Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity Is Hosting a Metro Detroit Restaurant Weekend

Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity hosts a metro Detroit restaurant weekend

In an effort to assist struggling area restaurants and help out a few of its alum, Phi Beta Sigma fraternity hosts a restaurant weekend, February 25 through February 27, featuring seven member-owned restaurants around metro Detroit. Restaurants participating in the weekend include Le Crepe; Kola Lounge; the Detroit Pepper Company; EastEats; EastEats2Go; BlackCloud.Kitchen; and BlackCloud.Creamery. Detroit Black Restaurant Week founder and fraternity alum Kwaku Osei-Bonsu and his company TinyDine, LLC are partnering in the weekend. [Official]

A group of Macomb County restaurant owners is suing the state

A new Macomb County restaurant association comprising of 123 bars and restaurants sued Michigan officials this week over the statewide COVID-related shutdowns and capacity limit restrictions throughout the last year, Detroit Free Press reports. The Macomb County Restaurant, Bar and Banquet Association is asking for a jury trial and over $25,000 in damages for what’s being described as “suffocating regulations” as a result of the pandemic and fines from the Michigan Liquor Control Commission for businesses caught breaking pandemic orders. Albert Addis, the attorney representing the group, alleges that under Michigan’s state constitution “the restaurant business has been taken away without ‘just compensation.’” [Freep]

The Detroit Historical Society launches a beer podcast

The Detroit Historical Society launched the first of six podcast episodes focused on the city’s beer scene. Called “Untold Detroit: Beer”, the podcast delves into the long history of brewing in Detroit, starting just before the French colonization to the present. “This podcast gives fans of Detroit history a new way to learn, and it offers the museum a new way to engage with its patrons, especially during a time of social distancing,” Seth Resler, co-founder of Michigan Podcast Productions says in a press release. People can listen to the Untold Detroit: Beer podcast on Spotify, Google Podcasts, and Apple Podcasts. [Official]

Harper Food Center destroyed in weekend fire

East side Detroit grocery store Harper Food Center was destroyed in a weekend fire. Fire crews were called to the scene just after 9 p.m. on Saturday night to find the building engulfed in flames. Dave Fornell, Deputy Fire Commissioner with the Detroit Fire Department, told WXYZ that crews did their best to save the building but the fire spread too quickly. Harper Food Center was known for offering fresh, affordable food and produce to area residents, many of whom walked to the store to shop. [WXYZ]