Community • Are you battling with your child over food? • Is your child sneaking food? • Is your child gaining too much weight? • Do weight problems run in your family? Center for Childhood Weight Management liottesl i alot If you are not wearing' it... sell it!... or BORROW on it! ■ ,441.7 TOALN You can't enjoy jewelry if it's sitting in your safe deposit box. Sell or borrow on it for immediate cash. We deal in jewelry, watches & gemstones. A Service to Private Owners, Banks & Estates Gem/Diamond Specialist AWARDED CERTIFICATE BY GIA IN GRADING & EVALUATION 30400 Telegraph Rd. • Suite 134 Bingham Farms 248-642-5575 Christmas •Sz - Hanukah In )uly Sale Fine Jewelers Est. 1919 Lawrence M. Allan, President Daily 'Til 5:30 Sat. 'Til 3 GET RESULTS , ADVERTISE IN: Best Savings Opportunity of the Year! SAVE t5-40%* 011 Practically Eveiything Storewide! EN V JN ENTERTAINMENT SECTION! _ Call the Sales Department (248) 354-7123 Ext. 209 DETROIT JEWISH NEWS O S .,1•4 7/14 44 to help them locate things, such as yellow fin tuna loins and truffle oil. We've contacted our equivalent orga- nizations in other cities and have learned about differences in product quality." "Customers have wanted sushi... and our chef is developing that concept. CCWM 2000 four-star rating in the Detroit Free Press review and cooking awards from a competition sponsored by the American Restaurant Association. "We've had a 28 percent increase in business and an 11 percent decrease in operational costs. We're getting more efficient and knowledge- able, but we still need more peo- ple," he says. Men with yarmulkes, men without yarmulkes and even men with turbans, represent the diver- sity of Clientele here. One recent customer was Temple Kol Ami Rabbi Amy Bigman, who does not keep kosher, but hosted some relatives who do. She says she liked the food choices and plans to return. The menu, defined to com- pete with those of about 75 neighborhood restaurants, offers an array of American and for- eign-based selections — from pan- seared, stuffed rainbow trout to Fettuccine Alfredo all with chef John Schmidt's personal touch. "We are trying to offer the best menu that we can create without hav- ing to use shellfish or non-kosher ingredients," explains Kohn, who has invested in a smoker so that food quality can be checked before going through the smoking process. "We're getting products from all over the world," he adds. "Customers have wanted sushi, which is very popular, and our chef is developing that concept." Schmidt's new offerings are based on restaurant networking and cus- tomer preference. "When we first Opened, whitefish was the dominant dinner order, but I think the taste buds of our customers are being developed so they under- stand how interesting fish can be," Schmidt says. "Macadamia-crusted sea bass is becoming very popular in the evening, while our Caesar salad has been the most popular lunch choice," he says. Several new salad entrees have been added for summer. SOLDIER SHOP 3947 W 12 Mile Rd. Berkley (248)543.3115 'TN Keeping It Kosher Rabbi Joseph Krupnik of the Council of Orthodox Rabbis, which monitors kosher establishments, has used some creativity in overseeing the - kashrut at La Difference. "They have a need for unusualTh ingredients, and the products aren't easy to find," Rabbi Krupnik says. "We have been going to more places — Paul Kohn Starting the first week in August, signature La Difference dishes will be available for carryout. A take-home menu will be introduced along with parking spaces reserved for those pick- ing up meals, side dishes or delicacies from the Sunday brunches. Also coming is an off-premises kosher dairy catering operation, which builds on. Kohn's Quality Kosher Catering experience. Among his most celebrated private party guests have been President Bill Clinton and Vice President Al Gore, whose picture with Schmidt soon will be hanging in the restaurant. La Difference is located at 7295 Orchard Lake Road, just north of 14 Mile, in the Robin's Nest Plaza. "We'll be going to synagogues, homes and wherever there is a party," Kohn says of the new catering service. "We expect to have our own dishes, wait staff and equipment. It's much easier for us to set up a mini commer- cial kitchen in someone's garage than to try to fit our pans in other people's ovens, kosher or otherwise." Large meetings and parties inside the restaurant are scheduled around the regular hours. All the changes, however, are not what matters most to diner Tonya Herschfus, an observant registered nurse from West Bloomfield. After a long day on her feet, she's happy to leave the specialized cooking to some- one else and sit down for a leisurely gourmet meal with her husband Marc, a gastroenterologist. "We go to La Difference a lot," she says, "and it's such a relief to be able to have that kind of service." ❑