Vigilante Kitchen and Bar brings punk rock, Zen, and a new approach to addiction support
DETROIT (FOX 2) - Zen and punk rock, transience and mindfulness - there are many competing elements that decorate the walls and greet the patrons of Detroit's newest restaurant Vigilante.
Here's another one: staff in recovery and a bar that serves alcohol.
Many of Chef Aaron Cozadd's themes that make up his new restaurant are also principles he's used to guide him through his own substance abuse. That's intentional since Vigilante Kitchen and Bar is built to cater to both customers who are hungry and employees struggling with addiction.
To Cozadd, the buzz of a kitchen can be the best medicine.
"There are few things more meditative than a sauté station," he said. "It's like moving meditation. You have eight burners and 10 tickets. You're sautéing fish over here and then you have to finish an appetizer over there. You have no way of thinking about anything. You just do."
In an effort to combat addiction in an industry that is no stranger to substance abuse, Cozadd's new restaurant is designed to support its staff struggling with problems of alcoholism and drug-use while offering a unique experience for the customers.
The food is a marriage of Midwestern meals and Asian flavors. There are cherry blossoms on the tables and newly-brewed beer on tap. Iggy Pop and David Bowie are on the walls, while Sid Vicious and Amy Winehouse are on the bathroom ceilings.
"It's an experience unlike the one that you've had before and one that you'll remember," he said. "We want you to be fully present with the people you're with."
Being fully present is baked into the restaurant. Many of the meals invite customers to experience the food in their own manner. Phrases on the wall like "the menu is not the meal" pay homage to the concept.
There's another concept Cozadd says defines him and his staff: Kintsugi, the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery with lacquer that's had powdered gold and silver mixed into the glue. The process returns the broken shards to their original position, but decorated with the imperfections holding them together.
Nothing stays the same forever, and it's the beauty of that transformation that should be appreciated, the philosophy claims. So does Cozadd.
"We believe that applies to people as well - that it's from our cracks that we shine most brightly," he said.
For many of the staff that have emerged from their own personal struggles, it's their renewal that should be celebrated, even as the individual continues to change and improve. The latest rendition may look completely different from the original, and that's the point.
The restaurant's hybrid work-life balance lived in Cozadd's head for six years, but only took about seven weeks to turn into a reality. Of the seven restaurant openings the chef has been a part of, he said it was his latest restaurant that was his easiest to open.
Chef Aaron Cozadd
Based on the reception from the staff's pre-shift meetings where employees discuss recovery and meditate, he suspects the discussions may have something to do with their early successes. It officially opened for business on June 30.
And it's not only a unique mix of artwork and decor awaiting customers, but a menu that pulls inspiration from two separate parts of the world.
The beers are brewed in-house with an ode to Nain Rouge Brewery and the red dwarf legend with roots in Detroit. The cocktails also have their own zany twists - coming with flavors like jasmine blueberry spread, coconut lemongrass, and Ube milk tea.
"It tastes like cereal milk a little bit," the bartender said.
As for food, think Midwest meals, French roots, and Asian flavor.
"A lot of our preparations will take three or four days to bring to fruition," Cozadd said, attributing the time to a "classical French approach."
"It allows you to control the ingredient at every level and come up something with a lot of depth and character."
The Midwestern components add familiarity to the meal with offerings of grilled cheese, short rib, and chicken thigh. The Japanese flavors will include a "deep, Earthy, umami base" and dips into a range of spices and oils, as well as citrus and fresh herbs.
"So I found if I stacked those into Midwestern dishes, you would get this sort of ride from the moment you bite," Cozadd said. "Until after you finished swallowing, it would be a different flavor profile that kind of gave you something familiar, but in a way that you haven't had before."
This is best on display in the Pho-Ken noodles - a play on chicken noodle soup with a Vietnamese chicken broth that uses sriracha, chili oil, hoisin, and lime.
"It's a little punk rock and ballsy in the name right?" Cozadd said. "It really treads that line between a very humble Midwestern dish, but it's the most complicated dish in the kitchen because of what it takes ot make the stock."
Vigilante Kitchen and Bar is located at 644 Selden Street in Detroit. They're open Wednesday, Thursday, and Sunday from 5 to 10 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 5 p.m. to 1 a.m.