Welcome to BOS
Illinois Times presents to you, proudly, one more time, the Best of Springfi eld, as determined by our readers and the friends BOS wannabes recruit to vote for them. We had more than 12,000 votes this year – the largest turnout ever – and 140 categories, a third more than ever before. Thanks to all the voters who worked through a long ballot. We always ask readers to vote local, and this year the voters get it – all but a few winners are local through and through. IT readers know that supporting local businesses not only keeps your money here but adds character to our community.
We asked Illinois Times staffers to refl ect on the meaning of The Best issue. Here’s Nan Bulli, our classifi ed ad representative who gets to fi eld phone calls from those disappointed by the results: “There’s no way we’re going to please everyone. But above all, BOS recognizes the local businesses that customers love coming back to. Every year the number and diversity of votes prove that Springfi eld is full of business owners who take pride in their products, services and customers. It’s these businesses that make Springfi eld such a wonderful and unique place to live!” Beth Irwin, our senior salesperson who has survived more Best of Springfi eld issues than anybody else on the planet, offered this: “The biggest thing I hear, see, feel from all of this is the pride employees and business owners have about their workplaces, small and large. They work together to shout out why they are the best, through social media and beyond. Many don’t win or get half the recognition they deserve, but their spirit makes them all winners. Even naysayers are the fi rst in line to take a peek at the results.”
In our food categories we noticed new local restaurants, together with the established eateries, offering more options for unique food and creative menus. There are more healthy food offerings to provide some balance to this horseshoe-crazy town. We made our music and entertainment section much bigger this year, with numerous new categories, giving attention to the important “all-ages” sector that sometimes gets overlooked, as well as the “best sound technician,” who is overlooked no more. For all the categories, be sure to check out the runners-up. These are the up-andcomers some readers have discovered but not everybody knows about yet.
In the next few days we at IT will be writing notes to ourselves about what we can do differently and better next year. Please give us your suggestions, especially any new categories you’d like to see included. Now, settle in and enjoy our reader picks for the Best that Springfi eld has to offer.
–Fletcher Farrar, editor and publisher
