On Saturday night, September 26, 2026, two Highland kitchens served their last meals. The Town Club on 45th Street had been in business since 1947, and its regulars knew it for hand-cut steaks, French-fried jumbo shrimp, fried zucchini, fried lake perch and what it called "the biggest martinis in town." A short drive away, Maria's Buena Cocina closed after more than 30 years of caldo de pollo, pozole, tostadas and carne asada.
Losing both on the same night feels like a blow to downtown. The details tell a more specific story. Both owners chose to retire. The block Maria's left behind is still filling in, and the town has put the area just around it into writing as a redevelopment priority.
Two Retirements, One Saturday
Mark and Tina Hines owned the Town Club for 29 years, longer than any of the three owners before them. They sold the building so they could retire. Tina Hines told The Times of Northwest Indiana that the sale didn't happen overnight:
"It's been on the market silently for more than two years. We're closing on the sale on Wednesday and need to wrap up a lot of paperwork. Saturday night will be the last day of service."
So the Town Club spent two years quietly looking for a buyer before anyone outside the business knew. Neither the buyer nor the building's next use has been made public, and anyone who says otherwise is guessing.
Maria's announced its closing on social media on September 19, 2026, signed by "The Maria's Buena Cocina Family":
"After more than 30 unforgettable years, we are officially announcing our retirement!"
The post asked regulars to stop in before the last day for "one last meal" and "a proper thank you and hug." The Times identifies Maria Curiel as the owner and main chef.
Neither announcement points to slow business or a lease dispute. Both families described decades in the business and a decision to stop.
Maria's Final Chapter Was on the Busiest Downtown Block
Maria's spent its last stretch somewhere other than its earlier home. The Times reported that the restaurant left its location by the Town Theatre, which has since been torn down, and moved into a renovated building shared with The Counter Ice Cream & Italian Ice. Highland's redevelopment director at the time, Kathy DeGuilio-Fox, confirmed the arrangement. Maria's took about 1,500 square feet, and The Counter took about 400 square feet as a literal walk-up counter.
The Counter's owners grew up going to Italian ice stands in Chicago. In the same story, Foreit explained why they picked this spot:
"The carnival, the park, the church and the school are right across the street. There are homes within walking distance. I'm seeing people out downtown with strollers. You don't have to drive to come here. You can just walk."
That reasoning still applies after September 26. Maria's family retired, and the building, the foot traffic and the neighbor serving East Coast-style Italian ice, soft-serve custard and Dole Pineapple Whip are all still there. No plan for the former Maria's space has been announced.
The Counter's website currently lists hours of 3:30 to 8:30 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 2 to 8:30 p.m. on weekends, closed Mondays. Recent social posts on the site mention fall flavors and the "second to last crawl for the season." No seasonal closing date has been posted, so check before you make a special trip in late fall.
What's Still Open, Block by Block
The town's own directory of downtown businesses shows how close the remaining spots are to each other. Here they are in roughly the order you'd pass them on foot, using the town's listed addresses:
- Les Brothers Café Pancake House, 2708 Highway Avenue, is where breakfast still happens downtown.
- Fuzzyline Brewing Co., 2712 Condit Street, is around the corner.
- Miles Books, 2819 Jewett Avenue, is owned by Jim and Diane Roumbos, with The Artists Den two doors down at 2817 Jewett Street.
- Langel's Pizza Highland is at 2833 Highway Avenue, and Highland Jewelers is at 2839.
- Green Witch Café, 2845 Highway Avenue, is the coffee stop on this stretch.
- The Counter Ice Cream, 2933 Highway Avenue, sits across from Jose's Family Restaurant at 2934 Highway Avenue.
- Dan's Pierogis, 2945 Jewett Avenue, and Muse Parlor, run by owner Kellie Shelton at 2933 Jewett Avenue, are a block over.
Farther out, Grindhouse Café on Ridge Road and J's Snackery on Kennedy Avenue are also on the town's list.
Most of this route fits between the 2700 and 2900 blocks of three parallel streets. The Town Club was a destination on 45th Street that people drove to for a sit-down steak dinner. Downtown today runs on short stops: a pierogi pickup, a pint, a cone, a coffee.
October 27 Is the Easiest Night to Walk It
Highland Main Street runs a Downtown Restaurant Crawl from 4 to 8 p.m. on the last Tuesday of each month. Participating restaurants offer a special for $7 or less, and several businesses stay open late. In October 2026, that falls on Tuesday, October 27. The town doesn't publish which businesses join each month, so look for specials posted on doors or check Highland Main Street's Facebook page that week.
The crawl is the cheapest way to try the spots you usually drive past. If The Counter's mention of the "second to last crawl for the season" applies to downtown as a whole, the crawl may slow down or pause over the winter.
Other dates on the town calendar this fall:
- Saturday, October 24, 2026: The Highland Parks Fall Craft Show & Vendor Fair at Lincoln Community Center, with handmade goods, clothing, jewelry, candles and food products.
- October 8, 15 and 20: Canvas-painting nights and a Simmer Pot Jar Class at Lincoln Center.
- Wednesday, November 11, 2026, at 11 a.m.: The Veterans Day Ceremony at the Highway of Flags, 8623 Indianapolis Boulevard, moving to the Lincoln Center banquet hall if the weather is bad. Highland Parks issued a correction confirming this date.
Where the Town Is Putting Its Money
The empty Maria's space and the sold Town Club building are the most visible questions right now. The town's planning documents show where public attention is going.
The August 2026 draft of Highland's comprehensive plan names the Town Theater Block, the block where Maria's operated before its move, as a priority redevelopment area alongside the Public Works site and the Ultra site. It defers to the Gateway Corridors Redevelopment Plan for site-specific concepts. That redevelopment plan, dated June 2026, uses a 20-year horizon. It says major changes on private property depend on market conditions and voluntary agreements, and it calls its drawings conceptual. No developer, schedule or final design for the theater site has been announced.
Smaller investments are happening sooner. On June 22, 2026, the Highland Redevelopment Commission approved a $34,500 reimbursement for a project at 2930 Highway Avenue by Stevan M. Micic and Stevan A. Micic. That address is a few doors from Jose's and The Counter. One commissioner called it "a great addition to downtown," though the minutes don't name the business or give an opening date. The commission's September 28, 2026 agenda included a new grant application from Krystal Nail and Salon at 2923 Jewett Avenue. Both projects run through the town's Commercial Corridor Property Improvement Grant Program, which reimburses up to 25% of approved improvements to buildings and gives priority to projects eligible for more than $20,000.
So in the months around the Town Club and Maria's closings, Highland's public grant money was going to small businesses on the 2900 blocks of Highway and Jewett, the same few blocks The Counter's owners picked for their foot traffic. That doesn't bring back the steaks or the pozole. It does show that the part of downtown Maria's chose for its final chapter is where the town's next investments are going, and the new businesses there will mostly be small storefronts you can walk to.
If you've wondered what's going into the old Maria's space, what the Town Club building might become, or what a property near the Highway Avenue blocks is worth while all this changes, Homes On Demand Realty follows these downtown Highland updates closely, in English or Spanish. Let's connect, and we'll share what we're hearing about the next openings on Highway and Jewett.
