Cookie shop opens in Oak Lawn, Tropical Sno moves to Countryside
Davenport-based Cookies & Dreams cookie bakery has officially opened their newest location in Oak Lawn.
The shop will have a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 10 a.m. June 22 at 10800 S. Cicero Ave., in a former Entenmann’s Bakery outlet store.
Complimentary coffee will be served to attendees as well as a selection of mini cookies.
The first 50 customers will also receive a free OG Chocolate Chip Cookie — the cookie that started it all.
“It’s been an honor to be welcomed by the city of Oak Lawn in such a positive and exciting way. The outpouring of support we have felt from this opening has been amazing. We can’t wait to keep sharing our ‘best in the Midwest’ cookies in Oak Lawn and beyond,” said Cookies & Dreams Founder and CEO Stephanie Sellers.
Cookies & Dreams launched in 2020, and has created custom cookies for events like Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards, New York Fashion Week and the PGA’s John Deere Classic Tournament.
Tropical Sno moves to Countryside
Jeri Nelson has been serving up Hawaiian shaved ice for the better part of 26 years. First, from a small stand in a parking lot in Willow Springs. Since last August, she’s been working out of a small storefront in Countryside.
She once had a second shop in Chicago Ridge, but closed that one years ago and concentrated on the Willow Springs location until last summer.
“I had to move out of Willow Springs last year because of a fight over the parking lot,” she said.
Her 10-foot by 12-foot Tropical Sno stand used to occupy a small piece of a parking lot at Archer Avenue and Willow Springs Road that was owned by two businesses that didn’t get along.
She said attempts at remaining in Willow Springs just didn’t pan out and she moved last summer into a storefront at 6564 Joliet Road in Countryside. “We opened late, in August,” she said.
“I live in Willow Springs and wanted to stay here, but I had to retire my stand,” she said, though she remains hopeful she might find a new home for it someday.
“I was a fixture in Willow Springs,” she said.
“I’d always be on the best places to go lists. I contributed to community events. I’d go on vacation and tell someone where I was from and they’d say, ‘Do you know that snow cone stand?’ ”
“I even kept Willow Springs in our name even though we moved,” she said.
She wanted to stay close to her home as she looked for a new location.
“I have 3,800 fans on Facebook,” she said. “People were asking if I closed. They are starting to realize we have moved.”
As for the new location? “We have the same menu. Same great employees. We serve true Hawaiian shaved ice. We have the same great flavors. The only thing that has changed is our address.” What’s the most popular flavor? “Blue raspberry is our bestseller,” she said. “But we can mix any combination a customer would want.”
Nelson said the new location is permanent, but the business is still seasonal.
“We open in May and close in November. As soon as the snow flies, I’m done.”
There is no indoor seating so it’s all carryout.
There’s a bench in front of the shop that holds a couple of people but most customers stay by their cars.
“Most of the other businesses are closed when I’m busy, so a lot of customers like to tailgate in the parking lot.”
Hours are now 1-10 p.m. daily.
Nashville hot chicken restaurant opens in Lockport
Another restaurant that specializes in the Nashville hot chicken craze celebrated its grand opening earlier this year in Lockport.
Krispy’s Nashville Hot Chicken has been open for a few months at 703 E. Ninth St.
Krispy’s offers chicken wings, chicken tenders, a classic chicken sandwich, salads, mac n’ cheese, fries and chicken waffles.
The business is open from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Sunday. Dine-in, pickup and delivery is offered.
Northwestern Medicine opens multispecialty clinic in Orland Park
Northwestern Medicine has opened a new clinic in Orland Park that offers a variety of health services to the south suburbs.
The 5,523-square-foot clinic, located in Suite 210, Northwestern Medicine Orland Park, 15300 West Ave., is now offering neurology services. Esophageal and hepatology subspecialties will be added this summer.
As part of the broader Northwestern Medicine expansion and clinical integration strategy, the new clinic will provide access to Northwestern Memorial Hospital’s top-ranked neurology program, including fellowship-trained specialists in epilepsy, movement disorders, headache, sleep health, multiple sclerosis, neuromuscular and more. Neurologists in Orland Park will collaborate closely with the neurosurgery team at Palos Hospital, which is also expanding.
Dr. Stephan U. Schuele, head of the Epilepsy Division at Northwestern Medicine, says the clinic will provide an easier entrance to subspecialty services for people in south suburban communities. “The patients I see with chronic epilepsy often cannot drive, and patients with seizures typically want care more quickly,” said Schuele.