Big Tony’s Pizzeria
290 S. Centre StreetMy Labor Day weekend got short by work. I had to be in the office at midnight Monday morning. I didn’t want everyone to have to cut their weekend short too, so I drove myself separately to J’s parents near Sturgis. The plan was for me to come home Sunday afternoon while J and the kids would stay for another day.
We spent the day park hopping in Sturgis after a treat from Kukui’s Shaved Ice downtown. It was too cold to get in the water and J’s parents lost power so for everyone’s sanity, we let the kids run around for a couple of hours.
I packed up my stuff to head back to Kalamazoo around 5:00. I needed to make a stop in Centreville for gas and while there, I decided to call in a pizza order.
I picked Big Tony’s Pizzeria in Marcellus. It really wasn’t on the way home but it wasn’t too far away. I was also doing some research for my cousins who have a place on Pleasant Lake. They’re not wild about the pizza options in Three Rivers and Marcellus wouldn’t be too far away from them if the pizza is any good.
Big Tony’s Pizzeria is on Centre Street which is also M-40 through the small town. The building is a pretty large metal building just south of where M-40 turns east in downtown Marcellus.
Read more…Kukui’s Shaved Ice
Is shaved ice a think in Michigan? Growing up near Chicago, it was every where. There were shops all through out the suburbs and every Little League concession stand had a sno-cone machine. I guess I just assumed it was a thing.
We spent Labor Day weekend in St. Joseph County going between my in-laws near Sturgis and my cousin’s place near Three Rivers.
I actually had to come back a day early. I had to be at work at midnight on the holiday. I didn’t want to make the kids and J come back if they weren’t ready so I drove separately to the lake so I could make an early exit Sunday and try to get a few hours of sleep.
It wasn’t as warm as we were hoping for that weekend and it was pretty windy. We didn’t take the boat out or do a whole lot of swimming.
Sunday afternoon, J asked if we wanted to go in to Sturgis to get the kids a treat. She had seen a Facebook page for a shaved ice place that she wanted to try.
Kukui’s Shaved Ice is just east of downtown Sturgis on Chicago Road. The restaurant is right on the corner of Chicago Maple in a building that used to be El Taco Loco. There’s a small, oddly shaped parking lot right in front of the building accessible from either street.
David’s New York Deli
15215 Farmington RoadWe have just been on the road so much lately.
Late last week, my co-worker and I were assigned to a task near Detroit. It was pretty simple and most of our day would be spent driving. And, of course, I had to find someplace to eat while we were on the east side of the state.
Our task took us to Livonia. As we were wrapping up, I started looking for someplace to eat. The co-worker is a big fast food guy and asked if we could find a Wendy’s or something along the way. I told him I found a deli not too far from where we were and I was going to eat there. If he still wanted fast food, we could do that as well.
David’s New York Deli is on Farmington Road just South of Five Mile Road in the City of Livonia. The small red building is on a very busy stretch of road kind of tucked in between some bigger places. The building is right on the street so fortunately, there is a small parking lot in between the buildings.
Julia’s at the Pavilion
We spend a lot of time in South Haven for work. I always find it funny that my superiors in Grand Rapids think that South Haven is close to Kalamazoo….like, they don’t realize Grand Rapids is closer to Kalamazoo than South Haven is. I don’t mind it though….I like going to South Haven.
My colleague and I had a rather easy assignment that wrapped up a little after 1:00. I was parked at the pavilion behind the Phoenix Street businesses. As we walked to the car, my co-worker said he was going to run over to the coffeehouse nearby to grab a sandwich. I hadn’t eaten yet so I joined him.
Julia’s at the Pavilion is a really large coffeehouse on Huron Street….right next to the pavilion. The restaurant actually looks like a large two story house that fits right in to the summer tourist town. Read more…
Baguette de Francis (St. Joseph)
We have been all over Southwest Michigan lately for work. It seems like we’ll go on stretch where we never leave Kalamazoo then we’ll go on a stretch where we’re never in Kalmazoo.
Late last week, we got sent to St. Joseph for the afternoon. We had an assignment in the very southern part of St. Joseph Township not too far off I-94. It took us longer to drive there than it did to complete what we needed to complete.
It was about lunch time when we got done. I wasn’t really familiar with the area of town we were in so I pulled out the phone and Googled places to eat nearby. I was looking for a counter service place that was going to be quick and I found it rather quickly.
