out to eat
What's New In Detroit
New Name,
Same Great Piz
Jewish owners buy Romano's.
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Jordan and Stefanie Dunn
with daughter Kayla
Esther Allweiss Ingber
I Contributing Writer
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Romana's features the same great pizza cus-
tomers have come to love.
hat's in a vowel?
When employee Jordan
Dunn wanted to purchase Toni
Mannino's well-known pizza-and-ribs
carryout, Romano's, Mannino announced
that she and her husband were not only
retiring themselves, but also the business'
name. Her family started the original
Romano's around 50 years ago and oper-
ated its location in Orchard Lake for 40 of
them.
"So, we changed the name slightly," said
Dunn, co-owner of Romana's Carry-Out
& Catering with his wife, Stefanie. Open
since Jan. 23, it's on Orchard Lake Road,
south of Pontiac Trail, and across from a
Chase bank.
The transition has gone seamlessly,
according to Dunn, who wants "Romano's
loyal customers to know we have the same
great food and great service they remem-
ber from before"
To get everything going, Dunn is onsite
each morning and five nights a week in
the Romana's kitchen. He does most of the
prep work along with a couple of helpers.
"I'm pretty much the cook, though I
like to focus a lot of my time on our cater-
ing," said Dunn, a graduate of Central
University. He and Stefanie were class-
mates at North Farmington High School
and married in 2012 at Temple Kol Ami in
West Bloomfield.
Stefanie earned her doctorate in physi-
cal therapy at University of Michigan-Flint
and works for Oakwood Healthcare
System. She also handles the phone and
financial transactions at Romana's while
both parents raise their 9-month-old
daughter, Kayla.
With no onsite dining, Romana's is
"strictly a carryout and delivery operation,"
Dunn said. Customers clip the "combo"
coupons to conserve cash.
The menu is focused on chicken, ribs,
pizza, pasta and salad. I sampled a fried
chicken breast that came with a very
crunchy batter. What made it exceptional,
though, was the tender, very juicy meat
inside. Move over, Chicken Shack!
When the Dunns took over, "a lot of our
[Romano's] customers warned me not to
switch things up a ton"
He's kept the favorites, while introducing
new items he said regular guests and oth-
ers are enjoying.
For example, Romana's has a Giant
Pizza, which measures 28 inches around. I
saw the box.
"Each slice is the size of a human head"
he said. "It's pretty big. We also added
oven-baked calzones that are brushed
with garlic butter and Parmesan cheese.
Our mac and cheese is different, too — it's
more like a lasagna:'
Dunn expects to offer additional variet-
ies of pizza this fall. Meanwhile, he's test-
ing out recipes on family members and
staff to get their feedback.
"Once the new menus are completed,
we will put them on our website," he said.
"For now, our specials are listed on a
chalkboard customers see when they come
into the lobby"
At Romana's, "we don't want to reinvent
the wheel, but to make things a little bet-
ter" Dunn said.
❑
Romana's Carry-out
& Catering
4139 Orchard Lake Road
Orchard Lake, MI 48323
(248) 626-4888
Romanascarryout.com
$ out of $$$$$
Johnny Noodle King, Detroit's
only ramen house, 2601 W. Fort St.
in Corktown, is open Wednesday
through Sunday 11 a.m.- 3 p.m. until
it extends into its full business hours
in a few weeks ... Top of the Pontch
in Downtown is officially open. Be
sure to make a reservation for this
upscale restaurant on the 25th floor
of Crown Plaza. For reservations, call
(313) 782-4313 ... Avalon Bakery, 422
W. Willis St. in Detroit, is now offering
up a toast bar on weekday morn-
ings from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. Toppings
include Germack peanut butter,
Beau Bien peach and strawberry
preserves, or chocolate ganache
served on Avalon's specialty house-
baked bread ... The Beach Haus
Biergarten at Campus Martius Park
opens daily at 4 p.m. through Oct.
10. Come out for great beer, brats
and other Biergarten-inspired food
... Looking to do something different
at lunch? Eastern Market is offering
a free shuttle to its Tuesday Market
through Oct. 28. Shuttles depart
Campus Martius Park at noon and
leave Eastern Market at 1:15 p.m. The
Tuesday Market, now in its fourth
year, runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and
features local produce vendors, food
trucks and community classes.
--••• ■ ••
1•111111R ,
Top of the Pontch
semarr- 7■1:311.
-
Beach Haus Biergarten at Campus
Martius
Eastern Market
New In The Suburbs
Drought, a cold pressed raw juice and smoothie bar, opened its
fifth location in Birmingham inside the Center for Yoga
at 555 S. Old Woodward Avenue ... Onyx Modern
Steakhouse & Whiskey Bar, on Fifth Street
between Center Street and Washington in
downtown Royal Oak, opened its doors
in August. Step in to enjoy its certified
Angus beef steaks served on 810-degree
volcanic stone ... Another new upscale
dining establishment, Bill's, at the south-
east corner of Woodward and Long Lake in Bloomfield Hills, is open for busi-
ness. The menu has retro offerings, such as escargot-stuffed mushrooms and
clams casino, along with up-to-date dishes such as stuffed figs, whole brook
trout, truffle fries and egg-topped prime rib hash.
Special Event
Savor Detroit at Great Lakes Culinary Center: Each night, two acclaimed
chefs will team up for a four-course meal with wine pairings. The din-
ners are preceded by a cocktail hour with appetizers and drinks made by
bartenders from the Sugar House. Chefs include James Rigato from the
Root Restaurant & Bar, Benjamin Meyer from Iridescence, Garrett Lipar
of Torino, Reva Constantine of Great Lakes Culinary Center and Takashi
Yagihashi of Slurping Turtle. 6-10 p.m. Oct. 6-10. $125, $1,150 for table for 10.
24101 W. Nine Mile, Southfield. Details at savordetroit.com .
October 2 • 2014
59