Stand 44 to enhance dining options at Greenfield Village

For the first time in about three decades, Greenfield Village welcomes the season with a new restaurant, Stand 44, named after one of the stalls at the historic Detroit Central Market, now part of the history complex.

Housed in a new Albert Kahn-inspired building, Stand 44 will offer hungry visitors a chef-inspired menu with an emphasis on the Great Lakes growing community -- produce and other fare secured from local purveyors and farmers, as much as possible, and maybe even from seasonal vendors at the Detroit Central Market.

“We’re creating everything from scratch as much as we can,” says David McGregor, who is executive chef of The Henry Ford’s food operations. “Some things we can’t make but we will search locally for them. We don’t make hamburger buns but we will have them produced for us by a local bakery.”

Stand 44, which opens May 1, will enhance the dining options available to visitors. The restaurant replaces the Main Street Lunch Stand, which was built a couple of decades ago and had been expanded but no longer met the dining needs of the Village’s growing number of visitors.

“Stand 44 goes in a different direction than our other restaurants,” chef McGregor says. “Our other restaurants are very historically bound … with Stand 44 we’re bringing the past forward, inspired by what’s going on in the Village, but, at the same time, using modern cooking techniques and ingredients.”

Along with a new restaurant, visitors will also find a renovated and refreshed Greenfield Village Store, selling Detroit Central Market apparel and products featuring artwork by nationally recognized illustrator and graphic designer Humberto Cruz. An extensive selection of souvenirs, gifts and handcrafted exclusives made in Liberty Craftworks also will be available.

Elsewhere in the Village, the Detroit, Toledo and Milwaukee Roundhouse, Dr. Howard’s Office and the Grimm Jewelry Store will be open for visitors to explore for the first time since 2019. Two other structures, which had been used for special events, will feature occasional or daily living history presentations. They are the Mattox Family Home and the Edison Homestead.

Located next to Detroit Central Market, Stand 44 pays homage to a market stall that was operated by Mary Judge, an Irish immigrant and huckster. A common sight at the market from 1863 to its closing in 1894, Judge peddled seasonal vegetables and fruits, hard goods, and even worked as a coffee vendor for a time.

 “She worked across a whole spectrum,” says Jim Johnson, who is director of Greenfield Village and curator of historic structures and landscape at The Henry Ford.  “She became an outspoken and very visible, unofficial spokesperson for the vending community. She was no stranger to the police. She got into scuffles and had lots of disagreements. She had a loyal following and was kind of queen of the market.”

 The staff came across Judge while doing research about the market and her story stuck with everyone. The aim was to connect the new restaurant to Detroit Central Market, which was relocated from storage on Belle Isle to the Village. The market opened in 2022 after nearly $2 million in restoration work. 

“We didn’t want to pick something that was predictable,” Johnson says about naming the restaurant. “But the name does bear some explanation.”

Stand 44 is a self-serve affair, with four themed stations set up in the industrial-like building. They are:

Brick Oven, serving Neapolitan-style pizzas made with local brick cheese and a selection of premium toppings. The dough will be made in house.   Soups, Salads & Sandwiches, featuring seasonal, homemade soups, sandwiches with local meats and salads made from Michigan ingredients.

Char, offering burgers and wraps grilled fresh. The burgers will be made with Michigan-produced beef, a proprietary blend especially made for the restaurant. The sandwiches are served with potato salad.

Chef’s Table, with rotating chefs from The Henry Ford taking turns creating seasonal menus, each running several weeks. First up is chef David, who plans roasted salmon with gnocchi and quinoa cakes atop peppery arugula.

The restaurant will also offer coffee, water, and other beverages, including alcohol options as well.

The Village last opened a new restaurant -- A Taste of History, still in operation -- in the mid-1990s. That menu at the cafeteria-style restaurant touches on different aspects and eras of the Village and its farms. The eatery shares a kitchen with Eagle Tavern, a sit-down restaurant with a curated menu based on the food and cooking methods of 1850.

Stall 44 resembles buildings from the 1910s and 1920s, with reinforced concrete, floor-to-ceiling windows, exposed ventilation and limited wall space. “It has a clean, modern aesthetic,” Johnson says.

With indoor and outdoor seating, the restaurant will be able to accommodate 200-plus customers.  The building, which blends with other structures along the route from the Village’s Main Street to Liberty Craftworks, includes new restrooms. They will remain open even when the restaurant is closed.