MI Best - Weekend Edition - May 7, 2023

cKALAMAZOO, MI asa in Spanish means house.

So, it is no surprise that when setting foot in Caffe Casa, located at 128 S. Kalamazoo Mall, that you feel you are in somebody’s home.

A place where all are welcome, John and Kathy Beebe have run their quirky, independent coffee shop and eatery since late 1992, serving the public now for three full decades, since they were both in their 20s.

It hasn’t always been easy, and the couple has overcome multiple challenges through the years, from the birth and growth of chain coffee shops in the area, along with local competitors, to a severe motorcycle accident experienced by John Beebe in 2017 to the COVID-19 pandemic.

But through it all, “the shop,” as they’ve affectionately called it through three decades, has persevered.

“I feel like what we’ve made is a snowflake and you couldn’t try to recreate it,” Kathy Beebe told MLive/The Kalamazoo Gazette. “This place has a magic to it, and it is experienced by so many people.

A plant wall that features vintage grow lights features plants that have been growing with the business since day one allows patrons and staff in a break to be surrounded by life and light and, as Kathy Beebe says, “leave feeling improved, with a positive experience in your pocket.”

“I try to rein in the clutter and keep It clean and open to placate minimalists, but John and I are both offspring of collectors,” she said, referencing the plants and the walls that are filled with art by local artist Jerry Fry, as well as pieces from other area artisans and custommade furniture.

While their parents and grandparents collected everything from antique firearms to model trains, wicker baskets and hats, or in Kathy Beebe’s mom’s case, “all things Jesus,” Kathy said she is all about collecting things that serve a purpose such as the plants, as well as stories, people and experiences.

During the pandemic, she said, it was the stories and conversations she shared with people that kept the shop going while they were on a to-go-only basis.

Hurdling past the pandemic, one of the biggest challenges for Caffe Casa, Beebe said, was that so many people bought fancy coffee and espresso makers at home and became experts in their own right.

“Lunches got us back on path,” she said. “Almost everyone that came in was getting lunch.”

The shop’s lunch menu is something that, in addition to helping them survive the pandemic, has helped them survive competition over the years, she said.

The croissants and bagels used for the shop’s sandwiches, as well as the pastries are all baked in house by Kathy Beebe, who also makes fresh soup daily, and John Beebe makes the everything spice that goes on the bagels.

In addition to the lunch menu, the couple keep things consistent with its coffee, proudly serving Paramount Coffee from Lansing since the day they opened.

Beyond coffee, Caffe Casa offers a unique selection of loose-leaf teas, Italian and French sodas and other beverages such as vegan power lattes and gingerbread lattes. There are no bubble teas or pour overs or matcha teas, but that’s part of the charm of the shop.

Michigan’s Best Local Eats:

House Gaia Café

in Grand Rapids has flavorful vegetarian, vegan dishes

GRAND RAPIDS, MI

hether you’re a vegan or are just looking for fresh, locally-sourced meals, Gaia House Café in Grand Rapids is a fully vegetarian and vegan restaurant.

Originally opened in the East Hills district as a poetry coffee house, Gaia House Café is now located at 1553 Plainfield Ave. NE. Owner Andrea Bumstead reopened the café in 2021 in a new location after the café’s previous owner closed its doors in 2014.

“We are a full vegetarian/vegan restaurant for breakfast and lunch,” Bumstead said. “We do monthly specials that are made with mostly local and in-season products.”

Along with breakfast and lunch fare, Gaia House Café offers a full juice bar that includes fruit and vegetable juices, kombucha and smoothies. Meal choices include miso soup, a Mediterranean platter, omelets and cornbread French toast.

Fan favorites at the café are the veggie stash, the “mean green” burrito and the tempeh Reuben sandwich.

The veggie stash is made with assorted steamed veggies, garlic, ginger, potatoes or brown rice and topped with Monterey jack cheese, scallions and sour cream for $12.

Tempeh, a fermented soybean protein, became the unexpected star of a Reuben sandwich at the café.

“If somebody came in and wanted to be a little adventurous, I would steer them to a tempeh Reuben,” Bumstead said.

“We make our own sauce, our own cabbage kraut, and the tempeh is house made fermented soybeans. We put that on rye (bread) and it’s topped with microgreens.”

If you’re looking for something heartier, try the portobello beet bread burder, made with balsamic glazed portobello mushrooms, mixed greens, parmesan cheese, caramelized onion, avocado and miso dressing on house-made beet bread for $12, served with corn tortilla chips and house chutney.

wThough one of Bumstead’s personal favorite menu items is the miso Caesar salad, you won’t find a whole host of other salads on the café menu. As a vegetarian restaurant, Bumstead said she wants to show people there’s a large variety of vegetarian-friendly foods.

