As two new restaurants enter the Springfield market, another ends short-lived run
Options for international cuisine have expanded even more in Springfield with the recent opening of two new restaurants.
Yummy Bowl began serving its customizable Mongolian grill concept Tuesday at 3434 Freedom Drive in Parkway Pointe Shopping Center. And earlier this month Jaalsa kicked off the celebration for the new Indian restaurant at 3114 S. Sixth St.
Both independently owned restaurants are just the latest of a half dozen new ethnic dining options to join the Springfield culinary scene this year.
Other newcomers range from the Mediterranean-themed Ugly Restaurant & Bar to the Vietnamese restaurant Saucy Rice, Hot Pot BBQ with the origin story for its customizable soups tracing back to the Mongolian Empire to Bowl Plus, the Japanese-influenced, fresh-made Ramen eatery.
Diners call the shots at Yummy Bowl – whether it's determining what ingredients go into a bowl to the bowl size.
“Springfield doesn’t have a concept like this,” co-owner Kevin Weng said when first purchasing the former Bakers Square building at 3434 Freedom Drive last year.
Weng – who already operates two Yummy Bowl locations in the Indianapolis area and has another under construction in Nashville – co-owns the Springfield restaurant with Jerry and Rachel Wang. The Wangs will oversee day-to-day operations.
Yummy Bowl’s Mongolian grill concept invites customers to craft their own bowls and stir fry by selecting fresh ingredients that are cooked on a giant grill while they watch.
Bowl pricing options include lunch, dinner, and kids selections, as well as a bottomless, all-you-can-eat option.
The menu also serves up an array of sashimi and sushi rolls, appetizers, soups, and salads. Dessert options include mochi ice cream, and deep-fried tempura-coated ice cream or cheese cake.
More: The wood-fired Margherita pizza at this new eatery 'amazingly' chewy and flavorful
Hours are 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Dine-in and takeout are available. Phone: (217) 953-3777.
Jaalsa – Hindi for “Let’s Celebrate” – is the latest offering from the Springfield-based Secove Investments, which also operates Taste of India and Toasty-Subs.
But Jaalsa aims for a celebratory air by mixing Indian street food, Bollywood dance music and alcoholic beverages.
The expansive menu ranges from Indian street food like chicken lollipops and stuffed pastries and fritters to entrees like butter chicken and a variety of specialty curry dishes. A section focuses on Southern Indian specialties such as dosa (a savory, crispy rice crepe) and idli (a savory, steamed rice cake) filled with chutney and sambar. Dessert options include Kulfi, a dense Indian ice cream to soaked milk dumplings.
Lunch is served from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Dinner hours are 4:30 to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday, 4:30 to 9 p.m. Sunday. But operating hours will expand Tuesday to 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday, 11 a.m. to 1 a.m. Thursday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to midnight Sunday, and 4:30 to 10 p.m. Monday.
Phone: (217) 970-4718. Dine-in and takeout are available.
Pizza restaurant closes
Matto: Pies & Pours closed Monday, nine months after opening on Springfield’s south side.
3 Gen Hospitality Group announced the closing on the pizza pub’s website, crediting the brand’s short run to location, rather than concept. The announcement hinted a revival at a different address might be in the works.
“Have you ever heard you miss 100-percent of the shots you don’t take?” the post read, concerning the closing of the establishment at 2936 S. Sixth St. “We took a shot . . . and Matto: Pies & Pours at the Sixth Street location has proven unsustainable.”
Gift cards for Matto: Pies & Pours can be redeemed beginning in November at 3 Gen Hospitality Group’s other establishments – Curate at 2930 Plaza Dr. in The Gables and Vele Italian Restaurant at 3241 W. Iles Ave.
Matto: Pies & Pours opened in February. It was the latest in a line of pizza brands that briefly called the address in the Park South strip mall home.
Rosatti's Pizza had two runs at the site with different owners operating from 2016 to 2017 and again in 2018 to 2022. Prior to that Bellacino's Pizza & Grinders operated from the address for just over a decade from 1998 to 2009.
Farmers Market transitions
Time is winding down for fans of the Old Capitol Farmers Market to do outdoor Saturday shopping before the open-air, summer market migrates to its indoor winter abode at the historic Union Station.
The final outdoor market of the season will be held at the corner of Fourth and Adams streets from 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Oct. 28. Market organizers are marking the season finale with a scavenger hunt and a special from the Springfield Youth Performance Group.
This is the second year the downtown market has moved seamlessly into its winter home at 500 E. Madison St. without a break in scheduled dates.
The indoor season will be held on the first and third Saturdays of each month from November through April with the exception of December and January when the market meets only once on the third Saturday.
Market dates are Nov. 4 and 18; Dec. 16, Jan. 20, Feb. 3 and 17; March 2 and 16; and April 6 and 20.
Chili master stirs the pot for a good cause
Les Eastep literally wrote the book on chili in Springfield.
The much-lauded, local chili legend is also stirring the pot for this year’s annual chili fundraiser for Lincoln Land Community College’s Academy of Lifelong Learning.
The event will be held Oct. 29 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Temple B’rith Sholom, 1004 S. Fourth St.
Hot dogs and a dessert assortment also will be available. Cost is $9 a person. Children 8 and younger eat for free.
Proceeds go to LLCC’s Academy of Lifelong Learning which encourages the ongoing pursuit of learning for those 50 and older.
Eastep, 86, is an ALL member, as well as the reigning Illinois State Fair Chili Cook-Off champion in the homestyle category. The win is just the most recent in his four decades on the world chili scene.
Eastep authored “Springfield, Illinois: A Chilli History” published by the Sangamon County Historical Society in 2012. His tome pays homage to Springfield chili cooks’ preferred double “L” spelling.
Get on the list
Area restaurants serving up special Thanksgiving meals or local businesses willing to help set the table for home-based feasts will be featured in an upcoming A la Carte column. Local caterers, restaurants and food-based businesses interested in participating should submit information by Nov. 6.
The A La Carte column highlights restaurant openings, closings, renovations, and relocations, as well as personnel changes and business news. Natalie Morris can be reached at 737-7254 or by email at natalie.sjr@gmail.com.
This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: Springfield's ethnic dining options grow with new restaurant openings
