Food

Mad Hatter brings tea and more to downtown Birmingham

The Mad Hatter Cafe is bringing high tea and a bistro and bakery to downtown Birmingham. The husband-and-wife-owned business is scheduled to open this spring at 185 N. Old Woodward, across from the Palladium movie theater. Besides high tea, a bistro for lunch and dinner, and indoor and outdoor seating, the Mad Hatter expects to fill a need for food takeout and offer event space. The Mad Hatter is moving into a space previously occupied by a Quizno's sandwich shop. Source: Edward Nakfoor, public relations, Birmingham Principal Shopping District Writer: Kim North Shine

GardenHoard plants future in heirloom seeds

Gardening has been a favorite pastime for Katie Flickinger's family for quite a while, so it's little wonder the fresh Central Michigan University graduate is turning that passion into a business. Flickinger has recently started GardenHoard, an online company that sells heirloom seeds for a variety of fruits, vegetables, flowers and herbs. It offers more than 800 varieties of vegetation. "It started out as a hobby but became a business," Flickinger says. She leveraged the help of Blackstone LaunchPad’s entrepreneurial services at Walsh College's Troy campus. That helped her spike GardenHoard's revenues by 250 percent last year. She has already grown her revenues another 100 percent for this growing season. "Every year we are improving and getting more sales," Flickinger says. The Livonia resident now utilizes six community gardens across the region to get her stock. She and her husband are now looking to move to a house with five acres so they can bring all of their business under one roof. Source: Katie Flickinger, owner of GardenHoard Writer: Jon Zemke Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Cigar smokers find space at Socialight in W. Bloomfield

Big space, big chefs, big design behind Bistro 82 and Sabrage lounge

One of metro Detroit's most anticipated restaurants, Bistro 82, opened this week in downtown Royal Oak, and besides serving unforgettable food the plan is to "change the dining scene in this area." Scott Sadoff, director of operations for the AFB Hospitality Group, is overseeing Bistro 82, which opened Feb. 11 at 4th Street and South Lafayette in the former Sangria tapas bar and salsa dance club. The renovation transformed the two-story, 10,000-square-foot building into a contemporary and luxurious space with clean lines and an open floor plan that has Bistro 82 on the main floor. Upstairs is Sabrage, a high-end lounge and night club where a DJ will play above a fish tank while champagne is served from a tap behind an onyx bar. Sabrage's first day of business is Valentine's Day. It will be open on Friday and Saturday nights. The overall vision for the new business belongs to Aaron Fenkell Belen, the developer of the property and president of AFB Hospitality Group. "What we're doing is trying to make our place a one-stop shop and capture our guests for their nights out," says Sadoff, who says guests may want a pre-dinner cocktail or a reserved table upstairs at Sabrage for post-dinner time. The bigger picture of Bistro 82 and Sabrage is "to change the dining scene in this area. Dining should be for the guests, not just to go out to eat, but to have an experience," he says. "Every establishment around us is here for a reason, and many of them are very good at what they do," he says. "What we never want to become or never will become is stagnant. We don't want to get complacent. We want to try and up our game every single day." Bistro 82 is French-inspired except for the intentionally roomy interior design. "It's not a bistro setting that normally has tables closer together. We wanted our bistro to be easily maneuverable, with generous walkways and to be luxurious," he says. "We want our guests to be comfortable and well taken care of." n important part of the customer care-taking, he says, is hiring a large staff -- sauciers, dishwashers, security staff, drink runners, managers, bartenders, etc.  who are known for their high performance and experience at top restaurants. Sadoff most recently worked for Cameron Mitchell Restaurants as manager of Ocean Prime and before that as manager of  P.F. Chang's. Derik Watson is the leader of Bistro 82's kitchen and the designer of the menu, which includes a West and East Coast selection of oysters, pork belly and ratatouille and several other appetizers, Waygu hanger steak, beef short rib, sea scallops, Scottish Salmon, chicken Paillard and other entrees, and dessert choices such as yogurt panna cotta, dark chocolate tart and cinnamon sugar beignets. Watson brings with him experience from restaurants around the country, many in metro Detroit such as Rugby Grill in Birmingham and Tribute in Farmington Hills, where he worked under the tutelage of iconic chef Takashi Yagihashi at Tribute and in Chicago. Running Bistro 82 and Sabrage will require more than 100 employees, nearly half full-time. The restaurant can seat 162 guests. Sabrage has room for about 225 guests. Source: Scott Sadoff, director of operations, AFB Hospitality Group, and Justin Near, president, Near Perfect Media Writer: Kim North Shine

AfterHouse: Fighting Blight by Growing a Greenhouse

Fire and blight have left more than a few holes in metro Detroit's neighborhoods. AfterHouse has an idea for a temporary solution: below-ground greenhouses. The organization, inspired by South American farmers who build subterranean 'walipinis' to grow crops year-round, is using a burnt-out house in Detroit as its prototype.

