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Inspired by Aunt Nancy
Childhood friends create 120 Taphouse & Bistro by
Lisa Mackinder
Around the time he was 10 years old, Eric Cook visited his Aunt
Nancy in Raleigh, North Carolina. During that trip, Aunt Nancy whipped up a special chicken dish that Cook enjoyed so much that he asked her to write the recipe down. Over the years “Aunt Nancy’s Chicken” has become one of Cook’s “go to” meals, and it now has a starring role at his new restaurant, 120 Taphouse & Bistro. The restaurant, located at 120 E. Michigan Ave. in Paw Paw, is the new incarnation of Bistro 120, a restaurant that had served seasonal homemade meals since 1995. “People came to the Bistro 120 because they wanted a good homecooked meal from scratch,” Cook says.
Cook, who grew up and still lives in Mattawan, purchased Bistro 120 from longtime owners Lynne McGuire and Wendell Meade and reopened it in July as 120 Taphouse & Bistro. It still adheres to the earlier restaurant’s tradition of offering seasonal, fresh local food. In addition to “Aunt Nancy’s Chicken,” another family recipe appears on the eatery’s menu — Cook’s father’s hand-cut, homemade fries, called Frankie’s Fries. The fresh-cut Frankie’s Fries have quickly become a patron favorite. “We get a potato, soak it in water for at least a day to get the starch out and then put the potatoes directly from the water into the oil,” Cook says. “It takes us twice as long to cook them.” Doobies, an eggroll-like concoction, are a specialty at 120 Taphouse & Bistro.
Brian Powers w w w.encorekalamazoo.com | 19