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Gimme Five, Five, Five!

Triple Nickel Restaurant & Bar adds to Birmingham's fine dining scene.

T

he continuous surge of fine din-
ing restaurants that have opened
in Birmingham endures with no
apparent ending ... The recently opened
appearance of Triple Nickel Restaurant & Bar
at 555 S. Old Woodward joins the crowd ...
And therein lies clever conceiving of how the
eatery's name was selected ... 555.
It is a realization, too, where every part-
ner, associate or otherwise, has a piece of
the dining pie ... And all four possess res-
taurant experience or connections.
Maybe some of that wonderful success
enjoyed by Sindbad's on St. Clair, Detroit,
opened in 1949 by Prudent "Buster"
Blancke and Hillaire "Van" VanHollebeke,
will rub off from one of the partners,
"Buster's" son, Marc Blancke, also pres-
ent owner of Sindbad's ... Triple Nickel's

his honored stints at Lelli's on
Woodward, Rugby Grille, Zinc,
Saltwater, Quattro and Mon Jin
Lau ... Wide-smiling and highly
efficient Trini Blancke, Mark's
wife, is its hostess and restau-
rant operating personality
Also, many of the servers may
easily be recognized from previ-
ous other dining spots.
Triple Nickel's decor has an
Indian or Northern Michigan
look, with the canoe hanging
from the ceiling and a large, very old stuffed
bison head, sailboats, yacht, etc.
If you've never heard of calamari appe-
tizer with crabmeat stuffing, you have now
... a big seller concocted by Zoran who
remembers it from many years ago while
growing up in Croatia ... He
recalls stuffed calamari as a
popular dish of nearby Italy ...
And for a taste of the original
homemade clam chowder still
served at Sindbad's, it is now
also at Triple Nickel... There's
even dipped-in-chocolate key
lime pie on a stick among the
desserts, and a Caesar salad
replica with white anchovies.
... Buffalo meatballs, barbecue
ribs, buffalo burgers broiled or
as you like, whitefish, halibut,
Marc Blancke, Trini Blancke, John Fleming, Zoran
seared salmon, etc.
Smolcic, Jack Reinhard
Thursday and Saturday eve-
nings are jumping and jiving
Executive Chef John Fleming, former head
time with big bevies of live musical enter-
tainment.
chef for 20 years at Sindbad's, holds the
Triple Nickel, open Monday-Friday for
same kitchen title and partner at Triple
Nickel.
lunch, 11:30-4; dinner, Monday-Sunday.
Among other associates, Jack Reinhard
from 4 p.m., is new but seems to fit in with
is owner of the property that housed res-
the many Birmingham restaurants that are
taurants at adjoining locales of the same
marching toward triumphant achievement
555 address ... Archibald's, Panache, Old
with rapid changes usually required by
Woodward Grill and now Triple Nickel
new dining operations ... Its experienced
... And Zoran Smolcic, general manager/
owners know only successful endeavors ...
partner and all-around extraordinary host,
which is good, very good.
THE FIRST YEAR of a restaurant usu-
is well-noted and highly regarded from

ally consists of getting out all
the so-called "bugs" ... Second
year, things are pretty much
taken care of except for the lit-
tle ones that sometimes hover.
By the time the third year
rolls around, details have
begun to look up considerably
if they haven't, as yet, done so.
But issues are much different
when assuming the name of an
operation that enjoyed a highly
noted dining-icon reputation
... This is always such a tough thing to do
... Especially when former customers begin
nitpicking by comparing the two ... Many
waited to see and today are among those
who have returned to the restaurant.
It is notable credit to the Gatzaros family
and their excellent general manager, Bjorn
Lagerfeldt, who has done so much fine
work in fervent efforts to bring back a leg-
end and then some ... The original famed
London Chop House of yesteryears.
Located downstairs in the Murphy-
Telegraph Building (formerly named
Murphy Building) on Congress, Detroit,
the current London Chop House followed
what was once considered among America's
outstanding fine dining restaurants ... and
today has shown a semblance of ability to
perhaps stand on its own merits.
I DON'T THINK that the formerly
named Greektown Merchants Association
realized that their Monroe Avenue in
Detroit could ever look so good as it now
does ... The transformation certainly is a
wonderful embellishment of the thought
told to me when sitting a couple of years
ago with the owner of Plaka Cafe, Tommy
Karadimas, and being informed of talked-
about Greektown changes.
Instead of having tables and chairs,
though, on the closed-to-traffic street,
Monroe now has outside sidewalk dining in
front of Plaka, Santorini, etc., seven days a
week until 2 a.m. ... On weekends only, the
street is loaded with artists, entertainers,

Monday

OUR PETITE FILET DINNER
IS HAPPENING AGAIN!

