Sizzle.
Sizzle.
An Owner-Working Chef
Creates Detroit Masterpiece
(Ahh, the lovely sound of Bouquet? tasty
Spring Steakhouse Specials.)
DANNY RASKIN LOCAL COLUMNIST
W
Bouquets' Spring Steakhouse specials feature
Mesquite Grilled Black Angus Beef
'15.95
$16.95
$17.95
New York Sirloin Steak
Filet Mignon
Prime Rib (a full pound)
All entrees are served with fresh spring vegetables and
oversized baked potato. Validated Valet Parking is avail-
able for you. Reservations are suggested.
(313) 827-4000
At the
GRadisson.
PLAZA HOTEL AT TOWN CENTER
1500 ToWri Center Southfield, Michigan 48075
We NOV!. A I
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Beers
TWO-For-
ONE
ADMISSION ,
With This Ad lbsrbigfydzida
Fri. Night or Sat.
Late Show ONLY
Not valid with
Dinner Show Package
Appearing this week!
LEO DUFOUR
SEAN HUNTER
JERRY MINOR
Complete Prime
Rib Dinner
Special
Mon. St Tues.
Friday, Juneiliat t30 p.m
Saturday, Jung19att008,10:30p.m.
Includee your choice of Pitcher
show, #.00 inc. parson,
ONLY
$10.95
1 _ 0 / 4Ppi,
DINNER SHOW PACKAGE
$34.95 per Couple
Complete Carry-out Available
MOOSE JAW GRILLE & COMEDY CELLAR
1655 Glengary at Benstein • Walled Lake Intomiation/Reservations
Open 7 Days
Lunch & Dinner
313) 960-3388
WE FEATURE FALAFEL
Restaurant
Mideastern & American Cuisine
27060 Evergreen
At 1-696 & 11 in Lathrup Landing
Cr)
559-9099
LU
• Lamb Chops • Shish Kabob • Tabbouli
• Stuffed Grape Leaves (Veg. & Reg.)
• Bar-B-Q Ribs & Chicken • Etc.
Cr)
RAW JUICE BAR
With Fresh-Squeezed fruits & Vegetables
I Catering Available For All Occasions'
LU
CC
r
Buy One Entree At Regular Price
Get Second Entree
Equal or Lesser Value
LU
LU
78
HALF THE PRICE!
0
• Dine In Only • With Coupon
• 1 Coupon Per Couple
• Not Valid With Other Offers
Expires 6-30-93
JN
hen a dining artist
has earned the rep-
utation and respect
of being a chef's
chef, he or she can do little
wrong in the kitchen.
His or her food preparations
usually meet all the re-
quirements for good taste,
healthful eating, balanced
cuisine and colorful presen-
tation.
And then there is the price
. . . This factor is many times,
among other things, deter-
mined by the executive chefs
food cost.
In the case of Joe Beato,
owner/chef of Il Centro
Ristorante on Lothrop, be-
tween Second and Third in
back of the Fisher Building,
he was not only manager of
Michigan's 1992 Culinary
Olympic Team that won five
gold medals in Frankfurt,
Germany, last October, but
also its administrator, hand-
ling financial matters.
Joe knows food . . . how to
buy it and ways of prepara-
tion . . . He is a many-faceted
chef . . . not only presenting
numerous variations in nor-
thern Italian dining but able
to do so while keeping the
cost down . . . The result at
his Il Centro Ristorante .. .
good food at reasonable
prices.
This Aug. 16 will be the se-
cond anniversary of Joe's
popular restaurant.
When he opened the doors,
people came because it was
new . . . However, in the se-
cond year, about 80 percent
have returned, a remarkable
figure in the restaurant
business . . . Il Centro
previously was Fisher's Up-
town Cafe (formerly Fisher's
666), which had very little
evening business prior to his
taking over and closing for
two months to remodel .. .
This has been reversed by Joe
with suburbanites coming in
droves now.
