SOUTHGATE, Mich. (WXYZ) — The economy is eating away at some well-known restaurants in metro Detroit.
It's just one of the many challenges forcing dozens of doors to close for good this year.
The doors are locked at Mallie’s Sports Bar and Grill in Southgate, but it’s just one of the many small spots in metro Detroit shutting its doors on short notice.
And just like that, it could be lights out for a small business that’s been around for decades.
That’s exactly what happened at Mallie’s Sports Bar in Southgate.
“The hardest thing to do is to close your life’s dream,” says owner Steve Mallie, who tells me it was an abrupt decision. “But sometimes it’s business, and you have to do it.”
He continues, “You’re always thinking that, somehow, something is going to happen to where you don’t have to do it, but then there finally comes a time where you don’t have a decision to make; the decision makes itself.”
The abruptness is something that didn’t sit right with a lot of employees.
“I knew a lot of people were going to be hurt because of the time of the year and the holidays and all that,” says a now-former Mallie’s employee who asked to be kept anonymous.
He tells me he’s upset with the decision, but he understands.
“It’s a shock to everybody,” he says.
But sudden restaurant closures aren’t unheard of. John McNamara with the Michigan Restaurant and Lodging Association tells me we’re seeing it more and more.
“We are, and that’s obviously very unfortunate because that’s not only the loss of a business and the loss of job but also a gathering place, which is what restaurants are,” McNamara says.
Back in October, we saw it happen at Bobcat Bonnies in Ypsilanti.
We spoke with this employee who was protesting outside of the restaurant.
“We’re out here trying to let the community know what he did to us and make sure it doesn’t happen again,” he told us at the time.
Most recently, we’ve seen signs pop up at Scout Vester in Ferndale, Bandit Tavern in Royal Oak, and just Wednesday, House of Pure Vin in downtown Detroit announced it's shutting its doors.
McNamara points to challenges with the economy, changes in customer habits and labor shortages for many of the closures, all of which Detroit restaurant owner Sandy Levine says he’s feeling right now.
“It seems like we’ll be back to normal after a few months of solid business, and then something will happen, and there will be another slowdown or whatever it is,” Levine says.
McNamara believes lawmakers can fix this, referencing House Bills 6056 and 6057.
“HB 6056 is the bill to raise the minimum wage and protect the tip credit, and House Bill 6057 has to deal with earned sick time in Michigan,” McNamara explains.
He says he’s hoping legislative action is taken next week.
