Bernie's Jerk Kitchen Became THA Kitchen, Now It's Empty

JOLIET, IL — People who like to eat jerk chicken and other kinds of soul food have one less place to go now that THA Kitchen has closed. The restaurant has been cleaned out, and there's now a Charles Sharp for lease sign posted in the storefront window at 2777 Black Road.

Last September, Joliet Patch reported that after a four-month closure of Bernie's Jerk Kitchen and Waffles,Joshua Betts was back in his kitchen — THA Kitchen —cooking up tasty soul food and other meals that you won't find at most Joliet area restaurants.

Last summer, Betts went to Los Angeles to open a Bernie's Jerk Kitchen restaurant for California residents. When he flew back to Joliet, Betts said he wanted his Joliet restaurant to be known for more than just jerk chicken.

He also ditched the breakfast menu and got rid of the waffles. THA Kitchen officially reopened for business Sept. 23, 2021.

"The customers wanted regular food, so I changed it to THA Kitchen," Betts told Patch last fall. "We have the jerk and we have regular. We have Alfredo every day as well. The jerk is still going to be a big part of it. We got rid of the breakfast, and we made some changes."

As THA Kitchen, Betts still featured jerk chicken and jerk shrimp, as well as oxtails and rib tips, but he also branched out.

He believed his rib eye steaks, lamp chops, baked chicken, fried lobster tails and fried smothered pork chops would go over well with his new customer base.

Now, it's anyone's guess what will fill the vacancy created by the permanent shutdown of THA Kitchen.