Carrying on the Tradition
On June 26, 1968 a self-described “gregarious Swedish building contractor” Gene Bergmark and his partner Carl Skogland opened The Silo. The barn raising began on December 7, 1967. The Silo beams and staves were forested in Wisconsin and trucked to Lake Bluff. The roof was built by “The Swede” on the ground and hoisted in place like the cork on a bottle. A design and structural challenge that must have worked, because it is still here to this day.
They started with the now famous Deep Dish Pizza and built the menu from there. After about 15 years, Carl exited the business and Gene and his wife Carol operated The Silo until 1988.
In 1988, Sandy (Tarman) and Larry Pike partnered with Pat and Larry Tarman to purchase The Silo from Gene. They briefly closed the restaurant for an extensive remodel; including adding windows, new doors, extending the “loft”, adding an outside deck and creating a new bar area. They also renovated the kitchen and redesigned it to bring in “state of the art” equipment to serve their guests faster.
The Pike’s and Tarman’s also extended the existing menu to include great new entrees; sandwiches, salads, appetizers, stuffed potatoes and desserts. A wide array of deep dish and thin crust specialty pizzas were also added.
In 1997, The Tarman’s decided to relax and retire in Florida. The Pikes sold their other restaurants and purchased the Tarman’s half interest in The Silo. Eighteen years later, it was the Pike’s turn to retire to Florida.
Sandy’s brother Dave Tarman and his wife Leslie purchased the Silo in 2015. After many years of receiving Silo pizzas mailed to their home in Dallas, Texas (their favorite Christmas gift!) it was time to buy the restaurant.
