Daily Herald opinion: Whatever the reason, local restaurants have a way of bringing us together

Whether a new restaurant is opening next year, next week or in a few months, people get excited about new places to dine.

Just in the past week, reports on restaurant openings have been among the most read stories on our website and the most engaged on our Facebook page. And these restaurants couldn't be more different.

Gordon Ramsay plans to open an upscale eatery in Naperville in the spring. Guzman y Gomez, a fast food Mexican restaurant, just opened in Schaumburg. And when we previewed it a year ago, that story was a hit with readers, too. So the excitement seems to build for months even before the doors of a new place open. But why? Why are people so fired up about a restaurant opening even when it's months away?

Despite everything costing more, people open their wallets to dine out.

Despite the looming threat of a recession, people spend money at restaurants.

And despite their differences, Ramsay's restaurant and the new Mexican place have one common thread — both are unique.

Guzman y Gomez is only the second location in the U.S. — the other is in Naperville. Ramsay is opening his third Ramsay's Kitchen location in the U.S.

So is it the allure of something rare? A celebrity name attached? Boredom with our current dining choices?

Or is it more than that?

Maybe it's the community experience a restaurant offers. Instead of eating at home, we can get out of the house to dine with other folks, support a local business and feel like we're part of the fabric of our community.

Families and friends gather at local eateries to celebrate birthdays, anniversaries, weddings and other milestones. If we don't already have a favorite place to dine that reminds us of life's favorite moments, a new restaurant offers us the promise of memorable experiences, filled with laughter and companionship.

Restaurants bring us together.

And after the pandemic, when it wasn't always easy to dine out or come together, maybe restaurants mean even more to us now, three years later.

It certainly seems that way for our readers, regardless of the restaurant or what kind of food it serves.

Even Chicago Restaurant Week, which started Jan. 20, includes more suburban restaurants this year — 38 to be exact. And towns like Naperville, St. Charles and Geneva now offer their own “restaurant weeks.”

So whether we try something new or we keep returning to our tried and true favorites, restaurants are special to us for a variety of reasons.

And if they can bring us together to celebrate, break bread and lift a glass, restaurants are a positive in all our communities.

Cheers and bon appétit!