Green River Cafe Closing

14 06 2009

Sad news from The State News today.

After three years of serving East Lansing a selection of vegan, vegetarian and organic food, the Green River Cafe, 211 MAC Ave., will close its doors for good today.

Their menu didn’t really interest me because I’m a meat eater, but it’s still sad to see any local business go under.  For those that do prefer the vegetarian or vegan lifestyle, there’s not many choices.  Still, there is some good news.

Green River Cafe opened in September 2006, and the owners Jim and Josephine Jabara opened a second location at the Lansing City Market in May 2008.

The Lansing location will remain open and will continue to serve the same menu, (employee Grace) O’Connor said.

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Categories : East Lansing, Food News, Michigan

Downtown Dog House

12 06 2009
  • 107 E. Allegan Street
  • Lansing, MI 48933
  • (517) 316-2312
  • No Known Website
  • Menu
The Downtown Dog House on Allegan Street in downtown Lansing.

The Downtown Dog House on Allegan Street in downtown Lansing.

I’m last to the party on this one too.  Earlier this week, Runs With Spatula Twittered about a place called the Downtown Dog House.  I asked what is was and a few hours later, there was a blog post.  Yesterday, I get an e-mail from City Pulse about a new article online about…you guessed it…the Downtown Dog House.  Heck, I even got five or six replies on Twitter myself about the place.  With all this buzz, I had to check it out.

The Downtown Dog House is on Allegan Street in downtown Lansing just off Washington Square.  Right now, it’s a horrible location.  The entire street is tore up due to the CSO project and Allegan Street is completely closed.  If you didn’t already know about it, there’s very little chance you would see the place.  I have to say, it takes guts to open a new business under those conditions.

I had to run some errands in the area and J tagged along so we could hit up the place for lunch.  We made it downtown just before eleven and found a parking spot on Washington Square.  We walked back a block or so to get to the front doors which is even somewhat of a challenge with all the construction. 

I think we were both surprised when we walked in.  At least in my mind, I had pictured a quick service, order at the counter, find a place to sit hot dog place like I’m used to seeing in Chicago.  Instead, we found a very welcoming sit down restaurant.  We were shown to a booth along the windows.  While we looked over the menus, the man who seated us brought us our Pepsi’s.  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Coney Dog, Downtown, Lansing, Michigan, Restaurant, Reviews

Pump House Grille

11 05 2009
  • 214 State Street
  • St. Joseph, MI 49085
  • (269) 983-0001
  • Website
  • Menu
The Pump House Grill in downtown St. Joseph

The Pump House Grille in downtown St. Joseph

J really wanted to do something with her mom for Mother’s Day.  Over the past couple months, there’s been a lot of traveling back and forth to Chicago for both us and our families.  Instead of her parents coming to Lansing or us driving to Chicago for the second week in a row, we decided to find a halfway point.  The Benton Harbor/St. Joseph area looked like a good meeting point, so the search was on to find a good place for Mother’s Day brunch.

After a quick Google search, I came up with two options.  Neither would take a reservation for less than six people, so we chose the one that opened first.  That one was the Pump House Grille on State Street in beautiful downtown St. Joseph.  State Street is a one-way cobblestone street that is lined with boutiques and restaurants.  It’s kind of touristy, but would still make a great shopping and dining district for the locals.  We actually drove by the restaurant on our first pass through downtown.  The buildings are all connecte and none of them have eye level signs that stick out from the building.  On the second pass down State Street, we noticed the building on the left side of the road.

Brunch started at 11:30 and we got there about 11:40.  Like I already mentioned, they wouldn’t take reservations and there must have been a line when the door opened.  By the time we got there, all the tables were full.  The host told us there would probably be a half hour wait since everyone just sat down to eat.  We took a buzzer and set up at the bar to wait.  The bartender told us we could eat there if we wanted to, but J and her mom couldn’t really reach the bar comfortably and it would have made eating uncomfortable.  Instead, we ordered drinks….just Pepsi’s since they couldn’t serve liquor until noon.  The half hour wait would give me time to step outside and call my mom to wish her a Happy Mother’s Day. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Brunch, Downtown, Michigan, Pub, Restaurant, Reviews, St. Joseph

TGI Friday’s – Oak Lawn, IL

3 05 2009
  • 5420 W. 95th Street
  • Oak Lawn, IL 60435
  • (708) 422-0339
  • Website
  • Menu
TGI Fridays on 95th Street in Oak Lawn.

