Non-Profit Fosters Growth for Diverse Oakland County Restaurants

By Eddie Allen

Gregory DasGupta was scouting new territory.

A long-time culinary professional with titles including executive chef and sous-chef, along with stints at Greektown Casino and Detroit Yacht Club, he wanted to venture out on his own. DasGupta’s wife Millicent recalls days when Gregory left his job at a popular Novi venue to spend afternoons in search of a location for their new restaurant.

“We had been looking in Southfield because we lived in Southfield and we knew we liked the community and wanted to stay in the area,” she says.

By 2015 the DasGuptas had staked out the venue that would become their base of operations: Dimitri’s Pancake House on Southfield Road near Twelve Mile. Just weeks later they reopened as Southfield Pancake House, specializing in breakfast, brunch, lunch, and Southern-style specialties: “Creamy Cajun Grits,” seafood omelets, along with soup, sandwiches and salads all highlight the menu.

The couple’s nine-year foray into entrepreneurship has added to a diverse landscape of Oakland County restaurants, cafés, and bars. With support from Oakland Thrive, several other culinary establishments have also begun enjoying various levels of success.

“People love it because they can taste that everything is made from scratch and fresh to order,” Millicent says of the restaurant’s menu.

Whether the cuisine is savory, home-style meals or sweet pastries, Oakland Thrive’s goal is to help culinary brands like Southfield Pancake House grow in Oakland County. Offering free consulting, attorney, accounting, education, and marketing assistance, Oakland Thrive is dedicated to helping small and disadvantaged businesses—particularly minority, women- and veteran-owned—develop and prosper. Oakland Thrive was established in March 2023.

“Whether a business owner is new to the market or more experienced, we find that there’s almost always some level of expertise or need that can be addressed by Oakland Thrive’s network of resources and professional consultants,” says Tracey Williams, Southfield Small Business Consultant at Oakland Thrive.

Oakland Thrive no-cost services include one-on-one consulting, training sessions, workshops, and resource fairs and more are available to qualifying women-, minority-, veteran-, and LGBTQ-owned enterprises based in Oakland County. The non-profit initiative was funded with federal American Rescue Plan dollars, with the goal to help level the playing field for businesses that were struggling during the pandemic.

“The culinary industry has been a key area of Oakland Thrive’s mission to help sustain underserved entrepreneurs from all areas of business in accomplishing their goals,” adds Vicki Selva, Oakland Thrive CEO. “Independent restaurants are an important part of the character and value of a neighborhood. They reflect the uniqueness and diversity of a community and drive cultural awareness and unity.”

As the downtown Detroit area continues to attract interest from new culinary brands and restaurant investors at a steady rate, surrounding Oakland County communities have become increasingly important to the region. Entrepreneurs and developers on the lookout for viable business space have begun exploring affordable areas outside the boundaries of downtown.

Lillie Bell’s restaurant co-owner Clarice Jordan found a location at the New Abbey Liquor Store in Southfield four years ago, expanding from a catering service to a profitable carryout. Despite the onset of the pandemic, which shut down much of the restaurant industry, Jordan says Lillie Bell’s developed its brand and attracted patrons, largely due to statewide restrictions on in-store dining.

“Business actually picked up,” Jordan says. “The pandemic did the opposite for us.”

Named in honor of her husband Dionne’s late grandmother, who was a talented cook, Jordan says Lillie Bell’s has developed a steady clientele that places between 60 and 100 daily orders of items like catfish, macaroni and cheese, strawberry-banana pudding and the “Gimme All You Got” loaded baked potato.

Lillie Bell’s catered for an Oakland Thrive luncheon and has received support from Oakland Thrive in managing the restaurant’s website. The assistance is appreciated as Lillie Bell’s continues pursuing the vision that began when Jordan, her son, and daughter all worked at a General Motors call center, and catering was a side job, Jordan says.

“The kitchen was getting out of control, messy, and I was the one-woman cleanup crew,” she says.

Like the DasGuptas in their search for a home to open Southfield Pancake House, Jordan eventually found the space for her business in Southfield. Lillie Bell’s location had previously been occupied by another carryout inside New Abbey Liquor Store.

“I called my daughter and said, ‘Chanae, I found us a spot!’” Jordan recalls, laughing. “I hadn’t talked to the owner; I hadn’t asked anybody. I just kept calling and calling the store until they said, ‘OK.’”

