219 Day, Hammond's wacky celebration of all things Region, returns this year with national touring acts.
Tommy DeCarlo, the current lead singer of Boston, and American Idol season 6 finalist Rudy Cardenas will perform at this year's 219 Day celebration at the Hammond Civic Center.
The annual holiday poking fun at Northwest Indiana's quirks and culture was invented by Twitter humorist Region Rat Rants and turned into an annual party by the city of Hammond. It was canceled last year because of the coronavirus pandemic.
219 Day will return from 6 to 11 p.m. this year on Feb. 19, or 2/19, a reference to Northwest Indiana's 219 area code.
"It's back. We're excited," Hammond Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr. said.
This year's logo features a Region Rat driving McDermott's Mustang Shelby.
"I haven't been involved with the planning this year with the U.S. Senate campaign, so that was a nice surprise," McDermott said.
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This year's live entertainment includes Cardenas, who performs Journey classics like “Any Way You Want It,” “Faithfully” and “Don’t Stop Believin.'” The headliner is DeCarlo, who has led Boston since 2007 and will perform the band's classic hits from the 1970s and 1980s.
"These are touring acts, not local," he said. "We spent a couple of bucks."
219 Day has historically featured local tribute acts and cover bands.
"People have been cooped up inside the house," Hammond Special Events Coordinator Aileen Ibarra said. "We wanted to do something different."
This year's 219 Day features craft beer vendors and is adding Manic Meadery from Crown Point, Ibarra said. Food vendors will include California Donuts from Hammond, Lady's Gourmet Popcorn from Griffith and Riviera Maya Taco & Tequila Bar from Highland.
A vintage video game area will feature Dance Dance Revolution, Street Fighter, Donkey Kong, Frogger, Golden Tee, Space Invader, Ms. Pac Man and other vintage arcade games.
"It will be free and free of admission," Ibarra said. "It's just the food and drink that will be available for purchase."
South Shore Roller Derby and Reggie the Region Rat will be on hand.
"We'll have the Tattoo Lady and more," she said. "It will be a lot of fun."
McDermott said he will wear a mask but they will not be required.
"It will be on the honor system," he said. "Obviously the crowd we're anticipating will be smaller than normal. Part of the theme is we're trying to live with the virus and conduct life as normal as possible. I'm triple vaccinated and will be wearing a mask when I'm not eating or drinking but I'll still be out there. The Hammond Civic Center is a relatively big space and we're not expecting that big of a crowd. If people are uncomfortable, they can stay home. We're just trying to host the Region's party."
NWI Business Ins and Outs: Southlake Mall selfie store and El Pollo Ranchero open; Wise Guys and Sport Clips relocate; Cajun House and One Click Cleaners close
Open
Families used to pile in the car and go to the mall to take Christmas pictures with a professional photographer at a department store.
These days, people go to the mall to snap selfies.
A new photo studio hopes to help people get as many likes as possible on their Instagram posts.
No Selfie Control, billed as Northwest Indiana's first selfie store, has opened in the Southlake Mall in Hobart.
The business, on the second floor of the mall, offers backgrounds with many different themes for staged photo shoots, such as for engagements, birthdays and other special occasions. The selfie boutique aims to help people "take their selfies to the next level" with fun and colorful backdrops involving balloons, a circus big tent and the first-class section of a plane.
Customers can get discounts on TikTok Tuesdays.
Owner Lanita Boyce, an entrepreneur and mother of four, said the do-it-yourself photo studio features selfie sticks, remote screens that allow people to see what's in the frame and 10 to 12 different backdrops at any given time.
"We switch them out every couple months," she said. "We just replaced the Christmas scenes with a grass wall with a swing, a Valentine's Day scene with candy hearts, a carnival room. Some are interactive with clouds roaming. We change them out every six to eight weeks or sooner if they're not getting as much traffic."
"Selife Queen"
No Selfie Control has changing rooms where people can don wigs, props or costumes for their photo shoots. It's proven especially popular with kids' birthday parties.
"I opened it because I'm a selfie queen," she said. "I saw a selfie store when I was visiting Tampa and thought it would work here."
She thought the Southlake Mall would be the ideal location.
"I frequent it and am very much familiar with the area," she said. "I see the traffic. It's not slow. There's always something going on. I really like the atmosphere."
The location brings in a lot of walk-in traffic.
"It catches some people off-guard and they say this looks fun," she said.
"Geared toward anybody who likes taking pictures and making memories"
Since opening last month, people have used the selfie studio for a variety of purposes.
"I've had engagements, professional photography shoots, people coming in with babies," she said. "It's good for all ages. People want photos they can post on Instagram or to do TikTok dances."
People can rent the space by the hour.
"It's geared toward anybody, anybody who likes taking pictures and making memories," she said. "And that's pretty much everybody."
