DEARBORN, Mich. (WXYZ) — The Canteen at Midtown is Dearborn's first-of-its-kind halal food hall and truck park.
"We have the food truck patio right here. You got the indoor dining space here," said Hassan Chammi, owner of The Canteen at Midtown.
The dining destination spans over 30,000 square feet, from a commissary to an event space. Hassan says it's a social hub smack dab between East and West Dearborn.
"To me it was like Middle Easterners love to socialize, they love food, they love coffee, let's bring it all together," Chammi said.
Open seven days a week, there are six food trucks outside and four food stalls inside. Even though Hassan loves his Lebanese heritage, the proud Michigander says it's the American diversity that people will find at the Canteen.
There is also a story behind you naming it the Canteen.
"If you grew up in Dearborn. You most likely spent your summer at camp Dearborn and at that camp where you met all your friends was at the Canteen," Chammi said. "So we have a lot of memories at the Canteen as children, so this is the Canteen for the next generation."
However, for local food truck owners, it has also become a lifeline after being impacted by Dearborn City Council's latest license ordinance, which was introduced nearly a year ago to increase public safety.
"It hit me pretty rough, because that's when I first opened, and then right when I was starting to gain momentum, and everyone was getting to know me, that's when the ordinance came, and we had to move, basically I had to start all over again," said Mohamed Taha, Owner of The Bistro Box.
Now, the founder of The Bistro Box, Taha says The Canteen is helping small business owners like himself thrive.
"So, I got exposed to everybody's customer base, and they got exposed to all my customer base. So we are all feeding off each other, we are all helping each other, so to me its been a plus." Taha said.
The owner of Nami Sushi, Mohamad Fadlallah, has a stall here and a food truck for events. Mohamed says being surrounded by like-minded people helps them grow as entrepreneurs and humanitarians.
"On the weekends we have different vendors from outside come in. You know stands that sell bracelets and shirts etc. And this for us is more than anything in business. When you are able to help your community. And see how that affects individually in this place," said Fadlallah.
Meanwhile, according to the City of Dearborn spokesperson, the city has no plans to ban food trucks. However, meetings will be held in the coming months to discuss an ordinance that ensures food trucks operate legally, adhering to traffic, pedestrian, and food safety regulations. But Chammi is not too concerned with future restrictions as they will be met if needed.
"Our property, along with the electrical, with the grease trap, everything that we do, allows them to be able to work with all the codes," said Chammi.
Now, The Canteen at Midtown has also made arrangements for the holiday season; they've got a heated tent with decorations and, of course, holiday-themed food as well. To learn more, just head to the website at this link.
