Ryan DeYoung believes in good music, quality food and the power of entrepreneurship.
DeYoung, 47, is the owner of The Quarry Ballroom, located at 121 S. Williams St. in Thornton, Illinois. The Quarry hosts weekly entertainment events like karaoke night, bingo, live music and serves “simple but elegant foods.”
Its website has a calendar that has an updated list of events as well as special menus.
“At the Quarry, we are bringing together music, food, beer and families. As residents of Thornton, we wanted to create a place where everyone feels welcome,” the website states. “Our full kitchen serves simple, yet elevated food items that are assembled to order.”
He also wants to celebrate the black community.
“Big time. I feature 18 black artists and three first responders on the walls of the ballroom. All have been born within 30 miles of this location,” DeYoung said. “Several black artists perform here as we have live music three to four days per week. Like tonight, I have Big Ray & Chicago’s Most Wanted, an incredible black blues group.”
DeYoung said The Quarry is a live music venue, restaurant, pub and banquet hall.
“I have a passion for music and entertainment and wanted to celebrate everything local so I started this to focus on that,” he said.
While music is important to him, so is providing quality food for his customers, DeYoung said. The Quarry Ballroom features live music in a pub setting. The restaurant, Limestone Lucy, is more of a family restaurant.
“We open at 6 a.m. for breakfast (and we) have many delicious lunch and dinner options, everything from eggs to New York strip,” he said. “We strive to deliver highest-quality homemade options. Pizza coming in 30 days!”
The ballroom can also host a wide variety of events, DeYoung said.
“Parties, birthday, anniversary, wedding, graduation, anything you could think of,” he said.
The community that surrounds The Quarry is mixed and friendly, DeYoung said.
“Southside Chicago flavor,” he said. “Hard-working, family-first type of folks. Music is universal. The Quarry’s doors are open to any and all with an appetite for great food, diverse and spectacular live musical artists and an atmosphere that begs for company. Our motto is ‘Love One Another, Volunteer, Be Kind, Rock On.’ That goes for each and every one of us!”
The Quarry has received rave reviews from customers, including Patricia Ballweg.
“Went last night. Great music from Barcode! Then one-man band was awesome,” she said. “Had to try the grilled cheese with tomato and bacon. So good!! We will be back!”
John Melendez ordered the inferno burger for lunch and was glad he did.
“Burger was cooked as requested with a side of tots. Very pleased with the meal,” he said. “This is a nice addition to the town of Thornton and would highly recommend this place for a good meal!”
Starting a new business is always a challenge. According to Illinois’ 2021 small business profile, between March 2019 and March 2020, 29,380 small businesses opened but 33,117 closed. The net decrease for small business jobs was 28,850 jobs.
DeYoung said since he opened just seven months ago, “there has been no recovery. Just forward-thinking.”