A week ago when I was getting my hair done, my stylist and I were talking about how sad and surprised we were the Social Kitchen & Bar at the Downtown Market hasn't reopened yet. We were commiserating over their amazing giant salads. And as it turns out, they will not be reopening after all which means no more amazing salad :(

GRMag reports that the restaurant will be closing down after four years in Grand Rapids. As has been the case for several other restaurants, the decision doesn't have to do with the pandemic. The President & CEO of the Downtown Market told GRMag that the owner of Social Kitchen has decided not to renew their lease which was set to expire on August 31.

They had originally planned on staying open through the end of the lease, however, with the shutdowns and executive orders -- and trying to get people rehired -- it "did not make sense" to reopen. They already removed the Grand Rapids location from their website. The other location in Birmingham is still open.

Social Kitchen & Bar offered breakfast, lunch, and dinner plus options to build your own skillet, salad, and pizza. They also had an awesome Bloody Mary bar which I found myself at many times over the years. The Bloomfield Hills-based company that owns Social Kitchen plans to focus on expanding their restaurants on the east side of the state.

The last time I was there I did indeed have their salad and just to give you perspective...

Christine George/TSM
Christine George/TSM
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Yes, that's also a giant tray of fries in the background which I'm also going to miss.

With the exit of Social Kitchen, this leaves Slows Bar BQ as the only full-sized restaurant at the Downtown Market. The Market's President did tell GRMag that they are currently exploring different ideas on trying to fill the empty space again.

...including the possibility of reducing the size of the restaurant space in order to add some very needed indoor public seating

I'm sure whatever they decide it'll still be a great addition, as the Downtown Market has been my favorite place in Grand Rapids since moving here five years ago.

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