INEnt rtai ment

Michigan's finest upscale,
yet casual American bistro

The Best Of Everything

Savor the taste that is the
to of the town

Detroit restaurant names bring back old memories.

"Oakland Grill gets wows for
class act." — Observer & Eccentric

's food and service.

Detroit Free Press

:

:**

"Our meal at Oakland Grill was
exceptional and it left us talking
about our food all weekend long."

— Oakland Press

r

DECK
NOW
OPEN!

Early Bird
Special!

SUN-THURS 5 PM

-

7 PM

50 Off

Buy One Entree At Regular
Price Get Second Entree
Equal or Lesser Value

HALF THE PRICE

• Dine In Only • With Coupon
• One Coupon Per Couple
• Not Valid With Other Offers

Expires 6/26/98

JN

I.

SERVING LUNCH & DINNER
7 DAYS A WEEK

32832 Woodward Royal Oak

►

Oust south of 14 Mile Rd.)

6/5
1998

106

(248) 549-7700

OPEN LUNCH & DINNER DAILY

36

DANNY RASKIN
Local Columnist

OOKING BACK ...
ROCKY'S PIZZERIA on

W. McNichols, just west of
Meyers, was owned by
Rocky and Mary Laudazio, who never
let people go hungry, as generations
discovered ... Meals included appetizer
(shrimp cocktail, etc.), entree, pota-
toes, vegetables, applesauce, spaghetti,
dessert (chocolate sundae, etc.), coffee,
tea or milk ... A real old-fashioned
mom-and-pop operation with Rocky
playing the concertina accordion.
CRABBIE JOE'S, owned by Joe
and Nan Bird, on Michigan, was one
of the prettiest restaurants in Dearborn
... with its print tablecloths, oodles of
Tiffany lamp shades, low lighting, red
napkins, etc. ... It was the former
Meyer's Seafood and had a 12-foot
salad bar that came with all dinners.
MISS MIRIAM'S Fast and Fresh
Cafe in Troy's Oakland Mall was
owned by Miriam Kottler, whose mis-
sion was to bring really fresh, whole-
some and nutritious food to the mall
masses ... even going so far as teaching
folks that fast food didn't have to be
fat food, fried food or junk food ...
She was one of Nathan Pritikin's earli-
est disciples, attending his Longevity
Research Institute in Santa Monica
and adopting many of his ideas on
diet and nutrition.
ROMANIK'S RESTAURANT fol-
lowed Stafford's and Frisco's in the
Orchard Mall ... Owner Steve
Romanik was one-time executive chef
at Standard Club and a founding part-
ner of the Appe'teaser Restaurant in
Milford.
Frisco's was the name change of
Stafford's, with the intimate lounge
having a lighted skyline view of San
Francisco and blowup photos of the
coastal cablecar town ... It was still
owned and operated by the Vatsis
family of Stafford's note.
JAN. 5, 1955 was the beginning of
a dining era ... the era of Darbys ... an
era of hundreds of people who found
a home ... a place to feel comfortable
in, a place to meet old friends and
make new ones ... a place of about
115 children with one father figure,
Sam Boesky.

July 31, 1968, then became what
in Birmingham was an Oriental
seemed to be the end of a dining great
restaurant with no American selec-
with the gutting of Darbys by fire ...
tions of any type ... Not even chop
The tears of employees joined the
suey ... The name came from a
fears of its steady guests that their
famous restaurant in Tokyo called
home, or second home, was no
Man Mountain King, with
longer there.
over 200 employees, seating
It had a counter and carry-
for over 3,000, and about
out sector coffee shop, dining
20 chefs ... The employees
room and bar-lounge ... The
at Mountain King were all
carry-out department did a
dressed in Mandarin jackets.
huge business ... probably
CIRCUS LOUNGE,
more than anyone else at the
owned by Helen and Andy
time ... Imported candies,
Spanos, had a "Hot Pants
cookies, olives, stuffed animals,
Night" every Thursday
music boxes, etc., were there
evening, with girls coming
DANNY
along with the regular Darbys
to show off all types of hot
RASKIN
fare.
pants outfits imaginable ...
Local Columnist
Stories were abundant about
Helen and Andy's daughter,
restaurant operators from all
Debra, married Frankie Paul
over the United States who came to
Jr., son of accordionist Frankie Potes-
look over Sam's operation, copied
tio and wife Rose.
HIRING OF ALL extra help,
Darbys menus, purchased the name-
brand foods it used, etc.
whether needed or not, was out of the
pockets of Angel and Hank
Panek, owners of Angel's Hour
Glass on W. McNichols,
between Southfield and Ever-
green, who threw their restau-
rant-nitery open to benefit Turk
Prujansky at the Sunshine Con-
valescent Hospital in Los Ange-
les following a stroke.
DOWN THE STREET at
the Apartment Lounge, Larry
Santos and his trio was with his
"I Love You More Than Any-
thing" that ranked high on the
hit charts ... The Apartment
Lounge, owned by Jack Freed
and Ray Bresler, was one of the
few cocktail lounges left in
Detroit devoted solely to good
listening enjoyment.
CARDINALI'S, Mitchell at
Gratiot, served northern Italian
Barbra had a local tie-in.
cooking in a rose wallpapered
trattoria that was simplicity
itself, with the same menu from noon
PUMPERNIK'S on Orchard Lake
and 10 Mile used to call its rib style of to evening.
AT DARUMA, in the Belcrest
preparation a St. Louis cut rib ... It
Hotel on Cass, Japanese ladies served
was tender and had very little fat ...
graciously in the Orientally-simple
Pumpernik's became the present Brass
spot where you ate your sukiyaki,
Pointe, with the same owners, Danny
teriyaki, tempura and accompani-
Nestorovich and Bob Mihalovich
ments with chopsticks ... No knives or
The place with a famous deli name
forks were available.
gained note for its barbecue ribs,
BACK IN THE 1949 days, there
chicken and other well-prepared food.
were eight delicatessens within 10
MOUNTAIN KING on E. Maple