'We're Baking Like Crazy': Buresh's Prepares For Cheesecake Day

PLAINFIELD, IL — National Cheesecake Day is Friday, and Steve Buresh's Cheesecake Store & Sandwich Shop has been gearing up all week in preparation.

"It's normally a very busy day for us, so we are just baking double of everything — our cheesecake slices, our cheesecake jars, our ice cream, our dipped cheesecakes," Buresh told Patch. "We're baking like crazy."

Buresh heads two cheesecake shops — one in Plainfield at 14210 South Route 30 and one in Oswego at 1019 Station Drive. He opened the Plainfield location in 2014 after building his clientele from selling his desserts at Plainfield's farmers market. Oswego's location came from similar origins and opened about three years ago.

"The cheesecake guy," as he's known around town, saw success at his Plainfield shop before opening another set of doors a few towns over. To give back to the communities, Buresh said he loves to help people whenever he can.

Being a drummer, lover of bands and theater enthusiast, Buresh is frequently helping local high schools. But last year was harder because of COVID-19 — not only in terms of not being able to fundraise or host as many event, but also with just "staying afloat."

"When we were doing good, I was helping as much as I could," Buresh said. "I care about the community and the kids. A lot of our workers are the high school kids, so I support whatever they're in ... just my way of saying thank you to the community for supporting me.

Last year saw a pandemic in full swing, with restrictions appearing more often than not. As guidances have loosened and people are out and about in bigger groups, this year came with its own set of challenges — worse in some ways — for the shop owner.

"We're having such a hard time getting supplies, that it's really affected [what] we can sell," Buresh said. "Right now, I'm having a hard time just getting cups. Plastic cups, nobody's got 'em."

Buresh even has an alert on the eatery's website letting customers know about a low supply of glass — it's the first thing you see on the website — that's impairing the shop's ability to take special orders for Mason jar cheesecakes.

Buresh said food costs have skyrocketed, and it's taking a hit on the business. He doesn't want to raise prices since people are struggling due to the pandemic, but that might not be viable for long. As a small business, the past few months have been difficult since he wants to maintain the shop as it's always been, he said.

"Every week, I look and I wish that we could just get some normalcy for at least a month so I can rest my head," he said. "Everything is just so up and down right now still."

In some respects, though, some might even consider Buresh lucky as staffing his shops hasn't been an issue. Hiring high schoolers, Buresh said, "everybody wants to work for me, which is kind of cool." He has between 25 and 30 employees at his shops, depending on the time of the year.

"They have been great throughout this whole pandemic," he said. "I just like to see my staff happy. It makes me happy when they're happy and they can not think about the craziness going on."

As someone who specializes in cheesecakes, Buresh is extremely picky about his cream cheese and even does "crazy tests" to make sure it's exactly how he likes it, he told Patch a few years ago. And with his name on the door, Buresh makes sure everything is up to par with his high standards. If he doesn't like a flavor or dish, "we're not doing it," he said.

"We try to make everything real here," he said. "No cutting corners, nothing like that. ... When you're cooking your own stuff, it just changes everything."

Beyond the cream cheese-made delights, Buresh specializes in sandwiches. Joining cheesecakes as part of the store's name, sandwiches weren't originally supposed to be on the menu, but Buresh said he introduced his favorites after he gauged interest for them from his customers.

Lobster rolls, for example, are inspired by Buresh's grandfather, who used to own a seafood restaurant. Customers also love the Reuben sandwich — called "Not Your Father's Rueben Panini" — that's made with coleslaw.

Steve Buresh's Cheesecake Store & Sandwich Shop has already expanded once, and once things settle down, he wants to continue to open more shops.

"It'll happen, but everything just has to get a little more stable," he said.

More on Steve Buresh's Cheesecake Store & Sandwich Shop:

• Oswego Welcomes 'The Cheesecake Guy'
• Cheesecake Store To Appear On 'Chicago's Best'
• Eatery Gives Free Food To Residents Without Power After The Storm
• Eatery 'Very Upset' With Pritzker's New Will Co. Regulations

(For more news and information like this, subscribe to the Plainfield Patch for free. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app; download the free Patch Android app here. Don't forget to like us on Facebook!)