Press Release – Food Day Kalamazoo
From a Food Day Kalamazoo press release….
Kalamazoo Celebrates Food Day in a Big WayEvent calls attention to local resources and celebrates national campaign with healthy, affordable food for allKalamazoo, MI – Today, hundreds of Kalamazoo residents will celebrate the first national Food Day locally with a kick-off at Tabitha Farm Urban Homestead & Community Garden Open House and dozens of events across the city, including a reading of an official proclamation by Mayor Bobbie Hopewell at Fire Historical and Cultural Arts Collaborative. Local signatures are being collected in support of national and local Food Day priorities.“Food Day is an opportunity to celebrate real food and the growing movement to fix the food system. I’m thrilled that hundreds, if not thousands of people have already joined in celebration and to fix the food system”, Local Coordinator Will Sprague said.Food Day is a national campaign to draw attention to celebrate healthy, affordable foods produced in a humane, sustainable way and to fix the food system by:* Reducing obesity and diet-related disease by promoting safe, healthy foods* Supporting sustainable family farms and cutting subsides to huge agribusiness* Ending urban and rural “food deserts” by providing access to healthy foods* Protecting the environment and farm animals by reforming factory farms* Promoting children’s health by curbing junk-food marketing aimed at kidsLocally, Kalamazoo citizens will advocate for:* Whole Food curricula within the public school system* Support of the Fair Farm bill and a redefining of the GIPSA rulesLocal growers have provided fresh ingredients to many of these events. Many of these local growers signed up months in advance to contribute their produce as well as discuss the importance of sustainable agriculture to all attendees.“We were exited to hear about the creation of Food Day many months ago and are happy to provide our produce,” said a local grower. “This is not just a day-long event, but an opportunity to make a permanent change that supports a more sustainable and healthy future.”
Goose Island Clybourn
1800 N. Clybourn AvenueIt’s been a long time since we’ve been back to Chicago…even longer since we’ve actually been in the city. Since I work Saturday’s, it’s hard for us to go home.
My mom planned a baby shower for Sunday so I decided to use a vacation day and go home Friday night after work. I figured J and I could use a night out so I started making plans.
The plan turned out to be dinner and a show. I’ve always wanted to go to a show at The Second City so I got tickets. Unfortunately, I found out too late that I actually had the day off and the tickets for the 8:00 show were sold out. That meant we had to go to an 11:00 show. That meant, dinner got pushed back until 9:00.
As I was scouting out the Goose Island on Clybourn, I noticed they were on Open Table. I didn’t know if we’d actually need reservations, but I made them anyway just in case.
Goose Island began in 1988 in the building on Clybourn Avenue in Chicago’s Lincoln Park. A bigger brewery was built in 1995 on Fulton Street but the brewpub on Clybourn remained opened. A second brewpub was opened in 1999 in Wrigleyville….but who wants to get that close to Wrigley 🙂 Read more…
Press Release – “Cake Boss” Coming to Kalamazoo
From a Sweetwaters Donut Mill press release….
Sweetwater’s Donut Mill is excited that TLC Network celebrity chef, Buddy Valastro, will be visiting Kalamazoo for a live appearance at Miller Auditorium. “The Cake Boss,” as he is known, is certainly a kindred spirit of Sweetwater’s in that his cakes and confections from his Hoboken, New Jersey, Carlo’s Bakery are pure baking delight!
America’s favorite baker Buddy Valastro will appear at the Miller Auditorium, Thursday, November 17th at 7:30pm. Tickets may be purchased online at millerauditorium.com, calling (800) 228-9858, or visiting the Miller Auditorium Ticket Office. Purchase now and get $5 off by using password: TOUR
Tickets are $28.75, $38.75, & $48.75 plus applicable service charges. A limited number of VIP tickets are available for $75 which includes a post-show meet and greet, limited edition tour mug, a souvenir tour lanyard and backstage pass, along with a 15% discount voucher for carolosbakery.com.
In this live interactive event, the baker and star of TLC‘s “Cake Boss” will share the stories behind his hit TV series and his Italian family, answer audience questions, and give a live demonstration of the techniques that have made him one of the most successful and renowned cake artists in the nation.
Buddy will even invite audience members to join the fun on stage. The whole family is invited for a night of “bakin’ with the boss” one will not soon forget.
