out to eat What's New In Detroit New Name, Same Great Piz Jewish owners buy Romano's. grr, 444posuill :46%.1111.101L " :JrP -70" :111,411- eR6 •". goo. 111 11r Jordan and Stefanie Dunn with daughter Kayla Esther Allweiss Ingber I Contributing Writer W .ft• 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