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each item cooked in her restaurant’s kitchen in Saginaw’s Old Town district represents a taste that takes her back in time, to every delicious bite associated with that meal.

For the 46-year-old woman, some of those earliest associations involve the love stirred into meals prepared by her mother, who opened Pasong’s Café in 1986 and continues to check in on the operation handed over to her daughter 15 years ago.

“It takes you home: That’s what this food does for me,” Saycosie said. “It makes everything feel better. I want to give that to my customers. That’s why I keep this business going.”

Keeping Pasong’s Café going in the last two years was a challenge, she said. When the pandemic began in March 2020, Saycosie — like so many other restaurant owners — transitioned to take-out service exclusively. Her establishment’s dining area remains closed, her staff was reduced from 10 to ve employees, and she cut down her hours of operation.

Still, the strong following for Pasong’s Café kept the restaurant alive and kicking. These days, staff remain busy preparing takeout meals — and memories — ve days per week.

Resilience is part of Saycosie’s history. Her earliest memories involve eeing with her mother as refugees from their homeland of Laos, where political struggles and violence impacted the region years after American forces departed Vietnam. They arrived in Saginaw on Halloween of 1979, and since then, Saycosie said the community embraced her family.

It’s a compassion she said continues now, as customers support her business even after the pandemic presented so many obstacles.

“I’m in awe of the kindness and love that has just been so bright,” Saycosie said. “For people to trust us to cook for them and take care of them during this time was and is an honor.

Without this community, we don’t exist.”

Saycosie opens the restaurant Tuesdays through Saturdays, although a holiday break will keep the eatery closed until Thursday, April 21.

When opened, she said pho remains one of the most popular items from her menu; popular enough that she sometimes advocates her regular customers to venture into other options.

One of her favorite recommendations: gai boun, otherwise known as coconut curry soup. Along with the coconut curry soup base, it features rice noodles, chicken, lime leaf, ginger, sliced cabbage, green onions and cilantro.

Saycosie said she put the item on

64-year-old Pasong

Saycosie-King, handed over the reins of the restaurant. Regardless, Saycosie closely associates the meal with her family.

“It’s something we like to eat at home, especially on holidays,” Saycosie said. “It just has all the avors. It has the creamy notes, the sweeter notes, the savory notes, and a mild spicy note too. It’s so yummy.”

Saycosie said she hopes to reopen the dining room at some point. In the meantime, she and her staff tailor meals so that her food remains just as tasty when customers dine at home as it would if customers ate at the restaurant.

She and her staff organize items in recyclable containers that feature divided compartments, keeping items such as noodles isolated from ingredients that could add sogginess to the meal during the drive home. Instead, people can mix the prepared noodles with the provided sauces and spices when they sit down to eat at their dinner table, preserving that straight-from-the-kitchen zest.

“When you invest your money in us to feed you, we are going to feed you right,” Saycosie said. “I don’t want you going home feeling disappointed. We want you to feel good; Not just how you feel when you’re eating the food, but how you feel after you’ve eaten too. We want you to remember the food we made for you.” tGRAND RAPIDS, MI he Pita House, which has locations in Grand Rapids and Kentwood, prides itself on its fresh food, as well as its gyros and chicken and beef shawarma, which, according to manager Fadi Shatara, are “full of meat, full of avor.”

“They’re amazing,” he said. “There’s a lot of meat on there. Each sandwich is over a quarter pound.”

The creators of The Pita House have been serving Middle Eastern cuisine in Grand Rapids since 1995.

First, the owners of what would become The Pita House were selling gyros out of Sami’s Party Store in Eastown. Four years later, in 1999, they opened The Pita House across the street from the now defunct party store. In 2015, the restaurant moved to its current location in the Eastown neighborhood, 1508 Wealthy St. SE.

The Pita House opened its second location, 3730 28th St. SE, in 2000.

Shatara said The Pita House prides itself on its fresh ingredients.

“Everything is always fresh,” he said. “That’s our number one thing.”

One of the most popular items are gyros ($11).

It comes with a mix of beef and lamb, served on pita bread, with a wide selection of toppings. Customers can pick their own toppings, but for those looking for a traditional gyro, the menu recommends tzatziki (a Greek yogurt sauce), as well as lettuce, tomato, onion, feta cheese, parsley and sumac seasoning. Shawarma, available in beef or chicken ($11), is also popular.

The beef or chicken has been marinated in Middle Eastern spices and slow roasted on a vertical rotisserie.

When served at The Pita House, employees shave the layers off the rotisserie, and place them in pita bread. Customers can pick their own toppings.

For a chicken shawarma, the menu recommends garlic sauce, lettuce, onions, pickles, pickled turnips, and sumac

Suggested topping for beef shawarma include tahini (a condiment made from sesame seeds), lettuce tomatoes, onions, pickled turnips, parsley, and sumac, a spice used in Middle Eastern food.

INFO

The Pita House’s menu can be found online at pitahousegr.com, and the restaurant’s Eastown location can be reached at (616) 454-1171. The location on 28th Street can be reached by calling (616) 940-3029

The Grand Rapids location is open Monday through Friday, from 10:30 a.m. to 7 p.m., and from 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday.

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