Storied Nautical Mile eatery to take on new identity
Zef’s Dockside Bar + Kitchen in St. Clair Shores expected to open soon
A two-story building along the Nautical Mile that has housed some of the best-known restaurants/bars in St. Clair Shores is about to take on yet another identity.
Plans call for Zef’s Dockside Bar + Kitchen to open later this month or in early November in the 7,000-square foot building on Jefferson Avenue north of Nine Mile Road.
“We’ve done a full renovation of the place,” said Djeois “Donnie” Paljusevic, the new owner. “We’re going to have two floors, with dining on the first floor and birthday parties, and showers on the second floor. And there’s an outdoor patio on the second floor with a great view of Lake St. Clair.”
Palushaj Food Group, which includes Paljusevic, his brother, Christopher, and his father, John, received approval from the St. Clair Shores City Council on Monday night for a Class C and SDM license, along with a new dance/entertainment permit.
The Albanian native family has Americanized their last name for the corporate structure.
The property is owned by the nearby Trader Todd’s, whose owners have a background in restaurants and had contemplated opening it themselves if they hadn’t encountered the Palushaj Food Group, according to Councilman Ron Frederick.
The menu is still being finalized but likely will include seafood, steak, salads, pizza and more.
The group took over the former Clancy’s Irish Pub on Hayes Road in Clinton Township in 2018 and reopened it as Hennessey’s Pub + Kitchen. They used to run Zef’s Lighthouse in Fair Haven, along with a number of Zef’s Coney Island diners in Detroit’s Eastern Market, Rochester, Pontiac and Bay City.
Their new project has a storied history in St. Clair Shores
Over the years, it has been the home to Lido’s on the Lake/Andiamo Lakefront Bistro/ Rojo Mexican Bistro, Captain Jack’s Lakeshore Bar & Grill. It most recently was known as The Current Food & Libations, which shut down a few years ago.
Frederick said the basement has evidence of the “once booming bootleg of liquor from Canada industry.”
“A quick look into it shows that the basement goes under the whole place and you can surmise by how it looks now that the canal most likely went right under the building for easy and inconspicuous unloading,” he said in an email.