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4B - Thursday, October 24, 2013

The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com


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Though it began as a place for just coffee and crepes, Cafe Zola has expanded to include a dinner menu.

Owners Hediye Batu's and Alan Zakalik's Turkish and Polish heritage influences the cuisine at Zola.


Zola is located on Washington Street, next to the Grizzly Peak Brewing Company.

The restaurant is best known for its diverse selection of crepes.

Zola finds right recipe for brunch

Caf6 offers more
than just crepes
and coffee
By CONRAD FOREMAN
Daily Arts Writer
Brunch (noun): the mystical
meal that bridges breakfast for the
late-risers with lunch for the early
birds in a hellacious fury of scrum-
diddlyumptiousness.
Brunch is a wonderful thing. At
any joint with agood brunch menu,
the spread includes everything
from standard scrambled eggs to
artisan sandwiches and a plethora
of deliciousness in between.
It was on a cold Monday that I
set out for a perfect brunch-date
experience at Cafe Zola, a place I'd
heard about from several people
but had never visited myself. To
me, it had always been one ofthose
places, to borrow a phrase from
Yogi Berra, where nobody goes
because it's alwaystoo crowded.

Our timing onthis day couldn't
have been better, though, as we
walked into a mostly empty Zola
(apparently other people don't
think 3 o'clock is a normal meal
time - poppycock). We were
promptly seated and left with
water, menus and the daunting
task of deciding what to order.
I'd never tried crepes before,
so I ordered the complete savory
crepe -filled with egg, ham and
cheese - with a side of pota-
toes, of course (Breakfast!). My
lady friend chose the Italian
sandwich (Lunch!). I also got
a cappuccino, because I like to
pretend to be an adult when I go
out to eat.
I devoured my crepe and
potatoes while, across the table,
someone could only finish half
of her loaded sandwich (no com-
plaints on her part - she had
won the leftover lottery).
After our tummies were filled
and our plates cleared, I had
the chance to chat with Lucia
Lagoy, the assistant to the own-

ers, Hediye Batu and Alan Zaka-
lik. First things first, I had to ask
about the enormous menu.
"They designed the place to
be a cafe that did crepes and cof-
fee," Lagoy said. "That's kind of
how it started. We didn't have
the dinner menu until about
five years ago; they added that
later on. Over time, they built
the menu, but it started off as a
smaller operation."
Crepes and coffee ... sounds
oddly familiar. So what was
the inspiration for this expan-
sion from a simple coffee-and-
crepes place to the smorgasbord
of foods from all over the world
that Zola offers today?
"Hediye is Turkish, and Alan
is Polish," Lagoy explained. "And.
they have a lot of international
friends."
Variety is all well and good,
but what really makes a great
restaurant is the quality, not
quantity, of the menu options. Of
course, Cafe Zola offers an abun-
dance of both.

"One thing I'd want to empha-
size about our menu here is that
everything is either made in-
house, or we get it from the very
best suppliers," Lagoy said. "Our
maple syrup comes from a com-
pany in Michigan, up north. We
could get maple syrup from Ver-
mont, but we get it from Michi-
gap because we try to support
local businesses when we can,
but we're always looking for the
best ingredients."
Lagoy went on to rave about
some of her favorite brunch menu
items.
"We make eggs right," she
said. "Our potatoes are delicious.
They're not hash browns; they're
roasted rosemary potatoes, cut
really well - we cut them by
hand."
Not even the coffee was free
from her ringing praise.
"It comes from a company
called La Colombe. ... They just
make amazing coffee, and they're
also a company that's really into
ethics and helping out communi-

ties."
But those are Lagoy's taste
buds speaking. What do the peo-
ple love? According to Lagoy, the
Turkish eggs and the crab cake
benedict are two of the most pop-
ular items on the brunch menu,
along with the farmhouse and
artichoke omelets.
Of course, a bad atmosphere
can ruin even the best of meals.
But even here Zola excels, pro-
viding a friendly experience and
interesting decoration, including
a diverse set of pictures lining
the walls and a concrete bar.
"At Zola, we strive to give
somebody a whole experience,"
Lagoy said. "It's not just about
the atmosphere; it's not just
about the food and the service.
Our staff, our team, what we look
for is to give someone an overall
great experience. From the food,
to the drinks, to the service, to
the atmosphere, to the conversa-
tion, we just want them to come
here and (say), 'Wow, that was a
really nice meal that I had. And

not just because the food was
good.'"
Being on the other side of
Main Street from campus, Cafe
Zola maAages to stay off the
map for many students who keep
their Ann Arbor wanderings
close to campus. But while Zola
is perhaps more popular among
grown-up Ann Arbor, that
doesn't mean it lacks student cli-
entele.
"We get a little bit of every-
body," Lagoy said. "We have a
pretty strong base of regular
customers..... We do get a lot of
student business, too. We get a
lot of students who bring their
parents..... I'd say we get avery
diverse clientele. Our menu is big
enough that we have something
for everybody."
Indeed, Cafe Zola has some-
thing to offer even the pickiest of
brunch-munchers. The diverse
menu, complemented by fresh
ingredients and friendly service,
makes brunch at Zola a rich Ann
Arbor restaurant experience.

6,

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