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Creative Cakes owners open new café adjacent to bakery
Jason Maholy, Staff Writer, Tinley Junction
When Beth Fahey and Becky Palermo envisioned the type of place they would prefer to go on a Friday night for a cup of coffee or a glass of wine and a bite to eat, they saw a cafe with art on the walls, healthy menu options and a dining area that lends itself to quiet conversation.
The sisters, who have owned Creative Cakes in Tinley Park since 2002, have transformed that idea into reality with the opening of a cafe adjacent to their popular bakery, 16649 Oak Park Ave.
Fahey and Palermo, who both live in New Lenox, began developing the concept for their restaurant last October and in late April opened the 2,400-square-foot diner. Creative Cakes’ expansion into the space formerly occupied by an AT&T store nearly doubled the business’ square footage, and gave the shop the frontage it had lacked along Oak Park Avenue.
“We needed more space, we just couldn’t grow,” Fahey said. “We had a good wedding [cake] business bust just couldn’t do much more than that. We were maxed out, especially refrigeration-wise.”
The sisters moved the business to its current location in Rubino’s Plaza in 2005, but the space had been difficult for customers and potential customers to see because of its location in the corner of the L-shaped plaza.
“I can’t tell you how many times people have come in and said they’ve been a customer of Rubino’s [deli] for so many years, and asked ‘how long have you been here?,’” Fahey said. “We felt the area needed something like this. It’s fast-casual and has healthier options than burgers, fries and pizza.”
The cafe’s menu features soups, salads, sandwiches, crepes, Intelligentsia coffee, wines, and craft beers from local brewers. The cleverly-named dishes include the Fromage a Trois grilled panini with three cheeses, bacon and tomato on sourdough; the Goat in the Garden “sammy” topped with herbed goat cheese, sliced cucumber, roasted red pepper and arugula on whole wheat ciabatta; and the Wild Shroom crepe with wild mushrooms and Swiss cheese. The cafe uses artisan cheeses including fontini and aged cheddar, and offers vegetarian and gluten-free options as well as a children’s menu that features grilled cheese, ham and turkey with cheddar and a hummus plate. Craft beers include Hailstorm Irish red, brewed in Tinley Park.
“They’ve got really great beer and they’re trying to distribute to local restaurants,” Fahey said of Hailstorm. “That’s a story in its self.”
The sisters’ based their concept of the cafe on the type of place they would like to be available to them, and what they believe is needed in downtown Tinley Park.
“How many times have you gone out for date night and you want to go get some coffee, or maybe you don’t want coffee you just want a glass of beer or a glass of wine, and you don’t want to go to a sports bar,” Fahey said. “It’s a little more quiet, you can have a conversation, there’s interesting art on the walls.
“We’re really into food, and we just created a place we wanted to go. A lot of the feedback we’ve gotten is that corporate food is not what people want, and I think Tinley deserves better than that. The soup doesn’t come out of a bag, we make it from scratch. The baked goods are baked here, not made off-site by some wholesale bakery and brought in.”
The cafe has been serving a variety of customers, from women who are there with their book clubs to couples to busy families with small children, Fahey said.
“I think for a lot of people it works,” she added.
The cafe’s open floor plan enables customers to watch crepes being made on the same kind of crepe-makers used by French street vendors. On the bakery side, large panel windows afford a view of the cake decorators at work. The red-painted cafe walls are adorned with the works of local artists. The art is for sale, and half the proceeds go to a local animal shelter.
“It’s visually engaging,” said Fahey, who used to work as a camera assistant in Hollywood. “We’re trying to bring a little bit of theater into food. What we sell here is art and food.”
The weather this spring has been largely uncooperative, but when it isn’t raining or cold the cafe’s outdoor dining area is a place customers can sip drinks or eat amidst blooming flowers and an herb garden from which the harvest will be used in the cafe’s food.
Transitioning from baking and decorating cakes to producing high-quality food has its challenges. Palermo and Fahey had to train their staff members to do jobs with which they themselves were largely unfamiliar.
“We’re new to restaurants,” Fahey acknowledged. “We’ve been doing bakery for 25 years but a restaurant’s a totally different thing, so we’re learning on the job. But we have a lot of friends and we’re not afraid of asking questions.”
“Our level of service is 10 times better than what you’re going to find at a corporate [cafe]. We have very low turnover, we’ve got a great company culture, and the people who work here – they get it. One of core values is a ‘wow’ experience for all, for customers and employees.”
The sisters are hopeful their cafe can be part of a vibrant dining scene along Oak Park Avenue.
“We’d like to see a restaurant row celebrating art and food, and funky little shops,” Fahey said. “It’s a great downtown, it’s just under-utilized. This is what we’re doing to help improve that.”
