Cheesecake Factory opens in Naperville's Block 59 development

Tuesday marked the grand opening of the Cheesecake Factory in Naperville's Block 59 development.
The national chain's local debut is one of a series of restaurants and businesses that are opening at Block 59 this year as the long-awaited dining and entertainment complex continues to take shape.
'We're really excited about the Cheesecake Factory,' said Rich Dippolito, vice president of redevelopment for project developer Brixmor Property Group. 'They bring a great food offering and, of course, their cheesecakes are fantastic. … They're going to provide a really good quality restaurant to our development.'
The Cheesecake Factory's menu boasts more than 250 dishes and some 40 cheesecakes and deserts, according to a news release for opening. Its Block 59 location at 428 S. Route 59 is the chain's first restaurant in Naperville. Other Chicago-area locations include Chicago, Lincolnshire, Oak Brook, Schaumburg, Orland Park and Skokie, according to the Cheesecake Factory's website.
The Block 59 location will be open 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. Fridays, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturdays and 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sundays.
Shake Shack was the first Block 59 restaurant to open, making its debut this spring.
The 82,500-square-foot Block 59 venture is complete, the complex will not only include a slew of new restaurants but also a centralized event plaza.
Brixmor Property Group spent last summer clearing property at Route 59 and Aurora Avenue to make way for the development.
More openings are due over the next few months, Dippolito said. Fast-casual casual breakfast and lunch spot First Watch is expected to open by the end of this month and Stan's Donuts is under construction and anticipated to open in the next month or so, he said.
Italian restaurant Piccolo Buco is expected to follow later this summer as well as Crisp & Green, Velvet Taco, Fresh Fin and Cava later this fall. Yard House is looking to open by the end of the year, while Ruth's Chris Steak House is planning to open by the beginning of next year, Dippolito said.
'There will be a lot more activity, other than construction activity, by the end of the year,' he said.
The Naperville City Council OK'd project plans for Block 59 in March 2023. That's also when the council signed off on establishing the site as a business district to help fund infrastructure improvements needed for the project.
The district places an added 1% tax on sales made at businesses within its boundaries — including Block 59's predecessor, the former Heritage Square shopping center — as well as a portion of the neighboring Westridge Court shopping center.
Block 59's event plaza is expected to open by the end of September, Dippolito said. Brixmor is also working with an ice rink operator so it can offer ice skating to patrons during the winter months, he said.
As the development comes to fruition, Dippolito said, 'It's really starting to look and feel like what we had designed.'

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Yahoo

6 hours ago

• Yahoo

Sky's Angel Reese courts Chicago with a game-changing gift

The post Sky's Angel Reese courts Chicago with a game-changing gift appeared first on ClutchPoints. Angel Reese and the Chicago Sky are no strangers to grabbing attention on the court, but this week, they made a splash off it. On Wednesday, the WNBA All-Star teamed up with Cash App to unveil a freshly renovated outdoor basketball court in Oakwood Beach, a neighborhood on the South Side of Chicago. Advertisement This initiative is part of a larger movement to empower women through sport, which is a great accomplishment for Sky's rising star. The court, which was built in partnership with the non-profit Project Backboard, is much more than new paint. It represents access, inclusion, and community pride. Organizers stated that this space has been reframed as a place for young women to do more than exercise—they can dream big—on and off the basketball court. Reese showed off her new court in a pair of posts on X, formerly Twitter. 'New court in Chicago! I am so blessed to be able to do this in a second city that I can now call HOME!' Reese expressed. 'Make sure you stop by and tag me in pics when you're in the CHI! Thank you @CashApp THIS LOOKS UNREALLLLLL🔥' Reese's Angel C. Reese Foundation also played a role in the launch, emphasizing its mission to promote education, sports, and financial literacy for young women. This project marks the second major collaboration between Reese and Cash App, following previous efforts to elevate engagement in women's sports. Advertisement Catherine Ferdon, Chief Marketing Officer at Cash App, noted that Reese 'transcends basketball' and embodies the kind of leadership the company is eager to support. The court's opening comes at a challenging time for the Sky. In her second WNBA season, Reese is averaging 11.0 points, 11.7 rebounds, and a career-best 3.6 assists per game—solid stats, though slightly lower than her impressive rookie year. Currently, Chicago holds a 3–8 record and is eager to regain its momentum. This off-court achievement shines a light during a tough stretch for both the player and the team. Still, Reese's influence continues to grow. Beyond basketball, she's landed major endorsements with brands like McDonald's, Beats, and Reebok, appeared on the cover of Vogue, and earned BET's Sportswoman of the Year. The Oakwood Beach court is just another cool entry in her ever-expanding legacy, a legacy that connects directly to her impact on the community, and her exemplary performance on the court.

