CUT 158 Reveals New Date For John Bays' Rialto Building

JOLIET, IL — Nearly three months after revealing plans to quadruple the size of his CUT 158 Chophouse, owner Bill Dimitroulas expects to be in his new downtown Joliet space in early March.

CUT 158 has been at 158 North Chicago St. the past three years, but it will be vacating that space to move into the main level of the Two Rialto Square Building owned by John Bays.

Even though the Two Rialto Square building's address is 116 N. Chicago St., Dimitroulas said his steakhouse will still keep the name CUT 158 since that's what everyone knows it as.

Last week, Joliet Patch interviewed Bays and Dimitroulas as contractors were renovating the future space of CUT 158 Chophouse.

"Menu wise, we'll have more meats to the menu," Dimitroulas remarked. "We'll have bison rib-eye, bison filet and dry-aged meats. We're going to dry-age our steaks in house."

CUT 158 has also worked out an arrangement with a winery in New Jersey that will be producing "10 different wines with our CUT 158 label," Dimitroulas said.

"We'll have 300 wines" available for guests, he added.

During last week's interview, contractors were installing several marble pillars, working on the flooring and various touch-ups.

The new location for CUT 158 is right next door to downtown Joliet's historic Rialto Square Theatre, which was built in 1926 and is regarded as one of the top 10 indoor performing arts venues in all of North America.

As for the new CUT 158 restaurant, "When it's done, it will be the most spectacular steakhouse there is in Will County," Dimitroulas told Joliet Patch last week. "I mean, we're the best right now, food-wise, but this one will be beyond that. I spent a lot of time designing the whole thing."

At 158 North Chicago St., CUT 158 has 2,000 square feet of restaurant and bar space. The new restaurant inside the Two Rialto Square property consists of 8,000 square feet and features two main levels of dining.

In addition to that, the new location features a private banquet room on the basement level that can accommodate about 30 guests.

At the moment, Bays remains involved in numerous Joliet area projects, including major renovations to his main professional office property, Twin Oaks Plaza, on West Jefferson Street, plus renovations to the former Aaron's Furniture building he purchased last September on Jefferson Street.

In addition to the main level for CUT 158, Bays has been remodeling the fourth floor of the building because the city of Joliet's public utilities staff will be leasing office space here.

As for CUT 158's new restaurant and bar, "it's going to be absolutely beautiful in there," Bays told Patch last week. "The whole building's practically done except for this."

As for Dimitroulas, he also owns Hamburgerseria on Essington Road plus the Rosemary Cafe on Essington Road that he opened in December 2020. Last March, he acquired the Juliet's Tavern in downtown Joliet, revamped the entire menu, and reopened Juliet's in June.

Related Joliet Patch coverage:

Cut 158 Chophouse: Elegant Dining For Downtown Joliet

CUT 158's New Restaurant Will Be 4 Times Larger: Dimitroulas

CUT 158 Chophouse Reopens With Expanded Menu