The owner of Midtown’s Cafe Sous Terre has opened a “sister restaurant” in Southwest Detroit.
The Grand Porter celebrated its grand opening on Monday at 3620 Porter St., in a house built in 1894 and an adjacent retail space that most recently held the former Sweet D’s candy shop.
The two structures were combined into one building that owner Reimer Priester describes as an “all-day cafe” that can seat around 30. Priester’s wife Rebecca, who handled the interior design at Cafe Sous Terre, also worked on the project.
Cafe Sous Terre and the Grand Porter mutually support each other, Priester says, with Cafe Sous Terre roasting coffee served at the Grand Porter and the Grand Porter making food served in Cafe Sous Terre.
The food menu was developed over months by chefs Lauren Moll and Dakota Joseph with a focus on breakfast, lunch, and pastries using seasonal, high-quality ingredients.
Some of the items on offer include a breakfast sandwich, avocado toast, a patty melt, salads, and soups.
“Our menu is very vegetarian- and vegan-friendly,” Priester says. “That’s not to say this is a vegetarian or vegan establishment … but the focus is more on the vegetarian-plus side.”
Situated in a residential area, Priester says the Grand Porter is unique in its neighborhood and has already seen strong support from the community.
For Priester, the Grand Porter harks back to Detroit’s 20th century boom, when neighborhoods were teeming with cafes and corner stores.
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“All these neighborhoods had these very hyper-local amenities that, slowly over time fell by the wayside through economic decline and all the things Detroit has been through,” he says.
“There are very few options for a sit-down coffee experience in Southwest Detroit,” he says. “I think we can be a part of filling that need.”
Cafe Sous Terre opened in 2023 at 445 W. Forest Ave.