Townhouse Brings a Taste of Manhattan to Birmingham

Ask young entrepreneur Jeremy Sasson why a vintage-style key is his new Townhouse bistro's symbol and you get an impassioned reply.

"Ah yes, let me explain about the keys: I want this to be a cozy place where you feel welcome, like coming home," he begins with rapid-fire enthusiasm. "These skeleton keys on the wall represent old-style hospitality. Guests can take one in exchange for leaving an extra one of their own."

Birmingham's 12th bistro, opening Aug. 29, stands out even without knowing why an oversize gold key projects from the limestone façade at Pierce and Martin or knowing why a Townhouse Burger with fries starts at $14.

The striking, stately appearance created by Ron Rea, Birmingham's go-to restaurant designer, features bright red awnings, matching patio umbrellas, warehouse-style exposed ceilings and full-length windows overlooking and part of . "It's designed to scream," says Sasson.    

"The idea is a mix of sophistication and funky comfort," adds the 26-year-old owner, whose vision is influenced by a year living on Manhattan's lower east side after college while working in property acquisition and refinancing for a small real estate firm. "I'm thinking West (Greenwich) Village or the Meatpacking District," he adds, naming trendy New York neighborhoods.

The words "London" and "Paris" also flush out how this food industry newcomer describes the tone and atmosphere he asked Rea to create. It involves a rich red branding color ("like Barney's," a high-end Manhattan clothier), a raw feel ("butcher block edges aren't rounded so tables look rustic") and the owner's infectious zeal.

'Nowhere else in Birmingham'

"Look outside," he says near the end of a weekday afternoon, pointing at sun-splashed patio tables, the 1928 City Hall nearby, vibrant planters, a corner of the nearby park. "It's like a great outdoor Parisian scene. Nowhere else in Birmingham do you get this."    

And nowhere else here serves anything like a Townhouse Burger, ground daily from aged prime ribeye, dry-aged prime brisket and other choice steak cuts. Using "concept" in place of "food" or "dish," Sasson speaks about "the relationship between meat and fat" and is nearly rhapsodic about his signature menu item, served on a brioche from Golden Wheat bakery in Hamtramck.        

This rhapsody is plated at a steak-level price — $14 for a six-ounce burger, $19 for its 10-ounce counterpart. Want fries with that? No extra cost.

Sasson's concept is translated by executive chef Jay Gundy, lured  from , which he helped open in 2009. He previously worked at Fiddleheads in Royal Oak, as sous chef at Tribute in Farmington Hills and at Forte in Birmingham. "He developed our version of comfort foods with flair," the owner says. "It's 100 percent everything I'd like to eat."

Seven-day lunch and dinner menus, unavailable when Patch visited, will include a fresh lobster roll, braised brisket with meatloaf filler and other items with "hot, fresh all-American Detroit flavor," as Townhouse promotions put it. The boss estimates entrees will average $21-$22 at dinner and $10-$12 for lunch.

Chicken sliders on waffle

A limited bar menu in late afternoon will offer "some funky things," Sasson says, such as a fried chicken patty on a waffle. Weekend brunch starts at 8 a.m. or 9 a.m. — hey, it's shakeout week — and features jalapeno-cheddar biscuits among other kick-starters.  

Sasson, tall and muscular, projects a business-like polish that seems unusual for someone just four years out of the University of Miami, where he earned a degree in finance and entrepreneurship after growing up in Bloomfield Hills and graduating from Detroit Country Day in 2003. He has worked as director of acquisitions for Solomon Investment Co. in Farmington Hills, founded in 1984 by his father, Enriko.

The new venture, which has taken a year to develop, has family investment support.

The first-time restaurateur is supported by general manager Penny Zywick, the original manager at Forte in Birmingham, and by assistant manager Nick Scott, part of the leadership team at for the past eight years.

Sasson is a hands-on owner who this month closely monitored contractors installing a dramatic red awning and other fixtures — sometimes injecting comments that could be taken as suggestions or corrections, depending on the listener's temperament.

