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This is the third part of a series on the Open House at Henry Ford West Bloomfiled Hospital.  From the time I entered the demonstration kitchen and the Living Well Shoppe, I was hearing about Henry's cafe. Actually I didn't need any convincing to set it as one of my destinations.  I had heard that Matt Prentice (founder/owner of Matt Prentice Restaurant Group) is the culinary director of the Henry Ford West Bloomfield Hospital and he and a team of twenty chefs developed the menus.  Located at the end of Main Street near the atrium, I was impressed with the variety and presentation in the seven food stations.

I was lucky enough to see Carole Benson, manager of Food and Nutrition who supervises Henry's and Caribou Coffee.  I have known Carole from her previous position with the Matt Prentice Restaurant Group as Catering Manager for Coach Insignia and she graciously gave me a guided tour of the facility.  We spent a lot of time at Henry's where I was very disappointed that they were not open for business as I would definitely have sampled the sushi, dessert and more I am sure.

Matt Prentice worked for two years to develop the recipes for the food which is both tasty and healthy and designed around an organic lifestyle.  The food at Henry's Café is exactly the same food that will be served to patients who can order healthy meals of their choice any time of day.  For those attending the culinary classes in the demonstration kitchen, they can visit Henry's and purchase the same food they just learned to prepare. 

The patient menus are completely changed every two weeks to adjust to the produce that is available organically with an emphasis on local when possible.  The menus offer kosher, halal, organic, whole grains, vegetarian and gluten-free. The food is not fried and has no added salt or processed sugar.  It may sound boring for those of us who are not patients but, I assure you, it was far fom that.  Now that menus have been created and staff hired and trained, Matt Prentice remains a consultant for Henry Ford Hospital System and committed to maintaining what he has developed which is far beyond the ordinary.

I have spent time in hospitals the past couple of years with family members who were ill and, as I walked through Henry's Cafe, I kept imagining what it would be like to have this food available to me in those situations--including eating it while relaxing in the lovely atrium.  Since Henry's is also available to the community, I know when I am in the area, it will be worth a stop - particularly since my appetite was not quenched when I could not get any samples on my recent visit.  This may be the first hospital where the local neighborhood stops in for a carry out.

Also check out the welcome to Henry Ford West Bloomfield Hospital and the Demonstration Kitchen.

West Bloomfield Realtor selling Real Estate in Southeastern Michigan.  TishHouse sells Houses - selling Oakland County Real Estate with RE/MAX Showcase Homes in Birmingham, Michigan. Helping People in a challenging market by specializing in Short Sales. See what my clients have to say about my extraordinary customer service.  Follow me on Twitter.

The main lobby of the Henry Ford West Bloomfield Hospital includes a 90-seat demonstration kitchen where anyone is welcome to learn how to prepare healthy meals.  Patients suffering from health conditions like cancer, heart disease, diabetes and other diseases can sign up for cooking classes along with their family, friends and the local community.  In partnership with Schoolcraft College, Henry Ford has created the world's first culinary institute for health care

During the Open House of the new Henry Ford West Bloomfield Hospital, I was lucky enough to find Dr. Bruce Muma, Chief Medical Office at the Hospital.  Dr. Muma was in the demonstration kitchen speaking with visitors about the organic fresh produce and the goal of the hospital to promote healing food (no deep frying) while maintaining taste.

Culinary Institute & Health Care from Cathy Tishhouse on Vimeo

The food, prepared from menus designed by Matt Prentice can be enjoyed room service style by patients and family or as a convenient and healthy take-out option.   The food items prepared in the demonstration kitchen are available in Henry's, the hospital's cafe with seven food stations of the most amazing food.  Matt Prentice, local chef and founder/owner of The Matt Prentice Restaurant Group has developed (over two years) the "Healthy Healing Menus".  In his newsletter, he described the project as "his journey to Revolutionize Hospital Feeding".   Prentice says his effort "is the most important in my 38-year food service career" not to mention bringing something very positive to Michigan. 

I sampled some of the produce being demonstrated in the kitchen.  I am a big fan of arugula in salads and often find "baby" arugula in local stores.  I still find it bitter and try to pick out the smallest leafs.  The representatives of the Chef's Garden gave me some "micro" arugula to taste and it was excellent.  I was immediately sold on it and found out that anyone can order it through www.FarmerJonesFarm.com/HenryFord.  They say it is harvested when you place your online order and delivered direct to your home.   Henry Ford West Bloomfield will also have an on-site greenhouse that will provide fresh produce for the food cooked at the hospital. 

For more on the open house,  visit the Henry Ford West Bloomfield Hospital Welcome to Healthy Healing. 

West Bloomfield  Realtor selling Real Estate in Southeastern Michigan.  TishHouse sells Houses - selling Oakland County Real Estate with RE/MAX Showcase Homes in Birmingham, Michigan. Helping People in a challenging market by specializing in Short Sales. See what my clients have to say about my extraordinary customer service.  Follow me on Twitter.

I heard about the new Henry Ford West Bloomfield Hospital a couple of years ago when I was listing a home about a mile or two of the new facility. Since the market was declining and the home wasn't selling, the owners were encouraged with the future possibility of keeping their home to lease. The opening of this anticipating the new positions that would be created upon completion.

That day has finally come with the opening of Henry Ford West Bloomfield on March 15. There was no hesitation when I heard about their open house. Not only was I curious to see what real estate opportunities it might bring to the community, I had heard about it's approach to "Healthy Healing", Eco Friendly philosophy and treating their patients like guests. No surprise when I learned that a former Ritz-Carlton executive - Gerard van Grinsven - is the new hospital's president and chief executive officer. The Open House delivered on my expectations from all the advance publicity-particularly "Vita" the wellness center and "Henry's" a restaurant with health conscious menus designed by local restaurateur Matt Prentice.

Entering on Main Street, there are sign posts and a storefront facade modeled after a northern Michigan lodge and, in many places, features Michigan-quarried fieldstone, river rock. The first place I saw was the Living Well Shoppe where I had the feeling of entering Somerset Mal. They offer a variety of products for healthy living including supplements, fitness equipment, gifts and more. From there I entered the Demonstration Kitchen and spoke with Dr. Bruce Muma, Chief Medical Officer and tasted from micro arugula from The Chef's Garden. Along Main Street you will also find New Blooms, Henry Ford Sleep Well, Henry Ford at Home, Henry Ford Pharmacy, Caribou Coffee Shop and finally Henry's before entering the three story atrium.

At the end of Main Street are the patient rooms with the beautiful Ravitz Foundation Main Atrium. Here you can relax in all the greenery and take a small nature walk on one side of the atrium complete with benches. Many of the inpatient rooms overlook the atrium here or, on the other side, an outdoor pond or landscaped courtyards. A real treat in the Atrium was the Great Lakes Tea & Spice Kiosk extremely complimentary to the peaceful environment. I sampled some delightful and refreshing tea and spoke with Christopher Sack (co-founder) and Charlie Sarin (owner of the kiosk) and truly appreciated their passion for tea as a healthy and tasty alternative to coffee.

Click here to view more pictures and full media details of Henry Ford West Bloomfield Hospital.

To see the Demonstration kitchen for the Culinary Institute in partnership with Schoolcraft College, click here.

West Bloomfield Realtor selling Real Estate in Southeastern Michigan. TishHouse sells Houses - selling Oakland County Real Estate with RE/MAX Showcase Homes in Birmingham, Michigan. Helping People in a challenging market by specializing in Short Sales. See what my clients have to say about my extraordinary customer service. Follow me on Twitter.