Another day, another car wash coming

Good morning and happy Thursday!

I’m a sucker for a good story and, last week, I found a good one.

Photojournalist Gary He photographed and wrote a story about a restaurant’s perseverance and endurance during the pandemic. I know that we’re all likely to be a bit burned out with pandemic-related stories (and trust me, I find myself in that boat from time to time) but this story, imagery and interactive design about a Vietnamese restaurant on New York City’s Lower East side sparks inspiration.

In addition to learning and writing about all of the latest South Bend-area’s food and shopping news, I also LOVE to read and watch all kinds of food and retail stories. I could (and have) watched hours of food documentaries (any Chef’s Table fans out there?) and read story after story about trends, narratives and the history of consumerism.

So, if you ever find a food or shopping story that made you go ‘wow’ or ‘huh, that’s weird,’ please send it my way.

Onto the shopping and eating news

🥞 A couple of weeks ago, I reported that popular breakfast and lunch restaurant Uptown Kitchen was about to get some new owners and we now know who. Quality Dining Inc. is known for owning and operating area Burger Kings and Papa Vino’s Italian Kitchen and purchased Uptown Kitchen for an undisclosed price. The vice president in operations said the company has no plans to change Uptown’s fresh-forward food menu but may eventually plan to expand catering services, refresh the aesthetic and utilize the space for more private events.

🌮 Fiesta Tapatia has opened its doors at its new location in the former Charming Charlie space at Heritage Square. You may remember that the local Mexican restaurant closed its location on Main Street and McKinley Avenue after the building was sold and demolished to make way for a gas station. Owners initially planned to open in the new space by December, but equipment delivery delays pushed back an opening date. The restaurant officially opened last week.

Story continues

🍤 Also on the move is Manjares de Mexico. The family-owned restaurant relocated from Town and Country Shopping Centre to Roseland and is now open in the former Mikado Japanese building. Owners said they wanted a space that had more traffic and have renovated the building to fit their family-owned restaurant’s needs. Menu options still feature popular items like tacos, burritos and shrimp cocktails and, on the weekends, American breakfast will be available.

🌯 El Rancho Viejo has opened its third location, this time at 1109 S. 11th St., in Niles. The regional restaurant chain opened locations in Goshen and Mishawaka last year and has plans to open a downtown South Bend in the next month-and-a-half.

🚗 And perhaps to no one’s surprise, South Bend may soon be getting another car wash this time on the northwest side of town. Subscribers can find out who and where the new business is planning to construct its location. (And, hint, it’s not a Drive and Shine.)

As always, if you see or hear of anything you would like me to look into, you can reach me at [email protected] or at any of the social media platforms linked at the end of this newsletter.

Other local news this week I found interesting that you may, too

Development in Michigan City: Developer has big plans for boutique hotel, condos, public art ($)

Weed boom: Marijuana prices likely to keep falling in Niles, Buchanan and other Michigan towns

Pet of the Week: Give Tiger the perfect anniversary gift – a home with you!

Indiana one of most polluted states: New report says legislature gets a D+ on green bills.

Thanks for reading and if you enjoy seeing this newsletter every week, encourage your friends to sign up here!

Cheers friends 🍺
Mary

Still want to know more of Michiana’s eating and shopping news? Keep up to date by checking out the Market Basket website, ‘liking’ the column’s Facebook page and follow me on Twitter at @maryshownSBT or @marketbasketSBT.

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You can also contact me at 574-235-6244 (make sure you leave a message because I’m still partly working from home and the messages go straight to my email) and at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Market Basket newsletter March 24 2022