Crystal Lake looking for new food vendor for Three Oaks Recreation Area

CRYSTAL LAKE – People who enjoy the outdoors at Three Oaks Recreation Area will have a new dining option this year.

The city of Crystal Lake will decide by the end of March from a list of seven restaurants that want to sell food and drinks at the waterfront concession stands previously operated by Culver’s of Crystal Lake.

The city sent out a request for proposals from restaurant companies after it learned the new owners of the Culver’s on Pingree Road would no longer run a seasonal Culver’s at Three Oaks.

Crystal Lake economic development manager Heather Maieritsch said the opening has drawn interest from a mix of local restaurants and national chains that already have locations in Crystal Lake – so no matter which one the City Council chooses, it likely will be a restaurant most locals are familiar with.

“We had seven restaurants apply, and we have met with all of them,” Maieritsch said. “We are now in the process of reviewing all of those.”

The matter likely will go before the council at its March 20 meeting. The staff was aiming for Tuesday’s meeting, but evaluations are not yet finalized.

Maieritsch said staff members have not yet determined how many of the candidates will be put before the City Council for consideration.

The new ownership group for the Culver's on Pingree Road has city approvals to build a new restaurant a couple of blocks north of the existing one, which will close. Maieritsch said the new owners did not want to operate the concession stand.

In other Three Oaks news, Duke’s on the Water at Quarry Cable Park will return for its second year, Maieritsch said. That restaurant, next to the 32-acre wakeboarding park, is operated by downtown Crystal Lake farm-to-table restaurant Duke’s Alehouse and Kitchen. Duke’s on the Water has sandwiches, burgers and fresh salads, all made with farm-fresh ingredients.

It will be the third year of wakeboarding at Quarry Cable Park. Three Oaks opened in 2010 after the city spent about $14.37 million to convert the former Vulcan Materials gravel pits into a recreation area offering swimming, fishing, boating and other activities.