Déjà Food: East-Side Café Stories

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I grew up in the 1950s on the east side with my native Detroiter parents. We visited great eateries, from Roma Café and Cadieux Café to the long-departed Little Café on Gratiot near Six Mile Road. What a delightful, old German restaurant that even had bowling lanes attached! It was presided over by a dear lady named Anna and her husband who did the cooking. Looking back, I wish I would have appreciated the authentic German food more; however, I did learn to love steak tartare there! (Editor’s note: The way one waitress rolled her “Rs” when asking “Would you like some strrrrrruedel?” made it hard to turn down dessert.) It was a special place that survived as long as possible. My aunt had her wedding dinner there in the ’80s. — Barb Gohn, Flat Rock

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