Biting Into Downtown

What is it about some restaurants that compel you to travel miles out of your way or through neighborhoods that you’d never frequented before? The answer is simple. A good meal is a transformational experience. From the way the meal tastes to the way it’s presented to the people with whom you enjoy it—-all the right elements come together to provide a sense of well being that makes the experience one that demands repeating.

A great restaurant, like the great meals it serves, can have the same transformational impact on a neighborhood. Breathing new life into an average or sleepy community and beaconing reclamation of a decaying one.

Dinner and a show

Craig Common, Chef Owner of the Common Grill understood that when he decided to open his restaurant in Chelsea almost twenty years ago. "It’ll be 16 years in July.  It (Opening a restaurant) was always something I wanted to do," says Common. "I’d worked for Chuck Muer for 12 years and when I was ready, I looked in small towns like Brighton. Then I visited Chelsea and I loved the building. It’s been around since the 1800s and it’s got that nice, comfortable feeling to it. It was the same with the town."

Chelsea was a very different place twenty years ago, the sleepy little downtown had few retail businesses save the Jiffy Mix plant. Although Common acknowledges there was some uncertainty at first, his reservations quickly melted away. "When we started it was risky. There were six or seven buildings empty at the time. It was just the theater and us. We were dinner and a show," says Common. "It was a nice marriage—our place and the theater. People could go out for a nice meal and see some great entertainment. It’s still a level of entertainment you don’t get anywhere else."

The Purple Rose Theatre, founded by local actor Jeff Daniels, is a professional theatre company that features Midwestern actors, directors, designers and playwrights producing plays about middle America. In 1990 Daniels purchased an old bus garage that he renovated into the 168-seat theater. Since then it has become a cultural destination in Southeast michigan, attracting more than 30,000 patrons each year.

"For me, three months into it I knew it was gong to work," Common says. "A couple years into it the right shops were coming in. There were a lot of more people in the street. A lot was happening. Chelsea is a town that will get better and better with age."

Building on a strong foundation

When John Lopez bought and re-opened Twingo’s Café, he knew he had a strong foundation on which to build something even better. "We’ve been open for one year, three months and 17 days, " says Lopez of the charming Cass Corridor bistro. The restaurant had gone through eight years of ups-and-downs before he took it on. "We decided to keep the name for its recognition. People either loved it or hated it—or hated the fact that they loved it so much."

Lopez changed Twingo’s offerings to reflect changes in the ever-gentrifying neighborhood. "We found that the neighborhood was looking for something more casual, and we’re evolving into more of a restaurant/bar than a café or bistro." Lopez sees this as an opportunity to better serve his growing customer base. "One reason I decided to invest was that I was privy to the revitalization of the area, and it’s proving to be a great opportunity."

Cass Corridor had a long reputation as one of Detroit’s less desirable locations, despite its proximity to Wayne State. In the early and mid-nineties, the area started to come back with new restaurants, such as Twingo’s, joining old favorites like the Traffic Jam and Snug, Union Street and Mario’s.  When it first opened, Twingo’s offered an eclectic, and somewhat eccentric alternative café, serving French and Spanish bistro fare and weekend brunches. With the Cass Café just down the street, the new business helped increase foot traffic, which is imperative to a city looking for sustained growth. Today, the area is bustling with new life, largely from new residents who have set up housekeeping in the lofts and new developments that have popped up all over the area.

Nourishing community growth

"When we opened in 1991, we were ‘the place on the other street’ because everything was happening on Main Street.” That’s where all the restaurants were at the time. “We were book-ended by Jimi’s on one end and Les Auteurs (the late, exceedingly posh eatery that lived in the space now occupied by D’Amato’s) way down the street. There were no other restaurants in between," says Pronto Owner Bill Thomas.

Thomas opened the restaurant with partners Jim Domanski and Tom Murray. "From the time we opened, we never looked back. We developed a menu based on our own personal tastes and we trusted there were other people with the same tastes."

Originally a dine-in/carry-out sandwich shop, Pronto now exudes a colorful energy in both its food and its brightly painted décor. The atmosphere is cheery and bright, and the menu ranges from an eclectic brunch and tasty sandwiches to home-cooked favorites like chicken pot pie and a worth-the-trip pot roast. The desserts are an event in and of themselves.

Over time the upscale deli has grown in both size and local involvement. Starting AIDS Walk Detroit --now the largest AIDS fundraiser in Michigan-- is a prime example of the philanthropy and community contribution that has come to characterize the restaurant and its owners. Dedicated neighbors, Pronto created Zip Code Tuesdays, offering a discount to patrons who reside in Royal Oak and the zip codes immediately surrounding the city.

"Benefit Days" are another way Pronto gives back to the community that has made it so successful. One of the many recipients of Pronto’s community service is the Royal Oak Animal Shelter, which lost its official funding a few years ago. Since then, Pronto has been a strong and consistent advocate, and has literally transformed the shelter into a viable, community funded one—saving countless animals in the process.

"We’re honored that we’ve been able to develop something that’s become a mainstay in the community," says Bill Thomas.

There were those, Thomas says that actually made bets on when Pronto would close. So far, no one’s collected and with the Pronto organization growing to include catering, cooking classes, wholesale endeavors and boundless community initiatives, no one is likely to collect on that bet anytime soon. A recent city survey that asked what drew respondents to Royal Oak, the number three answer was Pronto.

"We’ve grown as our customer base has grown. We now have ten highchairs in the restaurant. When we started we might have had one, if that. It’s become a generational experience," says Thomas. "As the 'kids' who frequented the restaurant when it first opened have grown up and brought their own children there. Contrary to a lot of other places," says Thomas, "the restaurant’s audience is getting younger. "

Suede Garret-Alan, a Pronto manager, has been at the restaurant for the last eight years. "We’ve really taken a community stance, supporting causes that are not only important to the owners, but have a direct responsibility to the community," says Garret-Alan, "As Royal Oak has grown, we’ve grown, too. We’ve really helped each other grow."

"Royal Oak is a close-knit community," says Garret-Alan, "Everybody knows each other and the business owners all take an active role in how they’re promoting the city and what it stands for."

Bill Thomas sums it up best, "We give back to the community that gives to us."

A good meal does more than feed the body; it often feeds the soul. Likewise, a good restaurant can do more than feed its customers, it can feed its community and help it grow. Hamtramck, Dearborn and Northville downtown areas are all enjoying a resurgence similar to that of Royal Oak and Ann Arbor; where successful restaurants have created foot-traffic and inspired retail development and downtown living spaces. The craving for a viable, walk-able community can be as strong as the craving for a favorite dish, and more and more local communities are proving that the experience can be just as satisfying.

Photos:

Dessert at Pronto!

Jeff Daniels outside his Purple Rose Theatre (photo courtesy of Purple Rose Theatre)

Outside dining at Twingo's

Suede Garret-Allan - manager of Pronto!

Outside dining at Pronto!

Photographs © Dave Kreiger