I LISTENING POST 1"..11mmilullmm.lim I BEST OF EVERYTHING I WHERE EAST MEETS WEST cooiN4f,€$ LOBSTER FESTIVAL 7 DAYS A WEEK 11/2 LB. LIVE MAINE LOBSTER COMPLE DINNER INCLUDES: • SOUP OR PASTA • SALAD • POTATO OR VEGETABLE $1595 Live Piano Entertainment Mon. Thru Sat. Tableside Cooking at Dinners ... • Steak Diane • Caesar Salad • Seafood Fettucini • Fettucini • Veal • Dover Sole • Flaming Desserts Catering For All Occasions • Lunch Served Mon.-Fri. • Pastries Made On The Premises 935 W. 11 MILE, S.E. CORNER 11 & 1.75 Res: 399.5960 Chef: Peter Lieber Your Hosts: Bruno Ferguson & Tim Kowaiec ROAST TONGUE DINNER CHOICE OF SOUP OR SALAD $565 DELI and RESTAURANT SHIVA DINNERS & PARTY TRAYS ... Free Delivery Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner ... Mon.-Fri. 7 a.m.-8 p.m., Sat. 7 a.m.-3 p.m. 352-4940 21754 W. 11 MILE AT LAHSER • HARVARD ROW Fax: 352-9393 FREE DINNER WITH PURCHASE OF DINNER OF EQUAL OR GREATER VALUE I Excludes Holidays I INo Carry 001 • Daily Specials Excluded • Groups Over 10 Excluded • Present Coupon When Ordering • Coupon Valid For Entirb Table • Main Dining Room Only • 15% Gratuity Added To Original Bill JN Expires 8-29-91 PLEASE, NO EXCEPTIONS TO RULES OF U SE. SOUTHFIELD 25080 SOUTHFIELD RD. (1 Block Northof 10 Mile) 557.8910 EARLY BIRD SPECIALS 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Complete Dinners $7.95 to $9.95 Le Metro Applegate Square • Northwestern Hwy. • 353-2757 80 FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 1991 You Will Not Recognize This Birmingham Landmark DANNY RASKIN Local Columnist T hey should tear the place down and make a parking lot out of it" is an old saying that has per- tained to many restaurants down through the years. He didn't have to, but that's exactly what Armand DeCapite did eight years ago . . . even though his Alban's Bottle and Basket on Hunter Boulevard near Maple in Bir- mingham was a highly suc- cessful operation. Where once stood the cafeteria with its deli-style sandwiches and wine and li- quor setup is today an unbelievable sight . . . recognizable only by the big wagon wheel sign hanging outside with Alban's blazon- ed across. Armand and the late Milt Goldberg had purchased the Birmingham deli from the Alban family in 1961 . . . a fascinating place opened by Thomas and Leonilda Alban which had started out originally as a grocery and kept growing and growing .. . When Armand and Milt took over, theirs was the only restaurant around . . . The Peabody's site nearby was a grocery then. People today remember when as children their parents used to take them to Alban's for a ride in the coun- try . . . Folks now living out- of-town who used to frequent Alban's many times go there looking for the cafeteria and are in shock at what they see. Gone from the wall is the blackboard menu . . . but still there are those four famous sandwiches Alban's was noted for from 1961 . . . "The Big Wheel," "The Carriage," "The Hub" and "The Subur- ban" . . . also those box lun- ches people used to stop for and still do to take to football games. Quite a difference from yesteryears . . . If customers haven't been to Alban's in a while, they'll also have trou- ble recognizing the place .. . That building with its en- trance on Hunter was torn down eight years ago after Armand built his new structure. About the only thing Ar- mand kept from the old building was that huge hogshead that formed the companionway between the food and cafeteria department and the liquor and wine sec- tion which today contains over 7,000 bottles of wine .. . Customers still walk through this barrel, now about 100 years old, lined on each side with fine wines, to get from one part of the store to the other. There also used to be a large wagon _wheel mounted horizontally and converted in- to a table seating seven per- sons . . . The Alban's of today is more to the modernistic side with a full-service restaurant intead of the cafeteria. However, Armand tried to carry as much feeling as possible of the old atmosphere to the new with its knotty pine wood and solid oak, cut to measurements from blue- print specifications, shipped here via Oregon and put into place . . . An upstairs loft din- ing area with wrought iron lamps and glass shades over most of the tables is like a quiet retreat . . . Meanwhile downstairs, continuing its brick interior, large light fix- tures, huge overhead wine labels hanging from the high- raftered ceiling, and modern enclosed fireplace, is a hustle and bustle yet most comfor- table and intimate atmosphere. The full-service Alban's restaurant, with its booths and tables for 179 seating is a very far cry .. .-but much to the better . . . from the cafe- teria-style setup and limited menu. Building housing Alban's restaurant, carry-out, cater- ing and liquor-wine opera- tion, was that large red barn next door where Cranbrook art students used to store their equipment after spen- ding all day outside drawing and painting. Still at Alban's Bottle and Basket are Bernie Cole, deli manager; and David Garth, one of the dining room managers . . . Both were with the original Alban's five years before coming with Armand and Milt 30 years ago. Sol Pitt, who used to own Shep's Delicatessen with Harry Shepherd on Griswold, was with Armand at Alban's 22 years before retiring eight years ago . . . He is responsi- ble for starting those popular box lunches for which Alban's gained much repute. When one recalls the small kitchen of yesteryears, he or she can appreciate the large one now at Alban's, with its gleaming stainless steel and utter cleanliness throughout. Who would have thought you'd one day get burgundy linen napkins at Alban's? .. . And what wild imagination could conceive that the 35 or 40 employees would grow to over 135? Alban's is sure not a deli- cafeteria-type anymore . . . far from it . . . and Armand can take pride in being one of the few restaurant owners still wallowing in success . . . even more so than previous . . . for over 30 years. He also still owns the Bot- tle and Basket Shoppe on Telegraph and Maple, opened in 1960. Armand was one of the first persons in this area to put in a wine bar at the restaurant . . . Its 16 taps give out choice wines by the glass to go along with Alban's extensive sit- There are many changes for the better at Alban's Bottle and Basket. down menu that also includes items from the old place. So next time you're driving out Woodward way and come to Hunter Boulevard near Maple, look for that familiar wagon wheel sign . . . then if you've never noticed before, see the side door canopy into which one enters_ a triple- treat-and-more adventure. Armand has quite an opera- tion . . . It's hard to conceive or believe that this is the same Alban's Bottle and Basket of years back. Realization is a see-for- yourself experience . . . Too bad I can't borrow a Yogi Berra-ism and say, "It's the same, but better" . . . For sure it's not the same . . . but cer- tainly better. FOLKS WHO HAD fun at the Bighouse will be in- terested in this note . . . Woodhull Lake Reunion is be- ing planned if enough in- terest is evoked by those who owned or rented Woodhull cottages between 1930 and 1950 . . . The reunion would be held in spring or summer of 1992 . . . Committee is made up of Sally (Joseph) Saginaw, Virginia (Wider) Sharkey, Avery Shapero and Shirley (Zack) Schram . . . Call Sally at 681-7814; or Shirley at 360-0448 . . . Reliv- ing those great fun years at Woodhull would be joyous for so many . . . Lots of wonderful memories.