60 February 25  2016

EXQUISITE FOOD & EXCEPTIONAL SERVICE

 


 



 EpicKosher.com 
 

 Catering@EpicKosher.com

Supervised by the Council of Orthodox Rabbis of Greater Detroit

CHOLOV YISROEL
KOSHER CUISINE



GLATT
KOSHER CUISINE



2046060



248-624-4100




$5 off 
brunch 

$20 purchase 
minimum* 

Must present coupon. 
Not valid with other offers or prior 
purchases. Expires 3-31-2016.

Commerce Twp.  248-624-4100

free 
appetizer

 with purchase 
of 2 entrees*

* Valid Sun-Thurs. 
Must present coupon. Not valid 
with other offers or prior purchases. 
Expires 3-31-2016.

Commerce Twp.  248-624-4100

A

lthough there are many 
Mediterranean or Middle-Eastern 
restaurants, some of them can be 
classified in a category of mundane simplic-
ity.
This might be a result of their owners 
coming to America as children and making 
up their own versions of what they thought 
to be the food they ate as youngsters.
Along, though, comes one like 2Booli 
Fresh Mediterranean Eats with two loca-
tions  West 12 Mile, just west of Halsted, 
Farmington Hills, and East Big Beaver and 
Rochester Road, Troy.
The beginning of this restaurant dream 
may well have begun back in 1951 when 
brothers Andrew and George Ansara came 
to America from Lebanon  Neither could 
speak English but knew enough about the 
restaurant business to want to go into it here. 
 However, financial institutions refused to 
give them a second look  And soon discov-
ered how drastically wrong they were when 
the same banks eventually began to beg for 
their business.
The brothers and 
their families went on 
to own numerous Big 
Boy and Red Robin 
franchises  One 
of them, if memory 
serves me correctly, 
was in the build-
ing on 15 Mile and 
Orchard Lake Road, 
West Bloomfield, 
owned by Andrew 
and George, where a Red Robin, maintained 
by Lew Ansara, cousin Victor Ansara and 
their families, took over at the site of Chuck 
Muer
s former Bloomfield Charley
s and 
Pal
s  Another member of the family, 
Uncle Andrew Ansara, oversaw the entire 
construction, which if I recall, was much 

unlike others in the Red Robin 
chain, with its bright look that 
included many pictures, a sort 
of Hollywood motif and warm 
features.
The Ansara name in the 
restaurant business is a most 
revered and highly honored one 
 with the present two 2Booli 
operations owned by Andrew, 
Lew, Victor and Norman 
Ansara and owner/operating 
officer Brian McDonnell.
The fresh taste and goodness of their 
Mediterranean dishes is undoubtedly the 
result of a keen knack of taking truly authen-
tic dishes and improvising in such a way that 
the original is not overly tampered with but 
is successful in obtaining even better results 
 Realized no doubt with careful thought 
and experienced ingenuity  No fear of 
losing their delicately delightful tastes of 
authenticity.
Like the blackened salmon that is prepared 
in five different ways, 
or an excellent kebob 
platter (great for fam-
ily dinner or parties) 
with its delicious 
chicken kabobs, beef 
kabobs, lamb kabobs 
and beef kafta, served 
with rice, grilled 
vegetables, fattoush 
salad and homemade 
pita bread  or the 
platter just for two 
 or the Mediterranean pasta, which is 
very lightly sauteed shrimp in a garlic and 
white wine reduction, served over linguini 
and topped with Kalamata olives, crumbled 
feta and capers  or the interesting inge-
niously tasty Mediterranean Shrimp Pasta 
that includes three cultures, Italian, Greek 

and Lebanese  Bestseller is the 
Lemon Oregano Chicken, but the 
Ghallaba and Chicken Shawarma 
Pita certainly do not take back 
seats.
Another central point is its 
open-stove oven where the pita 
bread is baked fresh and served 
right from the oven to the table 
 The bread is included with 
all dishes and complements the 
homemade baba ghanouj, falafels, 
grape leaves, etc.  Another 
favored feature is its hot crushed or whole 
lentil soup made daily  And the salads for 
which 2Booli has garnered much approval.
The Ansara families came from the 
small village of Aita al-Foukhar, nestled in 
the mountains of Lebanon, and those who 
arrived here in America brought with them 
many of the rich dining traditions of their 
original homeland  of which so many are 
proud to enjoy.
THE LIQUOR LICENSE has been 
received by Pepino
s, and the highly popular 
restaurant is now open permanently in its 
new home at 2440 Orchard Lake Road in 
Sylvan Lake (near Keego Harbor)  Same 
hours, same wonderful staff  Seating for 
around 175 (more than before) and 17 bar 
seats, about the same  Maybe a few new 
menu items, but the same customer all-time 
favorites for sure  Biggest thing, though, is 
finally opening permanently so soon after the 
tragic November fire.
HE JOINS A multitude of others in 
enjoying the elegant cuisine provided by his 
talents, but John Somerville, former chef de 
cuisine at the Lark and now executive chef 
of the high-powered kitchen staff at Steven 
Lelli
s Inn on the Green, 12 Mile, Farmington 
Hills, was seen wide-eyed while munching 
on a juicy corned beef sandwich at Stage 
Deli, Orchard Lake Road, West Bloomfield.

Stage Deli, by the way, now has owner Steve 
Goldberg
s immediate family helping out pop 
at the restaurant  Sons Ian, manager, Perry 
in the kitchen, and daughter, Jolie, hostess.
THE BUSINESS SENSE of his dad rubs 
off mightily on Larry Freed, son of Lenore 
and the late Jack Freed, owners with her 
late father, Ray Bresler, of the former Red 
Cedars on Telegraph and Apartment Lounge 
on Six Mile  Larry was recently elected 
to the board of Mindjet/Spigit, based in San 
Francisco  He and wife, Laini, live in West 
Bloomfield  Larry and my son, Scott, are 
both chief executive officers of their compa-
nies  Larry of 2nd Stage Partners consult-
ing firm and Scott of Mindjet/Spigit. 
OLDIE BUT GOODIE  A mechanic was 
removing a cylinder head from the motor of 
a Harley-Davidson, when he spotted a world-
famous heart surgeon in his shop.
Hey, doc,
 shouted the mechanic, can I 
ask you a question? 
The famous surgeon walked over to the 
mechanic working on the motorcycle. The 
mechanic straightened up, wiped his hands 
on a rag and asked, I also can open up this 
engine, take valves out, fix 
em, put in new 
parts, and when I finish this will work like a 
new one. So how come I get a pittance and 
you get the really big money when you and I 
are doing basically the same work?
The surgeon smiled, leaned over and whis-
pered to the mechanic, Try doing it while it
s 
still running!
CONGRATS  To Jeremy Brand on 
his birthday  To Harry Neuman on his 
birthday  To Craig Martin on his birthday 
 (Please email birthday or anniversary 
congrats to the address below with your 
name and date of birthday or anniversary 
for scheduling purposes  Please, no phone 
calls.) *

Danny
s email address is dannyraskin@sbcglobal.net.

Middle-Eastern Delights

The Ansara family serves up authentic yet innovative cuisine.

Victor and Andrew Ansara

Danny Raskin

Senior Columnist

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