IT HAD TO happen sometime. Marquette’s most lovable restaurateur, Aoy LaChapelle, is giving up her duties as chef and manager at the Rice Paddy. Friday was her last day. “I’m 65!!” she tells you…If we’re lucky, though, the little restaurant on Presque Isle won’t miss a beat. Nang, who’s also Thai, has been training with Aoy for the last year and will now take charge of the restaurant….The menu stays essentially the same. Just don’t expect to hear “Hey, girlfriend!!!” when you walk in the door.
And Aoy in retirement? She’ll do dinner parties as a private chef and teach cooking classes.
The timing is perfect. Her husband, Greg Trick, retires from TV6 at the end of this week. For more than 30 years, he’s been the cool, professional evening anchor at the station. Never lost his temper, got his facts straight, served as an ideal role model for the young journalists….He coulda moved to a larger market years ago to make more money. But no, he fell in love with Aoy and stayed in Marquette.
Construction underway on the top floor of the Landmark Inn. The once famous Crow’s Nest will be revived with the merging of the Sky Room and the Northstar Lounge. Best view in town…Should be open in late summer. New cocktail menu and light bites for those who want a bird’s eye view of the sun setting gracefully over the Lake and the town.
And the long-closed-down restaurant downstairs at the Landmark (Piedmont, Capers, etc)? Plans underway for that, but not publicly disclosed yet.
Expansion at Everyday Wines. They’re taking over an adjacent space at what’s been Ann Russ Ceramics. Knocking out a wall…More wines, more specialty beers (they’ve got stuff nobody else in town has), and more specialty foods. Could be a foodie’s delight.
The Zephyr wine bar, owned by the same Everyday Wine folks, should be re-opening within a few weeks. And big changes, we’re told, are coming to the downstairs section at the Zephyr. Again, could be a foodie’s delight.
And the Steinhaus? We’ve missed you bigtime. Also expected to open later this month.
Sure seems like the town is coming back to life, doesn’t it?
But wait, there’s more! The Third Street Marketplace (the former Valle’s on Third Street) is reawakening. The Fish Express food truck opens Monday, the Ultimate Sandwich truck follows in two weeks…Cognition, the brewery now under construction, probably won’t be ready for thirsty customers until late this this year….Also to come if things work out—a pie shop, a pizza café, and an “entertainment” venue--whatever that means. Marketplace developer Joe Constance is playing coy.
Oh, and in the Marketplace parking lot this summer, outdoor music! That’s the plan, at least.
Consider Lakeshore Bikes owner Mark Calcaterra both surprised and pleased. “This March was our biggest grossing month ever in 33 years,” he says. The pandemic got lots of us out of our houses and onto bikes, and we’re apparently still in the mood for pedalling….The stock of available bikes is still low but getting better…And yeah, e-bikes—for those of us who need a little boost—are increasingly popular.
Our resident sunrise-watcher Bugsy Sailor hasn’t needed a boost. He’s now at 850-plus and counting. More than 850 mornings in a row, he’s gotten up to photograph the sunsets, through snow and rain and winds and clouds and extreme cold. “I love the routine. It brings me joy,” he explains. Craziness, eccentricity. A Marquette treasure. The world needs more Bugsys.
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You don't get up to photograph sunsets. Should be sunrise.