August 18, 2006

Here is an article that ran in today's Herald News. Please feel free to click on the link so you can enjoy the wonderful picture of me as well.

Beyond peanuts & Cracker Jack

Hamburgers and hot dogs are the most popular food choices at Silver Cross Field. Not a big surprise that when people are at a ballpark, they crave traditional food. In two areas of the park, though, the choices to feed your hunger sound more like something you would find on an upscale restaurant's menu.

Blackened chicken Cobb salad, creamy spinach and artichoke dip, fire-roasted gulf shrimp and slow-roasted, peppercorn-crusted beef tenderloin are among the menu choices for fans in the suites and hot tub. The dessert offerings include dessert nachos with fresh fruit, a double chocolate brownie platter and a gourmet cookie platter.

All of that food, including the hot dogs and hamburgers that are ordered, is prepared by one man — Javier Villegas.

And although the menu has changed, going through a major revamp about a year ago, Villegas has been the chef on hand at the field since it opened.

"I really love to cook, this is like, it's quick and I've got nothing else to do during the summertime," he said.

When temperatures are not soaring, the Chicago resident cooks for another venue, Allstate Arena.

He has been a chef for 25 years and his favorite dish to prepare is the beef tenderloin because it makes for such a great presentation.

Villegas works with Dan Regan Jr., general manager of Aramark at the field, to come up with the menu.

Regan has experience managing food service for sports arenas. He has previously worked in Houston and Indianapolis, just to name a few. Each, he said, has certain tastes.

"In Houston, in the suites, it was fajitas and brisket," he said. "In Indianapolis, it was fried pork tenderloin."

In Joliet, he said, along with the hot dogs and hamburgers, Italian beef is a huge hit.

On Aug. 10, I toured the suites and sampled the fare. I liked the dessert nachos best and the chicken salad.

Irish O'Reilly, who works at Lewis University, said his group really enjoyed one of the dessert offerings.

"The chocolate brownies are going over really well," he said.

Just down the hall, Andy Baskel of Joliet Open MRI also praised the sugary sweets.

"The desserts are excellent," he said.

And if you find yourself a guest of a suite where your favorite dessert was not offered, a cart comes around, where cakes and sundaes can be purchased.

The fare offered to the suite and hot tub attendees does not come cheap, if one person is picking up the tab.

The menu specifies each order serves eight.

The spinach artichoke dip, for example, is $45, the fire-roasted gulf shrimp is $65 and the beef tenderloin, the highest priced item on the menu, is $150.

To be fair, though, the portions are larger than they seem and people seem to nibble more than eat.

And, when you consider that each of the dishes, plain old hot dogs included ($26), are prepared by a professional chef, paying up to $18 a person is a deal.

- Dawn Aulet is a Herald News features reporter who can be reached at daulet@scn1.com or (815) 729-6085.