Baguette de France is in a strip mall on Hilltop Road near the intersection with Washington Avenue just barely in St. Joseph Township on the northwest side. The small restaurant specializing in sandwiches made with baguettes takes up a long, narrow corner slot right next to a Chinese place.
Krispy Krunchy Chicken (Mendon)
633 W. Main StreetMy schedule has been so whack lately. Working weekends. Going to work at midnight. It’s just been weird and exhausting.
I had to do a midnight to 10 AM shift last Saturday. J figured she’d just take the kids to her parents house on Friday. That way I’d be able to go to sleep and they could have some fun without worrying about keeping me awake.
I finished my shift a little before 10 AM on Saturday then headed for St. Joe County. I was just going to meet them down there…take a quick nap, then swim the rest of the weekend.
I worked all night but I hadn’t eaten anything other than some chips and salsa from the vending machine. There isn’t a lot of options along the backroads we typically take so I waited until I got to Mendon. My options were either gas station food there or cut down to Centreville and go to McDonalds.
I pulled in to the Mendon Quick Stop on Main Street not too far past the city limits on the west side of town. I knew they have a pretty decent hot food counter and I’ve stopped there several times in the past but this time, there was something new.
Teresa’s Kitchen
821 Fulton Street (Food Truck)Food trucks have been really great this summer…moreso than usual. I’m still pretty hesitant when it comes to going in to restaurants so walking up to a food truck takes a lot of that anxiety away.
Lunchtime Live is one of the few things that are somewhat normal about this summer. The food trucks roll on to South Street every Friday for lunch and while there’s not as many people, there’s still a lot of different options to choose from.
I have been itching to try the Mexican truck that showed up this year. It’s a really small truck with a really big menu and the line is always the longest by far.
Teresa’s Kitchen has been making waves on the food truck scene the last few months. I first heard about this taco truck when they started setting up in front of their house on Fulton Street in the Edison Neighborhood. They quickly got a following and a lot of word of mouth advertising before starting to show a presence as some of the local food truck events.
Marge’s Donut Den
1751 28th Street SWI’ve been working some odd hours lately. I’m having to pick up some weekend shifts in Grand Rapids and those shifts come with a 1 AM start time.
I headed out of the office a little after 8 AM on a Sunday morning to make the drive home to Kalamazoo. I had thought about stopping at Sweetwaters in Plainwell to pick up breakfast for everyone when I remembered Grand Rapids has it’s own donut shop that everyone raves about.
I pulled of US-131 and headed west on 28th Street to Marge’s Donut Den. The bakery has been a staple in Wyoming since the mid-1970’s. The unassuming brick building with large windows sits on the north side of 28th Street near Hague Avenue in Wyoming’s Beverly Neighborhood.
Bleu Burger
Food TruckI always say I never really plan on eating out on Friday’s in the summer but there’s always something at Lunchtime Live that draws me in.
I had the same intentions this past Friday. I would wait until I got home from work and gorge myself on pizza from wherever my wife decided to order from that night.
Plans change though. I was driving on South Street in downtown Kalamazoo and saw the food trucks setting up. One of them sounded good so after I finished my work for the morning, I headed over for a burger and fries.
Bleu Burger is part of the company that used to operate Mangia Mangia in downtown Kalamazoo andMangia Pizza and Pasta in Oshtemo…and still operates La Cantina in Paw Paw. It’s a sister truck to Blue Plate Food Truck but this one specializes in burgers with a bleu cheese sauce.
Valentina’s Mexican Grill (Galesburg)
10 E. Michigan AvenueHey! Look! I’m writing about tacos again.
I was just in the mood for tacos. My co-worker was off and I was flying solo. I actually had to run an errand out near Augusta and had every intention of picking up tacos from Nina’s Taqueria but their parking lot was way too packed and there were too many people inside for my comfort so I headed back to the car with an idea.
I had to go back through Galesburg and I knew one of my favorite Kalamazoo area taco places just opened a second shop there, so I looked them up online and put in an order.
Valentina’s Mexican Grill is right on Michigan Avenue in what can be considered downtown Galesburg. It’s right at the weird intersection with Battle Creek Street. It took over the building that was last Andrea’s Cafe & Pizza Too.
SW Michigan Dining 