We hope you are able to join us for an interesting and entertaining evening with Buddy Valastro at Miller on Thursday, November 17th.
Breakfast at Tiffiny’s
2143 W. Michigan AvenueI set my alarm to get up for breakfast on a Sunday. That’s how bad I wanted to avoid the crowds yet I still wanted to try a new restaurant.
We were both a little groggy when my alarm went off a little off nine, so it took a while to get going, but once we both got presentable, we headed to campus to the site of the former Maggie’s Campus Cafe.
Things are a little different at the new Breakfast at Tiffiny’s. The building is still the same. It still sits just to the west of the intersection of Howard and Michigan near WMU. The thing I remember most about Maggie’s was the smell. Yes, the only time we went to Maggie’s was on a Sunday morning, but the whole place had the stench of beer….you know, the kind that permeates from your pores after a night of drinking. That morning, the place was packed with hangover underclassmen….hence, the reason we got up “early” and tried to beat the college kids.
We walked in to Breakfast at Tiffiny’s to find the place has been cleaned up quite a bit. A fresh coat of paint and new carpet gives the place a much warmer feel. Read more…
Press Release – Great Pumpkin Carving Party at Fieldstone Grill
From a Millennium Restaurant press release….
Fieldstone Grill To Host Fourth Annual Great Pumpkin Carving Party on October 22
PORTAGE, Mich.—Gearing up for Halloween, Fieldstone Grill will be hosting their annual Great Pumpkin Carving Party for its fourth year on Saturday, October 22, from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. To provide stress free, mess free fun, the restaurant will be offering pre‐gutted carving pumpkins to eliminate the messiest part of Halloween: preparing and cleaning out pumpkins. The pre‐gutted carving pumpkins will be available for $12, and smaller painting pumpkins will be available for $6. Each pumpkin purchase will include carving/painting supplies, a caramel apple bar, hot cider, treats, and more.
“We look forward to this event every year” says General Manager Lisa Hojnacki. “The Kids love being able to wear their costumes, and it gets them excited for Halloween.” All children are encouraged to wear their Halloween costumes to this fun family event.
“Let us take care of the mess” says Hojnacki, as staff of the restaurant will be in attendance to monitor the event. Parents will be able to relax and unwind as they watch their children participate in the Halloween fun.The Great Pumpkin Carving Party will be on Saturday, October 22, at Fieldstone Grill from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Guests are encouraged to bring their families and make a reservation, as pumpkins are limited. For reservations be sure to call (269)‐321‐8480.
Luciano’s Ristoranti
103 W. Ludington AvenueI’m pretty sure I mentioned this when I wrote a review for Bones & Butts BBQ, but Kalamazoo to Ludington is a long way. I’m sure it’s great for a getaway, but doing it round trip in one day is a long day.
Work took me north again. A co-worker and I loaded up into the truck and made the drive up US-31 to Mason County. After completing our task, we actually had time to take a lunch break, so we started looking around downtown Ludington for some place to eat. I was sort of looking for the brewery, but my C.W. saw an Italian place. That sounded good to me, so we swung back around to find a parking street along the busy M-10 that runs right down town.
Luciano’s Ristoranti sits on the corner of Ludington Avenue (M-10) and James Street. The business takes up two storefronts and it looks like they expanded in to one after the first space proved to be successful.
There’s a sign right on the door that tells you to wait to be seated. We walked in the door, which opens right in to the first dining room, and were met by a waitress who instructed us to head to the back of the space and into the second dining room. This space is a little bit weird as it has an unfinished feel to it. The floors have a faux finish that is supposed to mimic cobblestone, but at first glance, it looks like unfinished concrete. There isn’t a whole lot of decoration on the walls which kind of give this room an empty feeling. The front dining room has the typical trattoria feel which is lacking from the second dining room. Read more…
Wings Etc – Oshtemo Township
6740 Seeco DriveI think we’re running out of new places to eat. Sunday was another lazy Sunday, but we still needed to go grocery shopping. J wanted to eat before going to Meijer, but I really couldn’t come up with any place new. My picks were either Gallagher’s or Burdick’s West, but as we were getting ready to leave, J said, “What about Wings Etc?” I always forget about that place even though we pass it almost daily. I said sure, so that’s were we headed.
There are two Wings Etc locations in the Kalamazoo area. We’ve eaten at the Portage location on South Westnedge in the past, but have never been to the Oshtemo location on 9th Street across from the Walmart.
