Dojo Sushi & Bonobo Winery Target July Opening for New Venture; More Restaurant, Retail News

Fans of Dojo Sushi – which closed its doors Saturday on North Long Lake Road – won’t have to wait long to get their next sushi fix. Owner Brent Shafer will have a sushi bar within Bonobo Winery’s new wine bar on Franklin Street, which is targeting a July grand opening. The Ticker has the latest details on that and numerous other restaurant and retail updates from across the region.

Dojo/Bonobo
As first reported by The Ticker last August, Bonobo Winery is expanding into downtown Traverse City with a new sushi bar and tasting room at 115 Franklin Street – a two-story Victorian home that previously housed a music school and overlooks Grand Traverse Bay (pictured).

Todd Oosterhouse of Bonobo says the new location – name still pending – will have an “upscale but relaxed atmosphere” featuring an intimate indoor space with 25-30 seats and an outdoor seating area. The tasting room will feature a selection of Bonobo red, white, and sparkling wines, as well as a select cocktail menu. Brent Shafer of Dojo Sushi will oversee a sushi bar with a handful of seats where patrons can watch him at work up close. Other guests can order sushi at the bar to enjoy with a glass of wine at the indoor or outdoor tables.

Oosterhouse says the goal is to provide wine and sushi offerings that pair well together. The wine bar will also offer bottles of wine to go, so customers can swing by and pick up sushi and a bottle of wine for takeout. Oosterhouse calls the new venture a chance for Bonobo to “branch out” from Old Mission Peninsula and have a presence downtown – something Shafer was exploring at the same time, he says. “This was an opportunity for both of us to come together and bring our respective crafts downtown and give consumers a different option,” he says.

While the wine bar could potentially have a soft opening by the end of the month, Oosterhouse says the goal is to be fully up and running by “mid-July.”

More restaurant and retail news…
Also on the sushi front, Eric Kolden – previously of White on Rice – has launched Streamline Sushi in the East Side Social District on Eighth Street. Operated out of a retrofitted 1966 Streamline trailer, the venture offers fresh rolls, edamame, and miso soup and will soon be adding Japanese katsu curry and sushi burritos. Hours are Wednesday-Thursday 11am-3pm and 5pm-8pm, Friday-Saturday 11am-3pm and 5pm-10pm, and Sunday 12pm-6pm. Further down Eighth Street, Colibri Wine Bar – overseen by La Bécasse owner Guillaume Hazaël-Massieux and partner Bastien Le Guen – officially opened its doors Thursday inside the Commongrounds Cooperative building. Featuring a full bar, extensive wine list, and selection of small plates, the wine bar is open Monday-Saturday 2pm-10pm.

Thirsty Fish Sports Grille on East State Street is launching a new partnership this week with Taqueria T.C. Latino to offer “the best of their dishes and our most popular” food items on the Thirsty Fish menu, says co-owner Christina Thompson. “It’s a great mix of American and Mexican cuisine. We are so excited for this collaboration, as it pairs with the great drinks, entertainment, and atmosphere for locals and tourists alike.” The Taqueria T.C. Latino staff will be based in Thirsty Fish’s kitchen, she says.

At 430 East Front Street, Umbo owners Sarah Welch and Cameron Rolka have obtained their liquor license and are preparing to expand from lunch into dinner service starting July 3. Dinner will be served Friday-Monday (with the possible addition of Thursday mid-summer) from 4:30pm-9:30pm, with reservations accepted now by phone or text only at 231-944-2797. The restaurant has also begun offering alcohol service with lunch.

Further down East Front Street, a combined Dunkin’ and Baskin-Robbins store in the former Taco Bell space is set to open June 29. Construction delays pushed back that date, but the team is now on track to launch just in time for the National Cherry Festival. Company representative Sathya “Sam” Yalamuri says a grand opening celebration is planned for July 15 that will include giving away free coffee for a year to the first 100 guests.

Downtown on Front, the group behind The Red Piano – the new live music venue going into the former Mackinaw Brewing Company space – experienced some engineering delays but are now in full construction mode, says co-owner Jason Jones. “We're currently targeting a mid-July to early August opening,” he says. “As with any renovation in a historic downtown building, there are still a few moving pieces, so we're being careful not to commit to an exact date just yet.”

Also delayed is Pangea’s Pizza, which closed last fall on Front Street for renovations and has yet to reopen. The company said in a statement that what started as a “light refresh” expanded into a large project as “we realized we had the opportunity to create something we’re really excited about. Rather than rushing to reopen this summer, we’ve decided to take the time to do it right.” Pangea’s will reopen this fall as a “one-floor operation” before bringing the rooftop back online in summer 2027, the company said.

After first launching as a pop-up store on Front Street, The NeedlePoints North has moved into a larger, permanent location at 739 Woodmere Avenue. The new shop “offers the expansive room needed to house a massive, meticulously curated inventory of canvases, threads, tools, and accessories as well as a dedicated class space,” according to owners Becki Barnwell and Susie Wipperman. June hours are Tuesday-Saturday 10am-4pm, with classes and events planned through the summer. Also on the crafts front, Long Lake Artisans – a gallery featuring Michigan-made arts and gifts on North Long Lake Road – has been sold by Nancy Crummel to new owner Hannah Richards, who has introduced new offerings like fresh flowers and plants.

Panther Coffee has opened a new coffee shop at 3211 North Garfield Road. Currently in a soft opening phase – with a grand opening celebration planned later this summer – the shop will serve as the company’s Midwest headquarters and operate daily from 7am to 5pm. Panther Coffee offers “espresso drinks, brewed coffee, pour-overs, cold brew, as well as signature beverages, our directly sourced matcha, teas, chai, pastries, and retail coffee beans,” says co-founder Leticia Pollock.

In other regional news, Elderberry Farm Estates has expanded its café offerings to add pizza and bar service at its M-72/East Traverse Highway location, including a signature cocktail menu and wines from Aurora Cellars. On Old Mission Peninsula, the new Mission Bay Café inside the Old Mission Inn is open to the public and serving breakfast daily 8am-11pm, dinner Wednesday/Friday/Saturday/Sunday 3pm-8pm, and cocktails with beer/wine from local vendors. In Williamsburg, the Hydro 45 gardening and hydroponics store has announced it will close its doors as of July 1.

Finally, a few updates on businesses previously covered in The Ticker: Bay Bread Company officially opened its new second location on Lake Avenue in the former Hagerty Cavallino Café space Monday. Hours at that store will be Monday-Friday 8am-3pm. In Chums Corner, new locations of Hungry Howie’s Pizza and Jersey Mike’s both officially recently opened their doors on US-31. And after suffering a fire in April that forced its closure, Rare Bird Brewpub is getting ready to welcome customers back. Co-owner Tina Schuett says the brewpub is on track to reopen by the “end of June.”