BEST GAME STORE
Gamestop 2506 N. Dirksen Parkway, 492-1105 2501 Wabash Ave., 793-9449 2854 Veterans Parkway, 698-5614 3421 Freedom Drive, 546-9890 PSP, 3DS, PC, PS3, Wii and Xbox. Those game systems are either a foreign language or a first language. But whether you’re new or old to the gaming world, Gamestop is the place to go.
Voted once again Springfield’s best game store, Gamestop offers a knowledgeable staff and a wide variety of games to choose from at four different Springfield locations, plus the 24-hour option of an online store at www.gamestop.com. Bring in old games and systems for credit towards new ones, and choose between a wide selection of new and pre-owned.
BEST CHIROPRACTOR
Paul Venturini 2060 W. Washington St., 787-2200 Call him chiropractor to the stars. Paul Venturini has worked on such celebrities as George Thorogood and Phyllis Diller over the years, and has won props. “Boy, did he crack me up,” Diller told the State Journal-Register in 1998 after Venturini un-kinked her neck, prompting the comedienne, then 81, to call him “a precious man.” In practice since 1989, Venturini works with physical therapists and also offers acupuncture at his clinic called Advanced Center for Pain and Rehab. While chiropractors are known for treating back pain, Venturini also offers to help folks who have problems with bedwetting, asthma and ear infections, and he welcomes children.
Runner-up: Stephen Unverzagt
MOST GREEN BUSINESS
Food Fantasies (pictured above) 1512 Wabash Ave., 793-8009 From an in-house bakery to vegetables grown by local farmers, Food Fantasies is serious about promoting healthy food, with no preservatives or chemicals involved in processing. The store is small but stuffed with organic dairy products, bulk spices and chiles, gluten-free foodstuffs, prepared vegan dishes as well as natural shampoos and other beauty products. The staff is small and knowledgeable about what’s on the shelves, lending a neighborhood feel while offering one of the widest selections in the city. There’s a reason this place thrives after more than 20 years in business. Make sure to bring your own bags for hauling your groceries home.
Runner-up: Farmers market
