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Strike Up The Band!

Local musicians rev it up for New Year's revelers.

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OTPOURRI
The weathercasters did every-
thing they could to keep people
from going out New Year's Eve, and in
many cases succeeded ... Those who
dared the called-for elements to revel at
local restaurants and niteries lucked out en
route to their destinations, but encountered
severe ravages of winter after leaving.
At Andiamo Banquet Center and
Celebrity Showroom in Warren, more than
400 people enjoyed magnificent music
of Simon Vitale's high-energy show band
along with a sumptuous dinner and open
bar that made for a fine all-out fun eve-
ning.
Simone seems to get better each time I
hear him and the group ... His new male
vocalist, Tracy Triplet, terrific songster
with the famed singing group Ready for
the World, and Simone's three excellent
gal songstresses, Beth Griffith and Bridget
Grace, background singers for Anita Baker,
and Melody Fergan, were bundles of fast-
moving entertainment ... His regular
percussionist, Larry Fratangelo, is on the
road with Kid Rock, so Jeff Trudell has
taken over that spot until he returns ...
While Jeff banged the bongos, cymbals,
etc., dad Johnny Trudell's big band was at
Pi Banquet Hall in Southfield.
Simone's 13-piece musical aggregation
kept the joint jumping all evening with
music to relate to, past and present, from
hip-hop to rock 'n' roll to romantic ballads,
to Italian melodies to a crowded floor for
"Hava Nagela," etc.
The bad weather coming from Andiamo
halted our visitations to other rollicking

Bagel Deli on 14 Mile, east of
places, but we made one more
M-5, in Commerce Township.
stop ... Mr. Joe's in Southfield
GOOD WAITRESS DEPT.
with owner Mike Abram's dad,
... Gail Marshall at Mama
Ray Abrams and Ray's wife,
Mia's, corner Grand River
Louise, and Frieda ... Many
and Beech-Daly, Redford,
people had left there because of
does the little things together
the weather, but folks remaining
with fast and efficient service
at Mr. Joe's whooped it up with
that make her a customer-
a four-piece band among many
Danny Raskin
pleasing server.
who probably stayed up to make
Senior Columnist
I REMEMBER DEPT.
sure the old year leaves.
... From Norm Prady
RUMOR DEPT. ... Believe
only a couple of the stories swirling around "Sixteen years old, with my first-ever
driver's license and pretty Evelyn next to
about Giorgio's Gourmet Diner, West
me on the front seat, I pointed my father's
Bloomfield ... Only truths are that George
Oldsmobile down Woodward from her
Golematis hasn't been seen there ... and
home in Huntington Woods toward Lelli's
that it now has a daily manager operating
in midtown Detroit for my first-ever din-
all activities ... Nothing has changed ...
ner date. I was eager to be seated with this
Same menu with new items introduced
lovely person within the stucco-covered
like the full dinner sensations, Chicken
alcoves of the old mansion that housed
Francaise, $14.95; Shrimp Francaise,
$16.95; and Chicken and Shrimp Francaise that romantic Italian restaurant. `Filet. Well-
done, I said to the waiter after he'd asked
Combo, $15.95, all with soup, salad, white
me which steak I wanted and how I wanted
rice and broccoli ... Also a lunch deal of
it cooked.
soup and 1/2 sandwich, $4.99.
"He'd already taken Evelyn's order for a
QUESTION AND ANSWER DEPT. ...
dish quite Italian, veal something. Picking
"When we lived in Detroit years back, I
up the menus, he continued to stare at
always loved the Bread Basket Deli in Oak
Park and miss it very much. We wish it was me. Glare, actually. Back home, my mother
here. If there were partners, do you know if would cook a rib roast at 250 degrees
from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and then slice it
they still have it?" ... Annabelle Rosen, St.
and warm it for dinner. I grew up on dark
Louis, Mo.
brown meat. She could make it out of
The Bread Basket was solely owned by
Ron Forman . . . However, when it originally anything.'Well-done; the Lelli's waiter said
opened in 1967, as the Nosherie, its partners with a tone he'd use if learning I was the
father of his sister's unborn illegitimate
were Earl Mostyn and Ron Forman. Ron
became the owner in 1977 and changed the child.
"My date and I talked about college
name to Bread Basket . . . I don't know the
present owner's name . . . Ron now has Ron's plans while we ate our minestrone soup

and chick pea salad. The waiter finally
put the entrees in front of us. I cut into
the steak. No familiar brown color. What's
going on here? This is red inside. This
must be what they call rare. If I eat this I'll
die. On my first-ever dinner date. If I send
it back I'll embarrass myself in front of
pretty Evelyn. Death would be the easier
choice. Perhaps I'd just slip into a coma
and linger until they finished cooking my
food. Okay, I'll put a piece on my fork, point
it toward my mouth, let it go quickly and
hope I do too.
"Evelyn looked up from her Italian
something. 'How's your steak?' I'll tell you.
Quite delicious.' What I meant was that I
might have just tasted food for the first
time. Meat not turned into building mate-
rials.
"I learned many lessons that evening.
One, as much as I respected my parents'
way of life, I was converting from well-
done to rare. Two, as grateful as Evelyn
might have been for our evening out, you
just can't be sure of a goodnight kiss on
your first-ever date. And three, never tell a
Lelli's waiter how to prepare anything:'
MAKING ROUNDS ... To Diamond
Jim Brady's Bistro, Town Center, Novi, for
smoked haddock poached in milk ... To
French Gourmet, Woodward, Ferndale,
for bouillabaisse or salmon poached in
wine.
CONGRATS ... To Risa Richter on her
35th birthday ... To Rose Neuman on her
75th birthday. 0

Danny's e-mail address is

dannyraskin@sbcglobal.net .

learn.tpra * Brealtfast-tundi-Dinaer
Childrea's Plettu

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B14 January 17 • 2008

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