'Mad' about food in Elgin

Sean Davis has managed bars and restaurants outside Wrigley Field and Fenway Park, so he knows a great spot when he sees one.

And he's hoping to bring some East Coast flair and a new restaurant to downtown Elgin.

"Over the past few years, I've seen (the downtown) making a turn. I hope the time is right for Elgin," he said.

Davis and his business partner, Ted Kuriata, hope to open Mad Maggie's at 56 S. Grove St. by mid- to late-July.

Davis says the 22,000-square-foot restaurant in the former sales office for the Fountain Square condominium development will have seating for about 300.

It will serve American fare, with New York-style pizza and some East Coast seafood in memory of where he grew up.

But Davis, who managed the Cubby Bear for three years and Gillian's of Boston for a decade, doesn't want to get pigeonholed into one style of food.

The Cary resident prefers to say Mad Maggie's also will cook up some great barbecue, have live music four times a week, a full bar, a lower-level game room and outdoor seating.

"We're trying to make it a place that's for everyone," he said. "You can bring your kids and not feel funny. You can bring your wife or your date."

With the recent additions of Villa Verone and the Elgin Public House to downtown Elgin, business leaders are enthusiastic about more dining options.

"This new restaurant offers yet another choice for dining in downtown Elgin," said Leo Nelson, Elgin Area Chamber of Commerce president. "Mad Maggie's can certainly become a destination restaurant with all of the planned amenities."

So how did Davis come up with the name?

Last summer, he and his wife, Liz, were driving through Arizona with their three kids.

Davis was thinking of names and he looked in the backseat at Maggie, his middle child, who had an unhappy look on her face.

Mad Maggie's popped into his head, and it stuck.

"She's honored," Davis said. "She kind of takes solace in her attitude."