Thayer Bros. Deli Closing Permanently In Coming Days

JOLIET, IL — On Friday afternoon, the sad news was announced by one of Joliet's long-standing incredibly well-liked neighborhood restaurants in the Cathedral Area: Thayer Brothers Deli is closing permanently in the coming days.

"Our hearts are broken sorry to say Thayer’s Bros deli will be closed for good, our last serving day will be Saturday, November 5. We thank all of you from the bottom of our hearts for coming in and supporting us we will miss all of you," Thayer's posted on Facebook.

According to Joliet Patch news stories, Rick Thayer has been in Joliet's restaurant industry for more than 30 years. Back in the day, he was involved in the popular TnT's restaurant on West Jefferson Street, starting around 1987.

"We serve good food and we're very reasonably priced. We also do custom catering and we serve good size portions. Having a restaurant, it's a tough business. It's a lot of hours, so you have to enjoy what you do. I look forward to coming to work everyday. We have a great staff that work here," Rick Thayer told Patch over the years.

This month marks four years since AnnThayer passed away. She was in her eighties. She had been hospitalized briefly.

Last November, Joliet Patch reported that despite Ann Thayer's passing, her legacy and her recipes remain a fixture six days a week at Thayer's deli, which is run by her son, Rick Thayer.

He even gets help a few days a week in the kitchen from Chicago Bears announcer, Tom Thayer, a 1985 Super Bowl winner. Brothers Rick and Tom were star athletes at Joliet Catholic High School. Rick graduated in 1977 and Tom was in the class of 1979.

Rick Thayer likes to think that Thayer Bros. Deli offers the best soups in Joliet.

"We go through a lot of soup," he remarked during last November's lunchtime interview with Joliet Patch. "We also give a cup of soup away with every meal."

Mrs. Thayer's locally famous chicken noodle soup is what comes to peoples' minds if you ask them about the different soup offered at Thayer's.

"Chicken noodle is what we grew up on," Rick Thayer said during the 2022 interview. "We grew up on soup, we were a big family and mom always had soup on the stove."