Unique Eats & Eateries of Illinois – How it all came together!

I was at the Indiana Marketplace in 2025, and I saw my cousin Carrie Steinweg. Carrie had written Unique Eats and Eateries of Indiana for Reedy Press and was contemplating writing an Illinois version. The Indiana Marketplace is a great place to reconnect with friends, writers and destinations in the Hoosier state.

Since Carrie now a northern Indiana resident, Reedy Press wanted an Illinois author onboard. That’s where I came in!

We were given the chance to write the book and we were off! It helped a lot that Carrie was experienced and knew how the Reedy Press template would work.

Our first task was to come up with a list of restaurants to cover. What a task, there are so many places that deserve being written about. We would end up with 84 restaurants, 42 each. Friends and family put in their two cents worth, and soon we had a plan of action. We were looking for places with a story. A special item on the menu, located in a historic building, a story behind the owner, or just something that set the diner apart.

We wanted to cover the entire state as best we could and include everything from bakeries to distilleries to corner grocery stores to high end and dive bars in the middle of nowhere. We had our work cut out for us. Also, with Route 66 celebrating its 100th anniversary, we wanted to be sure and include Route 66 diners. We came up with ten by the end of the book! Route 66 Motorheads Bar & Grill, Cozy Dog Drive In, Maldners, DiCarlo’s, Sangamo Brewery, Ariston Cafe, Uncle Vaits, Dell Rhea’s Chicken Basket, and Doc’s Just off 66.

Carrie covered from Springfield, Illinois north, and I covered from Springfield, Illinois south.

Checking out diners together!

The best times were when we did the stories together. Besides hitting diners in Springfield, Carrie and I also visited Champaign. One of our fun stops was at Neil Street Blues where Gayle Starks served us up some great soul food.

After hitting some stops together, we had to divide and conquer the lovely Prairie state.

Annie and south central Illinois

My friend Annie Jansen went with me to discover dining fun in Southernrmost, Illinois. Besides finding great dining options, we also took time so see some of the sites like the beautiful Bald Knob Cross!

Annie, and her son Hank Jansen were familiar with lots of the fun eateries in the central part of the state. While I already knew about gems like Moonshine in Martinsville, we discovered several more treasures. Annie and I had a blast eating our way through the area. We found so many fun places like the insanley delicious Heath Museum and Confectionary in Robinson, Illinois.

Putting in the Time

Once we had all the diners visited, pictures taken, and notes compiled, the writing started. Carrie came down and we compiled the book putting everything together. So many things to check off our list. Had we covered every part of the state? Did we have pictures, had everyone looked the stories over? So many things. My husband Keith gave us room to write, and we dove in reliving the diners, food and fun. He was busy helping plan the Route 66 tractor drive in Litchfield, Illinois in July and had his own hands full.

Carrie and I kept in shape while working on the book by following exercise guru Paul Eugene and his workouts to keep in shape.

Review then review again

Once the book was done, it was not really done. There was a lot of look overs, and reviews. Thanks to so many people from our husbands and families and friends, Reedy Press and editors Jeannie McCall and Judy Snyder.

Finally, the book went to press and was published the beginning of October! Then the book launch at the Pawnee Library Community room. It was the best day ever with friends and family.

Family and friends came.

Since the launch, Carrie and I had a wonderful whirlwind book tour. We signed book around Springfield, Southernmost Illinois and the fun continues.

It is funny how a meet up at an event, a sentence about being the Illinois part of a book lead to this wonderful adventure. Thank you, Cousin Carrie, for the fun, the opportunity, and the joy of sharing dining options in our beautiful state.

Check-in to see where we are going to be. We will keep updating this sharing new book signings, presentations and more. If you want us to come to you, feel free to reach out to us! If you are interested in the book and can’t make it to a book signing, currently the book is available at Engels on Edwards and Cozy Dog Drive In in Springfield, Illinois, or at the Litchfield Welcome Center and Route 66 Museum in Litchfield. It is also available at ReedyPress.com. Walmart, Target, Amazon and more!

Here is our schedule for November with one this week to round out October!

October 30, Mark Twain Book & Gift Shop 4-6, Hannibal, MO

November

November 8, Holiday Open House, Water’s Edge Gift, Garden & Pond Center, 12-2, Munster, IN

November 19, Montgomery County Farm Bureau Annual Meeting, Hillsboro, IL

November 14, Litchfield Library authors event 10-2, Litchfield, IL

November 20, Book Launch, Thornton Distillery 6-8, Thornton, IL

November 21, Book Signing, Gayety’s Ice Cream, noon-2, Lansing, IL

November 28, Sugar Creek Vendor Fair, 10-3, Chatham, IL

November 28, Lew Wallace Author Fair, 6-8, Crawfordsville, IN