Restaurant Week Review: Will it Become a Yearly Feature?

Not only is likely to become a yearly February event, you'll likely see it again much sooner, according to restaurant owners who gathered at Bella Bacinos on Tuesday evening.

Representatives of , , , and stopped by Bacinos to spin the raffle drum and pull out the winning passports to decide the —a culinary getaway, a stay in Chicago and gift certificates to local restaurants.

Linda Bacin, owner of Bella Bacinos, said that when owners met last Tuesday for a wrap up on La Grange Restaurant Week, the owner's comments were overwhelmingly positive.

"I thought it went really well," Bacin said. "And it really brought the business owners together."

The Restaurant Committee of the now meets monthly to discuss issues that pertain to all of them, Bacin said.

Palmer Place owner Steve Palmer agreed and said, "It's nice to meet with [other restaurant owners]. We all work strange hours and it's good to be around people who are your peers."

Due to the success of Restaurant Week—nearly 1,000 stamps were turned in on the passports—Bacin said that she fully expects to do it again next February.

In the meantime, Bacin said owners are already planning another week of food events and promotions, likely to run in September. The passports will also make a return for that event.

Both Palmer and Bacin said that their businesses saw increased sales during February—normally a slow month in the restaurant industry. But they said some of the most obvious benefits they saw were from the customer's point of view.

"I think it really forced [diners] to get out of their normal behavior and try something that they might not have before," Bacin said.

The evidence of that was certainly in where people got passports stamped, which showed a wide range of the types of restaurants that diners tried out.

Benefits for Diners, Benefits for Owners

Starting April, Bacin said, the village is allowing two new valet services to operate on the west side of La Grange Road, which Bacin hoped would help with chronic parking problems in downtown La Grange this summer.

Palmer also agreed that parking was still an issue in downtown La Grange and said that being able to work with other restaurant owners to find solutions with the village was a positive aspect of them now working closely together.

Better service might be the result of Restaurant Week as well. Bacin said there are plans to hold a village-wide server-training day in La Grange.

"Not only will La Grange be known for great dining, but people will come here for great service as well," Bacin said.

Sounds like the real winner is our appetite!