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 arts & life the best of everything