Evans Street Station wins contract for food service operation at U of M

Evans Street Station, the destination restaurant located in Tecumseh, is about to unveil a retreat on the University of Michigan campus. The new property, the Glass House Café, is scheduled to open this fall in Palmer Commons, the community center for the U’s Life Sciences complex. The restaurant will be open to the public and feature table service for breakfast and lunch in a seventy-seat dining room overlooking Palmer Field on the Plaza (3rd) level of the building. The space will also feature a 1200 square-foot catering kitchen and take-away counter featuring specialty coffee drinks, artisan teas, hand-rolled sushi, and much more.

Evans Street Station has been a preferred catering partner at Palmer Commons since the inception of its preferred catering program in the summer of 2006, and also caters around campus and the Ann Arbor area. Since opening in 2001, the restaurant has established a solid reputation for their farm-to-table practices, with seasonal menus featuring ingredients sourced locally whenever possible. These same philosophies will be implemented at the Glass House Café. Evans Street Station is surrounded by many farms in the area and enjoys making the most of their rural location by working closely with local growers. “It’s a beautiful thing when the farmers show up at our doorstep with freshly picked sweet corn and we’re able to serve it to our guests the same day,” said Richard Johnson, the restaurant’s owner.

Evans Street Station was selected out of several finalists to operate the property. The finalists included some of the best restaurants in Michigan. At their final presentation before being awarded the contract, the management team served a nine-course tasting menu while giving a two-hour multi-media presentation to a University appointed committee. Evans Street’s executive chef, Alan Merhar, served up dishes for the presentation including grilled Scottish salmon, assorted sushi, and portabellas with roasted red pepper, pesto and fresh mozzarella on house-baked focaccia. Merhar, whose previous haunts include the Charleston, SC, Peninsula Grill and Tribute in Farmington Hills, will oversee both the Tecumseh and Ann Arbor kitchens.

Elizabeth Kennedy, an Ann Arbor native and one of the restaurant’s partners, says diners at the Glass House can look forward to indulging in menu items such as strawberry crêpes with mascarpone and almonds or customized omelets for breakfast. For lunch, they may choose from entrées such as seared Ahi tuna with chilled soba noodles, Asian vegetables, and citrus vinaigrette, from a bevy of bountiful salads, or artisan sandwiches.
Dick Johnson said, “We’re a good fit here at Palmer Commons.” What makes a “good fit,” he was asked.

“We’re at the end of campus where they were looking for food served with distinction. We’re using local growers, serving seasonal menus with genuine hospitality... and darn good food!, he added.

Construction for the Glass House Café is planned to begin in April. Palmer Commons is located at 100 Washtenaw Ave.