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Most Beautiful and Exciting
Restaurants

OUR FAMOUS

NEW ENGLAND
LOBSTER
FEAST
MONDAY THRU THURSDAY

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A Restaurant On Greenfield
Offers Food With Many Options

SOUP
SALAD
1 LB. LIVE LOBSTER
KING CRAB LEGS
MUSSELS
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CORN-ON THE-COB

$22 50

DANNY RASKIN

Local Columnist

H

per person

DANCING TUES. THRU SAT.

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Southfield

358-3355

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Expires 12-12-91

31646 NORTHWESTERN HWY.
AT MIDDLEBELT
Farmington Hills

855-4600

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31005 ORCHARD LAKE RD.

626-5020

MON.-THURS. '10-9, FRI. & SAT. 10-10, SUN. 12-8

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4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.

Complete
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Le Metro

Applegate Square • Northwestern Hwy. • 353-2757

72

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 6, 1991

ow many times have
you heard, "If it were
my restaurant, I'd
prepare it differently," . . . Or
"At home, I'd probably make it
another way"?
A totally new concept in
dining that has come to
Southfield could possibly do
away with remarks like this
. . . It's at the recently open-
ed Sizzling Crab on Green-
field just south of 11 Mile.
Customers at dinner have
their options how favorites
can be prepared as the in-
novation affords them the op-
portunity of selecting dishes
and having them whichever
way is desired.
Guests first select the en-
tree, then have nine ways in
which they may be cooked in
a flexible menu that allows
folks to create their own din-
ing experiences . . . from cook-
ing methods to flavors that
suit particular tastes, moods
and dietary desires.
Such a concept is without
doubt quite a challenge to
any kitchen let alone one in
a restaurant . . . and the chefs
had better be adroit to meet
these demands.
It's the brainchild of Peter
di Lorenza, new concept con-
sultant, who has changed the
former Natraj Indian
restaurant completely around
like another world . . . Sizzl-
ing Crab is still owned by
Terry and Aji Ahluwalia who
also own the Peacock in Dear-.
born, but can now boast of
having perhaps the only
restaurant anywhere with
five people having the same
food and yet each enjoying a
differently prepared dish .. .
the result of their own selec-
tion of sauces and mode of
preparation.
Traditional seafood, pasta,
European and international
fare is featured at Sizzling
Crab, whose name by the way
is just that, a name, with no
bearing whatsoever on the
food served.
If people still want Indian
food it can be gotten by call-
ing a day in advance . . .
Those two tandoor ovens_from
the former Natraj operation
are still on the premises.
Executive Chef Maryann
Miute and Sous-Chef Synthia
Haner are a couple of highly
qualified gals, working
toward their C.W.C. (Certified
Working Chef) degrees, whose
knowledge must be tops to
tackle a menu such as this .. .

During lunch, when the pre-
parations are not so deman-
ding„ head line chef David
Benczarski introduces food
that has also been receiving
many plaudits . . . Sizzling
Crab joins a very fast-growing
amount of dining spots now
serving turkeyburger sand-
wiches which seems to be tak-
ing the restaurant world at a
hurried-like pace.
The former Natraj closed
Oct. 13 of this year and
reopened as Sizzling Crab 10
days later, to much delight of
dining aficionados who enjoy
food prepared as they like it
and say it can only be gotten
at home . . . This is why so
many are returning . . . hav-
ing the same dish again, but
prepared in another way .. .
a very interesting concept
that certainly takes away the
mundaneness from going out
to dinner and replaces it with
joyous adventure.
One of the waitresses,
Regina Sechrist, is also
among the rare breeds herself
. . . She smiles, is personable
and actually brings you coffee
seconds in a fresh cup .. .
Among other things Regina
does so well is telling specials
without reading from a slip of
paper and knowing what in-
gredients are in the food she
serves.
Sizzling Crab's manager,
Don Ure, is a seasoned
restaurant man whose know-
how extends to knowledge of
food and customer service .. .
a couple of salient factors that
go well together . . . He was
with Chuck Muer 11 years
and two years with Peter
before taking over what has
to be one of the best concepts
to come along in the restau-
rant game in many a moon.
And even the wine list is
different at Sizzling Crab .. .
Besides being quite extensive,
it tells what some of the
names mean plus the food
they go good with . . . Peter is
also a wine consultant and
gives much knowledge to the
menu with explanations that
make for interesting reading
while waiting for orders and
highly conducive to further
enjoyment of meals by wine
lovers . . . He gives sort of a
one-liner review of the wines,
too.
The can't-miss-it sign of
Sizzling Crab has made a big
difference as opposed to the
small one by Natraj . . . Little
change has been made in the
decor . . . different pictures on
the wall, back opened where
small banquets were held and
seemingly a faster-paced at-

mosphere . . . Seating is now
150 in three areas . . . 80 in
dining room, 40 in the former
party room and 30 in a lounge
sector.
The Sizzling Crab concept is
one that many people pro-
bably thought about but
never dreamed would ever
happen in a restaurant .. .
After all, folks have been go-
ing to restaurants for time
immemorial wishing certain
foods could be gotten the way
they would prefer . . . That
thing has suddenly become a
realization in a giant step to
more joyful dining.
WHAT GREATER work
for humankind can be done
other than the helping of un-
fortunate youngsters who
can't help themselves? . . . Do-
ing this toil of love for
children is a major incentive
in the reasons for success by

Sizzling Crab
changes cooking
methods and
flavors to order.

an organization such as
Variety - The Children's
Charity (otherwise known as
Variety Club).
It certainly • is for the
volunteers who every year
put on fund-raisers to buy
myolectric limbs for kiddies
born without arms and legs
or who have lost them in ac-
cidents ... Of much import
too is also assisting those
young ones at Variety's car-
diology center at Children's
Hospital of Michigan.
The motivation of giving
children a chance in life was
why Variety was able to
recently raise over $35,000 as
more than 400 people jamm-
ed Northland Theatre for the
group's annual fall fund-
raiser, "Lights, Camera, Auc-
tion " . . . chaired by Sandy
Samson, with assistance of
committee-ites Dee Shapiro,
Dean Krispin and Dian Zan-
top among so many others
who gave their time, efforts
and services in this very
worthwhile cause.
Area restaurants provided
continuous dining as at-
tendees went from table to
table sampling the foods
displayed . . . A silent auction
was being held at the same
time . . . and then into the
Northland Theatre's movie
sector for a live auction and
the sneak preview of a cute
romantic comedy, Married To

It.

Max Horenstein with "my