Baby's Cheesesteak & Lemonade, Plush Horse Ice Cream Both Coming To Joliet Next Month Thanks To John Bays

JOLIET, IL ? Downtown Joliet's former Harold's Shrimp & Chicken restaurant has remained vacant all of this year, but there's great news on the horizon for Joliet's food enthusiasts. On Friday, Joliet Patch interviewed M.J. Sughayer, who confirmed his family is bringing The Original Baby's Cheesesteak & Lemonade and Plush Horse Ice Cream to Joliet's downtown.

Baby's Cheesesteak will take over the empty Harold's restaurant, inside John Bays' Catholic Charities building at 201 N. Ottawa Street, at the corner of Cass and North Joliet. Baby's started in Country Club Hills with its original location at 167th and Pulaski.

Sughayer said Baby's has been featured in numerous restaurant publications. A YouTube video posted by Chicago's Best from 12 years ago has nearly 1 million views, he remarked proudly.

"I've known John Bays for seven or eight years," Sughayer told Joliet Patch. "I was not going to do any more Baby's, but John can be very convincing. The Baby's Cheesesteak concept has been around for 20 years, since 2006."

Joliet Restaurant Menu Will Be Simplified: Baby's Owner Reveals

As for the new downtown Joliet Baby's Cheesesteak, "this menu is simplified. It's fresh cheesesteak sandwiches and slushy lemonade, boneless and regular wings and a couple of fish products. We're hoping to get that open by the end of September," the owner remarked.

He said their signature product is the crispy cheesesteak.

Sughayer said that one of his brothers and two of his nephews will operate the new downtown Joliet restaurant. His family also operates Eggsperts Breakfast and Lunch Cafe in Orland Park and the Plush Horse Ice Cream Shoppe in Tinley Park.

Sughayer said he's anticipating that his new business signage will be displayed along Joliet's Cass Street in about a week or so.

There will be a shared space arrangement so that Plush Horse Ice Cream will also operate inside the new Baby's Cheesesteak in Joliet, Sughayer revealed.

"John convinced us to do the Plush Horse," he remarked.

The Plush Horse Ice Cream will feature "our top 15 flavors. And we''ll adjust accordingly."

Owner Reveals Tentative Grand Opening Date For Baby's

Both Bays and the Baby's Cheesesteak owner said they're confident Joliet area residents will flock to downtown Joliet for a one-of-a-kind cheesesteak sandwich experience.

They also make their own egg rolls as part of the regular food menu.

As for their wings, "our chicken is 100 percent chicken," Sughayer stressed. "Our bread is baked fresh every day. Everything is truly fresh."

"I'm telling you, this is going to be a big plus for Joliet. The people of Joliet will love it," Bays promised. "I love that food. I eat at a lot of places, and their food is unbelievable. Their food, there is no comparison. I know they will do a lot of business, no question."

Hours Revealed For Joliet's New Restaurant

As for the empty Harold's Chicken, "We are bringing in our own equipment. We wanted to give it a different look," Sughayer explained.

He suggested that this downtown Joliet Baby's and Plush Horse Ice Cream will probably stay open six days a week, closing Sundays. Tentative hours are: 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday and staying open until 10:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays.

The restaurant site includes several booths and tables for dine-in customers.

"And we may end up doing a drive-thru in the future," Sughayer pointed out. "We do a lot of delivery and carryout."

Sughayer said he's impressed with the momentum and revitalization of Joliet's downtown and that played a key role in his decision to expand to Joliet. "Our cheesesteak place is going to get a lot of foot traffic where people will want to stay and sit because downtown Joliet is full of workers."

As for Bays, the owner of Bays Investments just recently opened his newly remodeled Bays Tower, a 13-story 140-unit apartment building overlooking downtown Joliet's Des Plaines River. For decades, the property served as subsidized housing for Joliet's Housing Authority.

"I'll tell you, if it wasn't for John, we would not be here," the owner of Baby's assured Joliet Patch.