Great American Bagel Owner: 'I Have To Keep Going'

JOLIET, IL — The owner of Joliet's Great American Bagel can't remember a more stressful time as a small local business owner. While the new coronavirus has impacted businesses of all sizes, small local restaurants are among the hardest hit.

The international health crisis has caused Tom Grotovsky to refocus his marketing strategies for Joliet's Great American Bagel, 1101 Essington Road. His restaurant specializes in deli-style sandwiches, salads and a plethora of bagels.

The Mokena resident said he's especially proud that Great American Bagel has not enacted any layoffs since the coronavirus pandemic reached Illinois last month.

"I have to keep going," he told Joliet Patch's Editor on Monday. "My drive is, I've got to keep my business going. We're open seven days a week still."

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Great American Bagel is open 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, 6:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday.

"We've changed our outlook on how we're doing marketing, trying to do a lot of stuff in the community for the community. Everyday, we give out $200 to $300 worth of bagels to MorningStar Mission and to the Will County Adult Detention Facility."

For the past few weeks, Great American Bagel has promoted a Corona 19 Bagel Box.

Customers get 19 made from scratch bagels and four half-pound tubs of hand-mixed cream cheese for $19.19.

Normally, Great American Bagel charges $4.25 per tub of cream cheese and $11.99 for a dozen bagels.

When Patch asked how the special was doing, the owner answered, "It may be too popular," he laughed.

On a serious note, he said, "It's good for the people in the community. We're just trying to be a good community partner."

Grotovsky said he's offering the Corona 19 Bagel Box special partly because "that's helped the people out of work. My son came up with the idea. I don't make very much money on it. It's a low profit margin, but it helps pay my bills and my help."

Grotovsky told Joliet Patch he is a devout Christian and reads Scripture.

"I'm a God-fearing man and I'm a Christian," he said. "I think this is what I'm supposed to be doing right now. The Bible tells you to give food to the hungry and drink to the thirsty."

Other local businesses are also helping the cause, he said.

As one example, Rendel's towing and auto repair service recently made a large cash donation so that Great American Bagels can be delivered to the employees at AMITA Health Saint Joseph Medical Center.

Grotovsky told Patch he delivered scores of bagels to Joliet Fire Department stations last week. This week, he plans to bring bagels to the Joliet Police Department's two stations.

"I'm trying to keep all my employees busy," he said.

One of his older workers is staying at home for the time being, he said.

"She's very appreciative and understanding, but at 77, she still wants to work," Grotovsky told Patch."It's so stressful enough, just to own a business, but I've never thought of experiencing stress like I have. The most important part is making sure that my employees stay working."

For people wanting to place a carryout order, Great American Bagel's phone is 815-744-9630.

The menu is here.

Great American Bagel is one of the latest small businesses to fill out Joliet Patch's simple online survey to let everyone know whether they are open and current hours of operations during the coronavirus outbreak.

Around 115 Joliet businesses have been added to Patch's list so far. If you want to add your small local business to Joliet Patch's list of open and closed businesses, you can do so here.

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