New restaurant to open Saturday in Elgin
Anthony Carrera and Jessica Garcia, co-owners of Elgin's incoming Grove Central Station restaurant, have big plans for their latest business venture. The couple most recently owned a bar in Ohio, but the former Chicagoans decided to come back to the area.
“This was the best property we found in the whole Chicago area,” Carrera said.
Grove Central Station will open at 51 S. Grove Ave., taking the place of Mad Maggie's restaurant/bar.
“Our main thing is good service, good food,” Garcia said.
The four-floor building, including a basement, has more than 20,000 square feet, according to Carrera, and will be filled one day by Grove Central Station. The start will be slow and steady, though.
The first floor will be open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday with a light menu timed to reach out to Art and Soul on the Fox/Passeggiata patrons. Then the business will close for about a week as the owners finish preparations and then reopen the restaurant for the rest of August.
Labor Day weekend is the scheduled date for a grand opening, when alcohol will be served.
When it's ready, the basement will be open on weekends for a night club and the second floor will hold a bar, VIP lounge and pool tables. Eventually they hope to use the third floor as a pool hall for tournaments and leagues.
Carrera said the couple, though young, has been in the bar business for a while. This will be their first venture with a full restaurant, and though at times the preparation as been overwhelming, Carrera, 27, and Garcia, 24, said they are excited to open in Elgin.
“Downtown is up and coming,” Garcia said. “They're trying to do everything they can to get people here. We love that.”
Eventually the couple plans to employ about 25 people. To start, they're looking to fill between seven and 10 positions. Email grovecentralstation@gmail.com for information about applying.