“It’s kind of proving a point, we only have one salad on the menu,” she said. “I don’t want people to think they can only just get a salad. Something that’s a staple for most families growing up like a burrito or a stir-fry, we do them in a vegan style with different proteins. It’s developing the same flavors and technique.”

Staying true to its roots, the café hosts a poetry night the last Tuesday of each month 7-9 p.m. The café also offers a buy one, get one 50% off special for all fresh pressed juices every Monday.

Along with the café offerings, Bumstead said she has big plans to expand the business to include its own farm and market to further educate the Grand Rapids community about sustainable, plant-based food.

“We can still say we’re the only vegetarian restaurant,” Bumstead said. “It’s something we’re proud of, but we’re also encouraging and I’d love to have more options.”

More than anything, Bumstead said she hopes everyone feels welcome at Gaia House Café.

“We are very accepting, you can come from whatever walk of life and we’re really proud of that,” she said. “It’s just a comfortable, chill place to be. We’re a big, loving, caring bunch.”

Michigan’s Best Local Eats:

‘Bloody Mary

GRILLED CHEESE’ from Valerie’s Downtown

SAGINAW, MI

Valerie’s Downtown serves

Mexican cuisine and sandwiches in downtown Saginaw, including a “bloody Mary grilled cheese” that’s like a grilled cheese and a BLT in one.

“That is my mom’s creation,” said restaurant owner Juliana Stricker. “It’s very popular.”

This savory sandwich dreamed up by Juanita Stricker is made with Texas toast, pepper jack, sharp cheddar and Swiss cheeses, apple wood smoked bacon and tomato.

“We use actually bloody Mary sauce, dip it in there with the egg, and then get that all crisped up on the grill,” Juliana Stricker said.

The hot sandwich is then garnished with green olives.

Located at 216 S. Washington Ave. in downtown Saginaw, Valerie’s also offers nachos, wet burritos, tacos and more.

“Our nachos are very popular,” Stricker said. “They’ve been popular since the start.”

Valerie’s nachos come with your choice of protein — chuck, chicken, carnitas or vegetarian Baja “burger” — black beans, black and/or green olives, corn, tomato, cheese, lettuce, jalapeno, homemade crema and salsa on the side.

INFO Valerie’s is open from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday and sometimes opens for extended hours when special events are happening at night or on the weekends downtown. Valerie’s patio will reopen for outdoor dining in May, and live music on Friday nights begins in June.

Michigan’s Best Local Eats:

2023

arbecue ribs, poutine fries, charcoal grilled chicken, hot chicken and biscuits... this isn’t your typical stadium food. Going to a Detroit Tigers game at Comerica Park in 2023 will be like attending a mini taste of Detroit event.

Ahead of Opening Day on

Thursday, April 6, we’re giving you a sneak peek at most of the new food choices

you’ll be able to indulge on at the ballpark this upcoming season. Many of the eats are from local restaurants, starting with one of the more popular places, Green Dot Stables on West Lafayette.

This slider joint will be located inside the Meijer Market behind section 143 and will offer cheeseburger and bacon cheeseburger sliders, a chicken and bacon slider, a buffalo chicken slider, fries, truffle fries and a kale salad.

Next is Taqueria El Rey which was forced to close recently due to a fire, but currently offers pop-up events every Monday and Tuesday evenings at Batch Brewing on Porter.

Taqueria El Rey will offer tacos, its Sonoran hot dog and its famous charcoal grilled chicken at the Miller Lite Market located outside of

section 149.

Now comes the Fat Rooster hot chicken and biscuits along with shawarma fries made in-house by Executive Chef Mark Szubeczak.

You can find this tasty, sweet and spicy combination at the Blue Moon Bistro located outside of section 151.

Now for three pop-ups you’ll find at the stadium at various games throughout the season located outside of section 116.

The Lobster Food Truck, offering seafood mac & cheese, Breadless offering various sandwiches and Yum Village offering Naan jerk chicken tacos.

Next, another local favorite with Bert’s BBQ on Russell Street.

You’ll find Bert’s spicy red

hot with onions, barbecue nachos and barbecue ribs located outside of section 133.

Then there’s even more food at the Comerica Big Cat Court with National Coney Island offering its grilled chicken Hani, its Coney dog and shawarma fries.

You’ll also find Detroit 75 Kitchen offering cheesesteak eggrolls and shawarma eggrolls at the Big Cat Court.

Lastly, some dessert with one of the more popular ice cream places in all of Michigan. Guernsey Farms

Daily is offering its Detroit Grand Slam flavor at the ballpark. This is a rich caramel coffee

espresso ice cream with a sea salt caramel swirl mixed with coffee espresso chocolate flakes.

