The Friday f.e.e.l 

(food. e. e. l)

 Mercury Burger Bar....Not your average Bar

At first glance you may pass by the Mercury Burger Bar that sits on the corner of Michigan and 14th in Detroit’s historic Corktown. On the outside it has a 60’s rustic vibe, however you would be doing your tastebuds a disservice by not partaken in the variety of flavors that await for you inside.

Owner, Dave Steinke lived in Corktown right after he graduated from college and returned back to start this gourmet, but not fluffy burger bar. “This is a iconic location and we wanted to do something to honor the location, but we didn’t want to compete with our neighbors.” Steinke continued,”We really don’t have a lot of overlap with the other restaurants, they support us and we support them.” Supporting Detroit is a very high priority on Steinke’s list. “Most of our vendors and produce comes locally, along with most of the employees are local.”

To create the diverse menu, Steinke enlisted Chef Ariel Millan to bring life to the culinary vision. The Mercury Burger Bar has something for everyone, from burgers, hot dogs and shakes to salads, fried green tomatoes and Chardonnay. Not into Beef? No worries, their handmade turkey burger or chicken sausage can meet your palette’s need. The hours are even accommodating to every type of customer, in a month they plan to introduce a breakfast menu to add to the existing lunch, dinner and late-night menu. There are too many items to list in one review of the burger bar.

However their best-sellers consist of the S.W. (Southwest) Burger, which I had the opportunity to try. Now, I would not normally opt for a Southwest anything, but upon the persuasion of General Manager, Kimberlia I bit right into the flavors of this burger. Topped with a chorizo slider, jalapeños, muster cheese, avocado and salsa on the side, there was not any sense that was not engaged in taste as I consumed each bite.

But WAIT, it did not end there, although the S.W. Burger is Kimberlia’s favorite, Steinke’s and Chef Ariel swore by the grilled bologna sandwich. However, I was beyond full at this point, so I had the late-night menu Ring bologna Slider to see what all the praise was about. Topped with spicy mustard, red onion marmalade on a sweet roll late nights in Detroit cannot get any sweeter. Combine great food, drinks, warm ambiance and great attentive service, there was no question that the Mercury Burger Bar gets my thumbs up approval.

Visit the Mercury Burger Bar at 2163 Michigan Avenue  Detroit, MI 48216, (P) 313-964-5000, (W) www.MercuryBurgerBar.com. Hours: Monday-Sunday 11 a.m. - 2 a.m.

The Friday f.e.e.l 

(f. entertainment. e. l)

Maria Costa knows men, macho men to be exact. After selling out performances in 16 cities in six countries as well as the Kodak theatre in Hollywood, CA and other renowned venues across the West Coast. Maria Costa will now bring her Macho Men and the Women Who Love Them hit musical comedy to Detroit on July 26th at the Charles H. Wright African American Museum.

Costa has been called the Latina Lucille Ball and her talent lives up to the comparison. In her one woman show, she takes on stereotypes of several minority cultures from her latino father all the way to her a round the way hair stylist Wykisha. Costa tackles the realities in love and relationships and delivers in true comedic form.

According to Costa, she has a passion to highlight and empower more minorities, especially minority women in entertainment. Being in the audience, I could feel her passion jumping from the stage. She leaves nothing left on the floor because she give it all to her audience. Not just a performer, Costa is a savvy business woman who has just launched a Michigan office for her entertainment company, Oro Entertainment. Detroit, be on the lookout for this rising star that is making waves not only for minorities by race, but also making a name in business empowering women.

The Friday f.e.e.l 

(f. e. e. lifestyle)

Have you ever had the midday blahs? The blahs that consist of the same tuna sandwich for lunch, same radio station and same routines. If so, get ready to break your lunchtime routine. Welcome the cure to your midday blues: Ramona Prater and The F’Club Radio Show.

