There’s something about a good recommendation that sells you on trying a place more than any fancy accolade. It’s personal, you hear exactly what makes that place great from somebody you can relate to. Well, we got a recommendation from one of our WDIV Insiders that we couldn’t ignore. They wrote in raving about Annie’s Family Restaurant so Michelle Oliver headed to Livonia to check it out for this week’s Dine in the D.
Right when you walk in you can tell it is a warm, friendly place. The staff greets the customers, frequently by name, and all the regulars have their favorite server. It’s this kind of atmosphere that owner Wail Bamieh works so hard to build.
“You want to go where you get your money’s worth, number one. You want a clean place, good service, and you want quality food, and you want recognition most,” explains Bamieh.
Bamieh has spent most of his adult life running restaurants, along with his partner Jim Morisi.
“He was a good friend of mine,” says Bamieh. “Family more than a friend.”
The other thing he mentioned about Jim, was that he was madly in love with his wife, Annie, who sadly passed away. So when Bamieh and Morisi decided to transform their old Big Boy restaurant into their own concept, Wail knew the perfect name.
“He was very lonesome without her,” explains Bamieh. “I want to do something... for him, and I figured, let’s name it Annie’s, and he was very, very, very happy.”
Jim got to see Annie’s Family Restaurant open before he too passed away in 2014. All over the restaurant, you will spy the happy couple smiling down on you.
The two love birds also influenced the menu. Annie was Polish, and Jim was Italian, and their recipes both feature on the menu. The restaurant is mostly known for its breakfast, and the Henny Penny is a very popular dish with corned beef hash topped with 3 poached eggs and hollandaise sauce. While most of the dishes are classic comfort foods, they also have items like the chicken strawberry salad with bacon and blue cheese crumbles if you are in the mood for something lighter.
Jason Bamieh, Wail’s son who is taking over the business says, “I try to do things with traditional ideas, with a progressive-minded twist.”
For the full story, watch the video above.
Annie’s Family Restaurant is located at 33427 Plymouth Road in Livonia.
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