Detroit Dog Co. closed its doors in downtown Saline in early April but will soon open two new venues and a food truck. “All three are in the works,” says owner Catrina Vlisides, reached by phone, her seven-month-old baby boy chortling in the background. “Exciting things are happening,” Vlisides wrote in an email the day before. Her new baby tops that list, keeping Vlisides on her toes.
“It was a tough decision,” Vlisides says when asked about closing the Saline store. “I’d been planning to expand the concept all along,” she says. She’d already begun work on a Royal Oak location and was researching finding a food truck. She found one in Boston. “It’s getting built out as we speak,” she confirms on the phone. When an opportunity to open in Detroit came up, it felt like a sign.
Her passion for Detroit and its food is inspired by her grandfather, who emigrated from Greece in 1919 and opened a restaurant for GM workers in Detroit. Detroit Dog Co. will be one of several upscale street food restaurants opening in the 10,000-square-foot Detroit Shipping Co. venue steps away from the new Red Wings arena under construction just north of downtown Detroit.
Vlisides is hoping the Royal Oak restaurant will open by the end of July or early August. For updates, including a colorful rendering of the Fifth Avenue Royal Oak location, follow Detroit Dog Co. on Facebook.
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Main Street Coins & Collectibles closed its doors at 108 E. Michigan in downtown Saline at the end of the year. Attempts to reach owner Bill Ortell were unsuccessful. The space is already home to a new AAA of Michigan office. And Oxygen Plus closed its Ann Arbor St. shop in November. They’ve relocated to Clinton Township.