A couple months ago, I enjoyed seeing Chef Jeff Mauro give a presentation at College of DuPage. Earlier this week I saw Mauro again, as he appeared at The Book Loft for a discussion and book signing.

Chicago-area native Mauro has been a staple on The Food Network since winning the seventh season of the Food Network Star competition in 2011. Despite his national presence, he very much remains a local guy and definitely an area favorite. That was evident by the thunderous applause as he started his presentation.

Mauro told a few funny stories from Come On Over, his new cookbook. Actually, it is much more than a cookbook. It’s 294 pages of stories, pictures and recipes. Mauro shared a few trivia tidbits about the book, such as the yellow landline phone on the cover. The book’s title comes from Mauro’s signature invitation to “Come on over.”

Photo by Tony Feddeler

After about 45 minutes, he took several questions from the crowd before signing copies. One particularly funny moment came when someone asked Mauro what book he was currently reading; that book just happened to be among the books on the shelf behind him.

Recently opened, The Book Loft is nestled in the heart of Oak Park, just west of Chicago. When a different bookstore there closed after 22 years in business, Heather Nelson and Sophie Schauer Eldred opened The Book Loft. Nelson told me, “We knew our community needed a bookstore, so we wanted to open one and ensure a warm and inviting place with incredible selection.” The Book Loft is exactly what they envisioned and a welcome addition to the Oak Park shopping district.

Photo courtesy of The Book Loft Oak Park

It’s a modern store with an old-school bookstore feel. You can almost feel and smell the pulp as you enter, upon which the staff greets regulars by name. Mauro felt the same affinity for The Book Loft when he first visited it, which led to the book signing.

— John Wroblewski, online writer