Top of the Morning; May 13, 2024

Grabbing a bite with Joey Wright

On Mondays, we chop it up with the folks responsible for dishing up food around the area. What restaurant should we try next? Let Joey Wright know at jwright@news-gazette.com.

Few restaurants in downtown Champaign offer more entertainment on a regular basis than The Space.

The Space, which opened in 2023 in a location previously occupied by Merry-Ann’s, makes use of its stage on a regular basis through music, comedy shows and open mic nights.

And burgers, fries and hot sauce are a draw even when the stage is empty.

“We often kind of segment what we’re doing into three elements,” co-owner Ian Mutting said. “One is a restaurant, a music venue and sauce shop. It all sort of plays together in that we do a lot of cross-stream with it all. But the base of it is the restaurant.”

Don’t overlook its locally-sourced food options either.

“The local thing is something we definitely are passionate about,” Nutting said. “One of the things that got our start with cooking is the Land Connection, it’s a wonderful organization in town that really helps consumers, producers and makers like us all together.”

A weekend that included UI graduation ceremonies and Mother’s Day was busy for many restaurants in downtown Champaign. The Space hosted a pair of shows to capitalize on the big crowds.

Five more shows are planned thorough the end of May.

“It’s something nice to do, especially when there’s going to be a lot of people around downtown,” Nutting said. “(We’re) able to capture some of that energy and get people excited.”