Chicago Tribune

8 hours ago

• Chicago Tribune

Sunken Bayesian superyacht lifted from waters off Sicily as salvage operation completed

PORTICELLO, Italy — A British-flagged luxury superyacht that sank off Sicily last year, killing U.K. tech magnate Mike Lynch and six others, was lifted from the water Saturday as salvage recovery crews completed the complex operation to bring it ashore for further investigation. The white top and blue hull of the 56-meter (184-foot) Bayesian, covered with algae and mud, was visibly clear of the sea in a holding area of a yellow floating crane barge off the Sicilian port of Porticello. 'The hull of the superyacht Bayesian has today been successfully and safely recovered from the sea off the coast of northern Sicily,' said TMC Maritime, the company conducting the recovery. 'This follows a delicate lifting procedure that began early today.' TMC added that the hull will continue to be held 'in an elevated position to allow expert salvage personnel to complete checks and preparations' ahead of its transportation into the Sicilian port of Termini Imerese on Sunday. The floating crane platform will move the Bayesian to the port, where a special steel cradle is waiting for it. The vessel will be then made available for investigators to help determine the cause of the sinking. The Bayesian sank Aug. 19 off Porticello, near Palermo, during a violent storm as Lynch was treating friends to a cruise to celebrate his acquittal two months earlier in the U.S. on fraud charges. Lynch, his daughter and five others died. Fifteen people survived, including the captain and all crew members except the chef. Italian authorities are conducting a full criminal investigation. The vessel has been slowly raised from the seabed, 50 meters (165-feet) down, over the past three days to allow the steel lifting straps, slings and harnesses to be secured under the keel. Eight steel lifting straps were used to put the hull upright and to form part of a steel wire lifting system that began raising the vessel out of the water Saturday. As the superyacht was raised, seawater was pumped out of the hull. The Bayesian is missing its 72-meter (236-foot) mast, which was cut off and left on the seabed for future removal. The mast had to be detached to allow the hull to be brought to a nearly upright position that would allow the craft to be raised. British investigators said in an interim report issued last month that the yacht was knocked over by 'extreme wind' and couldn't recover. The report said the crew of the Bayesian had chosen the site where it sank as shelter from forecast thunderstorms. Wind speeds exceeded 70 knots (81 mph) at the time of the sinking and 'violently' knocked the vessel over to a 90-degree angle in under 15 seconds. Lynch, who sold Autonomy, a software maker he founded in 1996, to Hewlett-Packard for $11 billion in 2011, had been acquitted of fraud charges in June 2024 by a federal court jury in San Francisco.

Boston Globe

11 hours ago

• Boston Globe

Sunken Bayesian superyacht lifted out of the water off Sicily

The Bayesian sank Aug. 19 off Porticello, near Palermo, during a violent storm as Lynch was treating friends to a cruise to celebrate his acquittal two months earlier in the U.S. on fraud charges. Lynch, his daughter and five others died. Fifteen people survived, including the captain and all crew members except the chef. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Italian authorities are conducting a full criminal investigation. Advertisement TMC Maritime, the company conducting the recovery operation, said the vessel has been slowly raised from the seabed, 50 meters (165-feet) down, over the past three days to allow the steel lifting straps, slings and harnesses to be secured under the keel. Eight steel lifting straps were used to put the hull upright and to form part of a steel wire lifting system that began raising the vessel out of the water Saturday. As the superyacht was raised, sea water was pumped out of the hull. Advertisement TMC Maritime said the vessel will be held upright, out of the water, for checks and preparations for its final journey. The floating crane platform will then move the Bayesian to Termini Imerese, where a special steel cradle is waiting for it. The Bayesian is missing its 72-meter (236-foot) mast, which was cut off and left on the seabed for future removal. The mast had to be detached to allow the hull to be brought to a nearly upright position that would allow the craft to be raised. British investigators said in an interim report issued last month that the yacht was knocked over by 'extreme wind' and couldn't recover. The report said the crew of the Bayesian had chosen the site where it sank as shelter from forecast thunderstorms. Wind speeds exceeded 70 knots (81 mph) at the time of the sinking and 'violently' knocked the vessel over to a 90-degree angle in under 15 seconds. Lynch, who sold Autonomy, a software maker he founded in 1996, to Hewlett-Packard for $11 billion in 2011, had been acquitted on fraud charges in June 2024 by a federal court jury in San Francisco.