TGI Friday's on 95th Street in Oak Lawn.

After seeing the best basic cable clip show host perform at The Horseshoe Casino in Hammond, IN, we needed food.  It was a little after 10:00 by the time we left the casino and even though we were only 15 miles or so from home, taking surface streets in Chicago can take a really long time.  The neighborhood we were driving through really wasn’t a neighborhood we were wanting to stop in, so we all started talking about places to eat back in an area where J’s parents were more familiar with the options.  There were, of course, the two 24 hour family restaurants, but I think everyone was wanting something more than classic diner food.  J tried calling a couple chains to see how late they were open and didn’t have any luck until she called TGI Friday’s.

The Oak Lawn TGI Friday’s is on 95th Street in downtown Oak Lawn.  A few years ago, you would have only found houses were the building stands, but the Village board had a different vision for the area.  They made the area a TIF district and used emminent domain to get rid of the houses.  Now, a bank and Friday’s share a parking lot along the very busy commercial artery of Oak Lawn.

By the time we made it back to 95th Street, it was about twenty after eleven.  J was told on the phone they stopped taking orders at 11:45 so we actually made it with plenty of time to spare.  The business itself didn’t close until one, but I was still surprised to see so many cars in the parking lot. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Burgers, Chains, Illinois, Oak Lawn, Restaurant, Reviews, Sandwiches

Cheli’s Chili Bar & Restaurant – Dearborn

27 04 2009
  • 21918 Michigan Avenue
  • Dearborn, MI 49124
  • (313) 274-9700
  • Website
  • Menu
Chelis Chili Bar & Restaurant in Dearborn.

Cheli's Chili Bar & Restaurant in Dearborn.

Since moving here, I’ve been wanting to eat at Cheli’s Chili in downtown Detroit.  I’ve always been a huge Chris Chelios fan and a #7 Blackhawks jersey still hangs in my closet.  When I started looking at restaurants in Detroit, Cheli’s Chili on the corner of Michigan and Oakwood came up.  I knew my parents would like a sports bar.

J had a great idea when it came to entertaining my parents.  Our original plan was to go gambling in Windsor, but my parents forgot their birth certificates so we couldn’t do that.  I offered Detroit, but neither were really interested.  They usually stop in New Buffalo when they come see me, but mom wants to say she gambled in Canada before the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative goes in to effect in June.  Since they forgot their documents, we needed a plan B. I had no ideas, but J suggested The Henry Ford Museum in Detroit.  First, we needed lunch.

We made it to Dearborn just before noon.  The building is on the corner, but the entrance is actually in the back.  There’s a parking lot there with a few spaces, a public lot right next to it and street parking all along Oakwood.  We parked the car and walked towards the door to find another couple standing there waiting.  The restaurant didn’t open until noon.  No big deal because it was 11:55.  We ended up walking across the street to Westborn Market (review HERE) to kill time. 

When we made it back, we walked in and saw a sign that the deck was open so we headed up there.  Like the downtown location, the Dearborn location has a party deck on the roof.  There’s an elevator right next to a staircase.  If it’s not a nice day or you don’t like sun, there’s also a huge dining room in the bar.  We didn’t really go in to far.  We found a display case with autographed memorabilia and Chelios jersey’s, but that’s as far as we made it. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Burgers, Dearborn, Downtown, Michigan, Restaurant, Reviews, Sandwiches, Sports Bar

Westborn Market – Dearborn

27 04 2009
  • 21755 Michigan Avenue
  • Dearborn, MI 48124
  • (313) 274-6100
  • Website
Westborn Market in downtown Dearborn.