Love of Mediterranean eats stokes expansion of Park Grill

Adi Kokoshi and his family have cooked their way out of the original spot where they started the Park Grill Mediterranean in Grosse Pointe Park in 2009 and into a restaurant that's nearly twice the size, has an expanded menu and for the first time a liquor license and large outdoor seating area. It could all bring more success to the Albanian immigrants who have found so many takers of their favorite dishes. Renovations started in July on an expansion into a neighboring storefront, taking it from 1,000 to 1,800 square feet with seating for 62 instead of 40. A 17-foot L-shaped bar will seat 17 and an outdoor seating area will have room for 20-25. Opening day could come in late February or early March, says Park Grill general manager Brian Czerny. The Grill takes up a corner location in the buzzing business district called The Park. It's where 1920s- and 1930s-era facades house long-established businesses such as the Rustic Cabins bar, Antonio's Restaurant, a dry cleaner, a pet store, a hardware store, a party store and offices that are now part of a mini development boom that's added  The Red Crown restaurant, Atwater Brewery, which will open in April, the Cabbage Patch Cafe and a soon-to-be announced taco bar, to the mix of businesses. The menu that locals love, one influenced by cooking from Albania, Greece and the Balkans, will remain but with additions, says Czerny. New entrees and steak and fish dishes will be served, and a "unique appetizer menu" will be available during meal service and also late into the night, he says.  There will be four draft beers on tap, 22 bottled beers and a specialty cocktail menu. In the spring, "an endless mimosa and bloody Mary bar" will go with brunch and lunch, Czerny says. "We hope to create a warm, relaxed, neighborhood-type atmosphere that works for just about everybody, whether it be lunch during the week, dinner with the family, date night with a spouse, or just hanging out with friends," Czerny says. Source: Brian Czerny, general manager, Park Grill LLC Writer: Kim North Shine

Buy Michigan Now readies for annual market in Northville

A festival that comes to Northville each August may look like any summertime fair, but behind the temporary town of tents, banners, bands and children's play areas is a successful effort to build up fledgling Michigan-made businesses. For five years the Buy Michigan Now festival has shut down Main & Center streets and opened 2 1/2 blocks of downtown to small- and medium-sized Michigan businesses looking for exposure for their goods and services. Dozens and dozens of times over the years, says Buy Michigan Now founder Lisa Diggs, the vendor-customer connection made at the fair propels entrepreneurial ideas into commercial reality. "We've had businesses that grew out of the event in a great way, where they've gone on to get on store shelves. Others have opened their own shops or offices. We're sort of a little breeding ground for that kind of success," says Diggs. This year, as in past years, about 100 vendors will bring all sorts of products, such as foods, patio furniture, smartphone repair services, to the festival. Small businesses in downtown Northville are also part of the event, which draws large crowds with its carefully-screened vendors, a beer and wine garden where Michigan crafters sell their liquid handiwork, live entertainment and a kids' play area spread across the festival area. The 2014 festival is Aug. 1, 2 and 3, and applications for vendors are now being taken online here. "It's a campaign and a festival with a cause," says Diggs, an entrepreneur herself. Through Buy Michigan Now and her consulting work as owner of The Catalyst Co., she promotes businesses in a number of ways throughout the year, including providing publicity and media exposure that is normally too costly for a start-up. The first year of the Buy Michigan Now campaign was in 2007 and came with heavy involvement from the state of Michigan and Gov. Jennifer Granholm. It was a weeklong event with numerous celebrations and promotion. It formed at a time when Michigan's economy was tanking and when the mindset of buying local was taking shape. "We're literally about getting more people to sit up and take notice of where their product or service comes from. The idea when we started was to have a day for people to think about how to buy only Michigan products, make a meal only from Michigan. Then we realized we needed much more than a day." Source: Lisa Diggs, founder Buy Michigan Now Writer: Kim North Shine

Marcia’s Munchies brings home Good Food show award

Marcia Nodel took her Birmingham-based Marcia's Munchies pickles to the Good Food show in San Francisco two weeks ago and came back with an award that  is already putting her  "sweet & sassy" creation in more metro Detroit markets. She was one of five Michigan craft food makers to win the award that recognizes products that have a good taste and potential to do social good. Nodel has been in business only about a year, but has jarred pickles and jams and made her special caramel crunch popcorn for about 30 years. Nodel's popcorn is already a staple at markets such as Hiller's, Papa Joe's, Market Square and several others, but the process to certify the pickles took much longer. With certification and the award, she expects to hire help to keep up with demand. "I know that doors open faster when you go in and say I just won this award," she says. She gets help in promotion and sales and business planning from  "business-minded, energetic" daughter-in-law Michal Nodel, who moved from New York with Marcia's son about a year ago. Besides seeing an increase in sales Nodel hopes to watch metro Detroiters come to care more about eating "clean food" and to think about how food production affects the environment and quality of life. "After going out to San Francisco you see how whole cities are adopting this theory. I don't think one business at the show gave out a plastic bag. It's all about how to eat food, package food, make food that is good for people and good for the community," she says. "The Good Food people vet you extensively on how you make your product, what's used in your product, where you buy the ingredients. My food has always been preservative free. I don't like anything artificial." Source: Marcia Nodel, founder, Marcia's Munchies Writer: Kim North Shine

How Cheesecake Saved a Family’s Future

Patrick Peteet knows a bit about reinvention. Just as his father left the line at Ford to start the family's real estate business, Patrick, after a series of tragic setbacks, convinced the family to leave real estate behind to become cheesecake entrepreneurs. The result is Peteet's Cheesecakes in Oak Park, where they sell 60-80 cakes a day... and have an eye on franchising.