New party store offers fresh food on Poseyville

Sarah Spohn | Thursday, August 12, 2021

Transforming the flooded 2,000-square-foot space to a new, bright, clean store took months. Photo courtesy of The Lodge Party Store

In addition to normal convenience store items, the store offers fresh coffee and cappuccino, homemade lunch sandwiches, hot dogs, salads, pizza-by-the-slice, cheesy garlic bread, cookies and various desserts. Photo courtesy of The Lodge Party Store

The Lodge also sells birdseed, automotive items, RV and lawnmower batteries, wiper blades and more Photo courtesy of The Lodge Party Store

The Lodge Party Store is located at 742 S. Poseyville Road. Ron Beacom

The former convenience store located at 742 S. Poseyville was one of the casualties of the historic Midland flood in May 2020. Thanks to the new owners, husband and wife Mike and Jeanette Shudark, the space was renovated and reopened. The Lodge Party Store celebrated its soft-opening on July 15, welcoming the Bullock Creek community to enjoy the completely rehabbed store.

The Lodge Party Store is open every day of the week.Mike Shudark also owns a small snow plow business, on top of his “day job.” Once the former store was flooded, he and his wife discussed the idea of buying the space.

“I’ve known the previous owner for pretty much my whole life,” he says. “After it flooded, I talked to her, and she wasn’t going to rebuild. The owner made a deal, and we decided to go with it. I worked at a party store a long time ago, probably about 20 years ago.”

Transforming the flooded 2,000-square-foot space to a new, bright, clean store took months. Adorned with knotty pine on the walls and aluminum, The Lodge earned its name.

The party store sells popular convenience store items including snacks, drinks, plates, and napkins, but also offers some more unconventional items. They also sell birdseed, automotive items, RV and lawnmower batteries, wiper blades and more. Shudark says their most popular items, however, are their homemade to-go food options.

“We’re selling 40 breakfast burritos and breakfast sandwiches before 8 a.m.,” he says. “We get there at 5 a.m. to make them fresh every morning.”

Shudark says the store also sells coffee and cappuccino, homemade lunch sandwiches, hot dogs, salads, pizza-by-the-slice, cheesy garlic bread, cookies and various desserts. Owners have taken customer feedback into account for what types of beer and wine they’ll eventually stock on shelves.

Looking forward, Shudark hopes to also include deer feed supplies and soup options in the fall and hand-dipped ice cream next year.

The Lodge Party Store is located at 742 S. Poseyville Rd., and is open from Monday-Friday from 6 a.m.-10 p.m., Saturday from 8 a.m.-10 p.m., and Sunday from 9 a.m.-9 p.m.

Read more articles by Sarah Spohn.

Sarah Spohn is a Lansing native, but every day finds a new interesting person, place, or thing in towns all over Michigan, leaving her truly smitten with the mitten. She received her degrees in journalism and professional communications and provides coverage for various publications locally, regionally, and nationally — writing stories on small businesses, arts and culture, dining, community, and anything Michigan-made. You can find her in a record shop, a local concert, or eating one too many desserts at a bakery. If by chance, she’s not at any of those places, you can contact her at sarahspohn.news@gmail.com.