Westborn Market in downtown Dearborn.

 We had no intention of shopping in downtown Dearborn on Sunday.  My parents were in town and we were looking for something to do.  My dad is a car fan and J thought a trip to The Henry Ford Musuem could be interesting.  After a quick Google search, I remembered there was a Cheli’s Chili in Dearborn and even though Chelios is a Red Wing now, he’s a Chicago boy first, so I’ve been wanting to go to his restaurant.  We got there about five minutes before the restaurant opened.  My mom noticed a flower shop across the street which led us to see a Fruit Market across the street from that.  So, to kill a little time, we headed across Michigan Avenue. 

Westborn Market is a small group of stores in the Detroit area.  Besides the one in Dearborn, there are stores in Berkely and Livonia.  The Dearborn store is on Michigan Avenue at Oakwood  Boulevard.  From the street, it looks like any neighborhood grocery store, but that impression quickly changes you walk inside. 

The first area of the store is an open air fruit market.  It’s covered by a permanent structure, but there are no window or doors….at least when it’s nice like it was the day we stopped.  They have a huge variety of fresh produce.  When we walked in, J called it a cross between Whole Foods and Horrocks.  They had the variety and nice displays of a Whole Foods, but they didn’t have the Whole Foods prices.  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Dearborn, Downtown, Grocery, Michigan, Reviews

Georgio’s Gourmet Pizzeria – Downtown

27 04 2009
  • 120 Charles Street
  • East Lansing, MI 48823
  • (517) 333-9990
  • No Known Website
Georgios Gourmet Pizzeria on Charles Street in East Lansing.

Georgio's Gourmet Pizzeria on Charles Street in East Lansing.

I love late night pizza-by-the-slice places and I love living near a college town that has many places to fill that late night craving. 

J got home from work just before midnight like she always does and I said, “I’m hungry” like I always do.  This time, she said she had a taste for pizza or tacos too.  We debated the pros and cons of each and eventually settled on pizza.  Since there’s no place on the south side of Lansing to get a slice at midnight, we trekked to East Lansing.

There are a couple locations for Georgio’s in East Lansing, but I chose the one in the downtown area on Charles Street.  We drove around the streets of downtown a few times on a very busy Friday night looking for pizza.  I knew there was a Georgio’s and a Bell’s, but I didn’t remember which was where.  We drove by Bell’s because there were so many kids around and no place to park.  I made it to Georgio’s and got really lucky.  There was a parking space right out front.  I showed off my awesome parallel parking skills (there was no space in front of me, so really, I just pulled in) and we went inside.  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Downtown, East Lansing, Michigan, Pizza

Conor O’Neill’s Traditional Irish Pub & Restaurant

5 04 2009
  • 318 S. Main Street
  • Ann Arbor, MI 48104
  • (734) 665-2968
  • Website
  • Menu
Conor ONeills Traditional Irish Pub & Restaurant in downtown Ann Arbor

Conor O'Neill's Traditional Irish Pub & Restaurant in downtown Ann Arbor

One more day in Ann Arbor.  I was actually supposed to work another day, but the softball game I was supposed to work was moved to Saturday because of the threat of nasty weather.  J and I got a hotel to stay in Ann Arbor Saturday night.  Our plan was to go shopping on Sunday but before we could do that, we needed to find lunch.

We headed downtown to find the Prickly Pear after Amy suggested it to us.  When we got there, we found a menu outside and realized we weren’t really in the mood for Southwestern so we walked down Main Street until we found someplace to get sandwiches.

Conor O’Neill’s is on South Main Street in downtown Ann Arbor.  There are a lot of restaurants in the area and a lot of fancy restaurant in the area.  Conor O’Neill’s offers a more price friendly alternative. 

The outside of the building is painted in bright colors and really, it looks like a lot of other Irish pubs.  Inside, they have the typical decor.  There’s a lot of dark woods, old furniture, and Guinness signs.  The walls and ceilings are hand painted with words of wisdom.  We were shown to a table where one side was a padded bench an the other side had chairs that I thought I was going to break when I sat down.  It creaked pretty loud when I sat down, but the furniture really added to the overall look and feel of the bar.