Also at the ballpark this year is the Comerica Landing. This social space offers a happy hour the first hour after gates open with $5 food and beverage items and $9 value meals.

Atwater Brewery has also introduced a new craft beer called the “D Light. It has only 95 calories and 2.6 carbs per 12 ounces.

Michigan’s Best Local Eats:

AFLINT TWP, MI new drive-thru restaurant touting itself as a new sort of eatery recently opened in the Flint area.

V’s Drive Thru opened in late December and offers a variety of fast food lunch and dinner options.

“I’ve always worked in the restaurant industry, and looking into the future I noticed that drive-thrus over the past four or five years have become very popular,” Anton Sufaj said, owner of V’s Drive Thru. “The concept we are doing is the future of fast food.”

Located at G-4189 Corunna Road in Flint Township, V’s Drive Thru’s business model stands on offering fresh fast food with great quality, a model that is needed to compete against the likes of McDonald’s and Burger King.

“When you’re comparing yourself to those types of businesses and you’re close to the same cost, if not less on certain items, I believe it will work,” Sufaj said. “We haven’t really done advertising besides social media, and we have had a great start.”

On the menu, people can try out the hamburgers, with a one-third of a pound patty.

The No. 1 seller is the steak and cheese egg roll, with the corned beef egg roll right behind.

Other options include fresh hand packed Angus beef sliders, chicken sandwiches and wings.

Sufaj purchased a Cash Advance store and undertook a five-month renovation project to make it suitable for a restaurant.

Originally from Oakland County, Sufaj has worked in business in Flint for five years, including owning a Papa Sam’s Coney Island in Mt. Morris.

He named this restaurant after his mother, Vera, where he said he learned how to cook from her.

“I respect everything she’s taught me and has done for me,” Sufaj said.

V’s will host its first annual Easter Extravaganza from noon to 5 p.m. on Saturday, April 8. They will be giving away 500 Easter baskets to children in the community and will have live music, ice cream and pictures with the Easter Bunny.

“It’s our way of saying thank you to the community,” Sufaj said.

Normal business hours are 11 a.m. to midnight, six days a week and closed on Sundays.

“I did not expect this to take off as fast as this and it’s been a shocker,” Sufaj said. “The food itself is fresh and we are competing with these big corporations. We want as many people as possible to try our food and give us feedback.”

The Las Vegas roll is by far

Biwako Sushi’sbest seller

fSALINE, MI resh ingredients and a long list of options are exactly what Biwako Sushi in Saline has to offer.

Biwako Sushi is tucked away near Saline’s Emagine Theater. Owner Andy Kwon was originally going to operate an Espresso Royale in the location but decided to change the concept and bring a sushi restaurant to the area instead.

Biwako Sushi has a long list of menu items to choose from, including its monthly special board which features new options all the time. Kwon said Biwako has created more than 500 specialty sushi rolls for that board since opening in 2006.

And, if customers love a monthly special enough, the restaurant will add it to its permanent menu.

The September roll was a monthly special more than

10 years ago but was added to the restaurant’s menu after customers kept asking for it, Kwon said. This dish is made with shrimp tempura, avocado, crab with sake and eel sauce all topped with strings of sweet potato.

As for the restaurant’s topselling sushi, it’s definitely the Las Vegas roll, Kwon said, adding he often recommends it to new customers if they aren’t sure what to get. The roll features crab, masago, cream cheese, avocado, and eel deep fried with eel and wasabi sauce.

Customers can also find classic sushi rolls like California, spicy tuna and rainbow, alongside the restaurant’s elaborate

specialty options. Kwon said the menu is packed with a combination of Korean and Japanese cuisine for both lunch and dinner. Kwon, originally from South Korea, said growing up he saw his parents operate their own sushi restaurant. He said he incorporates some Korean menu items to bring a bit of his hometown to Biwako Sushi. Customers can find Korean dishes like bibimbap, which consists of rice topped with vegetables, meat and a

some alcohol options like sake, soju, wine and bottled beers.

“The ingredients that I’m using are always top of the

line,” he said.

Overall, Kwon said his loyal customers are a big reason for Biwako Sushi’s success. The restaurant’s walls showcase just some of the many photos Kwon has taken over the years of customers dining in.

“I love this restaurant. I love my customers. I love our food,” he said. “It’s been a very pleasant journey and we have amazing support from our local community.”

INFO

Biwako Sushi, 1355 E. Michigan Ave., is open 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, noon to 9 p.m. Sunday. Learn more from its online menu or Facebook page or call 734-277-9140.