The Craft Cafe Detroit thrives on city’s lower east side

The Craft Cafe Detroit is off to a fast start. The “sip and paint” party venue opened last June on Mack Avenue, just blocks from city’s eastern border with Grosse Pointe Park, and it’s already turning away customers as some parties reach capacity. But that’s a good problem to have.

While owner Candice Meeks is considering a move to a bigger location, she says she wants to keep the Craft Cafe in the neighborhood. Its location is part of the reason for its success.

“The location at Mack and Phillip, there’s nothing like this in our community,” says Meeks. “You have to drive downtown and pay for parking or drive out to the suburbs for this kind of fun. We need to keep something like this in the neighborhood.”

Craft Cafe Detroit hosts a wide variety of celebrations, from birthdays to bachelorette parties. Guests can bring their own food and drinks while Meeks leads the party through a painting session. Subjects are pre-sketched onto each person’s canvas, allowing them to paint along while Meeks teaches different techniques like blending colors. She also offers vision mirrors, where guests create collages on mirrors and then seal them with a clear coat finish.

Other parties include Eat | Paint | Drink, where refreshments are provided, and monthly date nights, where couples paint together.

Meeks credits a number of small business programs that helped her get off the ground. She graduated from ProsperUs Detroit, where she met her current landlord. Meeks was also the recipient of a $4,000 technical assistance grant from Motor City Match. She says she plans on using the grant money to help with marketing and website construction costs.

“Going through those programs really gave me a platform to open my own business.”

The Craft Cafe Detroit is located at 14600 Mack Ave. It’s open Tuesday through Friday, from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday, from 1 p.m. to 10 p.m.

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