Best Pizza Joint

[tornado]

...especially since Portillos is almost certain to come to the Peoria area even if this SSA is not passed. ....

yes, but as I said, and as a bargaining chip, Portillos has secured the rights to another piece of land if they don't get the Peoria parcel...
and that piece is in EAST PEORIA - all the more reason for the Peoria people to do whatever it takes to avoid getting trumped by East Peoria again.

and this is the same thing the city did for the wealthy hotel developer - raised taxes just to give him the money to pay off his loans...
in other words - giving tax revenue to an individual just to pay his expenses so he can make more profit!!

Peoria leaders are known for handing taxpayer money out like it was Monopoly dollars - which is what they did to the Firefly Battery company that immediately took all the $$ millions Peoria gave them and paid huge bonuses to their management then filed bankruptcy leaving Peoria on the hook for millions while they skipped town with their $$ millions and didn't even pay their employees, the Louisville Slugger complex where they gave MILLIONS to the millionaire hotel developers who then make millions more cuz they have the hotels out there as well, and to the downtown Pere Marquette developers just to build an entire city block of useless storefronts that two years later sit empty gathering dust.
All of these multi-million dollar wastes AND MANY, MANY, MANY, MANY, MANY MORE then the City of Peoria says they are $8 million short on their budget this year !!!!
Disclaimer- I do not live in Peoria but like many, I do pay taxes on everything I buy there.

[tornado]

Have to agree Big Mike . Aurelios fast becoming my favorite and I've been going to Aggies 52 years.

news report that Aurelios Pizza on Sterling has abruptly closed...
..but that was a bad location - barely a fraction of the traffic south of I-74 on Sterling as there is north.
I thought their pizza was extremely good but the pizzas were quite small & way overpriced

http://www.centralillinoisproud.com/news/local-news/local-aurelios-closes-its-doors/947305663

[bigjimmy]

Having worked at Illini Golf in the Sterling Plaza the entire time that Aurelio's Pizza was open I can tell you they had plenty of business on some days and little business on other days. Their pizza was so different from anyone else and it was so good. Hopefully the unexpected illness to a family member, which is why they closed, will turn out okay.

[tornado]

on a restaurant-related note....

if anyone is planning to drive over to Valparaiso for the game on Feb. 17...

one suggestion for a great place to eat on the way there (either dine-in or drive thru) - is the Portillos right at the intersection of I-65 and Rt. 30 in Merrillville
It is immediately east of the exits on Rt. 30, easy to get to just before you head east 15 miles on Rt. 30 to Valpo.

http://www.nwitimes.com/entertainment/dining/portillo-s-in-merrillville-now-delivers/article_635a4290-d2c4-51da-967e-891d3cbba8d0.html

https://www.google.com/maps/place/555+E+81st+Ave,+Merrillville,+IN+46410/@41.4709982,-87.3454203,14z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x8811eee78a59cffb:0xb3696b97b34b87b6!8m2!3d41.4703471!4d-87.3328354

but I wonder if we are hearing the whole story on the Aurelio's closing...
this is the 2nd time a long time favorite pizza name has ventured to open a Peoria location that then closed (anyone recall Malnati's)
Both are immensely popular and have 30-50 locations - and yet didn't stay open in Peoria.

[tornado]

Portillos in Peoria opens April 30!
it is just off Sterling Ave. in front of Five Guys' and Chucky Cheese and across Sterling from Northwoods Mall

[Da Coach]

Portillos in Peoria opens April 30!
it is just off Sterling Ave. in front of Five Guys' and Chucky Cheese and across Sterling from Northwoods Mall

Does Portillo's have pizza?

[tornado]

actually, quite a few of the Portillo's restaurants do have an Italian menu and pasta at a counter called Barnelli's but very few have pizza
The one in Vernon Hills and the one in Schaumburg are said to have pizza

https://www.portillos.com/barnellis/

https://www.mapquest.com/us/illinois/barnellis-pasta-bowl-42579466

[Chico]

Butch??™s is still number 1.

[MacabreMob]

If ever in La Salle - Peru area, try Lou's LaGrotto

http://louslagrotto.com/home/3098151

If ever in the Quad Cities area, try Harris Pizza

http://www.harrispizza.com/

[tornado]

If ever in the Quad Cities area..

and if ever in the Quad Cities area, gotta try Whitey's Ice Cream -
a local brand, most have probably never heard of it, but you will be glad you did...

https://www.whiteysicecream.com

They have lots of small stand-alone ice cream stands...and they do pretty good business!
Whenever I am up there in that area- I actually take a cooler with ice along so I can bring back a couple gallons- seriously!

https://www.whiteysicecream.com/locations/

[pfcmsh]

Does Portillo's have pizza?

Hi, DC. Any Portillos I have been to in the greater Chicago area has not offered pizza. Some have pasta on site and some will cater it.

[tornado]

No pizza in Peoria will ever come close to what we have here in Chicago.

But man do I miss me some Avanti's bread. I wish we had an Avanti's in Chicago. We have La Bambas here but why not Avantis?

algo, this is a phenom that has stumped me...and yet I agree, I love the bread....

But....after all, it's just bread -- so one has gotta wonder how they make it so much better than anyone else! ....And yet I have heard gobs of people say they LOVE Avanti's bread and that the BREAD is the reason they choose Avanti's or the Gondola...

“Portillo’s is coming to Peoria, IL in 2018!".....

Re: Peoria Portillo's
..if anyone's driven by the location just off Sterling by the Mall....
the entire building exterior is about up and nearly completed....
They look like they could be ready for their planned April 30 Grand Opening (note, the last column said there was going to be a "sneak preview" of some sort before April 30)

http://www.pjstar.com/news/20180403/nick-in-am-no-55-cent-cake-but-peoria-portillos-to-have-beer-garden

[tornado]

I feel like I have to say Agatucci's because my parents live right next them.

I am leaning towards a tie b/t Double A's, Agatucci's, and Davis Brother's

The bacon chicken ranch deal at Double A's is unreal!

I know this is an old thread but...
I saw this article about Double A's closing and planning to reopen somewhere else...

https://twitter.com/VlahosNick/status/983370530945490944

they'll reopen where Tilted Kilt was by Grand Prairie- at the corner of Rt.91 & W. American Prairie Dr. (the drive at the back of the Mall where B-Dubs is)

[Da Coach]

Double A??™s Pizza in Peoria moving to former Tilted Kilt, First & Home location

http://www.mortontimesnews.com/news/20180116/double-as-pizza-in-peoria-moving-to-former-tilted-kilt-first-amp-home-location

I have always heard good reports about their pizza, but never been there since their previous location (on Radnor Rd.) was so out of the way. They probably didn't get as much drive-by business there.
There is a little more visibility and traffic around their new location on Rt. 91, but for some reason, a couple other restaurants failed there. Hope it works out for Double A's.

[Chico]

Double A’s Pizza in Peoria moving to former Tilted Kilt, First & Home location

http://www.mortontimesnews.com/news/20180116/double-as-pizza-in-peoria-moving-to-former-tilted-kilt-first-amp-home-location

I have always heard good reports about their pizza, but never been there since their previous location (on Radnor Rd.) was so out of the way. They probably didn't get as much drive-by business there.
There is a little more visibility and traffic around their new location on Rt. 91, but for some reason, a couple other restaurants failed there. Hope it works out for Double A's.

I go regularly to the KC Club right down Radnor Rd. from AA. Their parking lot was always packed. From what I have heard it was a matter of rising rent. IMO the new location is more out of the way.