Ramona Prater is Detroit’s daughter of radio and she’s back with her club of f’ers as she calls them. “The F’Club radio show is all about the fabulous life of your forties, fifties into forever. It’s a magazine show about lifestyle.” Prater said. “We talk about every issue, from fitness, flirting, family, finance, friends and much more.”

Ramona is no stranger to the roller-coaster ride of a career in radio, where stability is consider a luxury. “Even when I wasn’t working on a traditional radio station, I was always working on the F’Club. Just because one door closes, it doesn’t stop a dream” Prater continued. “Reinvention is what the F’Club is all about. My best advice would be if you are between a traditional job, take the time to master your dreams and skills. Research your craft, always keep thinking of new ways to reinvent yourself.”

Ramona’s infectious energy is one of the best things about her being on-air live in 3-D at UDetroit Cafe. “I am so excited for my audience to be able to hear me again, but now they can see me and come interact with me in person” Prater said. “You can come have lunch, dinner or even make us your after work spot for a cocktail” Prater continued.

Laughter, conversation, food, and cocktails makes the F’Club with Ramona Prater at UDetroit a definite summer hot spot. You can catch Ramona on-air live at UDetroit.com or sit in the audience live at the UDetroit Cafe, 1427 Randolph Street, Detroit, MI 48226. Monday-Thursdays, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and Fridays 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.

The Friday f.e.e.l 

(f. e. e.Society. l)

I am very excited to introduce the third letter in our weekly Friday f.e.e.l:  e.Society. When you first hear e.society you may think of technology and I will be blogging about some technology based things. However, with the entrepreneur boom that is happening is Detroit I wanted this blog to provide tools, events, people and reflection for the entrepreneur. Welcome to a world created just for you...the entrepreneur. Welcome to e.Society.

The beauty of writing to a entrepreneur is that there is no age demographic. A entrepreneur can begin at a young age or even ignite a vision later in life. This blog will speak to you no matter what your age is or what stage of entrepreneurship you are in.

I have been asked a lot of questions regarding what makes a person an entrepreneur.

Merriam-Webster defines an entrepreneur as one who organizes, manages, and assumes the risks of a business or enterprise. This is a very limited definition of what a entrepreneur is and what characteristics that person should possess. In my research I located this quiz from actonmba.org to find out if you are an entrepreneur and if so, what kind of entrepreneur are you. Click here to begin and check back every third friday for your e.Society blog. 

Greektown Casino Hotel’s Eclipz Lounge was host to Detroit Piston’s Charlie Villanueva, along with several other V.I.P’s. on April 24th. Detroit’s basketball elite came out to support a private fundraiser for cause very near to Vllianueva’s heart. The ‘Wish Upon a Teen’ Organization. 

In the mist of the cocktails, music and beautiful people change was being made by donations of the guest along with an silent auction with proceeds going to support the programs at ‘Wish Upon a Teen’.  “I strongly believe in the work that the folks at Wish Upon a Teen are doing,” said Villanueva, power forward for the Detroit Pistons,” I just want to be one more advocate to help bring awareness to the teens that are sometimes forgotten.”

Detroit Piston, Point Guard, Rodney Stuckey was also in attendance,“Charlie is one of my teammates and like a brother to me, I am here to support him, his cause and the foundation.”Stuckey said.

Founder and President, Michelle Soto, talked about what gave her the vision for this organization “I have always worked with children and one of the things I learned working with children is that teenagers are always left behind. People want to do things for the younger children, typically under the age of eight. But those children do get older and the services start to become more minimal.” Soto continued, “My goal was to create a organization that didn’t leave any teenager behind. Teenage life can be difficult, imagine being a teenager with a life altering issue.”

Wish Upon A Teen is a non-profit organization that through creative, interactive social and educational events the teens they assist will rediscover and rebuild their self-esteem and continue the healing process towards a healthy reintegration into society.

For more information on this great organization or how you can get involved please visit www.wishuponateen.org