An effort in La Grange Park to transform the 31st Street corridor into a restaurant destination received a boost Sunday when Happier Now Cafe and Market marked its first anniversary at its 1016 E. 31st Street location. About 60 people, including village officials, packed into the small cafe to celebrate. “I grew up here,” Andrea Slivka, chef and proprietor said as the celebration got underway. “La Grange Park has been working on its downtown theme for so long. During the pandemic I was driving down 31st and thought, we can open a cafe here that has really good locally-roasted coffee, awesome sandwiches, and people would be looking for that.” Slivka said the area’s shift toward younger demographics was a significant influence in her and her mother’s decision to go into business. “A lot of people my age and younger have moved into the area from the city and are looking for more places they can walk to and get a casual glass of wine or a really good beer,” she said. “We’re really getting that community vibe.” She described the menu as “eclectic,” and said her dad coming from Czechoslovakia definitely influenced her choice of entrees. The menu includes small plates, such as soft pretzel bites in a cheddar cheese sauce, salads such as a grilled broccoli caesar, roasted beef sandwiches and Donna’s tuna salad, named after Slivka’s mother, Donna. Beveridges available include local Passion House Coffees, sodas, wines, cocktails and a healthy selection of beers from Lyons-based BuckleDown Brewery. There is also a kid’s menu. Andrea Slivka is the sole chef of the establishment — all the soups available for take out are made by her — and runs the business with her mother and partner, who came out of retirement to take care of Happier Now’s bookkeeping and accounting. Slivka has a marketing degree from Columbia College, a field she worked in for several years before following her heart and attending culinary school at Kendall College. After graduating, she spent about 15 years working at several Chicago restaurants, including Lula Cafe, Eataly, and Found Kitchen. Along with her father’s eastern European influence Slivka, credits her restaurant experience with influencing Happier Now’s menu. Happier Now owner/chef Andrea Slivka and he husband, Neal Mahoney, celebrate the cafe’s first anniversary Sunday in La Grange Park. (Hank Beckman/Pioneer Press) Donna Slivka had no previous experience in the restaurant business and said the last year has been a learning experience. “I’ve been very impressed with my daughter,” she said. “I never saw what she did before. She loves food, she loves cooking, she loves wines, so it’s been a really positive thing for me to see how knowledgeable she is.” Andrea Slivka credited La Grange Park officials with helping in getting Happier Now up and running. “The Village has been really good, because they have been wanting to build this up,” she said regarding the 31st Street corridor. “They were the ones to let me know this space was going to be for rent … they were really helpful every step along the way.” Since the previous occupant of the store was a hairdresser, there was a lot of work and money that went into turning it into a cafe. Sprinkler systems, kitchens, and interior decorating don’t come cheap. The village was able to provide some relief through the 31st Street/Barnsdale Road Tax Increment Financing District and the Village’s Business Development District fund. Although many TIF districts in various municipalities make grants to local start-ups for necessary infrastructure improvements, Happier Now’s assistance from La Grange Park was a little different. The village gave them tax incentives, rebating sales and property taxes up to the amount of $56,000. So, in addition to everyday cash flow and increasing the value of the business, Happier Now has an added incentive to succeed; the better the cafe does, the faster the rebates come. La Grange Park Village Manager Julia Cedillo was on hand for Happier Now’s anniversary. “We are so proud of Andrea and Donna. They’ve put in the hard work to ensure the success of their restaurant, and the community has responded very well in supporting the restaurant,” she said. “It’s a great place to go. The food is top quality and we couldn’t be happier that they chose La Grange Park.” Chamber of Commerce President Sheri Sauer added the Chamber was “very happy to see them so successful.” The 31st Street corridor has attracted several new dining and drinking establishments in recent years, including Posto 31, right across the street from Happier now, and nearby Hop District. Cedillo indicated that other restaurants were expressing interest and said the village has been taking steps to provide additional parking for the area, including the recent purchase of a property at nearby 1024 Newberry Ave., where a parking lot is planned. A parking study commissioned by the Village last Summer showed the area to have sufficient parking, but large Saturday events often pushed it to near full capacity. But back at the celebration, customers just enjoyed the food and atmosphere. “I’ve been here several times, not every week, but with some frequency,” Chicago resident Peter Thornhill said. Thornhill actually met Andrea Slivka at Kendall College, where they became friends. His wife, Lindsay Blumenshein, also patronizes Happier Now on a regular basis, saying “the atmosphere is nice.” Hank Beckman is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.