The Oshtemo is pretty similar to the Portage location. Same layout. Same decor. Lots of TV’s. The menu is pub food with a focus on wings. Being a wing fan, I should love the place. It’s cheaper than Buffalo Wild Wings and the wings are bigger, but the way they sauce them sucks. I’ve gone over this in past reviews, but they don’t sauce the whole wing. It’s like they put the wings on the plate then drizzle the sauce over them.
Knowing that, I decided to skip the wings this time and try something else. We first started with a Pepsi and an Iced Tea while we looked over the menu. We asked the waitress for a couple more minutes when she came back with drinks because neither of us were quite ready to order. Read more…
Hopcat
25 Ionia Avenue SWLast year, my wife took her mom to check out Artprize after the Top Ten was announced. At that time, it was kind of a time killer for them because they had tickets to a concert at the Deltaplex and wanted to eat at San Chez. Since they were downtown, they checked it out. This year, J’s mom made the trip up from Chicago just to see Artprize.
We parked in the Public Museum ramp then made a methodical journey around the City Center in order to see all of the Top Ten. It worked out well that we were leaving The B.O.B. parking lot about twenty minutes to noon. After a quick stop at Van Andel, we headed down Ionia Street for lunch.
The plan was to eat at the Hopcat, but they didn’t open until noon. It was about ten minutes to so we decided to wait. As we waited, more and more people started congregating on the sidewalk outside the business of the corner of Ionia Avenue and Weston Street SW just to the east of Van Andel Arena.
When the doors opened one minute before noon, we headed inside. There was a sign that said to wait for a hostess, but we were told to just find a seat. The hostess came around later and started filling in her seating chart because the bar was filling up quickly. Less than twenty minutes after we sat down, the place was full and a new line starting forming out on the sidewalk waiting for a table. Read more…
Old Chicago
5314 S. Westnedge AvenueI’m taking advantage of sleeping in as much as I can before January. I know you can’t really bank sleep, but I just want to enjoy it while I can. Sleeping in so much means J wakes me up most days when she comes home from work.
We needed to drop her car off at Seelye Ford for some repairs and she wanted to do it before I left for work. When she got home, I rolled out of bed and followed her to the dealership. Since we still had a little over an hour before I needed to head to work, we thought it would be a good idea to go out for lunch.
We decided to head to Portage to check out the new Old Chicago on South Westnedge near the I-94 interchange. It’s in the building that used to be Bennigan’s right in front of the Hooters.
I was never in the Bennigan’s before it shut down, but I do know there was an extensive renovation before Old Chicago moved in.
Contrary to it’s name, Old Chicago is not a Chicago chain. It’s actually based in Chattanooga, TN and the first store opened in Boulder, CO in 1976. It really doesn’t have anything to do with Chicago other than they serve pizza. Their pizza really isn’t a true Chicago style pizza…they just call their Deep Dish “Chicago Style” although they do use a little more butter in the crust than the average deep dish which does give it a Chicago flare. Read more…
Vitale’s Burton Heights Pizza
315 Burton Street SW- Grand Rapids, MI 495007
- (616) 241-3368
- No Known Website
- Menu
Another bachelor weekend for me. J headed home to Chicago for a night out with her girlfriends. I, again, had to work. Now, I’m not one of those guys that depends on my wife to pack my lunch everyday. I did it for years when I lived alone, but I get kind of tired of eating the same cold meat sandwich everyday, so on days when J doesn’t pack my lunch, I just don’t do it anymore. Since she wasn’t home when I left for work, the lunch bag stayed in the freezer and I went looking for pizza.
I’ve driven by Vitale’s on Burton Street several times and kept wanting to get back someday when I had time for lunch. I have no idea what the relationship is between all the Vitale’s restaurants in West Michigan but I’ve always liked their pizza no matter which one I ate it.
Around 6:15, I called in an order for a large pepperoni pizza. Since they don’t have a website or a menu online anywhere that I could find, I really didn’t know what my options were and I just went with my default order.
I was told the pizza wold take around 15 minutes and that’s about how long it would take me to drive their from work. Before I hung up the phone, the person taking the order wanted to make sure I knew that I was calling the Vitale’s on the corner of Burton and Palace on the southwest side of town. Read more…
SW Michigan Dining 