Distinctive Cork - Closed

It is sad to see what I thought was a good independent restaurant not make it. Distinctive Cork was in Naperville in what has never been a good location, but had some much more going for it. First Scott the owner and chef knew what people wanted. And as a nod to him, he was a damn good cook. His wines were out of this world. The service was very good (for Naperville) and he tried to coax people in with music. He tried to give back to the community by giving up his space to causes.

Sadly, he suffered not from great food, good atmosphere (I hate that space) or great wines, he lost to the economy. When you are independent, it is tough. Those big chains in downtown Naperville can suffer through a bad month by going to their corporate masters and begging or cheapening the food or cutting an assistant assistant manager. Scott couldn't.

As a side note, we hadn't been for a while. Partly because of the economy and frankly the location. I think my wife found the prices a little high for a quick bite and a little underwhelming for a good meal. Also, we aren't eating as much for dinner these days, because well, I need to not eat as much these days. However, I think if he could have survived, we would have went things picked up for everyone.

So I salute you for trying. You were a success. I hope you will want to do this again in some form. You have the chops to run a great place. I have ideas...