As the Friday, Aug. 30, deadline for Sterling Edge Award nominations nears closer, we take a look around Sterling Heights and highlight some of the businesses that have celebrated grand openings over these past several months. Two businesses will win awards in the Local Business of the Year and the Dream Big Business of the Year categories, set to be awarded at this year’s State of the City Address.

Visit Connect Macomb online to nominate your favorite businesses today.


Sidecar Slider Bar / First Cut Golf Co.
44935 Hayes Rd.

Opening this past spring on the northeast side of town was an entrepreneurial twofer: The Sidecar Slider Bar brings its take on gourmet sliders and neighborhood pub vibes to Sterling Heights – and brought a set of clubs, too. That’s because the local chain, which started in downtown Birmingham and has since grown to six locations, opened with the First Cut Golf Co. attached, an indoor golf simulator that offers leagues, private event rentals, and daily play.

Visit Sidecar Slider Bar online.

Alexis Amour Beauty
8220 Irving Rd. Suite 307

This newly established spa was started by licensed esthetician Alexis Amour, who offers a variety of facial styles, massage and seaweed body wraps, waxing services, and plenty more. The beauty spa serves both men and women.

Visit Alexis Amour Beauty online.

Village Vinyl
34230 Van Dyke Ave.

While not a new business per se, Village Vinyl relocated from Warren to Sterling Heights this past spring, packing up its boxes and boxes of new and used records, CDs, books, and more, and setting up shop on Van Dyke Avenue. Having first opened in Warren in 2017, the relocation establishes Village Vinyl as the only such music store in Sterling Heights, Michigan’s fourth largest city.

Visit Village Vinyl online.

Red Barn Market
5812 19 Mile Rd.

A Michigan company that is picking up steam is the Red Barn Market chain created by Yatooma Oil in Shelby Township. The award-winning gas station-convenience store is as much of a market as it is anything else, offering a wide array of specialty snacks and items not typically found at your average gas station.

Visit Red Barn Market online.

Saroki’s Crispy Chicken & Pizza
5812 19 Mile Rd.

Opening inside the Red Barn Market is another Michigan-based company that has been rapidly expanding in the past few years. Saroki’s Crispy Chicken & Pizza is known for its fried chicken and New York-style pizza, which it serves from the Red Barn Market in Sterling Heights. The Royal Oak-headquartered company is expected to nearly double its number of metro Detroit locations in the coming months ahead.

Visit Saroki’s Crispy Chicken & Pizza online.

Jollibee
44945 Woodridge Dr.

The years-long suspense generated by Jollibee hinting at a new location in Sterling Heights – and Michigan’s first – culminated with a January grand opening that wrapped lines of cars around the property. The Phillippines-based fast food company is considered one of the fastest-growing restaurant companies in the world, and has the fans to prove it. Popular items include the Chickenjoy, their signature crispy and juicy bone-in fried chicken; chicken sandwiches both standard and spicy; and peach mango pie, which includes real Philippine mangoes.

Visit Jollibee online.

Houston TX Hot Chicken
14796 Hall Rd.

Opening this past April was Houston TX Hot Chicken, a rapidly expanding restaurant chain with locations peppered throughout the American West. The Sterling Heights store is the first location east of the Mississippi, with two more Michigan locations expected this fall and spring. Houston TX Hot Chicken offers Nashville Hot Chicken sandwiches with a Texan flair, its menu featuring seven different spice levels for patrons to customize the heat desired.

Visit Houston TX Hot Chicken online.

Grab & Go Restaurant
13903 19 Mile Rd.

Connect Macomb held a ribbon-cutting ceremony and grand opening celebration for the Grab & Go Restaurant earlier this June. The quick-service restaurant features classic Mediterranean cuisine by way of build-your-own bowls, pitas, salads, and dolma (their signature dish). Fresh food doesn’t always come fast, but Grab & Go deftly manages both fresh and fast.

Visit Grab & Go Restaurant online.

Sushi Art
36693 Van Dyke Ave.

The art of Sushi arrived in Sterling Heights this summer, where creativity in presentation and quality in its menu take center stage at Sushi Art. Their sharply designed interior and outdoor patio complement the care put into just about everything here.

Visit Sushi Art online.

Big Moe’s Kitchen
3456 15 Mile Rd.

Starting out of a gas station location in Wayne in 2016, Big Moe’s Kitchen has since expanded to include five Michigan locations with Sterling Heights as its latest. The Mediterranean quick service restaurant features a menu that honors its roots, so much so, in fact, that outside of their five Michigan locations, Big Moe’s also has a shop in Beirut, Lebanon. 

Visit Big Moe’s Kitchen online.