Standbys still include
yummy focaccia bread with
tomato sauce and oregano,
surrounded by virgin olive oil
for dipping, that is brought
after people are seated .. .
Folks like the appetizer plate
of stuffed salmon with arti-
chokes wrapped in phyllo
dough; beef tenderloin car-
paccio, lentel salad and
roasted and marinated
vegetables.
Health items are still
featured at Il Centro . . . lower
in cholesterol, fat and-sodium
. . . Among Joe's many-itemed
lunch and dinner menus are
numerous dishes for custo-
mers watching their bodies
. . . A northern Italian restau-
rant, normally with its use of
cream sauses, would be a
most unlikely eating estab-
lishment to have this type of
food available . . . But
remember, Joe Beato is not
just an ordinary chef . . . and
can do wonders with edibles.
He was named 1992 Chef of
the Year by his peers of
Michigan Chefs du Cuisine
Association . . . an award he
also received in 1987 . . .
Chefs are not eligible to
receive the honor again for
five years after the previous
one . . . Otherwise, who knows
how many times Joe would
have won it.
When he was executive chef
at Henry Ford Hospital prior
to opening Il Centro, conjur-
ing those great dishes for the
Ford family, VIPs, etc., Joe
had already made his high
mark in the culinary world
. . . He started cooking when
14 years old in Switzerland
. . . and had been a
dishwasher for only three
weeks before a head chef took
him under his wing . . .
Because of Joe's age, Swiss
law dictated that he could on-
ly cook at hotels and farms,
where Joe would clean
carpets in the morning and
prepare food during lunch.
Some of those wonderful
delicacies people used to eat
at Hugo's years back in the
Park Shelton Hotel were
made by Joe Beato, not Up
Ugolini.
Joe makes his own pasta
. . . Customers are very big on
this . . . His veal selections
are wise choices as are the
menu seafood listings . . .
Among Joe's best sellers is
the broiled Norwegian sal-
mon with sauteed bell pep-
pers, garlic and fresh virgin
olive oil . . . The fresh fishes
of the day are chosen often.
"People still want value,"
says Joe. "You can't cheat
them out of quality and por-
tions. They don't want heavy
sauces either. The trend is
still on the healthy side and
fresh food has to have a good
look in its presentation." .. .
He also has found that people
are demanding more chicken
and veal dishes . . . It goes
without saying that pasta in
its many forms is still the
Italian favorite.
Occasionally, Joe will cook
in the lobby on a rolling cart
as people walk by their tables
. . . Folks get a whiff and
many times will just say to
the waitperson, "Give me
what Joe's cooking."
Il Centro Ristorante has a
warm environment of in-
timacy . . . something you
would expect from someone
whose life has been devoted to
food preparation and the im-
portance of surroundings for
its enjoyment . . . He is a cer-
tified executive chef in both
Canada and the United
States.
The New Yorkish look of Il
Centro is cozy . . . Mahogany
wood walls, striped drapes,
striped chairs, red linen
napkins, white linen table-
cloths covered with paper for
Because of Joe's
age, Swiss law
dictated that he
could only cook
at hotels and
farms.
customers to doodle on with
the crayons supplied . . .
Children don't have a
monopoly on doodling . . . a
lot of adults love it, too.
General Manager Mike
Leachman has been with Joe
since opening . . . he was one
of his better waitpersons and
rewarded for fine and loyal
service.
Entertainment at Il Centro
Ristorante is every Saturday
evening with guitar and
mandolin playing Italian
melodies.
Another new venture for
Joe Beato is his newly-opened
Il Centro In The Park outside
the former Normandie on
Grand Boulevard . . . It is a
carry-out, open Monday-
Friday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.,
with people eating on the
grass or at tables while enjoy-
ing the park atmosphere .. .
On Fridays, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.,
are outdoor concerts with
everything from rock to jazz
to pop to whatever.
Il Centro Ristorante is open
seven days a week . . .
Monday-Thursday 11 a.m. to