New InTown Cafe Closes Just Shy of 3-Month Anniversary

Fewer than six months after the previous restaurant closed its doors for good, the restaurant that took its place also closed its doors permanently, marking the fourth time a restaurant at that location has closed due to lack of business in the past five years.

The InTown Cafe opened on the corner of Orion and Collins roads Feb. 1 to , many of whom were glad to see another restaurant replace the Village Cafe, which .

Now, residents, patrons and nearby business owners are lamenting the loss of the InTown cafe, which was known for having good food, large portions and affordable prices.

"They had good Coneys," said Oakland County Sheriff's Deputy Terry Cashman, who sometimes walked to the restaurant for lunch from the nearby substation. "We just can't generate any traffic there."

"(The owner) came in last Tuesday and just said he was done," said Dr. Scot Tasco, who owns Goodison Family Chiropractic next door to the restaurant. "There's just not enough traffic."

A simple good-bye note taped inside the InTown Cafe's door reads:

Dear Friends,
We regret to inform you that the cafe is closed. We appreciate the good friends and time we had and it was a pleasure being part of this beautiful community.
Best regards,
Tom Markaj

"I was so underwater before," said InTown Cafe owner Tom Markaj. "It doesn't make sense to stay open."

"This is the fourth (business) to close in the past five years" at that location, said Markaj. Goodison Station, the strip mall where the restaurant is located, is only 10 years old.

"This spot is like an ancient burial ground for restaurants," Markaj said.

"If a Subway can't make it, I don't know how anyone else can," said Cashman, referencing the Subway restaurant that occupied the same space before the Village Cafe, and then the InTown Cafe, took over.

"We used to eat lunch there every Tuesday," said Dr. Adam Mandziuk, who also works at the clinic.

"I was bummed," said Tasco. "Good food, nice guy. ... I'm sorry to see him go."

Markaj say he will miss his customers most of all, but he is ready to move on.

Markaj, who has a 5-month-old daughter, says he will "watch my baby grow up, and search for the next step."