New Midland restaurant offers fresh offerings in former Shirlene’s

A new Midland restaurant, Antonio’s Bar & Grill, has a new look and a little bit of everything on its menu. From homemade soups, sandwiches and spinach pie, owner Lisa Nikprelaj says they take pride in their fresh offerings. 

“We don’t put our omelets in the microwave, and all of our vegetables are grilled first; not raw. It’s harder that way, but it tastes better.” 

Diners can expect American, Italian and Greek cuisine, and many sandwiches, including the Reuben and Slim Jim.When describing the menu, Nikprelaj says they have American, Italian and Greek cuisine, and many sandwiches, including the Reuben and Slim Jim. “We prep everything here. We make our own Greek and ranch dressings, and spinach pie,” says Nikprelaj.

Antonio’s is located in the former Shirlene’s Cuisine at 1716 W. Wackerly St., near Eastman Avenue. Shirlene’s closed in March 2020.

While Antonio’s Bar and Grill currently offers takeout, they do not yet have an online ordering system. For more information on Antonio’s Bar and Grill, call 989-259-7299. While the location may be a new one for Nikprelaj, she’s not new to the restaurant business, having been in it for more than 30 years. She has restaurants in the Detroit area including Warren, Sterling Heights and Fraser.

The Wixom Lake resident previously had a restaurant location in Sanford, but has since closed it. Antonio’s Bar and Grill is Nikprelaj’s seventh restaurant, Nikprelaj says after they purchased the restaurant last fall, “A lot of work had to be done to get it ready. We had to gut it out. It was a journey; one thing after another. From top to bottom but not the roof.”

Antonio’s had a soft opening last Saturday, May 15 and Nikprelaj says, “It went really well.” 

From homemade soups, sandwiches and spinach pie, owner Lisa Nikprelaj says they take pride in their fresh offerings.It was an opportunity for their 15 employees to get to know the computer/ordering system, the food and menu. “We wanted to be able to tackle one thing at a time. We want to make limited mistakes.” Nikprelaj added that many of their former Sanford location staff members came back to work at the Midland location. 

While Antonio’s Bar and Grill currently offers takeout, they do not yet have an online ordering system. For more information on Antonio’s Bar and Grill, call 989-259-7299.