The high-energy entrepreneur, whose day starts by 6 a.m. at the latest, is a walking example of the slogan on Birmingham's website and publications: "A Walkable Community." He lives at the , a few blocks from his bistro, and works out daily in town at or , a spinning studio. "I need an hour to myself," says Sasson, who is single and also stays trim with salad lunches. 

Bar-cam to feed online 'Photo Booth'

A self-described perfectionist ("I set high expectations for myself"), Sasson will open his restaurant while its website has just a landing page. "I don't want to launch until every page is where I want it," he explains. "There'll be nothing generic — no stock photos, just shots of our dishes by a professional foot photographer."

A leading-edge "Photo Booth"-feature online will show images snapped periodically by a webcam above the 10-seat bar. Patrons choosing to sync a social media profile with the site will be tagged by name automatically with face-recognition software.

The reality in Birmingham's business community is that not everyone welcomes another bistro. Townhouse is the 12th since city commissioners in 2007 agreed to add up to two yearly for street-level charm and pedestrian appeal downtown. (Bistros must have seasonal sidewalk seating, a full-service kitchen and no more than 65 inside seats.)

Owners of larger restaurants and other retailers are among those with reservations that aren't the kind made with a hostess.

"There sure are a lot of them," owner Bill Roberts remarked last week, adding: "I'd rather not comment further."

'We need to be cautious'

When planning commissioners early this year reviewed site plans for now under construction on South Old Woodward, Roberts told them: "We need to be cautious what this does to the town in a general sense."

And at a Principal Shopping District Board meeting in February, clothing boutique owner Cheryl Daskas commented on the bistros' spread. "Where do the soft goods go," she asked. "I don't want to have Birmingham become an entertainment district."

At the , by contrast, president Joe Bauman sees overall benefits. "There is no question the bistro ordinance has enhanced downtown Birmingham’s image as a premier dining destination in Southeast Michigan," he says, commenting on the newcomer. "There never has been a greater variety of cuisines and price points."

Bauman notes that "the market will decide" if a saturation point is reached. "It does place pressure on all of the restaurants to provide top-notch food and service to keep their customer base growing," he acknowledges, "which ultimately benefits the consumer."

Sasson, who earned , is nonplussed by doubters.

"We bring people downtown, which helps everyone," he says. "This, to me, epitomizes what the city wants under the (bistro) ordinance — a local owner, small footprint and a design that accentuates the outside and fits the neighborhood."

Hours before that interview, he earned a verbal thumb-up from city Planning Director Jana Ecker. "It's really impressive," she said during a final site check.

Pierce pedestrian promenade idea

Ideally, Sasson would like his stretch of Pierce to be a traffic-free street, much like Lincoln Road in Miami Beach or the Fourth Street Promenade in Santa Monica, CA — high-profile tourist destinations with cafes, shops, street musicians and a festive feel.              

While that seems an unlikely vision, the 100-200 block of Pierce is emerging as somewhat of a restaurant row or cocktail corridor. Townhouse is the strip's fifth dining-drinking site, joining Streetside, and two bistros – and . In other development activity, a national boutique called is renovating an anchor spot at Maple and Pierce. 

Sasson bought retail spaces in the residential building that was vacated several years ago by a women's clothier, Post Couture, and Simply Wine, now in Willits Alley. "We've totally renovated both areas and opened them up," he says. Passersby can see Gundy and sous chef Chris Tietz at the stove or counter in what used to be the wine shop, and also look into the corner restaurant.

Meals detour outside briefly between kitchen and unconnected dining room, hand-carried in red thermal boxes with room for two or four entrees. "Food runners" are under copies for most of the short trip, though gloves and wool hats could be part of their uniforms in certain months.     

For the imaginative proprietor, that unusual relay run is part of Townhouse's distinctiveness — and the street theater on Pierce.