Paint Creek Cider Mill Reopens

The Oakland Township eatery, which was closed for the winter, will serve up a new vintage vibe, a fresh menu and year-round hours.

Paint Creek Cider Mill to Reopen With Vintage Vibe, Fresh Menu, Year-Round Hours

"The place means a lot to me," proprietor Ed Granchi says of the Oakland Township landmark that will be back in business March 1.

The Paint Creek Cider Mill, which is closed for the season, will reopen March 1 with a new look, a fresh menu and year-round hours. Proprietor Ed Granchi, who took over the Oakland Township business in October, said he has been busy gussying up the cafe's interior and plans to add at least two hand-crafted sodas to the revamped pizza and lunch menu. Cider and doughnuts, as tradition dictates, will be mainstays in the fall. "We've been redecorating with kind of a vintage style, back five or six decades," said Granchi, who grew up in the area and came to the cider mill as a kid. He also plans to keep the eatery open year-round beginning in 2013, Granchi said. "We closed this year because we didn't have the time (after taking over in October…

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Oakland Township Solicits Ideas for Paint Creek Cider Mill

The community wants a tenant who will run a seasonal cider-and-doughnuts operation, as well as a year-round restaurant, according to a request for proposals posted on its website.

Oakland Township hopes to find a tenant for the Paint Creek Cider Mill who will continue the tradition of running a seasonal cider-and-doughnuts operation at the site, as well as a year-round restaurant, according to a request for proposals posted on its website. The township will accept proposals until 4 p.m., Monday, March 11, and a tenant will be selected no later than April 15; see attached PDFs for more information. Township Manager Jim Creech said there have been inquiries about the property, but that he expects most of the proposals will not come in until the last minute. "Usually that stuff comes in the day of, usually within the appointed hour of the deadline," he said. Creech said Ed Granchi, the current tenant, also has applied …

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Around Town

Paint Creek Mill: It's Not Just Cider and Donuts Anymore

A former manager of downtown Rochester's Mind, Body & Spirits takes over the Oakland Township landmark, expanding the menu and staying open for business all year-round.

They hear it a lot at Paint Creek Cider Mill. "I didn't know you served food here!" Well-known for their fall fare of cider and donuts, Paint Creek Mill is under new ownership and making some changes: they are expanding their menu and staying open year-round. Owner Ed Granchi has a long history with Rochester and with food. The Rochester High School graduate managed both Mind Body & Spirits and Rochester Mills Beer Co. before purchasing Paint Creek Cider Mill. "It was a no-brainer when a local landmark came up to own and operate," Granchi said. "I have 15 years experience in the restaurant business but this was a great opportunity to have something of my own —and best of all, a place I used to enjoy as a child." Take a closer look at that …

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What's Going on This Week? Titanic of the Great Lakes, Ladies Night and More

Here's what's happening in and around Oakland Township and Lake Orion this week.

1. Meetings: 2. Library Event: On the anniversary of the Titanic sinking, Women Divers Hall of Fame inductee Valerie van Heest hosts "Lost on the Lady Elgin, the 'Titanic of the Great Lakes'" at the Orion Township Public Library. The program, which starts at 6 p.m. Wednesday, gives a theatrical and informative version of the worst shipwreck in the history of the Great Lakes — and it's free. 3. Ladies Night: The Paint Creek Country Club will host "Ladies Night" on Thursday at 7 p.m. The charitable shopping expo features vendors selling all sorts of accessories and beauty products, and what ladies night would be complete without drink specials and a Coach purse raffle! 4. Paint Creek Cider Mill: The Paint Creek Cider Mill has opened for …

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Board Approves Further Examining Mill Race Flow, Paint Creek Project

The Oakland Township Board of Trustees had a packed agenda at Tuesday night's meeting.

A new bridge near the Paint Creek Trail and better water flow at the mill race were highlights of Tuesday's Oakland Township Board of Trustees meeting. The board voted  in favor of hiring Wade Trim, a civil engineering firm, to analyze the mill race flow situation and come up with possible solutions to get water flowing properly again. Jason Kenyon of Wade Trim delivered a presentation at the meeting at Township Hall, saying that the firm would examine possibilities for re-energizing the mill race by collecting data and evaluating the hydraulics and impact of the Paint Creek Dam removal. Residents living along the mill race, along with a few others, pushed the board to give Wade Trim its approval and stressed the importance of getting flow…

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Marty Rosalik

9:32 pm on Wednesday, March 28, 2012

$7500 to study how to fix a problem that everyone involved promised would not happen. My totally shameless prediction. Since water seeks its own level... the findings will show that the south half of the mill race needs to be dredged a half foot to one foot deeper. Next, in order to assure water depth sufficient at the north entrance end two choices. 1) Install some sort of obstruction "new dam" …   more ›

Taste of the Township: Cider Mill Sundae

Special at the Paint Creek Cider Mill combines donut, ice cream and apples.

I love apples, ice cream and an occasional donut, but I’ve never tasted all three at the same time – until now. Yesterday, I ventured to the Paint Creek Cider Mill and decided to try its Cider Mill Sundae, which costs $4.50 plus tax. This unique delicacy combines ice cream and apples on top of a cinnamon sugar donut, and comes topped with whipped cream and caramel sauce. Though customers get their choice of ice cream, I went with the recommended butter pecan. I am not one to mix foods, so I was a bit hesitant taking the first bite, which I made sure included all three layers. I was pleasantly surprised to find the combination is delicious! The texture of the ice cream mixes perfectly with the dry, crumbly donut, and with an apple thrown in…

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