Hooked, a bookstore/coffee shop and wine bar, will have its soft opening next week at 3142 E. Michigan Ave. in Lansing, Mich. The Lansing State Journal reported that customers "will find nods to both Lansing and nearby Michigan State University inside. Artist Marissa Thaler's mural on the wall overlooking the store's children's section depicts the Michigan Capitol Building and an MSU landmark." In addition, the cafe counter is crafted from white oak trees that once stood on MSU's campus.
Including those elements inside the new business in the Red Cedar Development off East Michigan Avenue was deliberate, said Sarah Reckhow, co-owner with her husband and fellow MSU professor Matt Grossmann. "We have this central location," she said. "We're in Lansing, but right on the border with East Lansing."
Hooked has been taking shape in a 3,000-square-foot, ground-floor space for several months, but the owners have been planning for the business for years. "At this time last year, we said we'd like to be open around this time," Grossman noted, adding that the store's soft opening is scheduled for Monday morning, "surprisingly" right on time.
"The location offers an abundance of natural light from large windows along the front and side of the store and a large outdoor patio area that's expected to seat 30 people," the State Journal wrote. "Inside, Hooked will seat 40 people. In the morning and during the day, the coffee bar will serve brewed and specialty coffee drinks made with blends from Chicago-based roaster Intelligentsia.... Eventually, Hooked's evening customers will be able to order selections from its wine bar."
While Hooked will be as much a bookstore as a coffee shop and wine bar, Grossman said that when people ask him about it, they often refer to what they have the most anticipation for. "So some people call it a bookstore, but some people are like, 'Oh, you're opening the coffee shop,' or 'Oh, you're opening the wine bar,' " he noted. "We actually like that because I think it shows that we're trying to do all of that."
"I think we are hopeful that we're kind of able to step into this space where this particular combination doesn't exist in the area," Reckhow said. "We want to be a third-place type of space where it's like, 'Oh, you want to meet someone for coffee?' You can come here, but you're going to interact with and see all these other things going on."