By Samantha Lowney
In Clarkston, there are many restaurants. From family diners, to old mechanic shops turned into restaurants; there is a lot to choose from.
But something seems like it is missing. After awhile all the restaurants seem to be very similar, with similar atmospheres. You sit down, order and eat your food. Sometimes the restaurants are very quiet, and sometimes they are loud, with families and parties talking amongst themselves. There aren’t really many restaurants around with a fun atmosphere, a wait staff that actually seems to enjoy their jobs, and cooks who get involved with their customers. That restaurant does exist though.
Now to get to that restaurant, you have to go on quite the drive. There are lots of winding roads, traffic lights, and worst of all … roundabouts. Four of them to be exact. But after a 40-minute drive, you end up in a little place called Novi. It may be a little busy there, but once you turn into a big plaza, you will finally find what you have been looking for. There are many markets and restaurants within this plaza, but one stands out. That one is BD’s Mongolian Grill.
You may wonder why this certain restaurant stands out. A lot of aspects go into that, but it all starts when you walk in. When you walk into the restaurant, there’s a lot to take in.
First, you’ll notice it’s very loud. There’s lots of people talking and laughing. There’s also the sound of metal clanging and dishes being dropped and hit. Once you are greeted by the friendly host, you are led to your table. As you look at the menu, your waiter or waitress will come up and ask if you have been here before and if you know how it works. If you haven’t, they will happily go over everything with you and show you where everything is.
The menu is very short. There are various appetizers, drinks, some meals, and bowls. Their main attraction seems to be their bowls, and you can either get one bowl, or get unlimited bowls. That’s when you’ll need your waiter or waitress to help you if you haven’t been there before. When you get a bowl, it’s basically like a buffet, except you get the ingredients and the chef cooks the food for you, right in front of you. When you walk into the main area, there are three long stations with ingredients to make a bowl. The first station is the meat. There are lots of options to choose from like red meat, chicken, and seafood.
Next is the noodles. You can also get rice, but you’ll have to ask your server for it separately. After that, there are many vegetables to add. Good thing you can fill your bowl up as high as you can.
Then, last but not least is the sauce station. There are lots of sauces to choose from, some creative too. There is also a soup and salad station off to the side, if you decide to get that as well, but it seems like most people stick to the bowls. After you have everything you want, you walk up to the grill. There is a round, half circle counter enclosing the grill and on the counter are numbers, they serve as spots for each guest’s bowl. Within the counter is a circular grill and the cooks. The cooks line up everyone’s meals around the circles based on their spots. If someone is vegetarian or has a food allergy, they clean off one spot and set up blockers, so no other food will touch theirs.
One thing about BD’s Mongolian Grill people seem to love is their atmosphere. The cooks are a big part of that. They are very fun, energetic and always make conversation with their guests. They are very courteous and you can tell they love what they do. These things are what makes BD’s such a fun experience.
Some other things I noticed about the restaurant were the food options. When you look at the buffet-style line up of ingredients, each item is neatly labeled. I also noticed the label will say whether it is vegan, vegetarian, or gluten free.
Another thing about BD’s is the price. Each bowl is about $11, but the unlimited bowl is about $18, making it a better deal. Now that brings us to a problem. Why isn’t there a BD’s Mongolian Grill near Clarkston? Since BD’s is known for their great atmosphere, family friendliness, and very good food, it would be a great restaurant to add to Clarkston’s menu.
Students in Laura Mahler’s Creative Writing class at Clarkston High School wrote reviews of local restaurants, music, movies, etc., and requested publication in their hometown newspaper.