2025 saw a number of restaurants open across northern Illinois.

Oswego police officers responded about 5:54 a.m. to a report of a burglary that had already occurred in the 2300 block of U.S. Route 34.

Casa Catrina will replace the MyGrain Brewery brewpub, which closed in August 2023.

New restaurants include Fire + Wine and Rosebud Steakhouse in St. Charles, Uzu Revolving Sushi in Lombard and The Grand Social House & Tavern in Wauconda.