Portillo's hot dogs will open a restaurant in Normal in 2017. The Oak Brook based restaurant chain is not yet announcing a location or opening date. Portillos says it has been getting requests to come to Bloomington Normal for for a long time. A three year old Facebook page lobbying to bring Portillos to town has close to six thousand likes. There are 42 Portillos locations. The Oak Brook based chain is also looking at the Champaign-Urbana market for a restaurant.

The following is the text of Portillo's news release:

Hot Dog! Portillo’s is Coming to Normal

The following appeared today as a full-page ad in the Bloomington, IL Pantagraph. Click here to view the special ad we ran in the Illinois State University Vidette. Please share this with your friends and family in Bloomington-Normal:

Hot Dog! Portillo’s is coming to Normal

Dance your buns off, Normal, Portillo’s is coming to town.

We know, we know: it’s been a long time coming. You’ve been peppering us with requests to come to Normal for decades, so let’s squash our beef. Clear your calendars and tell your friends throughout the State. Farm out your entire to-do list and join us when we open our doors next year. Frankly, we can’t wait.

If you’ve never been to Portillo’s, we’d relish the chance to serve you lunch and dinner. We think you’ll agree that our food truly cuts the mustard. We’ll serve all our classic items — Italian beef sandwiches, Chicago-style hot dogs, char-grilled burgers, fresh salads, cheese fries, and of course, our world famous chocolate cake. Offering anything less would land us in hot water.

Sign up below for construction updates and a chance to attend a sneak peek training meal prior to opening. We look forward to seeing you soon!

From,

Your Friends at Portillo’s