While Dionne and Chanae flexed their culinary muscles and made the recipes, Jordan says she focused on tasks like marketing, eventually securing appearances on Fox 2 News, which helped spread the word about their opening. The family-owned business has since grown into a staff of 12.

Oakland County, particularly the Southfield Road corridor that includes retail plazas and office outlets with employees who patronize Lillie Bell’s, has been a beneficial location, adds Jordan.

“The biggest challenge that we’ve had being inside the store is that people kind of stumble across us,” she says, “but the good thing is that they find us.”

Chanae says she appreciates the positive response Lillie Bell’s has received as the community returns to its pre-pandemic options of dine-in versus carryout, which hasn’t adversely affected her family’s business.

“I like people’s reaction to the food when they really enjoy it, and, of course, all the positive feedback that comes with it,” she says.

Feedback of a different nature helped spark the vision for Rita’s Italian Ice & Frozen Custard. Co-owners Theo and Artesia Washington heeded a growing call for chilled snacks and summer treats that could be enjoyed by youth and families concerned about dairy-sensitivity and other dietary restrictions.

“There was a need,” says Artesia. “Water ice is dairy-free, and then with kids and their friends, and people around you with allergies, being able to cater to everyone becomes important.”

The Washington’s first opened a Rita’s in Farmington Hills in 2020, but they began serving customers in Lathrup Village in August of 2024. Based on the east coast, Rita’s is a 600-store, nationwide franchise. Artesia works in healthcare, and her husband Theo’s professional background includes experience at Little Caesars corporate office in Michigan. The couple really hadn’t considered going into the restaurant business, but, she says the product itself is what sold them, and the fact that water ice was relatively unknown to Oakland County residents was a bonus.

“It’s a great product,” she says, adding that the water ice ingredients are made fresh daily.

Real fruits like strawberries and lemons are used to flavor the treat, which Rita’s offers from August to November before closing each season.

“So, it’s sort of like a snow cone where you get shaved ice and you pour syrup on top of it,” adds Artesia.

For those who prefer traditional ice cream and have no dietary restrictions, Rita’s custard won’t disappoint, she says: “Ice cream is made with low-fat milk. Custard is richer and creamier because it’s made with whole milk.”

“Kosher ingredients, which expire in 90 days, are used, helping to maintain the freshness of Rita’s menu items”, Artesia says.

Though the 2024 season has nearly ended, the Washingtons have communicated with Oakland Thrive about potential support next year.

“Hopefully, Thrive will help us in launching for the grand opening,” Artesia adds.

Located at the former address of a Rapid Refill Ink shop, the addition of Rita’s adds to dining and café outlets in a small Lathrup Village strip. Artesia describes the neighborhood as a supportive atmosphere, saying, “Just in general, the people that live here want to make sure businesses thrive.”

Along with the fulfillment of operating a family business, which includes support from her 11-year-old daughter Gabrielle, Artesia says employing young people during the summer months has been a regular goal. Between the two stores, 30 students ranging from ages 15 and 16 to early 20’s have comprised the staff.

“It’s a great first job,” says the owner, “and in Farmington we even have some of the original kids who started in 2020, who are going to college now. It teaches them great interpersonal skills. We employ a lot of neighborhood kids. We really, really like the community involvement.”

Employing youth is also a focus for Millicent DasGupta at Southfield Pancake House. After initially inheriting much of the staff of Dimitri’s Pancake House, the DasGuptas rebuilt their team, which regularly includes students who attend high school nearby. “It’s not uncommon for teachers or other school staff to visit the restaurant and find themselves greeted by familiar young faces,” Millicent says. The store also hosts fundraisers that benefit youth in the community.

While the restaurant’s business has shifted from 80-percent dine-in to 80-percent carryout since the pandemic, the customer base has been consistent, she adds, despite describing Southfield Pancake House as largely “a hidden gem.”

Millicent says Oakland Thrive’s support in referring the DasGuptas to marketing resources that could help expose their brand has been appreciated.

“The way they’ve come in, sitting down with us and really having a conversation with us to find out what our needs were, was great,” she adds. “I did like the options and that there were a couple of choices to help us decide what we wanted to do.”