Legendary Detroit bar, Anchor Bar at 450 W. Fort Street was sold to Zaid Elia, who owns Birmingham’s 220 and Parc in Detroit, with a deal expected to close in late September. And another legendary Detroit bar, Cobo Joe’s at 422 W. Congress Street, closed permanently, serving its last drinks in July.

After purchasing the Como’s space at 22812 Woodward Avenue at Nine Mile Road in Ferndale, its new owners, the Peas and Carrots Hospitality Group, knew it would be a long time before they would be able to open the restaurant again. So they decided to start FOMO, a patio bar pop-up which began August 3. “We thought this would be a good opportunity to inject a little energy in to it, keep people talking about us, and also introduce ourselves to the community,” said Michael Gray, Peas & Carrots’ regional manager and Ferndale resident. The FOMO (slang for “fear of missing out”) events will take place Thursday-Saturday from 6 p.m. until 2 a.m. and have live music, outdoor games, and different non-

Big Rock Chophouse of Birmingham owners Norman and Bonnie LePage recently announced Eric Voigt would be taking over as executive chef and Bill Morales will be their new executive sous chef. Both chefs have worked at the restaurant – located at 245 S. Eton Street – for years. Voigt joined the staff at Big Rock Chophouse in 2011, when he began as their executive pastry chef, while Morales joined in 2015 as a line cook before quickly making his way up the ladder. Bonnie LePage said in the press release that they were happy to promote both chefs and are excited to see what they do going forward with the menu.

There’s been much anticipation and Chili Mustard Onions – Detroit’s first vegan coney island – has finally opened. Located at 3411 Brush Street, the restaurant opened August 1, according to their Facebook page and they have been kept busy. During their first two days of service, they had to close earlier than anticipated because they ran out of food. Seems the owners, Pete and Shellee LaCombe and their daughter Darla, aren’t the only ones who were craving vegan coney dogs. Not only does the 30-seat restaurant offer coney island classics, like coney dogs and chili cheese fries, but they add their twist to items like their “beetball” sub and “Big Mock.” Plus, there are a variety of fries and d

When Lea and Kyle Hunt leased the entire building at 1454 Gratiot Avenue, Detroit, they knew they would eventually do something with the second floor. Now that the restaurant on the first floor, Gather, is up and running, they are turning what they had been using as an Airbnb into a craft beer bar called Cøllect (the “øl” is Danish for beer) with the hopes of a late September opening. Kyle said the beers on their 14 taps will change based on the season, and while they love places like Bell’s and Founder’s, they plan on picking breweries not everyone has heard of. “There’s a lot of small, mom-and-pop interesting breweries from New York to California to Michigan,” he said. “We want to highligh

Brandon Zarb’s day-to-day is about to look a lot different. The former executive chef of Public House and Imperial in Ferndale started his new job at Rising Stars Academy in Centerline in August, leaving behind the kitchens he had spent the last three years in. “I was kind of looking for a change of pace,” Zarb said. “I really love the restaurants, and I’ve really enjoyed working with them, but I knew at some point I was going to want to get involved with something different.” After going on a tour of the academy, Zarb fell in love and wanted to be a part of it. “It’s hard to put into words but if you see it you’ll understand why,” he said. “I’ll put it this way, everyone I’ve ever taken the

Some things are serendipitous, like the opening of Dessert Oasis Coffee Roasters’s Royal Oak location, following their popular Rochester and Detroit spots. They had originally planned on adding a third location further down the line but then they saw the space at 115 S. Main Street, and couldn’t say no when it became available. “We were thrilled to find it...we fell in love with it,” said Nathan Hamood, president/director of coffee. This space will actually be the company’s largest at almost 3,800-square-feet. As of press time, they planned to begin services August 7 and stay open until midnight most days of the week. The menu will be similar to their Detroit store, full of desserts and past

Detroit Taco Company – located at 304 N. Main Street, Royal Oak – is about to expand to a second location, four-and-a-half miles up the road in Troy. Owner Jeffrey Omtvedt said they are hoping for a soft opening in September, with a grand opening the following month at the Troy location, 2199 Crooks Road, between Maple and Big Beaver. While the new space is much smaller than the Royal Oak one – about 1,800-square-feet – the menu and what they strive for will be the same. “The whole point of Detroit Taco is to change the community one taco at a time,” Omtvedt said. “I believe the role of a small business is to take less of a percentage of profits and donate more of it back to the community th

Sushi may be an ancient delicacy, but business partners Bruce Cobb and Steve Campbell are hoping to make it a little more fun at Blu Bar Sushi, 31225 Southfield Road in Beverly Hills, slated to open in September. While they will offer more traditional rolls, their sushi doughnut – yes, sushi doughnut, an already popular item in Japan and California – will be one of their more unique menu items. Cobb said they will mold rice into the doughnut shape, stuff it with a protein, then cover it with multiple toppings, like cucumbers and yum yum sauce. “You can pick it up with your hands and eat it versus having to use chopsticks…you can get your hands dirty with it and just jump right in,” Cobb said