The ambiance includes a lot of TV’s playing soccer games.  If watching soccer isn’t enough, the volume was up loud that it could have been heard over a live band.  It was obnoxiously loud for the one guy who was drinking at 11:30 on a Sunday morning and watching a Manchester United game because he probably doesn’t get the channel in his dorm room.  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Ann Arbor, BBQ, Big Ten Tour, Burgers, Downtown, Michigan, Restaurant, Reviews, Sandwiches

Soup to Nutz Bistro & Custom Catering

18 03 2009
  • 123 Kalamazoo Street
  • Lansing, MI 48933
  • (517) 485-0955
  • Website
  • Menu
Soup to Nutz Bistro & Catering on Kalamazoo Street in Lansing.

Soup to Nutz Bistro & Custom Catering on Kalamazoo Street in Lansing.

I guess you could say the third time really is the charm.  J and I have tried to eat at Soup to Nutz a couple times in the past only to run into problems.  The first time was on a Saturday after waiting in line for tickets to see Obama speak.  We didn’t realize they weren’t open on Saturday.  The second was during the week.  We wanted to go for breakfast, but we got there at 9:30 and they don’t open until 10:30.  When we got back, we found they don’t do brunch during the week.  At that point, we gave up.  The only day they do brunch is Sunday and we spend most Sunday’s on the couch watching NASCAR. 

After we went to Golden Harvest this past Sunday, a commentor suggested we try Soup to Nutz.  That got me looking at their website again.  I looked at brunch first, but then I got curious about lunch.  J and I are really lunch people and their menu looked perfect.  J got up early to get her taxes done and when she got home, she suggested heading downtown for lunch.

Soup to Nutz Bistro is located on Kalamazoo Street near Washington Square.  There are actually two entrances which can be a little confusing.  The sign is actually above the catering side of the business.  If you go in there, you’re basically walking in to the kitchen.  The other door is the one that enters the dining room.  There’s no sign marking it as an entrance, but you can see tables and others dining as well as a special board in the window.  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Cafe, Downtown, Lansing, Local Flavor, Michigan, Restaurant, Reviews, Sandwiches

El Azteco

15 03 2009
  • 225 Ann Street
  • East Lansing, MI 48823
  • (517) 351-9111
  • No Known Website
  • Menu
El Azteco on Ann Street in downtown East Lansing.

El Azteco on Ann Street in downtown East Lansing.

I have no idea why I’ve been craving Mexican lately, but it’s been like an everyday thing.  J’s step-dad headed back to Chicago, but her mom stayed for another day.  We made a run to Howell after breakfast then did some grocery shopping at Horrocks and Walmart.  By the time we got home, we were all starting to get a little hungry.  I sat down in front of the computer and asked what they were in the mood for.  To my surprise, J said Mexican which is what I was thinking.  Instead of going to one of the two places that are close to our apartment, I wanted to go to East Lansing and try one of the most popular restaurants in downtown.

El Azteco is on Ann Street near the Marriot in a that strip of restaurants at the corner of M.A.C. and Ann.  From all the things I’ve read, El Azteco made it’s name at a different location a few blocks that wasn’t nearly as flashy or noticeable as the new building.  While I love atmosphere, restaurants don’t survive without good food.  It was the good food we were really after.

We walked into El Azteco just after 6:00 on a Sunday night.  It was still spring break at MSU, so the clientel was mostly older people and families.  Someone in the kitchen noticed us and told us to take a seat in one of the front dining rooms.  There are actually three dining room areas.  Two of them are are in the front and look out to Ann Street.  The third is off to the left when you walk in and it runs along the kitchen.  We took a booth along the wall.  As you can imagine, the decor has sort of a southwest feel.  The tables are primitive with no frills.  The benches of the booth are all wood with no padding.  They are also pretty close to the table.  They really force good posture. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Downtown, East Lansing, Mexican, Michigan, Restaurant, Reviews

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