High

May 18, 2023

VAN BUREN COUNTY, MI — An avid seafood lover, Ryan Sylvester has long dreamt about opening his own seafood restaurant.

On Wednesday, July 19, that dream will come to fruition, when Sylvester and his staff open Sly’s Seafood & Co. in downtown Paw Paw.

The name was selected as a tribute to Sylvester’s dad, who has long gone by the nickname, “Sly.”

Located in the former home of the Indian Trails bus depot, 217 E. Michigan Ave., the building was most recently was home to the Garden Griddle. The former breakfast and lunch spot closed in March, creating an opportunity for Sylvester, who also founded and runs Paw Paw Brewing Company.

Related: Paw Paw Brewing Co. opens new pub in former factory

“I spent the last few years looking for another location, whether it be another brewery or a restaurant,” he said. “When this building came available downtown, I jumped. I love the history of it and just the look of it, from the brick walls to the tin ceiling to the old wood flooring.”

The interior of Sly's Seafood & Co. in Paw Paw, Michigan, on Tuesday, July 18, 2023. (Photo provided by Kristin Sylvester)

When Sylvester moved in four months ago, there was nothing more than a hood in the kitchen. His team moved quickly to get everything ready to open by midsummer.

Sly’s is now ready to offer an intimate, fine-dining experience in a space with 44 seats and white marble tabletops.

The restaurant, open for dinner only, is opening its doors with a scaled-down menu, featuring just three starters, four entrees, four sides and a pair of desserts to choose from.

Appetizers, ranging from $14 and $19, include the smoked peach caprese, crab napoleon and sauteed prawns.

Entrees, which range from $22 to $30, feature a dry-aged New York strip, baked snapper, roasted lobster tail and pan-seared diver scallops — the latter of which is served in a truffled carrot cream sauce with a gluten-free white sturgeon caviar and a side.

The initial side options include buttered herb baby potatoes, parmesan green beans, Mediterranean grilled eggplants and lemon couscous. For dessert, Sly’s offers a triple berry cobbler and peach-soaked brioche cake.

The menu has been curated by Chef Steven Thurston, a 2018 graduate of New York’s Culinary Institute of America.

Thurston, a Mattawan native, spent the past few years working on farms in Connecticut and Florida, as well as at a couple resorts, before coming home.

“It gave me some of the passion I have that I’m putting into this place,” he said. “I’ll be using what I can locally, but exploring flavors that are way beyond our bounds. That means using what the great state of Michigan has to offer, but being able to provide flavors from around the world.”

The red snapper is flown in from the Gulf of Mexico, the Lobster Tail comes from the Canadian east coast and some other items are coming from California. The bulk of the menu will be coming from close to home, however, with more than 80% of the vegetables coming from nearby Bankson Lake Farms in Lawton.

“What’s in season for them will be in season for us,” Sylvester said.

The menu is expected to change every couple weeks. Local seafood will include everything from Lake Superior walleye to Lake Michigan salmon and yellow perch, rainbow smelt, brown and brook trout, steelhead and whitefish, Thurston said.

The restaurant was built out without any deep friers. To best preserve flavor, all seafood dishes will be either sauteed, steamed or boiled, Sylvester said.

The New York Strip is made from Michigan Braveheart beef. Prior to being pan seared and broiled, it will be aged in house through a 20-day wet age and 20-day dry age process, Thurston said.

“I can’t wait for people to see what he does,” Sylvester said of his chef. “They are going to be surprised that it’s in Paw Paw.”

Sly’s will soon also be serving craft wine, wine cocktails and cider from Paw Paw Brewing Company.

The brewing company is working on getting a tasting room license from the state. The license will allow Sly’s to serve wine and cider and eventually distilled spirits manufactured at Paw Paw Brewing Company. The brewing company expects to be creating spirits by year’s end.

On the non-alcoholic front, the restaurant will also have Paw Paw Brewing Company Root Beer.

Given the small size of the restaurant, reservations are highly encouraged and can be placed at slysseafoodco.com or through the Toast app. Sly’s is open from 4 to 10 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays. The restaurant is closed on Sundays and Mondays.

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