Italian Cuisine

Monday, August 10 through Friday, August 14
Monday, August 24 through Friday, August 28

248.476.0044
Buy one lunch or dinner entree
15% off
and get the second 1/2 off
total
food bill
Of equal or lesser value

August 13 • 2015

dannyraskin@sbcglobal.net.

RISTORANTE

Restaurant

82

Danny's email address is

SPOSITA'S

Kids
Eat Free

$29.95

Not good with any other coupon.
Not good on holidays. One coupon per couple. Up to $30
Expires 8/31/15

Farmington Hills • Corner of Grand River & Haggerty Road
Auburn Hills • 1 1/2 miles south of the Palace of Auburn Hills

❑

Fine Italian Dining in a Casual Atmosphere

Buy $100 worth of gift cards and get a $20.00 Complimentary gift card for yourselfl!!

Not good with any other coupons.
Not good on holidays. One coupon per couple. Up to $30
Expires 8/31/15

etc., among crowds of people ...The pres-
ently scheduled weekends of Friday-Sunday
street festivities are through Sept. 6 and
Labor Day, Sept. 7.
SECOND LOCATION of Inyo Restaurant
and Lounge next to Kohl's on Orchard Lake
Road, West Bloomfield, is expected to open
soon at the former location of Happy's Pizza
... The second Inyo Asian fusion site will
feature a full sushi bar and menu. ... First
Inyo is on Woodward Avenue, Ferndale.
ATTENDEES are encouraged to have
dinner before or after Mark Randisi's
"Sinatra's 100th Birthday" cabaret show
this Saturday, Aug. 15, 8 p.m., at Andiamo
Bloomfield, Telegraph, south of 15 Mile.
OLDIE BUT GOODIE ... A Jewish boy
is going off to college, and his father says to
him, "Look, we've never been a religious fam-
ily, so I'm not expecting you to become sud-
denly religious. But promise me one thing:
that you won't marry a non-Jewish girl."
The boy promises this and assures his
father that he won't. His senior year at col-
lege he falls in love with a non-Jewish girl.
She loves him, too, but he tells her he can't
marry her because she is not Jewish.
"Don't worry," she says. "I'll convert. They
marry and go off on their honeymoon in
Acapulco.
Four weeks later, back at home, Saturday
morning at 8 a.m., the phone rings at their
house. It's the boy's father. He's livid.
"You know the last Saturday of every
month we go over the books at the office.
Why aren't you here?"
"I can't come," says the boy. "My wife says
it's forbidden. It's Shabbat. We're heading off
to shul."
"I told you not to marry a non-Jew:' the
father screams.
CONGRATS ... To Mark Grant on his
birthday ... To Morris Margulies on his
birthday ... To Gary Tringale on his birth-
day.

1:1009111

Includes Petite Filet, antipasto plate, side of pasta,
salad, soup, potato and vegetable.
Dine-in only, not valid with any other offer.
1100f Offer Good Friday-
Nuerrloyo dd nlay
Snue
-

15 %
Off

food bill

■

only. Not valid
with any other offer.
With coupon only.
Not valid on holidays.

/0 Saturday, dine-in
only. Not valid
Off with any other offer.
I, „.„ With coupon only.
foo d 13111 Not valid on holidays

(248) 538-8954

33210 W. 14 Mile Rd
In Simsbury Plaza, just east of Farmington Rd.
West Bloomfield

Mon-Thurs: 4pm-10pm • Fri: 11am-11pm
Sat: 4pm-11pm • Sun: 4pm-9pm