Sweet Basil Cafe in Prairie Crossing closed as of Aug. 23, with an eviction notice taped to the front door the only explanation offered. The company's website still lists the Springfield location at 4241 Conestoga Drive, along with other restaurants in Champaign, Peoria, Rockford, Skokie and Hanover Park.
However, Sangamon County court records show that a commercial eviction case was first filed against The Sweet Basil Group, LLC on Nov. 8, 2023. The case was continued multiple times until a bench trial was scheduled for Aug. 13. The defendants did not appear and a default judgement was issued by Judge Chris Perrin, which included an order to vacate.
A separate hearing was scheduled for Aug. 21 to consider monetary issues, with the plaintiff seeking $116,230: $114,703 in rent plus $327 in court costs and $1,200 in attorney's fees. Again, the defendant did not appear and a default judgement was issued.
Sweet Basil Cafe's legal challenges appear to extend beyond Sangamon County. On Jan. 11, a Chicago-based law firm specializing in employment and labor law, Justicia Laboral LCC, filed a class-action lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois alleging that the parent company for Sweet Basil Cafe violated the Illinois Minimum Wage Law and Fair Labor Standards Act. The plaintiff in that case, Mayco Daniel Martinez Jimenez, was formerly employed at the Algonquin restaurant as a cook and cleaner for more than 10 years, according to court documents. In the filing, Jiminez alleges that he and other employees were not paid overtime as required by state law. That court case is still pending.
The Illinois Secretary of State website lists Jim and Denise Karonis of Riverwoods, Illinois, as managers for The Sweet Basil Group, which has its principal address in Peoria. The business entity's status is listed as "involuntarily dissolution" as of Aug. 9.
Sweet Basil Cafe opened in Springfield in November 2020. The property had previously been home to O'Charley's, which closed in March 2019.
