Opa!!!!
Kalamazoo’s Taverna Ouzos: A local version of a
big city joint
By Matthew Downey
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to a friend
“We wanted to establish a place for family and
friends to gather and relax, offer upbeat music and quality food and
drinks at reasonable prices,” Taverna Ouzos owner, Elizabeth
Adams
Inside the doors of this quaint downtown Kalamazoo storefront lives a
unique hangout that offers great food, music and spirits. For those
who come from a larger city, or for folks who visit cities like Chicago,
Cleveland or New York, you’ll find that Taverna Ouzos is a local
version of a big city joint.
“Our goal was to create a relaxing restaurant with a big city
atmosphere,” explains Steve Adams, Taverna Ouzos manager. Steve
is the son of the Adams family, a Greek immigrant entrepreneurial family
that has been in the restaurant business since the early 1900s. The family
owns and operates Taverna Ouzos and Coney Island Hot Dog next door.
The Adams family matriarch, Elizabeth Adams, further explains their
goal for the Ouzos establishment, “We wanted to establish a place
for family and friends to gather and relax, offer upbeat music and quality
food and drinks at reasonable prices. We didn’t want it to be too
loud or smoky like most bars and restaurants.”
Vintage Interior
As I enter Ouzos main entrance, “big city” is my first impression.
Immediately I feel like I am hanging out in Chicago’s Lincoln Park
or Old Town.
The original brick walls are all exposed and stained glass accents adorn
the interior. The visual focus of the décor culminates with a
beautiful tiffany-style lamp on back of the bar. “We looked in
magazines for interior photos of 1920’s bars and restaurants; this
is how we put together the décor,” Steve continues.
The gorgeous bar is enough of a conversation piece in-and-of itself.
A local woodworking artist, Rock Bartley, handcrafted the bar. “It
took him thirteen months to hand carve the wood structure and to lay
the granite bar-top,” Steve points out.
Delightful oil paintings, all of subjects that express life in the roaring
1920’s, compliment the rest of the interior and complete this vintage,
urban setting.
Mediterranean specialties
Taverna Ouzos features delightful and popular Mediterranean dishes. I
had to admit to Steve that I am a particular fan of Greek cuisine.
He replied, “Everything is homemade, it’s the best Greek
food in town. The recipes all belong to my mom’s family that
she brought with her when she immigrated from Greece.”
The Greek specialties are offered for dinner on Thursdays, Fridays and
Saturdays. A sampling includes the following:
Saganaki, $5.95.
Opa! I can’t think of a better way to describe
this dish other than “flaming cheese”. Saganaki is the perfect
addition to any celebration. “Customers love the Saganaki,” Elizabeth
Adams tells me. This dish is brandy marinated kasseri cheese, lightly
floured and sautéed. It is served with toasted Sarkozy’s
bread.
Spanakopitta, $8.95.
This dish translates in English as “spinach
pie”. This is a personal favorite dish of mine on the standard
Greek menu. And Elizabeth Adam’s family recipe is to die for! The
filling is spinach with feta cheese, eggs and spices layered in phyllo
dough. It is baked until golden brown. It is served with rice topped
with a tomato sauce.
Soujoukakia, $9.95.
Fresh ground beef Greek meatballs blended with herbs
and spices. Baked to perfection in tomato sauce and then served with
garlic seasoned mashed potatoes and sautéed zucchini.
Other notable menu items include: Crab Cakes ($6.50), Gyro Dinner ($7.95),
Smoked Salmon Sandwich ($8.95), Greek Salad ($6.95) and Blue Cheese Burger
($7.25).
For dessert, the homemade Baklava shouldn’t be overlooked!
 Spirits: mixed, poured, or on tap
There are 12 specialty
beers on tap and another 28 offered in bottles -- 40 different beers
offered at all times. A few of the favorites include:
Framboise Belgium “Rasberry Lambric” Ale (tap), Bells Oberon
Ale (tap), Corsendonk Abbey Pale Ale (tap), Samuel Smith Oatmeal Stout
(bottle), and Strongbow Cider (can).
“ Clients are always telling us that we have the best beer list
in town,” Steve Adams claims.
Martinis are definitely the specialty, however. There are 26 different
Martini flavors and the shakers shake all night long as customers sample
from the exotic selection. A pleasing wine list is also available.
Upbeat Music
On the entertainment front, Ouzos is definitely making a name for itself
as a place for upbeat music. On Fridays a collection of blues, jazz
and/or reggae is presented and on Saturdays a unique offering of House
music, mostly out of Chicago, is featured.
 Ouzo’s is one of the only, if not the only, place locally that
a House Head (one who loves House Music) can go to hear DJs spin the
real stuff live. Steve Adams contracts most of the DJs from Chicago’s
Soundsource.com. These events occur on Saturdays from 10:00 PM – 2:00
AM and feature expert house DJs spinning and mixing on turntables. In
recent weeks, the DJ’s have brought live musicians to jam with
the beats and tunes. Saturday nights at Ouzos are called, Bump Café.
For more information and a listing of special events, visit www.bumpcafe.com.
Family History
The neatest part of interviewing Steve Adams and his mother, Elizabeth,
was the impressive history this family has had in the Kalamazoo community.
The family embodies all that we understand the “American dream” to
be.
In the early 1900s, Steve’s grandfather, a Greek immigrant, owned
a formal dining restaurant, Hub Café which was located in the
Old Kent Bank Building (currently, Fifth Third) downtown. As the depression
came about, the local economy couldn’t support such an establishment.
His grandfather closed the Hub and, in 1929, bought Coney Island Hot
Dogs, also located downtown.
“This was his answer to operating a restaurant during the depression – six
hot dogs for twenty-five cents,” Steve tells me. “Some of
Coney Island’s current customers have been eating at Coney Island
now for up to sixty years.”
Both Elizabeth and Steve report that they frequently get special requests
for hot dogs to be shipped all over the world. “I’ve packaged
and sent hot dogs to Boston, New York, Texas, Colorado…to name
a few…and Greenland, of all places,” Steve exclaimed.
Elizabeth adds, “One time a woman called from Florida. She explained
that her father was on his deathbed. He had one last request before he
passed: to eat at least three Coney Island Chili Dogs from Kalamazoo.
She told me, ‘I’ll pay whatever it takes to get 3 chili dogs
shipped here.’ And I told her, ‘Under these circumstances,
I will ship the hot dogs at no charge!’ Can you believe it!?”
According to Ms. Adams, people who travel to Kalamazoo regularly, for
multitudes of reasons, often treat Coney Island as their tradition when
they are in town.
A bright future
Now in business for 3 years, Ouzos has made a definite splash with local
bar hoppers and foodies. As a particular fan of House music and Greek
food, I couldn’t be happier with what Ouzos offers.
There is talk of expanding the menu, offering more entrees and, perhaps,
some vegetarian selections. Elizabeth explains, “This takes time
to plan and then put on the menu. Our aim is to serve excellence. We
are only interested in doing things right.”
That being said, loyal Southwest Michigan fans of great Greek cuisine,
such as me, will simply have to be patient. In the meantime we will eat
as much Saganaki, Spanakopitta, and Soujoukakia as Elizabeth Adams and
her crew can make.
Taverna Ouzos
266 E. Michigan Ave., downtown Kalamazoo
(269) 373-6878
Hours:
Tuesday: 4:00 PM – 11:00 PM
Wednesday: 4:00 PM – 11:00 PM
Thursday: 4:00 PM – midnight
Friday: 4:00 PM – 2:00 AM
Saturday: 4:00 PM – 2:00 AM
Greek cuisine is served on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays from 5:00PM
to close.
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