Tempting Treats at the Village Cafe in Cross Village

Nov. 17, 2004

The drive to Cross Village via the historic Tunnel of Trees along M-119 makes the trip up to this tiny town near the tip of the Michigan mitten all the more impressive.  And it’s worth the journey, for here you will find the Village Café, which offers a taste of Polish cuisine along with a unique niche in introducing European pastries to up north diners.
As I was driving to the café, an Oldies 107 radio disc jockey reported, “This is National Grouch Day.” Well, that afternoon the little restaurant was bustling with a steady drove of customers - and everyone who walked through the door was smiling and greeted as if family.  No grouches in sight. 
And it was easy to see why. Sisters Kasha Schlappi and Tania Wolniewicz, along with their mother Val Wichtner and granddaughter Ashley Gasco make everyone feel at home.  Val does almost all of the baking and pastries while Kasha does all the grill/line cooking and bakes their cookies -- the most popular is her oatmeal almond toffee cookies.
It’s pure Polish cooking at its finest with moderate prices to keep your pocket book smiling as well. “We only use the finest, freshest ingredients we can get, no cutting corners here,” said Tania. “We make everything from scratch too.”
“What we are known for is our uniqueness in introducing fine European pastries to Northern Michigan,” said Kasha, who is the main force behind the café.
Kasha worked at the nearby Leg’s Inn for 20 years. “It all started when I got married in 2001 and I could not find pastries like I wanted to serve at my wedding anywhere in Northern Michigan,” she recalled. “I asked my mom Val if she would make some pastries.”
It seems Val outdid herself -- she created a garden wedding cake with two satellites, 450 Napoleons, éclairs, cheese tartlets, pumpkin cheesecake as well as regular cheesecake and New York Cheesecake, cream puffs and swans filled with heavy whipping cream.  Enough to serve 400 wedding guests on a 14-foot table. 
“People couldn’t believe it,” Kasha said. “People asked us at the wedding – why are you all working for others? You should have your own restaurant!” 
Thus, a year later, the Village Café was opened and has become widely known in the area for its exceptional ethnic food.
“After the wedding my Mom could not leave baking alone,” said Tania.
But as for Val’s involvement in a new restaurant venture, at first she was reluctant to get involved.  She had owned a pastry shop for many years in a suburb of northeastern Detroit. “People always ask me now, when are you going to retire?” Val said with a laugh. “I enjoy doing this. But I am always amazed – I was raised here in Cross Village and I can’t believe how much people love my baked goods.  I enjoy helping the young brides with their weddings too.”
Some diners at the table next to me offered their thoughts.  “Coming here is a happening,” said Patsy Ketterei of Cross Village.  “Not only is the food made from scratch but the interaction with everyone who works here makes eating here fun.”  Three other ladies at her table nodded happily in agreement.
Besides the usual features of assorted omelets, the Café offers build-your-own omelets with a choice of meats and veggies.  Then there is a Polish omelet filled with kielbasa, melted Swiss cheese, onions, mushrooms and homemade sauerkraut, served with a mild horseradish sauce on the side.  Or choose from one or two eggs with choice of cheese or meat and bagel or croissant.  Something scrumptiously different is the Nalasnik - a homemade Polish crepe filled with sweet farmer cheese or fruit.
Lunch meals include different specials each day. Grinders are offered and often on special.  They use fresh lunchmeats – real slices of ham, turkey and beef – nothing processed. Another favorite is a Polish Reuben - grilled kielbasa served on deli rye with Swiss cheese.
My pierogies, which come either stuffed with cheddar cheese or potatoes with optional buttery fried onions on the side, are so tender you can cut them with a spoon. The Café also offers fresh home-cut fries, pizza by the slice or whole and so much more.
Pastries include moist éclair dough filled with home-made custard, vanilla, or chocolate topped with ganache and whipped frosting. Other treats include the following:
• Crème puffs filled with homemade pastry crème, vanilla or chocolate and dusted with powdered sugar;
• Almond lace, a crisp almond shell hand coated with chocolate, filled with homemade whipping crème and finished with a sprinkling of almonds;
• fruit tartlets, coated with chocolate, filled with homemade custard, fresh fruit and a clear glaze on top;
• Fruit flan, a homemade European sponge topped with smooth homemade custard, fresh fruit and clear glaze;
• Swans, a moist crème puff shell, delicately filled with homemade whipping cream, “dressed to look like a swan”;
• Crème Horns – puff pastry horns filled with homemade whipping crème and garnished with shaved chocolate. 
There is much more, including pumpkin squares (very popular), and (depending on the day) pies that include banana cream, peach, rhubarb and strawberry that are available by the slice or whole to take home.  The Village Café also specializes in wedding and birthday cakes.
Kasha noted that the Café has even more bakery items than it mentions in its brochure.  “We have so much more we can prepare. Please call us for more of a selection that we can offer to you,” she said.

The Village Café is open year ‘round. Closed on Wednesdays.  Breakfast served all day.  Hours are 8 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.   plus a take out menu. 353 N. Lakeshore Dr., Cross Village, MI 49723 (231) 526-6758.