Detroit 75 Kitchen, the Motor City’s Gas Station Sandwich Darling, Eyes a New Homebase #DetroitFood

The 3rd Street Detroit Cheesesteak, made with ribeye, sirloin, provolone and Swiss cheeses, roasted mushrooms and peppers, caramelized onions, lettuce, tomato, sweet pickled jalapeños, aioli, and house-made vinaigrette on a freshly baked sesame roll. | Detroit 75 Kitchen

The sandwich kings will soon unveil an Oakland County location

In many ways, the sandwiches of Detroit 75 Kitchen food truck tell the story of the Motor City. Built 11 years ago from within a 28-foot trailer on a gas station parking lot that runs on Fort Street alongside I-75, its hefty cheesesteaks, seafood po-boys, and shawarma wraps are enough to attract hungry Detroiters of all walks — from hungry work-from-home employees living in the neighborhood, construction workers building the new Gordie Howe International Bridge, and harried skilled laborers in need of a pitstop.

In 2023, the brothers Ahmad and Mike Nassar, opened a second location in Troy, what Ahmad Nassar calls a year-and-a-half-long pop-up experiment that took place within a former Sears Auto Center at the Oakland Mall in Troy. Within the auto repair shop, the Nassars set up an expansive patio, much like the colorful outdoor space they’ve cultivated outside of the gas station on Fort Street.

Detroit 75 Kitchen

A rendering of the new permanent indoor location of Detroit 75 Kitchen, tentatively opening in mid-2025 at 32275 Stephenson Highway in Madison Heights.

The Nassars believe they need a permanent indoor space to reach iconic status, to be seen by Detroiters on the same echelon as square pizza or coney dogs. Their dream is closer to reality as the ownership behind Detroit 75 will soon unveil their new location at 32275 Stephenson Highway in Madison Heights.

Ahmad Nassar — who makes up the business side of Detroit 75, along with his brother, and the truck’s chef Mike — says setting up shop along a mostly industrial strip just makes sense for the eatery’s Motor City sensibilities.

“It makes sense for us to have a permanent home in Madison Heights because, on that stretch of Stevenson Highway that we’re on, between I-696 and 14 Mile, it’s packed with manufacturing companies,” Nassar says.

Renovations of the space, the former Madison Club Bar and Grill, began earlier in January and Nassar says the hope is that the new space will be ready to open by mid-2025. The build-out is being handled by Siwek Construction. In the interim, between now and the opening date, Detroit 75 is operating a truck in the parking lot.

Detroit 75 Kitchen

Inside the Troy location.

Detroit 75 Kitchen

Outside of the Detroit 75 Kitchen pop-up at the former Sears Auto Center at the Oakland Mall in Troy.

Originally from Beirut, the Nassars make up a generation of Detroit-area entrepreneurs who are taking the family business — often a gas station — and reimagining its possibilities to delicious results. Travel down any major roadway throughout Southwest Detroit and into Dearborn and you’re bound to encounter that multi-generational tradition in action in an unlikely home. Some of the city’s best tacos, fried chicken, shawarma, sushi, and burgers in the area are produced inside or next to a gas station. Chef Nassar’s work is influenced by his mother’s Lebanese cooking, and the meats served from the truck are all halal, a nod to the region’s high concentration of Muslim Americans who abide by the Islamic practice. For Ahmad Nassar’s part, he brings with him an MBA from the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business and specialized entrepreneurship training from The Wharton School. In recent years, Mike Nassar has gone on to realize viral internet success, with more than 1.3 million followers on social media, known for his videos in which he shares the Detroit 75 ethos, like giving employees free meals. “Treat people in a really nice way, in a humane way, and believe me, it pays you back dividends like you won’t even believe,” he says in one post.

Beyond Detroit 75’s plans for Oakland County, ownership recently completed the construction of a 2,500-square-foot catering distribution center at 1161 Springwells Street. The brothers are also looking at the future of its original homebase in Southwest Detroit, which is in the midst of major redevelopment efforts following the construction of the Gordie Howe International Bridge. In 2024, the Nassar brothers began work toward acquiring vacant properties adjacent to the lot where the food truck operates along Fort between Clark and Junction. The idea is to build out a bigger kitchen for the flagship location and extend hours to 5 a.m. to 9 p.m., paving the way to add a breakfast menu. If the Nassars acquire more property, they want to add surrounding landscaping and street art along the corridor in anticipation of more passers-by thanks to the new bridge which is planned to open in September 2025.

“We want to create a destination for people, not necessarily only for Detroit 75 kitchen and its food,” says Ahmad Nassar.

Detroit 75 Kitchen in Oakland County, 32275 Stephenson Highway, scheduled for a mid-2025 opening.

from Eater Detroit - All