BARTON
CHARLIP

A Taste Of Southern Italy
Comes To Maple And Haggerty

H

KITCHEN OPEN UNTIL MIDNIGHT FRI & SAT
LUNCH MON - FRI
DINNER TUES - SAT

ow clean is it? ... How about getting their sheepskins six
the Oakland County months apart.
Health Department hold-
They never met at MSU ... or
ing its holiday party there? when he worked in a pizza par-
With scores in the high 90s, lor and she at a bar ... both in
Villa Maria on the
East Lansing.
southeast corner of
Call it fate or what-
Maple and Haggerty,
ever that they should
that opened Feb. 5,
get to know each other
1996, has this important
better at Villa Maria,
feature to go along with
which is operated by
its cozy atmosphere.
the two.
Its coziness has be-
Jeffis executive chef
come somewhat of a
and comes in every so
DANN Y RASKIN
trademark of co-owner
often to work with
LOCAL
Al Valente (son Jeff is
Robert ... Al's sister and
CO LUMNIST
also a partner).
Robert's mother, Edna
Seating is for only 70 (plus an- Valente Gallagher, makes the
other 10 stools at a full-service tiramisu, spiedini, lasagna, etc.
bar) in an intimate setting.
When Robert is off, which is
Another of his restaurants, rare, his kitchen chores are tak-
Ristorante di Maria on Walnut en over by Chef Dana Leja,
and Inkster, seats about 50 ... Schoolcraft College culinary
Al's former La Luna Grancaffe grad.
in Birmingham that closed last
White linen napkins are on ta-
year, mainly because the city bles neatly covered with white
didn't allow him to bring in a butcher block paper over white
wine license, sat only 50.
linen tablecloths.
He also owns the Redwood
Jeff's mom and Al's wife, Joyce
Steak House in Lewiston, Mich., Valente, is represented on the
and with son Jeff and nephew menu with her crema d'aglio gar-
John Gallagher has Little Italy lic soup.
in Northville, which seats just
Waitpersons in bow ties,
50 in three small dining
rooms.
Villa Maria in the big
pink house is the former lo-
cale of Maple Gardens,
Haggerty Harry's and Doc
Frock's.
It has been completely
gutted, and former cus-
tomers of these places are
amazed at the transforma-
tion.
On the walls are decora-
tions from attics, garages
and basements of Valente
family members ... Like the
old stove in the dining
room from the mother of
Al's cousin.
Old photos in the en-
trance hallway and restau-
rant are of the Valente
family through the years. Robed Gallagher and Dana Cooper of Villa Maria.
Also, pictures hang of when Al slacks and aprons, serve good
was in the record business as wholesome food that has been
head of national promotions for drawing many raves.
Motown Records.
There are some dishes at Vil-
When he left the record game, la Maria that cannot be gotten
Al opened a little pizzeria on elsewhere ... Like the Veal Del-
Grand River called Maria's, la Casa, medallions stuffed with
which he later sold and moved prosciutto and smoked moz-
to West Bloomfield ... His zarella in a marsala sauce with
Maria's in its new location sat mushrooms (one of six veal dish-
only 25 people until an addition es) ... or the Tutto Di Mare sig-
was put on for another 25.
nature dish, a combination of all
Head chef Robert Gallagher the seafood in the house in a
is John's brother and Al's bowl of tomato broth and white
nephew ... He and general man- wine with fresh herbs.
ager Dana Cooper are Michigan
No. 1 appetizer seller is the
State University graduates ... Spiedini a la Maria, layers of

bread and mozzarella dipped in
eggwash, sauteed with lemon
and butter with green and black
olives.
Folks love the Filetto Da Va-
lente, fillet of prime tenderloin
char-grilled and marinated with
Al's zip sauce.
Included in the 13 pasta dish-
es, a number of which aren't
found at too many places, is the
favored Penne From Heaven
which was a standout on the La
Luna Cafe menu ... chicken,
shrimp and escarole in a spicy
collina-style saute of olive oil,
garlic, sun-dried tomatoes and
crushed red pepper ... And the
Calamari a la Siciliana, squid
sauteed in olive oil, garlic, an-
chovy and crushed red pepper
with bell peppers over black
squid ink pasta ... Some call it
black linguine.
Many of the items on Villa
Maria's menu are unique, tasty
and enjoyable dining adven-
tures.
It is open seven days, Monday
through Thursday, 11:30 a.m. to
10 p.m.; Friday, 11:30 a.m. to 11
p.m.; Saturday, 4:30 p.m. to 11
p.m.; Sunday, 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. ...

If people come in even a minute
before closing, they will be
served.
Wine bottles are on a wall's
top ledge . . . The drapes on a
wall and ruffles on the windows
were made by Joyce . . . The lit-
tle white lights in the restau-
rant's intimate interior are there
all year long.
Whitefish baked with sea-
soned bread crumbs and served
over fresh tomato/pesto sauce is
a big seller ... along with Sal-
mone Affogato, Atlantic salmon
filled with roasted peppers and
artichoke hearts poached in