Clerk at the Party Center – at the fork of Dexter and Jackson/Huron – says business is down since the start of the Dexter Avenue road reconstruction between Huron and Maple. Says they are bracing for another hit with the likely resurfacing of Jackson Ave. in 2013 or 2014.
Dexter & Jackson
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Thanks for this. I live nearby and will make a point of stopping in more often. I need some vodka to make this year’s batch of Limoncello!
I moved to that area in 1950, when Harry Yarmain owned the predecessor to the party store. It has been an institution in that neighborhood for as long as I can remember. I hope they make it in these tough times. I’ll try to do my part, even though I live in Scio Township now.
I’m sympathetic, but man – both those roads are desperately in need of major resurfacing.
I miss the old Party Store (probably under Harry’s direction) with its oddball assortment of things and quirky signage (boiled eggs were “whole cooked chicken”). The current owners are good people, though. I think they still supply German-style potato salad, though probably no longer from the Old German.
The Newell’s owned that place from the mid sixties until around 2000? They tried to make it into an upscale cheese and wine shop at one time, before there was such a thing. I think they came in about the time the law changed, and packaged liquor was available for sale, before that you had to go to the state liquor store on South Industrial.
The current owner is very nice, has a clean store with fair prices, and is very attentive to his customers wishes, it is a good store to support.
When I started visiting it after moving to the West Side, there was an old gent with certain curmudgeonly indicators running it (mid 90s). It did have some unusual offerings, like whole bean coffee and the odd nice cheese or special salami. It was taken over and remodeled (my impression was after the previous owner’s death but maybe just retirement). The new owners expanded into the space next door and tried a much more ambitious operation with a hot dog stand, pizza by the slice, etc. – not what I would call gourmet or even very full grocery inventory. This got a new partition and condensed into the current store a relatively short time ago – maybe 5 years?
The old gent was Don Newell, owner of the green shag carpet.