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Eleven 10: some old, some new

By R. R. Branstrom 8 min read

ESCANABA -- Sara Papaik's vision for an unpretentious yet quality dining experience in downtown Escanaba is unfolding at Eleven 10 Bistro.

After working in restaurants throughout her adolescent and adult life, Papaik began to toy with the idea of owning her own. For over a decade after moving back to Delta County, she quietly looked at a handful of eateries for sale. But nothing felt right until she toured the property at 1110 Ludington Street, then the Ludington Grill, in January of 2025.

The premises that now serve as one establishment used to be two buildings. The eastern two-story portion had been built as 1108 Ludington in 1915 to be State Savings Bank, and the second building, only one floor, was erected between 1913 and 1921 as 1110 Ludington.

That single-story structure originally addressed 1110 served as Peoples Drug Store until 1929, when the business relocated to 1208 Ludington St. It later housed G. R. Kinney Shoes, then Singer Sewing Machine Co.; women's clothing store Fashion City moved in in the 1960s.

The two-story 1108, on the other hand, remained in business as State Savings Bank of Escanaba until about 1966, according to the National Register of Historic Places. In the late '60s and early '70s, Wolverine Discount department store occupied the building.

A major change came with the Elias Brothers' Big Boy.

After operating a drive-in on the highway, the Big Boy of Escanaba relocated to 1110 Ludington St. in December 1969. By 1975, the local franchisees -- the Steins, a trio of Escanaba brothers -- were ready to expand the Big Boy restaurant, the Daily Press reported. They did so by purchasing the former bank building next door and merging the two structures in 1976.

By 1984, the place had become Alexander's Dining & Lounge. In 1989, Joel's Restaurant was new at the location. In the early 1990s, The Schooner was the name of the restaurant at 1110 Ludington. Advertisements for the "New" Alexander's at the same address appeared around 1995 .

In January 1997, the building was damaged by fire near the rear entry.

The establishment became Tailgators Sports Bar in the early 2000s, with ownership changing from Greg and Mary Haslow to Jim and Joyce Brigham in 2003.

Shad and Barb Holmberg of Cooks reopened the eatery as Ludington Grill in 2008. They ran it until 2021, when they sold to Karey and Mike Nelson.

Papaik, who spent her childhood living in Gladstone and went to Flat Rock Elementary, moved with her family to Maine at the age of 14. At 15, she started working in restaurants. As time went on, she earned a degree in business management, then moved back to the Escanaba area 14 years ago.

Though she'd bartended and waitressed for much of her life, Papaik said that she didn't expect or intend to be in food service for the long haul.

Yet she found that after graduating college, "the only thing that would make my heart pound was thinking about owning my own restaurant someday," Papaik said. "But it was just a dream."

She worked as dining room and banquet manager at the Terrace Bay Inn under the Pouliots and then spent almost 12 years at the Island Resort and Casino, where she was food and beverage manager. She spoke highly of both experiences.

In January of 2025, Karey and Mike had listed the Ludington Grill for sale. Just for kicks, Papaik decided to go take a look at the property -- as she'd done with a handful of other restaurants for sale.

"When I walked in -- absolutely incredible," Papaik said. "All of the elements are here for this to be really something spectacular."

In order to make sure the premises could accommodate the plans she hoped to achieve, a lot of due diligence was required, Papaik said.

"I actually had to hire a mechanical engineer to make sure that I could put in additional hood space into the kitchen, because if I couldn’t put that hood space in, this property didn’t make sense for me and for the overall growth of what I’d like to see and do down here," she explained. She also hunted for glass companies who might be able to restore the glass pyramids on the roof, which allow light into the second story. Jeff's Glass reportedly told her they would be up to the task.

On Oct. 6, 2025, Papaik took ownership of the restaurant at 1110 Ludington St. After a four-day closure during which she got familiar with the staff and laid some groundwork, the Ludington Grill reopened.

With established restaurants, "a lot of things are already in place that are good, and you don’t know until you actually operate what changes are meant and needed to be made," Papaik said.

So business continued until Nov. 30, after which point the restaurant closed for about five weeks for renovations.

The kitchen saw the brunt of the work. On top of the seven additional feet of hood space, workers "changed out all of the equipment, changed out the whole front line, steam table, moved all of the server equipment ... built a pony wall in the dining area," Papaik said. The walls were repainted, carpet replaced, and floors -- original to Big Boy -- polished.

When Papaik opened the restaurant back up on Jan. 10, it was with the new name -- Eleven 10 Bistro.

Introductions and adjustments have been fairly gradual. Though some creativity was employed to develop the menu, Papaik noted that some items have remained unchanged. Pepperjack soup and the Boursin and bourbon roast turkey sandwich are examples of favorites that carried over from the Ludington Grill.

Other top sellers are the Eleven 10 smash burger and the salmon bowl.

"The overall goal is the whole foods movement, and we utilize quite a bit of local product right now, but the goal is to continue to introduce more of those items," Papaik said.

All the beef prepared at Eleven 10 Bistro comes from Buried Stone Farms, delivered fresh daily. The restaurant uses Degrave maple syrup from Wilson and this summer found a number of uses for fresh fruits and vegetables from local farmers markets.

While the Ludington Street construction altered its trajectory this year, Papaik said that she aims to eventually have three seasonal menus. Currently, specials alternate, offering different culinary creations to patrons while supplies last.

"A couple months back, with did some beautiful U-10 scallops with a corn puree that were absolutely fabulous," said Papaik, recalling past specials. "This week we did stuffed peppers because there were beautiful peppers from Gladstone Berry Farm."

A cocktail of the week tempts people to try new beverages, too.

Though some of the dishes at the bistro have been called “fancy,” there is no pressure for people to treat the place as an upscale destination.

“We want to be a place where you don’t have to think about dressing up or being fancy. If you want to dress up, and that makes you feel good, we love that. But if you are just getting off work and still in uniform, or don’t want to change out of your sweat pants, we love that as well,” Papaik said.

Right now, a staff of 29 is employed at Eleven 10 Bistro.

"This team is incredible," the owner remarked. "They’ve stood by me, supported me through the construction phase -- and when you do work on old buildings, old buildings like to fight back, and their support is more than what anyone should ask of anyone."

She said it seems that the employees also "believe in the dream" that the building has the potential to support something bigger and better.

Down the line, the space at 1110 Ludington available to the public may grow. Papaik intends to utilize the fenced-in outdoor area behind the building, which at present is used as an employee break area.

But the bigger undertaking that would bring a new venue to Escanaba won't be quick or easy. In the upper level of the historic former bank, architectural features like the glass ceiling and crown molding could lend wonderfully to a convention space, Papaik notes.

Its renovation is a long-term goal.

Currently, Eleven 10 Bistro is open Wednesday through Sunday. Lunch always starts at 11:30 a.m. and goes until 4:30 p.m.; dinner menus are in effect from 4:30 to 9 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday and until 8 p.m. on Sunday.

Live music acts play in the lounge area -- the southeast space near some low armchairs --most Wednesday evenings. This Wednesday, Pete Ammel will be the musical guest.

"Every artist that’s been in here has brought something different. These walls needed music again, and we’re excited to do that," Papaik said.

Winter will likely affect how things progress, but one goal is for Eleven 10 Bistro to open on Tuesdays for six-day-a-week availability.

"We’re continuing to grow and change and evolve, and we’re so excited for the Stonehouse to return, for Mo's to return, the addition of CK Martini Lounge down here -- having a strong restaurant community is good for all of us," Papaik said. "And the new hotel that’s coming, our new beautiful street -- this is very exciting for Escanaba."

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