arts & life the best of everything Clean Goodness Gallery Restaurant still makes top dining marks on 41st anniversary. H uge pride is taken by owners of on the mirrors ... Everything so fresh and away at the rear of a strip of stores on SE neighborhood restaurants who wholesome ... Big sellers like tuna salad, 1st Avenue, Boca Raton, Fla.'s east side. cherish its daily routine of serv- salmon salad, orange roughy, tilapia, Greek, Reservations are recommended on Fridays ing good wholesome food as most of them Julienne salad ... Dishes you might expect and Saturdays. would want themselves ... Such self-esteem would be big wants at a good neighborhood "Debbie and I make regular stops to True is a big reason why people are on the look- restaurant ... salmon patties, fruit dishes, Restaurant when in the mood for great out for them so much. chicken pot pie, chicken burgers, home-cooked crab cakes. The menu is lim- When The Gallery res- etc. and so many others that are ited to about a dozen items, each cooked taurant moved to its present not on the menu ... homemade and presented by owner Frank Hawkins. location in the Bloomfield meat loaf, veal parmesan, corned "We usually start with cream of crab Shopping Plaza on Telegraph beef and cabbage, fresh roasted soup, made with shallots, sherry and Old and 15 Mile Road, Bloomfield turkey with stuffing, chicken pic- Bay seasoning. Salads are simple, fresh, Hills, it had already achieved cata, etc. chilled and wonderfully topped off with a much note for 32 years of And it is a favorite breakfast combination of buttermilk and garlic. Our cleanliness and good whole- meeting place, too, for so many appetizers usually include Steven Shrimp, some food on 10 Mile and who enjoy much camaraderie steamed in beer and Old Bay, a crab dip Greenfield, Southfield, where along with Belgian waffles, with a creamy/spicy taste and so good Danny Rask in The Gallery had also been corned beef or turkey hash, fruit served on crostini. Senior Colum nist well-received as another clean crepes, etc. ... Very few restau- "Depending on our lunch or dinner, the and good little neighborhood rants also have eggs with cream crab cakes are served either as sliders or restaurant that would be hard to beat. cheese and chives, etc. ... Homemade soups platters, consisting of two lump blue cakes, Now celebrating its 41st anniversary ... a feature so good at neighborhood res- several sauces, and two sides of superbly- between that and its present location, The taurants. baked macaroni/cheese baked in individual Gallery, owned by Stefanos Becharas, is still The gallery is open seven days ... ramekin dishes. We go for True's crab cakes, also known for its cleanliness and wonder- Monday through Saturday, 7 a.m.- 9:30 but each of the other items we have tried ful home-style cooking that emphasizes p.m.; Sunday, 8 a.m.- 9 p.m. ... Seating is there, such as farmhouse chicken, stuffed the love of a family-owned and operated for 124 in the restaurant and 24 at tables in shrimp or slow-roasted beef brisket on a restaurant. the mall area and six at a counter. Kaiser roll is scrumptious" When in Southfield, people used to check The Gallery Restaurant easily ranks THE LARGE LOSS of revenue may the large mirrors for even the slightest fin- among those good neigh- have finally come to an ger marks ... and kiddingly tell Stefan that borhood restaurants that end ... or very near it the place passes their inspection again ... give so much and are ... Except for landscap- Some would spend more time looking for viewed as meaning so ing, looks like that new finger marks than they did eating, just to much to the many who roundabout on 14 Mile be able to inform him of their findings ... It look upon them as being and Orchard Lake Road, was a game for them ... and a lot of fun. like eating at home ... West Bloomfield, that has Many still do and some just say, "I give Along with the ambience taken so long to complete up. What's good to eat today?" They even of wall covering art work has finished construc- inspect the pictures and paintings that fill ... and futile search for tion ... This calls for big the walls that Stefan and his fine staff of smudge marks. celebrations by the many employees clean from end to end ... Dust READER MINI stores that were rightfully collectors? Not at The Gallery! REVIEW ... From Dennis very concerned ... Georges About food at The Gallery, it is plain, Silber ... "Although dif- Family Restaurant on everyday fare but along with a cleanli- ficult to find with only Northwestern Highway, Stefanos "Stefa n" Becharas ness policy that is even more strict than about 20 seats, it is tucked West Bloomfield, among PRIME 29 STEAKS • SEAFOOD • COCKTAILS THIS HOLIDAY SEASON'S LUXURY DINING DESTINATION SIGNATURE MENUS • ELITE SERVICE • EXTENSIVE AMENITIES g° 1CORA 248.73.PRIMI 7463) 54 others couldn't be happier ... Its good food, low prices and all-around menu variety for family dining has made for much popular- ity. GOOD SERVER DEPT. ... Familiar faces now at Early Bird Cafe, Orchard Lake Road, Keego Harbor, include smil- ing Deanna Jobe among its requested, if possible, waitpersons ... 10 years at vari- ous E.G. Nick's locales, six years at Billy's in White Lake, and now bringing her wonderful efficiency and cordial serving among those during Early Bird's breakfast and lunch hours ... with big lure for cus- tomers waiting in line to see and sit among friends ... Toothpaste-ad-worthy Deanna also teaches volleyball. OLDIE BUT GOODIE ... An Israeli mayor in a small town is walking past a construction site with his wife. One of the hardhat workers stops and calls out to the woman. "What's new, Sara?" "Why, it's nice to see you again, Avi," the woman replies. She turns away from her husband to the worker, and they speak for several minutes. After the mayor and his wife continue on, he turns to his wife to ask how she knows him. "Oh:' she said. "We went together in high school. I even thought of about mar- rying him" The husband began to laugh. "You don't realize how lucky you are. If I hadn't come along, today you would be the wife of a digging worker!" The wife replied without hesitation, "Not really. If I had married him, he'd now be mayor!" CONGRATS ... To Scott Raskin on his birthday ... To Rose Light on her 85th birthday. * Danny's email address is dannyraskin@sbcglobaLnet.