Story

Located in the Eastowne Center in Muskegon, Michigan, Tony’s Bistro was constructed to replace a longtime area favorite eatery in a new location.

The new Tony’s Bistro was part of a "brownfield" development located on an old foundry sand fill. This required special soil erosion controls and site balancing to prevent soil from leaving the site for special disposal. Triangle cleaned up the site and created a safe site for the restaurant.

The restaurant features distinct areas: the main dining area, nicknamed the "mural room" for a large Mediterranean scene on one wall, a bistro room with high ceilings, a sports bar with plasma TV’s, and a separate dining area with a large fireplace for group events. Many restaurant features were custom built onsite, including the unique backlit bar.

Air balancing measures were incorporated to allow smoking in designated areas. The air flow system negatively pressurizes the bar area, creating an airflow towards the bar and ensuring nonsmoking customers a smoke-free dining experience. The outdoor patio was redesigned to allow for future expansion if needed.

During construction, Triangle effectively planned and coordinated with area businesses to avoid disruption of the busy area surrounding Tony’s Bistro. Diligent communications allowed the bank ATM drive through, located only 20 feet away from the restaurant, to maintain a traffic flow during construction. In addition, the original patio design was altered to enable all drive through lanes to remain open.

Award: 2006 ABC Excellence in Restaurant Construction