ESCANABA, Mich. (WZMQ) – An Escanaba restaurant is under new management, and the owners are promising to continue their family’s legacy of good food and good customer service.
Since opening in 1979, Swedish Pantry has become a Delta County staple.
“My mother purchased the restaurant in the early 1990s,” said Joshua Hoogerhyde. “It was my first job when I was 12 years old, bussing tables, prep cooking. My mother got married and we moved south, so my grandmother bought the restaurant.”
Joshua and his wife Brittany decided to take the reins from his grandmother, Phyllis LaBranche. They officially became the restaurant’s new owners at the start of this year.
“I’ve been in the captaining and charter fishing industry for about 20 years, going from the Florida Keys in the wintertime to Alaska in the summer,” Joshua said. “It’s kind of exhausting, and I know my grandmother has been wanting to sell this restaurant for quite a while now.”
“Living seasonally was getting old,” added Brittany. “We’ve been wanting to plant roots here, and I’ve always worked in the restaurant industry. This was just a perfect opportunity for it to stay in the family.”
While customers will see some new faces, Joshua and Brittany say they can still expect the same great experience.
“We’ve had the same employees working here, some of them for over 30 years,” said Joshua. “What they bring to the table for us is truly extraordinary. The food is always great quality. It’s all home-cooked meals; there’s no deep fryer in the back. The service is second to none.”
There are a few small changes in the works, like a larger social media presence with regular posts highlighting daily specials and bakery items. There will also be an emphasis on products by local vendors at the register.
“Our goal is to incorporate other local businesses and support each other,” Brittany said.
One aspect of the restaurant that certainly won’t be going anywhere is the artistic mark LaBranch leaves behind.
“She’s been a really amazing artist as far as I can remember,” Joshua said of his grandmother. “When we were little kids, she would spend hours and hours and hours painting. If you come into the restaurant, you notice on the wall she has a lot of her paintings on here. I think, truly, one of the things that bring a lot of people in was her award-winning personality and her paintings.”
The Hoogerhydes say they are glad to be back home continuing family and community traditions at the Swedish Pantry.
“We certainly, without a doubt, see a huge importance of this restaurant to the community,” said Joshua. “It feels good to be able to have a chance to get back and be part of this community because there’s not a lot of communities like it. Everybody here is really genuine, and we really love it.”
“It’s a very special, special place,” Brittany said.
Swedish Pantry is located at 819 Ludington Street and is open daily from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. For more information, visit the Swedish Pantry Facebook page.
