Thursday night we gathered at the Old Burdick's Bar & Grill to celebrate Bob's retirement after 25 years of combined service. Nearly 35 people attended this party. We had a large contingent from our Portage office, plus employees from Tampa, Seattle, Minneapolis, Texas, North Carolina, Ohio, and Tennessee who were in town for a GRM intensive training class. It was a wonderful, but bitter sweet time.
Bob and I have been close friends for 20 years (since I started). We have weathered changes in leadership, financial hard times, employee layoffs, and the deaths of fellow colleagues. But we have celebrated new products, new customers, the good financial times, cruised on the company trip, our MTQ trip to Minneapolis, shared travel stories and our love of photography, and enjoyed a round of drinks or two. No matter where Bob was in the country or out of the country, he always sent me an email with a weather report. You couldn't ask for a better friend and one of the most loyal employees the company will ever have. Thank you Bob.
Bob and I have been close friends for 20 years (since I started). We have weathered changes in leadership, financial hard times, employee layoffs, and the deaths of fellow colleagues. But we have celebrated new products, new customers, the good financial times, cruised on the company trip, our MTQ trip to Minneapolis, shared travel stories and our love of photography, and enjoyed a round of drinks or two. No matter where Bob was in the country or out of the country, he always sent me an email with a weather report. You couldn't ask for a better friend and one of the most loyal employees the company will ever have. Thank you Bob.
Click on the video below to see what a fun time we had roasting Bob.
When we came to Old Burdick's, we didn't know the cooks expected us to go home with leftovers. Nearly all the meals or appetizers were huge.
This was one of several good surprises at the 165-seat eatery, a smaller version of the original Old Burdick's Bar & Grill, still located at the Radisson Plaza Hotel in downtown Kalamazoo. The owners of the new restaurant have done a pretty good job of recreating the feel of the downtown Burdick's. And the new place is definitely an improvement over what has been at the site in the recent past. The all-new restaurant feels fresh and different. Being a fan of Old Burdick's, I was happy.
Burgers remain the mainstay. The cooks take the half-pound of ground beef seriously and ask customers to indicate a desired temperature of doneness. The buns are baked for the restaurant by Renzema's Bakery of Parchment.
With over 35 people to serve, I was very impressed with their staff. We had a couple waitressess and the manager was always stopping by to see how things were going. The few mistakes that were made were corrected promptly and pleasantly.
I definitely recommend the "new" Old Burdick's at the Holiday Inn-West and look forward to my next visit.
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