Garfield Inn getting new restaurant - Port Austin, MI - News Article Locations on Waymarking.com

News article text:
With plenty of Port Austin establishments undergoing management changes or changing to something new, the Garfield Inn is the latest to get a change.

A new restaurant called Catbird is in the works for the bottom floor of the historic Port Austin building with its owner having plenty of restaurant experience.

A Philadelphia native, Mindy Lopus attended the Culinary Institute of America and owned two restaurants in Birmingham, Michigan — Lulu and Bella Piatti — and one in Grosse Pointe Park, before selling them 10 years ago. She has also done consulting work for the Detroit restaurant Shewolf and the Frankenmuth restaurant Prost.

Lopus’ husband came to Port Austin for years, having owned a cottage in the area and bringing his kids to the area as they grew up. After they got married, Lopus sold her restaurants, and the couple was ready to buy a lakefront property. They decided to look around the entire state first before deciding on Port Austin, where they built a house five years ago. The couple plans on retiring in the area, with Lopus deciding that she wanted to work on another restaurant.

“I grew up on the east coast, so I was used to, if you want to go to the beach, it’s a two-hour drive,” Lopus said. “If you want to go to the Poconos in the mountains, it’s a two-hour drive. So we really wanted to stay somewhere close so that we could be here as much as possible.”

The Garfield Inn, also known as the Charles G. Learned House, which is on the National Register of Historic Places, has operated as a bed and breakfast up to last season. A proper restaurant has not been in the building for at least 10 years.

It is now owned by Todd Murawski, the owner of Bird Creek Farms and current Port Austin village president, who reached out to Lopus about taking over the space. She will lease the space from Murawski. Apart from one bride who had her booking delayed from last year, the guest rooms will not be used this year due to renovation work, but hopes are they will reopen for next year.

The name Catbird comes from the first time Lopus visited some friends in Port Austin and checked the Garfield Inn out. She pointed out how this building sat on a hill, in the catbird seat of Port Austin, where it looks over the community.

“It just kind of felt like a fun name for something not so traditional,” Lopus said.

The food planned for Catbird would take advantage of the local produce and organic meat of the area, with Lopus saying it would be American with a little bit of a Mediterranean twist. There will be fish, chicken, pork, and steak recipes, with homemade pastas along with some brunch options.

Interior work has been ongoing for the past three weeks, with the goal of having everything ready by the beginning of June. This includes redoing the bar area, cleaning up the kitchen and adding equipment to it, updating the bathrooms, and stripping off the wallpaper to help refresh the place.

“The décor will be kind of modern Victorian versus traditional Victorian, so it’ll have some softer edges and not be so ornate,” Lopus said.

While Lopus plans to be open in time for when tourists come to Port Austin, she is aware the Garfield Inn has a lot of memories for Port Austin residents and wants to honor them.

The Port Austin community is already embracing the new restaurant before it opens, with Lopus saying that when she first posted about it on Facebook, she thinks she received more likes or comments than on any other post she had done.

“I’m just really excited to be part of the community and to contribute to any type of growth I can, and become a good neighbor,” Lopus said.

Type of publication: Internet Only When was the article reported?: 04/26/2022 Publication: Huron Daily Tribune Article Url: [Web Link] Is Registration Required?: no How widespread was the article reported?: local News Category: Entertainment

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