January 10 • 2019 49
jn

Danny Raskin
Senior Columnist

A 

recent visit to the new Sunday 
brunch at Station Square, Coolidge, 
one block south of Maple, Troy, with 
its bevy of beautiful selections, 10 a.m.- 3 
p.m. ... all you can eat ... was sumptuous 
enough to remind me of many brunches I 
usually enjoyed on visits to Las Vegas.
They are still pride and joys in Las 
Vegas ... Originally dreamed up by Beldon 
Katelman, owner of the El Rancho Hotel, 
Las Vegas’
 first hotel on its strip, as a means 
of keeping customers in the hotel after the 
second show ... His Midnight Chuck Wagon 
Buffet dated back to the early 1940s ... The 
idea caught on immediately, resulting in 
most casinos coming out themselves with 
beautiful and tasty arrays of food.
Las Vegas itself is not the same today 
... The beautiful showgirls will always be 
there ... They are as much a part as the great 
brunches that Katelman started ... all you 
could eat for a dollar ... and also the first 

place to have those lovely show gals ... But 
they’
ll never replace the Rat Pack of Frank 
Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr., Dean Martin, Joey 
Bishop and Peter Lawford ... and so many 
other wonderful entertainers who made 
Las Vegas the “Entertainment Capital of the 
World.
”
The days of those bevy of great enter-
tainers who used to play the Las Vegas Strip 
were replaced by huge extravaganzas ... Just 
about everybody who was anybody played 
Las Vegas ... Bob Hope, Judy Garland, Liza 
Minnelli, Elvis Presley, Debbie Reynolds, 
Ann-Margaret, George Burns, Liberace, 
Sophie Tucker, Andy Williams, Red Skelton, 
Milton Berle, Sid Caesar, etc., etc., etc.
The food at most places has retained its 
goodness, but service has taken a big dip, 
with too many servers owning “take-it-or-
leave it” attitudes that bring wonderment as 
to how they got the job in the first place ... 
Thankfully, it’
s not like this everywhere ... 
There are still many things to like and enjoy 
in Las Vegas ... and many of its extravagan-
zas are amazingly wonderful.
But enough about Las Vegas and back to 
the more than 60 items at the new all-you-
can-eat Station Square in Troy now here 
and being enjoyed by many ... Prime rib au 
jus, shrimps galore, salmon, chicken, pasta, 
ham, bacon, sausage, French toast, pancakes, 
omelets made-as-you-like, etc. ... plus all 
excellent house-made pastries and desserts 
galore by Executive Chef Chris Hessler and 
his five-person staff ... Many pastries you’
ve 
never seen or tasted before, plus rice pud-
ding, etc. ... Chris is quite a top-notch gent in 
the restaurant kitchen ... 13 years at Kruse & 
Muer, eight years at Golden Mushroom and 
2½ years at Win Shuler’
s in Marshall, Mich.
The addition of excellent servers like Toni 

Besho are always huge favorites ... His smiles, 
very efficient fast service, and needed take-
aways and refills are huge assets. 
The magnificent Station Square Sunday 
Brunch by itself in a 20- by 50-foot room 
next to its three dining rooms and bar areas 
is a big winner that has all the elements of a 
great presentation.
The low price is $17.99 adults for a sump-
tuous and most elegant Sunday brunch is 
very much a good price ... 11 or under, $8.99 
... Children under 3 eat free.
RECENT CONTEST by WDIV-TV on 
the Best Sandwich in Metro Detroit had 
newly owned Siegel’
s Deli, 15 Mile, west 
of Haggerty, Commerce Township, third 
among 150 restaurants ... Another heavy 
seller is its new Reuben Egg Rolls, hand-
rolled every morning ... The Reuben is rolled 
in Russian Dressing and egg roll wrapped.
PARTNERSHIP AT Pickles and Rye Deli, 
Orchard Lake Road, West Bloomfield, has 
been dissolved by Rick Therrien and Linda 
Collins ... He is now sole owner as Linda 
leaves “to work less and spend more time 
with my family and grandchildren” ... A very 
friendly working separation of two good 
friends.
OLDIE BUT GOODIE ... A man and his 
girlfiend were out to dinner one night and 
the waiter told them their specials of the eve-
ning were chicken almondine and fresh fish. 
“The chicken sounds good. I’
ll have that,
” 
the woman says. The waiter nods. “
And the 
vegetable?” he asks. “Oh, he’
ll have the fish,
” 
she replies.
CONGRATS ... To Jerry Parr on his 
birthday. ■

Email Danny at dannyraskin2132@gmail.com.

Las Vegas-style 
brunch comes to 
Station Square.

Station Square owners: George Lukaj, Jennifer Lukaj and Anton Lukjaj.

All-You-Can-Eat Delish!

raskin
the best of everything

