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Getting Fresh!

Village Coney in Birmingham even grows its own grape leaves.

M

ore than anything else in the res- chicken pot pie, etc. ... Even
taurant business, one prime req- her stuffed grape leaves are
uisite stands out high ahead of
completely premises-made,
the other two ... All three, good food, ser-
not just stuffed, from grape-
vice and cleanliness, are considered major vines that Beiko and Pam
necessities but spotlessness by far gets top grow in back of the restaurant
priority ... So much so that people take
... It doesn't come much
for granted that it is there when visiting
fresher than this ... And Pam
their preferred places.
makes her own yogurt, too.
A restaurant such as Village Coney in
Beiko came here 40 years
the Adams Square Building on S. Adams,
ago and worked as a bus-
south of 15 Mile, Birmingham (part of
boy and server for owner
the former locale of Machus Cafeteria
Kurt Terova at the original
and Bakery), is among the spotless go-to
Kingsley Inn on Woodward in Bloomfield
favorites of many ... Cleanliness may be
Hills and schooled as a cosmetologist
the most important of all, but the togeth-
before opening his own beauty salons in
erness with good,
Birmingham and
wholesome food
Bloomfield Hills ...
is beyond equal
But with the time
for priority visits
spent at Kingsley, he
... Especially with
made up his mind
Village Coney's
to follow a dream ...
home-cooked meals
"You should be in the
and low prices to
restaurant business:'
go with local health
said his wife, Pam,
department scores
whom he married
that give it high
30 years ago, and
ranking grades.
so goodbye beauty
Village Coney's Pam and Beiko Doresi
Another big
salons and into a
thing going for
completely opposite
Village Coney is
direction he went
the heavy factor of being a true mom-
with the immense luck of having Pam to
and-pop restaurant ... Considered to be
do the cooking and kitchen supervision.
among the best kind ... And a full family
Village Coney is open seven days a week,
operation with owners Beiko and Pambe
Monday-Friday, 7 a.m.-8 p.m.; Saturday,
(Pam) Doresi, two sons, Seit and Ilir, in the 7-4; Sunday 8-3, with seating for about 90
kitchen and daughter Jedire a server ...
... It is also very big on breakfasts that are
Also in the kitchen are their two nephews,
served all day along with a wide diversi-
with Pam the head chef.
fication of dishes that have gained much
Almost all the food that can be made is
popularity at lunch and dinner as well.
prepared by Pam, whose highly satisfying
As a one-of-a-kind restaurant, Village
dishes include delicacies like stuffed pep-
Coney prides itself on extreme cleanliness,
pers, stuffed cabbages, eggplant lasagna,
mom-and-pop and family operation and
baklava, stews, rice pudding, olive bread,
house-cooked food to go with an interest-
all the soups, vegetarian spinach pie,
ing menu much larger than many dining

AFFORDABLE
EVENT CATERING

BY AN DIAMO BLOOMFIELD

gLOOMFIELD TOWNSHIP

May 26 • 2011

QUESTION & ANSWER DEPT. ...

"Thanks for your mention about the
House of Lords at the Raleigh House,
but don't you agree that it was absolutely
beautiful inside, too? I loved the food and
it was the most beautiful restaurant I have
ever seen." ... Dolores Ackner

Danny's email is

dannyraskin@sbcglobal.net.

Thursday, June 16, 2011
$30 per person

Enjoy five different small plates and craft beers
from Shorts Brewing company. Make your
reservation today and begin exploring the
wonderful world of craft beer.

Let Andiamo Bloomfield provide the
perfect menu, planning and service
to make your event a stress-free
success! Menu prices start at just
$5.95* per person

46

THE MYSTERY MUNCHER

writes ... "The restaurant
customer is fickle and favorite
places to eat, meet and greet
today may drop several notches
in the ratings tomorrow. Eating
out is a way of life for many of
us. We socialize over a shrimp
cocktail, a juicy steak or spare ribs for
those not cholesterol conscious, pizza,
pasta, egg rolls, fish, chicken or a piece of
pie and coffee for dessert.
"What is the secret ingredient that
makes some restaurants more popular
than others? Is it specialties of the house,
heart-smart menus, good service or
unique ambiance? To me, so many restau-
rants are boring. The menu never varies,
the noise level is deafening and the service
is mediocre to negligent.
"Speaking of service, my pet peeve is
the waitress who addresses a couple din-
ing with, 'Hey, guys, are you done or are
you still working on it?' They make cus-
tomers feel like a couple of auto mechan-
ics:'
DANDY DINING DEAL ... Real
thing Ground Sirloin Plate with min-
estrone soup or Italian salad, mashed
potatoes, vegetable and pasta with meat
or marinara sauce, $11.95 ... Sposita's
Italian Ristorante, 14 Mile, just east of
Farmington Road, West Bloomfield.

[Yes, Dolores, it was striking indeed, an
all-out look by Sammy Lieberman. I espe-
cially remember its English fireplace, dis-
covered in London, England, that Sammy
had transported to Southfield. Its authen-
tic origin dated back to 1760, and was got-
ten from an 18th century mansion.]
DON'T FRET IF the usual fine service
is a little slow at Gino's Pizzeria, Cass Lake
Road in Keego Harbor, on Sunday, June
5, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. ... Many of owner Gino
Santia's employees might be among the
huge throng expected in the parking lot
back of his restaurant ... He's letting Dr.
Paul Gold, whose family practice clinic
has been in nearby Waterford since 1970,
invite owners of classic, antique, sport,
special interest, etc., cars to display ... No
charge, no awards, just Paul's get-together
fun shindig with d.j. music for the hun-
dreds of friends, patients and strangers to
show off their autos ... It's gotten around
so much that Larry Snider has asked
Paul to have folks also bring their cars to
Temple Israel's auto show Sunday, Aug.14.
REUNION DEPT. ... Date has been
definitely set for 50th biggie by 1960 grads
of Mumford High ... It's Saturday, Aug. 27,
at Somerset Inn, Troy ... For more info,
call Carole (Ross) Plotkin, (248) 763-8048.
[Correction: On the Central High
brunch shindig Sunday, June 26, at Temple
Shir Shalom, Bloomfield Hills, Esther
(Klein) Bornstein's phone number is (248)
851-6625.]
CONGRATS ... To Rhoda Lerner on
her birthday ... To Jerry Chudler on his
70th birthday ... To Iris Rosen on her
70th birthday ... To Henia Lewin on her
birthday ... To Nancy Meyers on her 80th
birthday. II

Michigan Craft Beer Dinner

Whatever You're Celebrating

*20 person minimum

ventures twice or three times
its size ... Beiko and Pam have
made an indelible mark that
cements together an ultra-good
family dining experience.

248-865-9300

BLOOMFIELD TOWNSHIP