Great Plains Burgers seeks to offer high-quality American fare

To Mo Farha, the fare at his new restaurant Great Plains Burgers is the epitome of Americana.

"I have a great passion for the American hamburger. For me, it's a source of American pride," the Ann Arbor native said. "I have a true burger, fries and shakes passion. These things go together."

Farha is the manager and a partner in the new eatery on Plymouth Road across from University of Michigan North Campus. The Huron High School and U-M graduate has operated restaurants around town, but never has focused solely on the hamburger.

And if the concept works, he plans to open more locations - at least one other in 2010, possibly two or three, he said.

Farha and his partners, one of whom is Gary Staub, son-in-law of Tom Monaghan, developed the concept after two years of study.

"We just didn't come up with it. We did extensive research," he said.

The re:group marketing company of Ann Arbor helped Great Plains with the branding of the restaurant. Creative director Rhonda Huie and Kellie Bambach worked on the account, and Huie said the goal was both to emphasize the American-ness of the concept and differentiate the eatery from other places where you can get a burger, such as bars.

"We wanted to create something that felt very natural and high-quality, but not so much Old West," Huie said. "We wanted it to be more contemporary."

The simple logo, with a profile of a cow surrounded by two stems of wheat, was meant to convey a down-to-earth, not "precious" brand, Huie added.

"It's higher quality, but it isn't fussy," she said.

It was also important to make sure customers didn't expect to enter a tavern-like atmosphere, or another traditional burger-serving restaurant.

"We don't want them to think they're walking into a bar and be disappointed," Huie said.

Great Plains is also embracing the local food movement and environmentalism as much as possible in the restaurant, which opened to the public Thursday, Farha said. The hamburger meat is Michigan-grown and ground every day. The buns are baked and delivered daily by Zingerman's. The equipment is Energy Star-rated. And the napkins, cups and plates all are either made from recycled material or are compostable.

He said the restaurant will try to source all of its produce locally, but may not be able to in all seasons. But, unlike some locally sourced food in town, Great Plains' burgers are modestly priced at $4.50 for a single, 1/3-pound patty, and $6 for a double. Fries are $2 for a regular serving and $4.50 for a basket, and shakes are $4.

Farha said the restaurant's location in the Upland Green mixed-use development -- which also features a Panera Bread and Qdoba Mexican Grill -- was an important consideration in creating the restaurant's identity.

"Every place has something different to offer. This could become a mecca for food," he said.

Farha said he looked at various locations around town, including Liberty Street between the U-M main campus and Main Street, before deciding on Upland Green. The development had stalled in the middle of construction before a new set of investors stepped in last year.

Freelance reporter Dan Meisler can be reached at danmeisler@gmail.com.