Esam Almulaiki returned to his home state to bring a New York–style bodega to U-M’s Central Campus area, but quickly learned that Ann Arbor isn’t exactly the sixth borough.
Building on a decade-plus partnership with family members running five deli-groceries in Queens, Brooklyn, and the Bronx, the Hamtramck native recently opened Bodega Bros on North University. Until 2020 the Roumanis Square storefront was home to Silvio’s Organic Pizza, now in Canton as Silvio’s Trattoria e Pizzeria.
Esam Almulaiki says he took a “leap of faith” to bring his family group’s expanded bodega concept to Ann Arbor. Sales grew gradually until a Michigan Daily article “literally doubled” traffic. | Photo: J. Adrian Wylie
Almulaiki’s “leap of faith” in Ann Arbor turned out to be a triple jump of sorts. The “coming soon” sign was up for over a year. “We didn’t have our contractors that we usually deal with in New York here, and it didn’t go so well the first couple of times,” Almulaiki says. He adds that he learned a lesson about not going with just “the first friendly face.”
Lining up suppliers in Michigan has been another challenge. In New York, he was used to them calling on his stores. Here, “Even until now, Frito-Lay and Coca-
Cola are not even returning our phone calls.”
New York’s bodegas were originally small grocery stores offering a few lunch-meat sandwiches, but the concept has expanded over the years. “Now you got salads, wraps, panini, burgers, and all these other essential foods,” Almulaiki says.
The family group’s NYC delis are all named for the neighborhood streets they’re on, but for Ann Arbor, “we decided to change it up to give it more of a young vibe to attract the students out here,” he says. Opening without advertising or fanfare as the school year started, Bodega Bros grew gradually until an article in the Michigan Daily “literally doubled” store traffic, Almulaiki says.
The breadth of made-to-order options on the deli menu has proven the primary draw (a $6.50 breakfast roll with bacon, egg, and cheese is an early hit). Their New York cooks generally know their neighborhood customers and have the menu down cold, fielding unwritten orders on the fly, he says. “You come in, you scream out what you want, and he’ll give you the nod or thumbs-up or the ‘Okay,’ and you’re good to go.” Here, he concedes, they’re still getting up to speed and working to reduce wait times.
Customers in Astoria, Queens, with Michigan ties originally encouraged him to bring a bodega to Ann Arbor, but even with its early popularity it’s proven to be a cultural adjustment. “I was trying to hand out smoothies and juices and desserts outside, and everybody was looking at me like I’m crazy. And I wasn’t expecting that. If I was doing that in New York, you know, my plate would be empty!” Almulaiki says.
“The first couple days we were open I noticed everybody was getting sandwiches, no drinks, so I’d tell them, ‘No, let me grab you something to drink from the fridge.’ The look they give me is like they’re all in shock.
“We close at two [a.m.], but if people are here, we’re not closing until everybody’s satisfied and out the door,” he emphasizes. “Like I said, man, we’re just trying to be here for the long haul.”
Bodega Bros, 715 North University. (734) 369–6495. Daily 7 a.m.–2 a.m. instagram.com/bodega_bros
