Beezy's Cafe plans new catering kitchen and banquet space

Eric Gallippo | Wednesday, August 17, 2016

Beezy's Cafe owner Bee Roll Doug Coombe

If you want more ways to get food from Beezy's Cafe, you're in luck. The popular Ypsilanti breakfast and lunch spot is expanding this fall, with a new production kitchen for catering and a banquet space for private events to open in a building across North Washington Street from the existing cafe.

Owner Bee Roll says the new venture will provide seating for around 125 for parties, banquets, and wedding receptions. The building's existing kitchen and proximity to the existing cafe made it an obvious choice, and Roll hopes to be in full production by the end of September.

"It will enable a concentrated effort on providing breakfast and lunch meeting-type catering, and we hope to use the existing structure to increase our cafe production, further enabling us to produce more food, faster," Roll says. "We'd like to be delivering individual menu items in the vicinity as well by fall."

Catering currently makes up less than 10 percent of Beezy's business, mostly due to turning down work for lack of space at the cafe. Roll expects to quadruple that within her first year of expansion, and she plans to hire six to 10 additional staff members within the year as well.

She describes the space as an "old building with brick wall charm and a hefty dose of 1970s industrial."

Roll won't pursue a liquor license, but guests can bring their own beverages for private events, so long as the events are free to attend. Nonprofits hosting events can also apply for special one-day licenses through the Michigan Liquor Control Commission.

Public events and entertainment could be an option down the road, but they aren't a priority at this time.

Photo by Doug Coombe.