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41,

THE ONE & ONLY

two wives, has the answer? But then
what about the late Chuck Muer,
Tom Brandel of oyster bar fame,
Matt Prentice, Joe Vicari and the
Mr. B's? Certainly, good manage-
ment is crucial, but there are obvi-
ously more variables.
"I remember one Muer restaurant
that failed early on — the Sundog in
Dearborn. So even the masters have fail-
ures. Matt Prentice says he closes spots
because he can't get the help. Then he
opens a couple more. Go figure.
"One thing for sure, owning a
restaurant is a popular thing to do. I
think I'd rather put my money in
mutual funds and let someone else do
the serving.
"Downtown Detroit's culinary
scene in the early '70s was quite bor-
ing. Most restaurants were about meat
and potatoes. Some were called chop-
houses. There were a few Italian
places, one German restaurant called
Schweitzer's, Greektown and a curious
temporary phenomenon called
Polynesian.
"Those places generally served
Cantonese food with Japanese tempu-
ra items thrown in for novelty. I guess
what made them Polynesian were the
tropically named, icy cocktails (with
tiny umbrellas) served by saronged
waitresses. Plus, their decor typically
would include a lot of plastic palm
trees and ferns, lava rock and trickling
fountains.
"One of the most popular of these
spots was Trader Vic's in the Hilton
Hotel on Washington Boulevard.
The Hilton people incorporated this
themed idea into many of their
hotels around the world. The last
Trader Vic's, in New York City,
closed recently.
"A latecomer to this theme here
was Mauna Loa on West Grand
Boulevard in the New Center area.
Even Top of the Flame had
Polynesian accents in the lounge and
a tempura bar menu. The Flame's
regular menu, however, was standard
meat and potatoes.
"Chin Tiki on Cass Avenue had a
`Rainforest Cafe' type of interior
(without the sound effects), but it,
too, served Cantonese food. And it
did also have an entertaining
Hawaiian/Polynesian floorshow.
"So, a Detroit Polynesian dining
experience was: fried rice with egg
roll, Jamaican rum drinks in tiki
mugs and service by bare midriff
Irish, Polish and Jewish girls. We all
had fun. And, for sure, everyone took
the little colored umbrellas in their
glasses home."

West Bloomfield

OPEN FOR LUNCH
AND DINNER 7-DAYS

4189 Orchard Lake Road
Orchard Lake
248-865-0000
Fax: 248-865-0020

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