After an absence of several decades, Dunkin’ is returning to Ann Arbor with a double play, as it completes sequential build-outs in two vintage corner storefronts downtown.
Long known as Dunkin’ Donuts, it shortened its name in recent years with its pivot to a more beverage-focused brand, according to Mandy Ristic, operating partner for Keego Harbor–based OM Group, whose holdings include thirty-three other Dunkin’ franchises in southeast Michigan.
“Donuts are still a really big part of all of this, but our espresso has taken off,” Ristic says. “It’s one of the biggest drivers.” Tap systems are a key feature of their new store designs. “It’s such a good draw when you walk in because all of your iced coffee, your iced tea, your cold brew is all right there where you can see it, and it’s fresh.”
The newly opened store at E. Liberty and S. Fourth Ave. was most recently the Cloverleaf Restaurant, which operated there from 1993 to 2021. Its owner, George Stamadianos, has since purchased another diner, the Saline Inn.
Prior to the Cloverleaf, it had been Cafe Alfonso, a more upscale successor to Bill’s Coffee Cup, which itself opened in 1962 as Mallis Coffee Cup.
Ristic says renovations revealed an “amazing” original tin ceiling and crown moldings, parts of which will now be visible in the lobby. “It was actually in pretty good condition.”
Their contractors will now turn their attention to the corner of S. State and E. William, with hopes of a spring opening in the former Jimmy John’s sandwich shop across from the Diag.
Ristic says that a 2020 Change.org petition advocating for a campus-area Dunkin’ caught the company’s attention. Amassing more than 1,500 signatures, it revealed strong brand loyalty, particularly among students from the Northeast, where Dunkin’ originated in 1950 and maintains a concentrated presence.
“The fact that we found Liberty St. to be a good viable space—and then we found State St. not that far behind—it’s kind of exciting that now two are gonna be popping up, when for like seven years we’ve been trying to figure out Ann Arbor,” she enthuses.
Ristic believes that Dunkin’s affordability, convenience, and delivery options will also appeal to a broader downtown customer base. With no drive-thrus or on-site parking, the new stores will “really have to rely on our digital and mobile skills to get the product out, and fast.” She also notes, with a hint of pleasure, the recent closure of the Starbucks at S. Main and W. Liberty. A block west of their newly opened Dunkin’, that corner storefront, back in the 1960s, was once a Dunkin’ Donuts itself.
Dunkin’, 201 E. Liberty. Daily 5 a.m.–8 p.m. dunkindonuts.com