Selfies have soared in popularity in recent years, becoming a widespread cultural phenomenon that has permeated social media newsfeeds and public spaces.
"As long as there are cellphones with good cameras and social media, people are going to want to take selfies," she said. "My kids go around to random parks to take selfies in different places with good backgrounds. This is one place you can go with multiple backgrounds."
Open when the mall is
She hopes to someday expand the business to more than one location.
"I was approached about doing a franchise today," she said. "I thought about it and that absolutely would be something would like to do."
No Selfie Control is open when the Southlake Mall is, currently from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily. It signs in the last customers an hour before closing.
For more information, find No Selfie Control on Instagram, email noselfiecntrl@gmail.com or call 312-588-9264.
Open
El Pollo Ranchero is serving up Mexican-style chicken in Hammond's Robertsdale neighborhood.
The new eatery opened at 1730 Calumet Ave., where it has a Whiting address like most of Robertsdale.
As the name suggests, the restaurant prepares whole roasted chickens and half chicken dinners that come with salsa, tortillas and two sides.
"The chicken is seasoned to perfection," employee Erika Anaya said. "It's juicy, very juicy. It's like a rotisserie chicken. It's the best in town."
The menu also includes tacos, tortas, burritos, flautas and guacamole.
"We have pork, steak and chicken only," she said. "We sell a lot of house potatoes. They are seasoned with a secret recipe. We have horchata rice water and a homemade salsa that's roasted with tomatillos and tomatoes."
"Like a rotisserie chicken"
It also has dessert options like chocoflan and almond marquise.
"Our chocoflan is famous," she said. "You can buy it for the slice or get a whole cake for $25 if you order a day in advance."
El Pollo Ranchero offers both takeout and dine-in where customers can see the chicken roast. It offers catering and is working on establishing delivery.
A ribbon-cutting ceremony with the chamber of commerce is slated for 3:30 p.m. Feb. 18.
"We'll have tastings so everyone can taste what's on the menu," Anaya said.
The restaurant is open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily but is closed on Monday.
For more information, call 219-655-5215 or find the business on Facebook.
Relocating
Sport Clips will soon cut hair at Shoppes on the Boulevard in Schererville.
The sports-themed barbershop is relocating its Schererville location to 336 Indianapolis Blvd., where it will be located between Tzatziki and K Dental Care.
Catering to men and boys, Sports Clips features sports memorabilia, a locker room-inspired look and televisions so customers can watch sports while they get their hair cut.
The chain is starting renovations immediately. It plans to open in the next few months.
“Sport Clips is a great fit for the co-tenancy of the center and will bring in ever more traffic to the existing businesses. They wanted more exposure from their current location and this center puts them in the heart of the retail trade area in Schererville," said Brett McDermott of Latitude Commercial, who represented the landlord along with Myles Rapchak.
Relocating
Wise Guys Discount Liquors is relocating its big box superstore on Taft Street in Merrillville.
It's offering a discount on all items in the store as it looks to liquidate its inventory to prepare for a big move that could be a while off.
Wise Guys, which also has stores in Hobart and Valparaiso, plans to build a new location closer to Taft Street. The current location at 9133 W. Taft St. is far back from the road, next to a long-closed Ultra supermarket that has not been replaced by a new business. Wise Guys is slated to close on Jan. 20.
No timetable has been announced for the construction project.
Postponed
The McDonald's in St. John has postponed its grand opening ribbon cutting ceremony with the chamber of commerce that was slated for Jan. 20.
The fast food burger joint known for its Golden Arches at 9769 Wicker Ave. in St. John underwent extensive renovations. It added a modern dining room with self-order kiosks and table service.
Closed
Cajun House Louisiana Seafood Boil in Merrillville has served its last fresh catch.
The southern-themed seafood restaurant at 234 81st Ave. in Merrillville is closed and the building is up for lease. It specialized in seafood boilers in which shrimp, crab, crawfish or mussels are steamed in a plastic bag along with Cajun spices, garlic butter, lemon pepper, Andouille sausage, potatoes and corn on the cob. It was a hands-on experience with no silverware.
Opened just a few years ago, it also offered an array of other seafood dishes like oysters, calamari, fried catfish, clam chowder and shrimp gumbo.
It's not related to Cajun Crab House at the Southlake Mall, which remains open.
Closed
One Click Cleaners closed at 306 W. Lincoln Highway in Schererville.
The dry cleaning business was located in Lincoln Ridge Plaza on U.S. 30. It was a franchise of a chain that offers mobile and concierge services.
If you would like your business to be included in a future column, email joseph.pete@nwi.com.
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Joseph S. Pete
Business Reporter
Joseph S. Pete is a Lisagor Award-winning business reporter who covers steel, industry, unions, the ports, retail, banking and more. The Indiana University grad has been with The Times since 2013 and blogs about craft beer, culture and the military.
