
Echelon Kitchen & Bar, a new addition to Ann Arbor’s fine dining scene, is set to debut the wood-fired, vegetable-forward restaurant on Feb. 6 at 200 S. Main St.
The menu and beverage program is designed to pay homage to Michigan’s agricultural sector while embracing wood-fired cooking. Under the leadership of Managing Director Emily Habib, the culinary team will spotlight local ingredients and producers.
Set within a restored 100-year-old building, the menu, created by Executive Chef Joseph VanWagner (Blackbird, Alinea, Restaurant A.T.), centers on Michigan-grown, raised, and foraged ingredients, cooked in a traditional wood-fired oven while incorporating fine-dining techniques and international flavors.
Dishes will be designed with ingredient flexibility to incorporate rotating seasonal offerings, including a vegetable salad showcasing an array of shaved local winter vegetables topped with chive oil, lemon, fresh herbs and a horseradish creme fraiche, as well as a wood-fired flatbread initially served with roasted beets, preserved lemon, pistachio butter, pistachio gremolata, creamy taleggio and goat cheese.
Other offerings include handmade Bucatini pasta served with buttery lobster, butternut squash, preserved oranges, chili and toasted milk solid pancito, as well as dry-aged duck breast with a maple shoyu and earthy salsify.
There’s also large-format dishes designed to share, including a bone-in porterhouse with balsamic onion marmalade, whole roasted turbot with smoked caviar beurre blanc, and “All of the Chicken,” a whole bird prepared in four ways — crispy fried legs, duck fat confit thighs, Peking-style cured and roasted breast, and a stuffed chicken wing served with a soft Mandarin pancake.
Dessert offerings from Pastry Chef Ben Robison (Bacco Ristorante, Chartreuse, Freya), which will incorporate local ingredients and wood-fired components, include the “Chocolate,” an indulgent dark chocolate ganache topped with milk chocolate cream, dehydrated white chocolate and dried cranberry compote, and the “Citrus,” a tangy grapefruit panna cotta served with olive oil cake, citrus supremes, milk crumb, and garnished with white chocolate.
In addition, the restaurant offers the Chef’s Counter experience, where an off-the-menu six-course meal is served at an eight-seat counter alongside the kitchen for $110 with an optional beverage pairing.
Once the restaurant opens, the team plans to rotate dishes near-daily to match the fresh ingredients available from local suppliers, many located less than 50 miles from the restaurant, including Goetz Farm, Prochaska Farms, Tantré Farm, and more.
Echelon’s beverage program, led by Beverage Director and Sommelier Taylor Johnson (The Royce Detroit, Michael Symon’s Roast, The Dixboro Project) offers craft cocktails like the Mace, a sophisticated blend of Detroit City Distillery’s Butcher’s Cut Bourbon, Dr. Bird Jamaican Rum from Detroit’s Two James Distillery, a Vermouth blend, bitters, and mace aromatics, as well as the Modern Medicine, made using a base of Charles Woodson Bourbon with sweet vermouth, Genepy, maraschino and absinthe, with a portion of proceeds from each cocktail going to the Charles Woodson Clinical Research Fund.
Creative low ABV and spirit-free cocktails also are available, including the Berry featuring a tangy wild berry shrub and bitter lemon tonic, and the Garden with herbal Seedlip Garden, a vegetal pea garden syrup and lime.
In addition to spirits, the draft beer and cider list is exclusively sourced from regional producers, including Arbor Brewing Co., BOS Cider, and Barrel + Beam. The wine list features national and international offerings, and spotlights Michigan wineries such as Stranger Wine Co., Shady Lane Cellars, Left Foot Charley, and Schramm’s Mead.
The 7,000-square-foot, 150-seat space was designed by Anne Faherty of Chicago-based Faherty Interiors (Joe Muer Seafood Nashville, Truli Italian Eatery Florida, Agadir Moroccan Restaurant Abu Dhabi) to evoke the warmth of dining in a local’s home, with residential-style seating and large windows.
With exposed original brick walls, the dining room features illustrations of Ann Arbor’s historic landmarks — including a nod to the iconic football stadium — tying the restaurant to the town’s identity.
Echelon plans to create a financially viable career route for those in hospitality, including presenting mentorship opportunities at local schools, weekly staff dish workshops, a culinary library, and initiatives like a “Well Being Fund” that provides additional monthly support to non-tipped workers.
Echelon Kitchen & Bar will be open for dinner service Thursday through Monday. Reservations can be made through Tock.
For more information, visit echelonkitchenandbar.com.