Shuttered Ypsilanti drive-in diner may yet serve up a chili dog this summer
Tom Perkins | For AnnArbor.com
Water damage from a burst pipe last winter kept Ypsilanti's Kluck's Drive-in shuttered all summer - the high season for chili dogs and root beer.
For the tiny diner, which features carhops who bring your order to your car, it means the year is pretty much a wash.
And continued repair delays may mean Joanna and Chae Chang stay open during the winter to recoup some of their losses. Kluck's has four tables inside.
The pipe burst in November, a month after the '50s-era diner closed for the winter months.
The Changs hired a contractor to clean up and fix the damage to the ceiling, cabinets, walls and countertops, hoping to reopen in February, but the company failed to do the job properly, Joanna Chang says. They hired a new contractor and are looking at costs of more than $80,000 to put things right. The plumbing and electricity also need to be redone.
Chang says they hope to open within the month, while the weather is still friendly, but she's doubtful.
"We lose income every month," she says. As big a headache as the flood turned out to be, Kluck's is "worth saving," she says.
Chang will also have to hire anew; the four to six employees of Kluck's have moved on.
The Changs, Plymouth residents and the parents of two twentysomethings, bought Kluck's seven years ago. They've operated Roy's Squeeze Inn, a burger joint with carhops, in Ypsilanti for 25 years and are planning to open two other Roy's, at the site of the former Kaya Sushi on Ellsworth in Ypsilanti, and a third location in Canton.Â
Chang says they are waiting for health inspection reports before opening to the public.Â
Joanna Chang says she and her husband, both Korean immigrants, like the carhops. She left her day job to work at the business full time.
Kluck's Drive-in might be a novelty - a good example of early architecture of fast food palaces - if it weren't for others nearby. Aside from Roy's Squeeze Inn, which offers curbside service, Ypsilanti is home to the Chick-Inn Drive-in on Holmes Street and Bill's Drive-in on Michigan Avenue. All were built in the 1940s and 1950s.
When Kluck's reopens, says Joanna Chang, the only visible alteration will be a new paint job inside.
Julie Edgar is a freelance writer for AnnArbor.com.
Comments
Bill
Sat, Aug 21, 2010 : 2:37 p.m.
Been there many times by myself, with family, and a couple years ago with some grandchildren. A really great place to stop by on a sunny day in spring or summer. Good chili dogs, hamburgers, and root beer.
krc
Sat, Aug 21, 2010 : 9:01 a.m.
Will they be serving Korean food too? How about a good be bim bap? Or some jap che? mmmmm!
breadman
Sat, Aug 21, 2010 : 8:27 a.m.
Oh! Man I sure have missed there chili dogs! On my way to Daughters house it was nothing to stop and grab up 6 chili, cheese, with loads of onions. AA.com keep me posted so I can go that way, on the way too Daughters house. Grandson then will really love Grandma for his chili dog.
johnnya2
Sat, Aug 21, 2010 : 1:04 a.m.
I am not sure why a tax break is in order. Who hired this bad contractor? Not the city. I am sorry it is going poorly, but if it was a problem with a contractor SUE THEM. You have a cause of action. I also find it ironic, and hear it all too often for old businesses. It starts with this refrain " I remember when we USED to go to (fill in the business name) in the (some year in the past)" Yeah, that does not help a business. If you want old time businesses in a town to stay open, go there TODAY and support them. I have no problem with a business closing if it can no longer make it. Just because it is an old business does not equate to being good.
Corby
Fri, Aug 20, 2010 : 10:14 p.m.
Ditto what skenney said!
skenney1384
Fri, Aug 20, 2010 : 9:53 p.m.
Awesome! And we thought they went out of business! Summer hasn't been the same without them.
Bob Krzewinski
Fri, Aug 20, 2010 : 9:48 p.m.
I really, really commend the owners of Klucks for sticking it out and not just closing the business forever. In all fairness, though, if property taxes are "forgiven" to a business with no income coming in, shouldn't homeowners who unfortunately are unemplyoyed also have their property taxes forgiven until they are employed again? I think the best way to support Clucks is to give them business like crazy when they do re-open.
jcj
Fri, Aug 20, 2010 : 8:55 p.m.
I second the motion for a tax break. That would prove that there are humans in city hall.
YpsiLivin
Fri, Aug 20, 2010 : 8:33 p.m.
Well, as long as you're fixing typos... They've operated Roy's Squeeze Inn, a burger joint with carhops, in Ypsilanti for 25 years and are planning to open to other Roy's... How about "two" other Roy's?
stunhsif
Fri, Aug 20, 2010 : 8:18 p.m.
Let us know A2.com when they reopen, I will make sure my family stops by for a meal!
Renee
Fri, Aug 20, 2010 : 7:34 p.m.
I hope they'll be able to re-open, they have great food, and it's a great original place to go instead of a commercial style drive-up like Sonics.
Soothslayer
Fri, Aug 20, 2010 : 5:58 p.m.
besides winter/summer tax abatement the city should also should give them a full credit on the water/sewer bill from the burst pipe. when they open please give them a try!
xmo
Fri, Aug 20, 2010 : 5:56 p.m.
I did not see the address in the story so I am putting it here for those people like myself who did not know about this place. 401 E Michigan Ave Ypsilanti, MI 48198
Val Losse
Fri, Aug 20, 2010 : 4:41 p.m.
Here is a chance for the City of Ypsi to help a business remain in business. Cancel the property taxes which they have been paying during a time when they were not making any money. It may be a burden that will sink them even if they can open again. The tax bill may have gone down during the period when their property value went down. But how about giving businesses a break so that they stick around to employ people who then can pay their property taxes. Do the right thing and keep people employed.
flyer76
Fri, Aug 20, 2010 : 4:23 p.m.
I've been wondering what happened to Kluck's...glad to hear that they're trying to re-open! I'll be watching and waiting!
jcj
Fri, Aug 20, 2010 : 3:48 p.m.
I hope that they are able to reopen it. I spent a few Fri nights there in the 60's