The morning of December 5, Acadia Mercer knew something was wrong when her longtime boss and friend, Terry Lahner, didn’t show up to run the grill at Izzy’s Hoagie Shop. The duo formed the core of the westside lunch spot, which had been Lahner’s life’s work since high school.
Mercer immediately drove to Lahner’s house. His car was there, but he didn’t answer his door or phone. She called 911, and police found Lahner deceased. He was fifty-two; the cause hadn’t been released at press time, but Mercer says, “It wasn’t a big episode or something; it was like he just dropped dead.”
The personal tragedy briefly left in limbo the fate of the eatery, best known for its Philly-style cheese-steak. Lahner’s family bought the business in 1989 from founder and namesake Alan Israel, a now-retired local public official. The small establishment had amassed considerable loyalty, and Lahner and Mercer knew many by name and their favorite orders.
Lahner hired Mercer ten years ago, offering $2.50 more an hour, plus tips, than she was making at the bustling Subway at Mott Children’s Hospital. She was nineteen and, by her own admission, wasn’t the best employee—just “a punkass kid” two years into addiction recovery. But she could multitask, “and I got really good at making sandwiches really fast.”
When the store’s manager unexpectedly left town, Mercer’s role instantly expanded. “The amount of responsibility that that took to step up and figure all that out on my own—it completely changed my role at Izzy’s and my relationship with Terry. We had people come and go over the years, but Terry and I always had each other, and we always knew we could rely on each other.”
With the help of a friend as a silent partner, she’s now taken ownership from Terry’s mother, Carolyn Shields Lahner, who now lives in Alpena. The price was essentially the cost of the inventory.
Izzy’s reopened on January 8. Sam Lippert is managing the kitchen while Mercer has resumed her post at the counter. An Izzy’s lover since childhood, Lippert reached out with a heartfelt offer before she’d even begun to look for someone to take over the grill. “I absolutely loved him right off the bat,” she says, “I was like, ‘He reminds me of Terry’ … He definitely was the perfect choice.”
A new website and point-of-sale system now allow for online ordering; DoorDash delivery is in the offing. With help from two other employees, Mercer has reopened the dining area for the first time since 2020, giving her more opportunity to interact with customers.
“I just saw the literal thousands of people reaching out about how much Izzy’s meant to them and how much it would just be terrible to lose it,” she says. “And it kind of made me realize it’s just as much the people as it was Terry—that is why I love Izzy’s so much.”
Izzy’s Hoagie Shop, 1924 W. Stadium Blvd. (734) 994–1235. Mon.–Fri. 10:30 a.m.–4 p.m., Sat. 10:30 a.m.–3 p.m. Closed Sun. izzyshoagies.com
