Jake's Place Serves Up Hot, Homemade Meals in Dexter

One of Dexter's longtime eateries is getting a major overhaul.

On Sept. 19, Ann Arbor resident Bart Aniolczyk opened the doors to Jake's Place, a new diner specializing in homemade southern Polish cuisine. The restaurant is located at 8050 Main St., the former location of .

Chef Aniolczyk purchased the kitchen equipment from Hazel's owner Denise Livingston, who announced her plan to retire earlier this summer. Aniolczyk and his mother, Krystyna, received approval from the village council in August to lease the building for two years.

"We are revamping the place," Aniolczyk said. "I'm adding a menu that combines authentic old world European style with some southern flair."

Along with a new menu that includes Aniolczyk's signature turkey stroganoff, goulash and German beef rouladen, he plans to revamp the interior and exterior of the building.

"Something about it is not resonating with me," he said. "We want to add benches outside and give the inside a more bluesy feel, with music playing for our customers. There's a lot of potential at this location."

Aniolczyk said unlike Hazel's, which rotated its menu offerings, for now he plans to keep one menu with the same items for lunch and dinner.

"The old menu was too complicated with a lot of overhead," he said. "I want to keep it simple but high quality."

Other items on the menu include smoked salmon with griddle cakes, Hawaiian stuffed chicken, pulled pork sandwiches, handmade pierogi and Texas chicken chilli along with an assortment of handmade desserts.

Aniolczyk has grown up around the kitchen most of his life working alongside his mother, who operated Amadeus restaurant in Ann Arbor for 20 years.

"Cooking comes naturally for me," he said. "I know I have a phenomenal product. I know how to arrange flavors to create something customers enjoy. There's a science behind it. You can't just walk into a restaurant and say, 'I want to cook.' You either have it or you don't."

Aniolczyk acknowledges he can sometimes come across as arrogant, but, he said having confidence in what you cook is a trait he picked up from his role model, Gordon Ramsey.

"I want to live up to Gordon Ramsey's kitchen standards and maybe one day he'll come visit the restaurant in Dexter," Aniolczyk said.

Aniolczyk is such a fan of Ramsey's, the thought of audiitioning for Fox's reality cooking show Hell's Kitchen crossed his mind once or twice.

"It would be an honor to work alongside Chef Ramsey," he said.

However, with a background in technology and patent research, owning a restaurant wasn't always in the cards, he said.

"I have another business that focuses on patent development, but it's been a little slower going, so when this opportunity in Dexter came around, I got an investor and we're all pretty excited."

For now, Aniolczyk runs the restaurant by himself, putting in 80 hours a week but plans to hire an assistant chef in the future.

The resturant will be open Tuesdays through Fridays from 11:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Saturdays from noon to 5:30 p.m. The restaurant is closed Sunday and Monday. Lunch costs $7.50 and dinners will sell for $9.50. Saturdays will typically be designated a chef's choice grill day, offering beef brisket, barbecue ribs, bratwurst or Polish sausage.

For more information or to request a menu, call 734-426-3663.